ORD, Nebraska -- Winning photographs have been chosen in the Lower Loup NRD’s 2024 Photo Contest. In the competition that ran from November 2023 through May 15, 2024, 35 photographers from the Lower Loup NRD and across Nebraska submitted 330 images. Subjects photographed included wildlife, landscapes, events, sports, weather phenomena, wildflowers, recreation, architecture, and agriculture. The following photographers are recognized:

• FIRST PLACE: Cheryl Albright, Ravenna; For a scenic image of a foggy sunrise at Annevar Park in Ravenna.
• SECOND PLACE: Cameron Jennings, Broken Bow; For a winter image of an irrigation pivot with the Milky Way glowing in the night sky
• THIRD PLACE: DE Grabenstein, Lincoln; For an image of a potato field west of Columbus covered with purple blooms.

Albright’s first place image will be printed, framed, and displayed at the Lower Loup NRD office in Ord, Nebraska. Her print will replace the 2023 winning print by Robyn Koelling of Ord. After one year, when the winning 2025 LLNRD Photo Contest image replaces it, Albright will be presented with her winning print. All three places will receive a prize package of Lower Loup NRD logo items.

“The Lower Loup NRD is Nebraska’s largest Natural Resources District,” said LLNRD Information and Education Coordinator Alan Bartels, who administered the contest. “From the Sandhills to scenic farms and ranchland, and hundreds of miles of streams, the photo opportunities in this area are just about endless. We hope people will continue exploring the Lower Loup NRD, with or without their camera. But they might as well bring it. We will announce the next photo contest later this year.”

First Place photo by Cheryl Albright of Ravenna, Nebraska. A scenic image of a foggy sunrise at Annevar Park in Ravenna.