William Parker Teed took third place in the 2021 BirdWatching Photography Awards with this beautiful photo of Roseate Spoonbills standing on Fort Myers Beach, on the Gulf Coast of Florida. He photographed the idyllic scene in August 2016.
A few of the birds preen while the rest have their bills tucked into their backs with one leg raised.
“It was a very quiet morning,” Teed said. “The water was still and very shallow. The pond is seasonal and formed by the summer rain. The spoonbills were just waking up as the sun rose. The location was perfect, as were the colors of the scene.”
He took the photo with a Pentax K-1 camera and a 300mm lens. To see more of his images, visit William’s website.
The photo was one of more than 770 that photographers entered in our contest. Last week, we featured it among the dozen finalists. Check the links below for the first- and second-place images as well as our finalists and honorable mentions.
View the contest’s honorable mentions
Enter your photos in our Bird Portrait contest
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