Winners of the 1981 Natural History 
Photographic Competition 
Participation in this year’s Photo- 
graphic Competition was enthusiastic, 
and many contestants were attracted 
by the announcement of a new cat- 
egory, Historical Photographs. With 
each entrant allowed to submit up to 
five pictures, thousands of photo- 
graphs arrived at our offices for ex- 
amination. The task of the three 
judges was to view approximately 400 
slides and prints chosen as finalists 
by Natural History's designer and pic- 
ture editor. Presiding this year were 
David Doubilet, an award-winning 
photographer for the National Geo- 
graphic Society, who specializes in un- 
derwater work; Ken Heyman, a pho- 
tographer widely recognized for his 
interpretation of the human condition, 
who collaborated with Margaret Mead 
on numerous projects, including the 
books Family and World Enough ; and 
Mary Ellen Mark, a noted free-lance 
photographer whose credits include 
the books Passport , Ward 81, and 
Falkland Road. 
In handing out the various prizes, 
the judges deviated in one respect 
from the announced provisions of the 
competition. In one of the major cat- 
egories, Plants and Their Environ- 
ment, they were faced with a black- 
and-white photograph and color 
photograph that they admired equally, 
and so declared a tie for first place. 
First Prizes were bestowed without 
such indecision in the other two major 
categories: Animals and The Human 
Family. Additional photographs 
earned Merit Awards in Photomicrog- 
raphy, A Sequence in Nature, His- 
torical Photographs, and Humor in 
Nature, while nine entries received 
Honorable Mention. Finally — with 
some apologies for their unconven- 
tional choice — the judges awarded the 
Grand Prize to the one photograph 
that most impressed them. 
Our thanks to all who took part 
in this year’s contest. The deadline 
and rules for the 1982 competition 
will be announced in a future issue 
of Natural History. 
Vittorio Maestro 
66 
