Congratulations to our photo contest winners and runner-ups!

Big Win for Lisabees with the Elk!!! Yes, I voted for it! And for runner up on the Austrian Copper roses, which I also voted for! And r.u. in tulips! Katlian, came close in almost every category! But, frankly, I think your landscapes should have done better! because I liked them a lot. Denver Jude, your water lily and sage! However, I really liked your entry in tropical plants which was an excellent still life composition. Well Done! Hope I am not forgetting anyone but just looked a few minutes ago. Very exciting.

The copper rose was fantastically beautiful! I am so glad it made it in the rose category.
And thanks for the votes everyone! I'm quite surprised that I had three pictures make it. Even I didn't vote for all my entries - there were so many better ones! I am so looking forward to the calendar!
*squirms impatiently to buy gifts for my gardening friends and family*

Congrats to all. The RM Forum did well!

I am afraid I am just now starting to really look at the photos, but right away, the first thing I saw was lisabees's lovely bull elk. It was so clearly number one. Sorry, dahlia, I even enjoyed the picture of the squirrel. I know it is evil, but it was so cute! I will be looking at the others. Can't wait to see the other RM Forum winners.

Thanks Roybird, I think the landscape entries were too dark and stormy for most people. I'm kind of bummed that most of the entries I voted for didn't even make runner up. I thought the seagulls by RUK were very artistic, even if you don't like seagulls.

Evil things can be cute.

Katlian, Most of my favorite pictures don't even make runner up! But, I have weird tastes. I am always glad when one I did vote for wins or gets in at all. I really like the dragonfly that won on insects not butterflies. It is an excellent shot. Like Lisabee's elk, there are some that just Will win. The hummingbirds; I knew they would win and it is a great shot. Some things seem more subjective, though.

CONGRATS to lisabees, katlian and DJ and all who participated in this years contest! The RM group did well in so many catagories! WE ROCK!

Yes, congrats to all who won and/or got runner up! Definitely a good showing from the RM forum!

The battling hummers was a great shot. That is some skill to get that.

Congrats all!

Thanks for all the congratulations on my elk pic & others - I was so excited to win one & have my pics show up 5 categories! Thanks for the votes if you voted for me. Katlian and Denver Jude, congratulations on your pics too - I think you both got some of MY votes!



This message was edited Nov 17, 2009 12:34 PM

Katlian & Roybird, I had the exact same impression-- most of what I voted for didn't even make runner-up status. So I went through and counted, and I actually voted for 31 photos that made it. Of those, 14 placed. So I guess my tastes are not so very far from the norm.

But I did go back and look to see who I had voted for that "didn't make the vote cut". And these were some fantastic photos:
lisabees and Jude's macros
Brenda's Scottish Highlands
Roybird's bee on her way back to the hive
Brenda's SW Colorado in fall
Katlian's stars in Zion NP

I'm proud of all the talent in our midst!

I also have to laugh that I didn't go for your elk, lisabees. After 8 years of working in Yellowstone, another close shot of an elk didn't grab my attention. I like some of your others better because, to me, they are more unusual.

I didn't expect any of my handful of photos to make a showing, but there is one that I still really love: the shot of my friend's dog seen through her bridal veil.

Picante, I loved that picture of the dog through the bridal veil too. I didn't realize it was yours! Very nice, And thanks for the honorable mentions. I didn't have very many photos that I thought were worthy of the contest this year for some reason. It seems I need to get out and take more pictures! And again I agree, RM forum seems to have some amazingly talented photographers!

I confess, that I didn't vote in the contest and have only barely looked at the photos. Too much going on. I did see some of the winners and loved them, but really need to spend some time chilling out and looking at all those beautiful photos.

http://davesgarden.com/contest/2009/image.php?rid=14329&catid=304

These two critters look like soulmates.

Another great picture.

I only managed to vote in some of the categories.

Oh, that was my favorite, first place, of the pet photos! Victor, Huh? Figures. He is really good, I think.

Yessir, I noticed I picked quite a few of his.
http://davesgarden.com/contest/2009/image.php?rid=14448&catid=310

And Dahlia, you're right. Those dahlias were bebop's.

OMG! That was his, too? I voted for it! Picante, do we have similar tastes? Sometimes, anyway.

Bebop has really good pictures almost All the Time. It is annoying! l.o.l. One of my very favorite photos was a sunrise taken by Dinu, which I don't think was in the top however many but is an Amazing picture. He also had the white snail, I believe. Which, I'm sorry, I can't vote for a snail. I like them the way Dahlia likes squirrels and Paja likes gophers, or whatever they are.

Maybe so, roybird. Did you like Jean-Jacques' photo of the lava pouring into the Indian Ocean? That was my top pick for scenery.

And this composition is so fine:
http://davesgarden.com/contest/2009/image.php?rid=14448&catid=310

We cross-posted, roybird.

This message was edited Nov 18, 2009 4:54 PM

Woops, that was the wrong link. The western pond turtles was the one I meant:
http://davesgarden.com/contest/2009/image.php?rid=13387&catid=303

I thought the exact same thing on that picture of the snail. The better the picture the grosser the snail.

http://davesgarden.com/contest/2009/image.php?rid=15440&catid=324
This one had me snorkling. Who is palmbob? He had loads of good pics.

palmbob lives in CA, likes to grow Palms and other desert tropicals, has written a number of articles for DG, has contributed many plants to PF, etc.

I voted for the pond turtles, too. Probably 3rd, I forget. For landscapes I voted for mine! and Katlian's. Also a very cool picture of a farm type scene with a storm coming up. The light was superb! So, not the volcano spewing in to the sea. There was another landscape picture of trees and a trail that was taken in the Bosque around Socorro? It was my 4th fav. I love stormy skies, deserts and mountains best. Speaking of which. My favorite butterfly picture was of a small butterfly, orange, against grey boulders in some mountainous place. It was more about the contrast of the insect and the rock. Probably more about the nature of the insect and the place than about butterfly I.D. I'd like to see that one again. No idea who took it.

The butterfly photo I mentioned is by someone called " blueinsight " and was taken at Mt. Hood, Oregon. I'll have to D-mail this person!

I TOTALLY luv the little orange flutterby on the mountain! It's funny how we gravitate to certain scenes. I luv winter scenes. I was so happy to see some of these place better than the fall scenes as alot of peoples prefer fall scenes.

Yes. I did D-mail blueinsight. I also looked up the bosque landscape, bmuller, and the photo was taken in Albuquerque, NM. So, I want to D-mail that person. And the farm landscape with the light was creekwalker. All 3 are people I am unfamiliar with. You know how one tends to run in to some of the same folks all the time here. Dahlia, no wonder you are a forum floozy!

I really like the mushroom shot by bigcityal. Not the most exciting mushroom ever but the light and dew drops were fabulous.http://davesgarden.com/contest/2009/image.php?rid=13934&catid=305 I also like the tulip by victorgardener because of it's unusual perspective. http://davesgarden.com/contest/2009/image.php?rid=14448&catid=310

Thanks for posting the highlights for me here, everybody. Loved the cat and the cat's picture. I have long enjoyed Palmbob's articles on succulents. Once he dmailed me to tell me that he grew up in Los Alamos and did some gardening here when he was a kid. He is a veterinarian in addition to being a great succulent grower and photographer. I like his stuff, too.
The two turtles picture looks as if it could have been taken on our farm lake in Mississippi. We have lots of such turtles which like to bask on logs in the lake.