2016 It's Amazing Out There winners Grand Prize winner. Photo by Greg Gulbransen The Weather Channel recently announced winners of its annual It's Amazing Out There photo contest, awarding $15,000 to the grand prize winner.
Second and third place winners took home cash prizes as well, and a total of 64 finalists were recognized for their photos celebrating fantastic weather, wildlife and adventure. Take a look at a few favorites here, including one from a familiar face.
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Grand Prize winner. Photo by Greg Gulbransen
Greg Gulbransen captured this photo of a polar bear on the frozen Hudson Bay in Manitoba, Canada when a rapid temperature drop at sunrise created the mist in this image.
'I said to myself, "I hope a bear walks into this scene' and sure enough this bear just walked into the scene," he says. 'The bear walked out there with his head down. I was so cold, I couldn’t feel my fingertips and I was praying my battery wouldn’t freeze and I said, "bear, would you just lift your head about 8 inches?" And sure enough, it lifted its head and that’s when I got the shot. I knew it was a special moment when I took it. '
If only nature was always so cooperative for photos.
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Second place. Jomblang (Grubug) Cave, Indonesia. Photo by Dale Johnson
We featured Dale Johnson's work last year as part of our Readers' Showcase series and since then he's continued to gain recognition for his photos. He describes this shot from a trip inside Jomblang Cave in Indonesia as 'the toughest selfie I've ever taken. ' If Instagram selfies were half as good as this one, we'd generally like them a whole lot more.
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Third place. Photo by Derek Burdney
Derek Burdney's photo of a Texas thunderstorm earns him the contest's third place prize. Based in Omaha, Neb. Burdney says of this storm 'The [weather] models looked good, so we got in position and watched this thing develop. It was a beautiful storm and everything was good for tornado production. It was really rotating. It never threw a tornado down, but it was really photogenic. '
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Finalist. 'Walking in the clouds. ' Midway Geyser at Yellowstone National Park. Photo by Derek Burdney
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Finalist. 'Playtime. ' Photo by Jimmy Marz
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Finalist. 'Galactic Rainbow. ' Stargazing on top of Maui's Haleakala Volcano. Photo by Michael Trofimov
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Finalist. 'Sunset gallop through the marshes. ' A herd of Camargue White Horses galloping through a marshy area in the Camargue region, southern France. Photo by Steve Lange
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Finalist. 'Fisherman on the Dam. ' Three fly fisherman crossing the dam on a small creek in Tennessee. Photo by Shane Durrance
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Finalist. 'Step of rice terrace at Chiangmai, Thailand. ' Rice terrace at Chiangmai, Thailand, before rain. Photo by Sarawut Intarob
2016 It's Amazing Out There winners
Finalist. 'Weeki Wachee Springs. ' A bird's eye view of the Weeki Wachee River in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida. Photo by David Underwood
. dpreview.com2016-9-17 15:00