Picture Perfect
6/4/2025Each year, Keep Iowa Beautiful holds its Annual Photography Contest, inviting photographers to showcase Iowa’s natural and environmental beauty through their lenses and capture the essence of their favorite seasons in a creative and engaging way.
CITYVIEW reached out to the winning photographers for permission to reprint their photos and are including the entries of those who granted permission in this issue.
“Keep Iowa Beautiful’s annual photo contest is a great opportunity for photographers to capture and share the essence of Iowa’s story,” Andy Frantz, Keep Iowa Beautiful executive director, said. “We were truly impressed by the incredible quality and creativity of this year’s submissions. This contest not only highlights the immense talent of photographers across our state, but this year, we introduced a new category, Hometown Pride, to celebrate the spirit and character of the communities involved in our Hometown Pride Program.”
More than 900 photos were entered in six categories in this year’s photo contest. Winners received monetary awards. Additionally, the prestigious Robert D. Ray Best of Show awards honored top photographers with prizes of $500 for first place, $250 for second place, and $100 for third place. The Public Favorite award winner also received a $100 prize.
“As an avid photographer, my dad, Bob Ray, rarely went anywhere without his camera. Through his lens, he captured the faces and stories of Iowans he cared so deeply about. His passion for keeping Iowa beautiful extended far beyond its natural scenery; it was rooted in his love for the people who made this state so special,” said Randi Ray, Robert D. Ray’s daughter and a panelist in the photo contest.
Following are the winners in the six categories: Iowa Cities, Iowa Landscape, Iowa Water, Iowa Wildlife, Iowans in Action and Hometown Pride.
Iowa Cities:
First place: “Hazy Des Moines” by Scot Howe of Urbandale. Photo reprinted with permission
Second place: “Woodbine at Dusk” by Sarah Lenz of Woodbine. Photo reprinted with permission
Third place: Trent Hanselmann/Gigantic Design Co. Photo reprinted with permission
Iowa Landscape:
First place: “Little George Park” by Svitlana Kay of Harlan. Photo reprinted with permission
Second place: “Iowa’s Fire Tower” by Cody Davis of Grinnell. Photo reprinted with permission
PHOTO NOT AVAILABLE: Third place: “Surrounded by Corn” by Sharon Scarff of Wayland.
Honorable mention: “Surrounded by Green” by Anji Bennett of Lake View.
Photo reprinted with permission
Iowa Water:
First place: “Floating Dock” by William Beardsley of Spirit Lake. Photo reprinted with permission
Second place: “Falling for Autumn” by AJ Ash of Waukee. Photo reprinted with permission
Third place: “Aurora Borealis Over Clear Lake” by Alec Heggen of Clear Lake.
Photo reprinted with permission
Honorable mention: “Window to Serenity” by William Beardsley of Spirit Lake.
Photo reprinted with permission
Iowa Wildlife:
PHOTO NOT AVAILABLE: First place: “Cliff Swallows Arguing” by Sharon Scarff of Wayland
Second place: “Swallowtail on Purple Flowers” by Bill Benson of Carroll.
Photo reprinted with permission
Third place: “Between the Rows: Protective Mama” by Benjamin Neff of Beaman. Photo reprinted with permission
Honorable mention: “The Great One” by Cody Davis of Grinnell.
Photo reprinted with permission
Iowans in Action:
PHOTO NOT AVAILABLE: First place: “Rodeo” by Lee Navin of Ankeny
PHOTO NOT AVAILABLE: Second place: “Crop Duster” by Adam Orgler of Johnston
Third place: “Combining Natural Curves” by Anji Bennett of Lake View. Photo reprinted with permission
PHOTO NOT AVAILABLE: Honorable mention: “Fly Iowa Air Show” by Lee Navin of Ankeny
Hometown Pride:
First place: “Early Morning in July” by Katie Kettering of Clinton
Photo reprinted with permission
Second place: “Woodbine at Dusk” by Sarah Lenz of Woodbine. Photo reprinted with permission
First place: “Hazy Des Moines” by Scot Howe of Urbandale. Photo reprinted with permission
The Robert D. Ray Best of Show winners:
First place: “Cliff Swallows Arguing,” Sharon Scarff of Wayland
Second place: “Little George Park,” Svitlana Kay of Harlan
Third Place: “Hazy Des Moines,” Scot Howe of Urbandale
Public Favorite winner: “Floating Dock,” William Beardsley of Spirit Lake
