North Carolina owls photo wins top prize in national neighborhood pic contest: See other stunning entries
Americans showed off beauty of local surroundings through Nextdoor's #LoveYourNeighborhood photo contest
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}America’s communities from coast to coast are full of photo-worthy moments.
Neighborhood networking app Nextdoor, a company that's based in San Francisco, gave Americans a chance to show off the beauty of local surroundings with its national #LoveYourNeighborhood photo contest.
The competition invited people to submit a photo that showcased the "unique flavor, beauty and spirit" of their neighborhood, Nextdoor said in a press release.
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While more than 14,000 entries flooded in from neighbors across the country, Nextdoor selected one stunning photo of two owls in Hendersonville, North Carolina, as this year’s winner.
Grand prize winner Ron Goings received praise for his shot of the great horned owl pair perched in a tree — which also won the #NationalWonders category of the competition.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Two great horned owls are spotted and photographed in Hendersonville, North Carolina. (Ron Goings, #LoveYourNeighborhood contest)
"Our area offers many photographic opportunities," Goings said.
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Goings will receive a prize package full of goodies.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Those will include a new Nikon digital camera, a MasterClass subscription, $500 in gift vouchers and a book featuring a selection of entries from #LoveYourNeighborhood competitions around the world.
Other finalists include Francesca Austin of Oakland, California, who snapped a stunning sunrise view to win the #CityScape category.
Austin shared in a statement that she volunteers at WildCare wild animal and bird rescue of San Rafael on Monday mornings — so she often catches the sunrise while taking early morning walks with her dog, Red.
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"In the darker days of fall and winter I can often catch a colorful sunrise," she said.
"This happened on a November Monday with a unique purple sunrise lighting up the sky, including the feeding white Pelican flock."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The sun rises over Oakland, California. (Francesca Austin, #LoveYourNeighborhood contest)
#LocalFave category winner Susanne Thompson of Atlanta, Georgia, submitted a photo of the sun peeking through Briarlake Forest Park's orange and yellow fall foliage.
"One of the things I love about our neighborhood is that there are people who care about the environment and about creating spaces in nature for people to enjoy ... just miles from downtown," she said.
The sun peeks through fall foliage in Briarlake Forest Park in Atlanta, Georgia. (Susanne Thompson, #LoveYourNeighborhood contest)
Cindy Thomas of Albuquerque was named winner of the #SunriseSunset category for her snapshot of an "amazing sunset" over the New Mexico landscape.
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"I had to run inside the house to grab my camera," she said.
Sunset captured in an Albuquerque, New Mexico backyard. (Cindy Thomas, #LoveYourNeighborhood contest)
Other entries include gorgeous fall scenery in Carlisle, Pennsylvania; neon lights in Los Angeles; and a colorful sunset reflected over a lake in Lakewood, Colorado.
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"In reviewing the thousands of images we received, just three words reverberated throughout the entries: Love your neighborhood," Nextdoor CEO Sarah Friar wrote in a statement.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"As we head toward the holidays and reflect on the year, these images are a reminder of the inspiration that can be found right outside our doors," she also said.