PHOTO CONTEST 2025 HISTORIC ENCOUNTERS
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Grand Prize Winner | Echoes of Bulow Plantation
Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park | Historic Encounters
Valleri Ames
"I created “Echoes of Bulow Plantation” at Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park, a site where Florida’s natural beauty and complicated history converge. I framed the coquina sugar mill ruins within the sweeping limbs of live oaks to show nature’s steady reclamation—how roots, light, and time soften the edges of what came before. I aim for photographs that hold space for both reverence and reflection: the resilience of the landscape, the weight of the past, and the quiet of the present moment. Florida State Parks make this possible; they protect not only habitats but also our collective memory."
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Runner-Up | The Lighthouse
Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park | Historic Encounter
Michelle Vineyard
"The lighthouse has been a quiet witness to countless moments of my life, from carefree childhood days to bittersweet visits home. Though I no longer live in Florida, returning to this shore feels like coming back to center- a place where time slows and memory breathes.
The calm expanse of blue, the soft rhythm of the tide, and the steadfast tower all remind me that peace is not always found in silence, but in presence. Through this image, I hope to share that stillness- the way the ocean hums beneath the wind, and how the light seems to whisper that everything, for this moment, is exactly as it should be."
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People's Choice | Lu, Veteran of the Film Industry
Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park | Historic Encounter
Casey Fredette
"Florida’s State Parks are an absolute wonderland of flora, fauna, beaches, and history. Lu the hippopotamus, originally Lucifer, was an unmissable and lovable part of the state park system. Having moved to Florida in the 1960s to work in the film industry, Lu and his story touched the hearts of countless people across the world. Lu was a living memory of the old film industry as well as the oldest known hippo in the world. I enjoyed having the opportunity to photograph Lu for nearly 40% of his life, including capturing this photo in his last weeks."
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Finalist | Catwalk Into the Past
Highlands Hammock State Park | Historic Encounters
Haley Rutger
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Finalist | Old Flagler Bridge
Bahia Honda State Park | Historic Encounters
Heather Bossowski
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Finalist | Hobe Mountain Tower
Jonathan Dickinson State Park | Historic Encounters
Ethan Coyle