The Third Annual Nature Photography Contest received a record number of entries this year. Over 600 photographs poured into our office! It was not only the large number of entries that made out judges decision so difficult, but it was the high quality of nearly every photograph. The crew here at Georgia Outdoors is especially proud of this. Perhaps a few tips have been picked up over the years by watching our Photo Contest episodes. We sure hope so and we look forward scouring through to more breathtaking photographs next year!

Grand Prize Winner – Emory Moody
"I had sent in quite a few pictures and it was a thrill getting the phone call telling me I had won!" answered Emory Moody during our interview of him for an episode of Georgia Outdoors. We met up Emory while he was enjoying part of his grand prize: a weekend at Barnsley Gardens. The Gardens provided a wonderful backdrop for Emory to continue his favorite hobby and snap some first-rate photographs. "It's unlike a lot of other places, its nice and quiet here walking around the gardens. The ruins are pretty unique, there's quite a bit of history associated with them."

Barnsley Gardens was originally built as a private mountain retreat for Godfrey and Julia Barnsley in the 1840s. Regrettably, Julia Barnsley died of a lung ailment before she was ever to truly enjoy the fully completed estate. After a year of mourning it is said that Julia's spirit returned to Godfrey in the fountain of the formal garden. Under her guidance the gardens and estate were finished. Members of the Barnsley lived on the estate until 1942 when the property was auctioned. When Prince Hubertus Fugger of Germany purchased the estate in 1988 the transformation into Barnsley Gardens, a luxury resort, began.

Emory also received as part of his prize package a Nikon camera kit, a $200 gift certificate from Showcase Camera in Atlanta, and $200 worth of Fuji Film. Emory told us about the photograph that netted him all this loot, "I was spending the weekend down in MacIntosh County and had gone over to Harris Neck Wildlife Preserve. I had been over there most of the morning just wondering around and right before I left, right on the main lake, there was a night heron. It was just sitting there and I started photographing him, took about three shots and then he started opening his mouth and really posing for me, so I wound up shooting close to an entire roll on that one bird. The one I sent in was the one that I liked the most. He was really posing good for me that day"

Emory also shared with us some tips for taking great nature photographs. "The main thing I would tell them is To Do It! The only way to get pictures is to go take them" explains Emory, "It takes a fair amount of patience and it takes a lot of getting dirty" While nature photography is Emory's passion, his full time job is with Southern Company though he confesses, "I considered photography as a career very seriously at one time, but with everything considered, I decided to keep photography as a hobby." Well we think that Emory might just have what it takes to be a successful professional photographer. Take a look at some of Emory's other work. Congratulations Emory!

First and Second Place Winners...

More Outstanding Photos

Take a look at some of Emory's other photographs