Here are the winners of the 2021 Cottage Life photo contest

One morning after a rainfall, Jesse Villemaire was out in his backyard, tending to his garden, when he spotted something moving amongst the lilies. “Needless to say, my gardening ended, and my camera came out instead,” says Jesse. He immediately started taking shots of the spring peeper—a small chorus frog. Our judges were amazed that Jesse noticed the tiny amphibian in the garden, let alone that it stayed still long enough for him to take a technical picture. The green leaves, water droplets, and frog are all sharp, while the rest of the photograph is soft, creating a depth of field that draws your attention straight to the creature. Placing the frog at the bottom of the frame made our judges feel like they were peering into the greenery. “Ever since I was a child, I’ve been fascinated by small creatures,” says Jesse. “I remember when I was young, I would go out with my father and search for toads, frogs, salamanders, and turtles. This photo brings all of those memories back.”

Melissa McCallum, her husband, and their two kids, Zach, 8, and Sophie, 4, go for a sunset swim every night after dinner at their cottage on Crawford Lake, Ont. “August was extremely hot at the lake, so the kids were constantly in the water,” says Melissa. “It was the last weekend we were going to be at the cottage before we went home and got ready for school. We were soaking up the final days of summer.” Our judges have looked through thousands of photos of people jumping off docks over the years and agreed that this is one of the best they’ve ever seen. Melissa captured the golden hour glow that comes right before sunset, creating a sense of nostalgia. The backlighting results in a softness around the children and a gentle reflection on the wooden boards. “It’s one of my favourite photos,” says Melissa. “It captures summer and childhood at the cottage and reminds me of when I was a kid.”

Firefighter Alex Beland had just finished a couple of busy shifts before driving up to his cottage on Sand Lake, Ont., for some time off with his family. “They had woken up and were trying to be quiet while I got a bit of a sleep in,” says Alex. His wife, Jennifer, and their three kids, Maddie, 3, Ben, 4, and Emma, 6, tucked themselves into the daybed in the screened-in porch. “I woke up, got a coffee, and saw everyone snuggled together,” says Alex. He walked to the end of the bed, held up his phone with the camera pointed down, and hoped for the best. Our judges agreed the quirks of this photo add to its appeal—the window frame not being square, the asymmetry, the pile of books. Putting the family in the centre makes it feel balanced. The soft colours add timelessness to this endearing moment.

Mike Feraco was walking around his friend’s cottage property at Mill Lake, Ont., when he saw this red-winged blackbird perched on a bulrush. “I was on an evening stroll with my wife when I saw the shot,” says Mike. “I told her to hang on a second, and she knew exactly what I was going to do.” He set up his tripod about 100 feet from the bird and snapped a few photos. Our judges loved the vivid colours and texture Mike captured. He used a wide aperture to get the foreground in focus and draw our attention straight to the action. Most photographers would place the bird to the side of the frame to follow the rule of thirds, but this unusual composition caught our judges’ eyes right away. “I saw the photo in my mind before I set up my camera,” says Mike. “The sun was starting to go down, and the moment felt peaceful. The bird was so relaxed. It was still there after I tore down my equipment.”

“I was cruising the Kawartha Lakes area on a brisk February morning searching for snowy owls to photograph,” says Susan Brown. “All of a sudden, this northern hawk owl swooped over an open field with a fresh meal and perched perfectly on a branch.” Our judges were amazed by the timing of this photo—how the owl’s head turned to look at the camera at the exact moment Susan hit the shutter. The owl is sharp in front of the vibrant blue sky, while the slightly blurred snow adds softness to the winter scene. You can feel the chilly temperature through the detail captured in the owl’s feathers. “Three years ago, I realized something,” says Susan. “A bad weather day in nature was better than another day in a cubicle.”

Richard Briginshaw’s wife, Angela, didn’t know the full magic of this moment when she first saw it on Manitou Bay, Que. “I was in the basement opening up the blinds, and there was what I thought was a rainbow,” she says. “I called Richard over—the rainbow didn’t look normal. So we went to the main level of the cottage, looked out the windows, and realized that we were actually seeing sundogs.” Richard grabbed his camera, went up to the attic for a better view, and started clicking away. Our judges were immediately taken aback by the almost surreal quality of this image. Capturing the sunrise and sundogs from an elevated perspective creates a sense of quiet power, while the soft winter light casts long shadows on the bay. The trees in the foreground create a framing effect that helps build a sense of scale and focus in the photo. “The sundogs ended up staying for an hour,” says Angela. “It was one of our favourite mornings at the cottage.”

“You don’t have a lot of time to capture something as beautiful as this sunset,” says Ryan Estabrooks. “It’s usually here and gone before you know it.” Our judges agree. There are only a few minutes in the day when the light is balanced this way. By taking the photo of the clouds in the sky, rather than the sun going down over the water, Ryan captured a gradation of colours that the bright sun would otherwise overpower. The buildings in the distance hint at activity, contextualizing the moment of isolation. The image evokes a feeling of getting away from it all. “The Northumberland Straight is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been in Canada,” says Ryan. “And our cottage sits right on Peacock Cove—there couldn’t be a more suiting name.”