3rd Place Winner - Gray Necked Woodrail

I just found out I placed third in the Bird Category for the Buffalo Zoo Photo Contest! Granted, this is one of their smaller categories so even just submitting a photo increases your chances, but I\'m proud of this picture. Of all I selected, this one stood out the most to me. It\'s also quite rare as I believe this bird either died, got relocated to another zoo, or is hanging out in a holding area, because I only saw it once.

Fantastic photo, congrats blospz. Much better than a generic close-up.

Thank you. I bet the generic/basic Macaw photo will win first and/or second place again like last year, though. Maybe not since it was off exhibit for about 6 months or more. The Bird category is also for plants and insects. So I'm hoping maybe some pretty plant ones placed.

It really is a terrific shot... looking at those eyes looking back at you is challenging, engrossing, and hypnotic (maybe not simultaneously... I don't know the brain chemistry to say). Glad you shared it

Thank you. This little bird was hiding in the bush and kept pacing back and forth. So the second it stared at me I clicked and hoped for the best. And I loved the result. I'm really hoping first place didn't go to the Macaw again. There are so many beautiful birds; I'd love to see a Sun Bittern picture place. I actually had one with its wings spread out, but decided against it as there were other things in the shot that might have been distracting.

Great photo!

I wish Taronga Zoo would hold a photo contest like this - I think it would attract a lot of attention!

It's really a great thing. The zoo gets money because people have to pay a small amount to submit each photo and a lot of people submit something for it. Then the people who win get to see their photos on display for a year on one of the walls inside the gorilla house. Even if you submitted something and didn't win, you're invited to a ceremony where they display the winning photos, you're able to ask the judges questions, and you can everyone's submissions lined up on a table. They have these categories: Mammal, Bird/Plant/Insect, Reptile/Amphibian, Student, and Zoo Humor. Zoo Humor they told us last year is the hardest category because not only do you need the perfect photo, they are also looking for a perfect caption to go with it. They've had different categories in the past, like Babies, but this format is what they've stuck with for the past couple of years.

Pleasant surprise! I found out at the ceremony today that I actually won 2nd place in Bird Category.

If anyone is interested, here are the photos of the First Place Winners:

photo_winners

Nice photo!
I wish these birds were more common in zoos.

Very nice photo - a truly unique framing that makes it different from so many others.