Zooming in on winners of Lake Erie Photo Contest

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After receiving more than 200 photos, the Lake Erie Center has announced the winners of its 2014 photo contest.

The contest’s theme, “The Nature of Our Region: From Oak Openings to Maumee Bay,” invited camera enthusiasts to submit up to five photos featuring various nature scenes throughout northwest Ohio.

Submissions were separated into categories: youth, teen, adult, and special needs adult.

First-place winners received a $50 Visa gift card and will have their winning entries framed and displayed in the Lake Erie Center.

Listed by category, the winners are:

• Youth — Nico Francis-Emonds, whose photo titled “Bug Berries” is a close-up of an insect crawling across red berries with green foliage in the background;

• Teen — Clyde Swander, who took a black-and-white photo of a Canada goose observing the sounding area;

• Adult — Jeff Jellinger, whose photo titled “Rad Tad” captured a mature tadpole hiding in the autumn leaves underwater; and

• Adult special needs — Marc Arnett, who photographed a red-winged blackbird peeking out of green leaves.

The contest also featured a People’s Choice Award, which went to the shot that received the most votes on the Lake Erie Center’s Facebook page.

That honor went to David Tidrick, who snapped a shot of a sunrise over the horizon of the foggy Lake Erie water.

Go to facebook.com/lakeeriecenter to see more photos that placed in the categories.