Winning wildlife shots from the Cottage Life photo contest

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.”

Jodi Kirkup was hanging out in her friend’s yard in Tiny, Ont., taking photos with her phone, when she spotted these two grasshoppers. “You can’t believe what you can see when you slow down and look at what’s around you,” she says. Our judges agree. It’s amazing Jodi used her phone and got so close to the two grasshoppers without one of them hopping away. The soft, complimentary colours of the day lily play well off the bold shapes of the detailed, alien-looking insects. The close-up offers a view into a world we often overlook.

Our judges immediately gravitated towards the serenity of this image—it’s easy to want to shoot an entire flower, but the crop of the long, pure yellow petals fill the space and give the photo room to breathe. The bright hues create a sense of hope, much like the feeling Hal Chapman had when he spotted this bee on a cool summer morning in his backyard in Azilda, Ont. “It was sitting on a sunflower, immobilized and at the mercy of the cold until the sun could warm him up,” he says. Hal knew he only had a couple of minutes before the bee would be on the move, so he quickly set up his tripod and “fussed around” with a few different angles until he captured the pollen-covered bee. The level of detail is impressive—the macro shot shows off what you can’t see with the naked eye. Hal has been taking close-ups of nature for over 40 years. “Normally bees are, well, busy. I was so lucky.”

There’s no denying that this shot by Gilles St-Laurent looks like a painting. The focus on the loons and the mist and the monochromatic colour scheme almost make it too good to be true. And Gilles agrees. “I knew when I was taking the photo that it was going to be something.” He was eating breakfast at his cottage on Lac Bob, Que., when he saw the loons several metres from the shore. “I left breakfast behind and ran down to the waterfront.” By holding his camera a few millimetres above the water, Gilles was able to take this photo from the loons’ eye level, showcasing the birds and capturing the serene mood.

How can you not love this little guy? When Ivan Vujevic saw a duck family on the rocks while he was kayaking along McKellar Lake, Ont., he had to stop and say hello. He got out of his kayak, wandered over, and snapped away. We usually see a lot of photos of groups of ducks, so our judges loved the intimacy of this shot. The edges of the rocks in the background lead your eye to the duckling’s face. “I like its expression. It kind of looks fearless,” says Ivan. The shallow depth of field creates a sense of space that is calming and quiet; there’s a contrast between the stark landscape and the war, fuzziness of the duck’s feathers. It’s a feeling we don’t often get in wildlife shots. All this might have something to do with Ivan’s timing. “It was sunset, so the light was orange and golden, and that shows up in the duckling’s feathers,” he says.

Alex Boudens was exploring Ontario’s Algonquin Provincial Park with friends when they spotted this fox. Alex had his Nikon D810 camera and 200-500 mm zoom lens to help him snag this close-up from across the road. “I was waiting for the right moment,” says Alex. “It started snowing too, which was a nice touch.” Most of the fox photos he took that day were out of focus, so he was surprised to end up with this one. “It’s one of my favourite animals and probably one of my favourite wildlife photos I’ve ever taken. It was a pretty special moment.” Despite the snowy setting, we couldn’t help but feel warm when we saw this squinty fox. The shallow depth of field makes this technically strong—it puts Mr. Fox in focus in the foreground. The snow also adds detail: how it’s suspended in the air, the way it contrasts with the orange and black fur, the snowflakes that have landed on his nose, and how his fluffy tail manages to sit on top of the fresh powder, not disturbing it. Even though the background colours are muted, they frame the fox in the middle of the shot.

A familiar face swam up to the dock while Craig Valaderes was eating lunch at his girlfriend’s cottage on Sunny Lake, Ont. “Gus” is a local celebrity. “I got a few videos of him last year,” says Craig, “but I wanted to get him in his natural habitat.” Using the time-lapse mode on his waterproof GoPro, Craig took a photo every half a second or so. “I was trying to get a split view of him half in the water, but I was able to get him from underneath so you can see him in all his glory,” he says. “It looks like something out of Jurassic Park.” We’ve never seen a turtle like this before. The judges were blown away when they saw this shot. What’s special about this photo is that it captures how graceful turtles are underwater, even if they are a bit awkward on land. It’s a unique perspective that you never get to see, and it’s so clear. Gus grabs your attention the way he’s almost making eye contact with the camera; the timing had to be perfect to get him like this. This photo induces the sense of awe we want to have when we see nature photos. Bravo, Craig!

It was late August when Brad Bateman noticed a lone cicada crawling up his trellis. “The sound of cicadas is obviously a main feature at the cottage,” says Brad, whose family has been cottaging on Boshkung Lake, Ont., since 1936. He used his SLR camera, tripod, and Nikkor macro lens. “It was walking slowly enough that I could take the picture. It didn’t seem too disturbed by me,” says Brad. “Macro photography lets you see that there is more than meets the eye to whatever you’re shooting.” The cicada is a hallmark of cottage country that you hear but don’t see—it’s the sound of summer. This photo is beautifully framed; if the cicada wasn’t offset, it wouldn’t be as strong. And the lighting is amazing, so the intimacy of the shot allows you to see every detail. The translucent wings, the texture of its body, the beautiful blue-grey colouring that is mirrored in the background—this image is unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.

Last spring, Becky Inglis and her husband were cleaning up and prepping for the summer ahead at their Drag Lake, Ont., cottage when she snapped this picture. “We have a beach right in front of our cottage, so we’re used to seeing the tadpoles hatch every year,” says Becky. When she saw so many, she grabbed her SLR camera. “I wanted to get down as low as I could to get a better perspective.” The shallow water offered a clear view of the tadpoles. “We watch them grow up every year. It’s nice to see,” she says. This photo is not just beautiful, it’s a technical success: the shot captures the whole body of the frog; the depth of field makes the frame feel empty on the surface, yet full in the background; and the colour of the black tadpoles contrasts against the lighter grains of sand. We also love the little details, such as the bubbles around the frog’s mouth. Another neat thing about this photo is that it shows a female green frog with toad tadpoles (we checked with our experts). This is well-executed, original, and very cottagey. Bravo, Becky.