The entries came from California to Florida, Louisiana to Minnesota, Aquinnah to Oak Bluffs. The subjects included beaches and lighthouses, wildlife and nature, people and pets, and lots and lots of sunrises and sunsets – in short, all the things that make the Island so picturesque. 

After reviewing almost 300 images, the judges have spoken. Here are their favorites.

First Place
Brooke Bartletta
Hingham, Massachusetts

Brooke Bartletta captured a couple enjoying a day at the Cut, where Tisbury Great Pond meets the Atlantic Ocean. One judge said he admired “the quiet of this photograph, the contained intimacy of the seated figures, the smooth water running out to sea.”

Second Place
Akos Szilvasi
Cambridge, Massachusetts

Akos Szilvasi was so inspired by his travels to the Island that he completed an entire series on the ferry. This was one of many judge-impressing images. Said one: “The contrast of the muted sunset light with the harsh, white light from the phone draws the eye right to the subject.”

Third Place
Larry Glick
Sudbury, Massachusetts

Larry Glick photographed a pair of pigs at Beetlebung Farm in Chilmark. One judge loved how the photographer got down to the animals level to snap this image: “It’s a pig’s eye view of pigs!”

Honorable Mention
LJ Glick 
Boston, Massachusetts

While fishing off Squibnocket on a foggy morning, LJ Glick put down his reel and picked up his camera to capture the moment another fisherman pulled a striped bass from the water. “I love the composition of this photograph: the clarity of the foreground; the obscurity of the background,” said one judge. “It manages to feel both active and still at the same time.” 

Honorable Mention
Reggie Forster 
Reston, Virginia

Reggie Forster photographed his friend out for a bike ride on Blueberry Ridge Lane in Chilmark. “Though there’s not a beach, sunset, or lighthouse in sight, this photo perfectly conveys the beauty of the Vineyard,” said a judge.

People’s Choice
Robin Gottesman 
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey

With almost 300 ballots cast, this year’s People’s Choice award goes to Robin Gottesman’s image of the Gay Head Lighthouse. Gottesman used a long exposure to produce the swirl of red and white lights inside the beacon.

Honorable Mention
Brooke Bartletta
Hingham, Massachusetts

“Deckhand Dale” of the Susan Rose proudly showed photographer Brooke Bartletta his whale tattoo while in Menemsha awaiting repairs to his boat. “This portrait is full of gritty individual character as well as New England culture and heritage,” said a judge. “It is very strong.”

Honorable Mention
Sarah Mayhew
Davis, California

Sarah Mayhew photographed a rare brown booby, a seabird common to the Caribbean, enjoying a meal in Menemsha. “Here we have the essence of life and death,” said one judge. “The way the poor fish casually fills its captor’s head so fully and perfectly, it makes you wonder how much room is left for, say, a brain?”

Honorable Mention
Marian Stanton
Wayland, Massachusetts

Marian Stanton, who captured this street photography image of boys watching girls, loved the irony of the sign in the background. So did our judges. “This image captures both the abject hopelessness and irrational optimism of the human male of a certain age,” said one.

Honorable Mention
Edmund Prescottano
Medfield, Massachusetts

A foggy day didn’t deter Edmund Prescottano from heading to the beach in Aquinnah, where he photographed this unoccupied beach chair and umbrella. “It’s a comically sparse image,” said a judge. Even so, “the chair is powerfully inviting. I would not even mind the cold mist or the waves washing around the chair.”

Honorable Mention
Thomas Fahey
Milton, Massachusetts

For more than seventy years, the Polar Bears have been gathering at Inkwell Beach in Oak Bluffs for a morning swim and prayer circle. “This is a beautiful take on a popular Island image,” said one judge.

The Judges

This year’s panel included Jimmy Moffat, a West Tisbury summer resident who is the founder and director of Red Hook Labs, an arts-in-education provider in Brooklyn, New York; Ray Ewing, an Islander and adjunct professor of photography at the College of the Desert in Palm Desert, California; Randi Baird, a professional photographer who lives in West Tisbury; David Jacobs, a seasonal resident of West Chop who is a professional photographer in New York;  Alley Moore, the art director for this magazine; and Vanessa Czarnecki, this magazine’s senior editor and the editor of Island Weddings magazine.