Predators’ eyes and a Hollywood sunset: The images that won our December prizes unveiled

posted Sunday, January 15, 2017 at 9:48 AM EDT

Ah, to win prize money with your photography. Now isn't that a great concept? Shoot a cool shot, submit it to us, win Adorama cash you can put towards that next lens you've been dreaming about... simple!

OK, so it's really not that simple. The three photographers we're featuring for you this month have all spent many years honing their craft and diligently submitting images month after month into our contest. Indeed, most of our prize-winning photographers throughout the year come from the ranks of those willing to try and try again, and that's a good reminder for all of us.

Patience and diligence are strong allies for success in most any endeavor, and photography perhaps even more so. We're grateful to the five photographers honored from the month of December for theirs, and for the skill and class they bring to our publication. Most of our readers are die-hard gear-heads, no doubt about it, but it's the end result that counts the most, and our prize-winning images are a great example of why we all put forth the money and the time to stay engaged in the game.

First Prize • $300 gift certificate from Adorama

First Prize • Screech Owl by Terry Piotraschke • Nikon D7200

(Congratulations, Terry, and thanks for a wonderful image and composition!)

Second Prize • $200 gift certificate from Adorama

Second Prize • Sunset Over the Hollywood Sign by Luc Mena • Sony A7R Mark II

(This was one of the big favorites of the judging panel, Luc.
A magnificent shot. Thanks for sending it our way!)

Third Prize • $100 gift certificate from Adorama

Third Prize • Canada Lynx Up Close by Keith Nichols • Olympus E-M5 Mark II

(Riveting. Thanks, Keith!)

Congratulations once again to our three prize winners from December!

Additional Honors

First runner-up • Fiery Throated Hummingbird by Melissa Anderson • Canon 70D

(A delightful image. Thanks once again, Melissa!)

Second runner-up • Stealth In Flight by Dave Nye

(A splendid shot, Dave! Many thanks.)

• December Winner's Gallery •

[Editor's note: When voting for the monthly winners, the voting panel is only shown the printed images and is not aware of the name of the photographers nor the camera models.]

This concludes our contest for the year of 2016, and to all photographers who have submitted images throughout the year: We Thank You! Here's to photographic enjoyment and success in 2017, and please keep the excellent submissions coming our way!

• • •

For gear-heads curious about the gear, this month was a good spread across manufacturers. The prize-winning images were shot with a Nikon D7200, a Sony A7R Mark II and an Olympus E-M5 Mark II, while the runner-up images were shot with a Canon 70D and a Canon 7D Mark II. For more about what our prize-winning photographers shoot with and why, please see this article.

For those of you wanting to know more about our competition please visit this news story, which describes our contest and also offers some useful tips to help you succeed, and this story that warns you of the best ways to NOT succeed. To see the camera and exposure information for this month's winners, please click any image above, and to see winners from previous months, please visit our POTD winner's gallery.

[And if you're ready to enter now, just click here!]

On a related note, we've just started a new series of articles called "Reader Stories," where we turn the tables and let you, our readers, do the talking! We're interested in seeing more of the shots you're the happiest with, and in hearing just how you got them, or just hearing about your passions, interests and the gear you love! Intrigued? Please click here!