February contest theme: lakes and ponds around the world

Let’s stick with the water theme—it’s definitely the season (maybe a bit *too* much for some of those dealing with floods 😕). After the flowing waters (with varying energy levels), let’s take it easy with still waters:

Lakes (Annecy)

Ponds (near Moustiers Saint Marie)

Lagoons (Bacalar)

If you’ve got nice photos of a pond—or even a puddle—why not? Natural bodies of water only: no pools or fountains (reservoir lakes are accepted… because they often look like natural lakes ).

The contest rules are the same as always 😉: Up to 3 photos per member, one photo per post (a little explanation is better), and past winning photos from other VF contests aren’t allowed. You have until Sunday, February 22nd at 11:59 PM (Paris time) to post your photos. Voting starts Monday the 23rd at midnight—rank your top 3 photos in order (3, 2, and 1 points). Voting ends Saturday, February 28th at 11:59 PM. Results will be announced on March 1st. The winning photo is the one with the most points (in case of a tie, the photo ranked first the most times wins). The lucky winner gets to organize March’s contest 😎.

Dig into your archives…

Hi everyone,

Here’s my image no. "1" for this contest:

Photo taken in September 2023 at the edge of Lac d'Allos, in the Alpes de Haute-Provence, at 2,230 meters above sea level. You can’t really see them "well" in the photo, but there were tons of marmots—nice and chubby—chasing us with their squeaks, and they eventually agreed to let us take their picture too!



Puma2A, "1", Lac d'Allos.

...

Good evening,

Photo 1: the glacial lake of Fellaria, Valmalenco, Italy The exhaustion of reaching it that autumn. The thin layer of snow that fell overnight turned every step into a trap, as this uniform and delicate whiteness covered a very rugged terrain. And then, at last, the silence, occasionally broken by the powerful rumble of the glacier cracking and collapsing.

Catherine

xrctn-1 - Lake Peyto, Alberta, Canada

Hi there,

Here are my photos:

PHOTO 1: Laguna El Jocotal (El Salvador)

El Salvador isn’t just a country of volcanoes—it’s also a land of lakes and lagoons. They’re pretty much everywhere! Here, you can see a fisherman at Laguna El Jocotal in the eastern part of the country. It’s a really peaceful lagoon with volcanoes visible all around.

PHOTO 2: Lago Suchitlan (El Salvador)

Lake Suchitlan is an artificial lake near the capital, San Salvador.

This panoramic photo is from the summer of 2024. You can see some green in the water—those are green algae caused by heavy metals dumped into the lake. I’ve seen photos from the summer of 2025 where the entire lake is green, completely overrun by algae! It’s really striking, and it even made the news in French online media like *Sciences et Avenir*. It’s a disaster for fishing and tourism, as this region is one of the most popular tourist spots in El Salvador.

Here's my latest photo—I hope I’m following the rules correctly since it’s my first time participating!

PHOTO 3: Lago de Atitlán (Guatemala)

This lake is considered by many to be the most beautiful in the world. It’s surrounded by volcanoes and mountains that are sacred to the indigenous people (the lake itself is also sacred). Unfortunately, its waters are heavily polluted due to human activity, and swimming is discouraged, even though locals still take a dip. The best time to see the volcanoes without clouds is in the morning.

Photo No. 1 The salt lake of Zarzis, Tunisia. 150 km² In France, the salting of highways and roads is partly done with salt from this lake.

Photo #2 Lake Nikšić, Montenegro With small islands.

Hi Marie

I hope I’m following the rules right since it’s my first time participating!

Welcome to this contest 🙂. Yep, everything’s perfect 😉.

Hi,

Here’s my "Image No. 2", a temporary water expanse in the Sélous Reserve, southern Tanzania (June 2024).



Cheers.

Puma2A

Photo 1: Forked Lake in the Taillefer massif

Hi,

Here’s my “Image No. 3” for this contest. Lac (du barrage) de Castillon on the Verdon between St-André-les-Alpes and Castellane. (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence)

Best wishes and good luck to everyone!!

Puma2A

xrctn-2 - Flyover of salt lakes in all their forms, near Cranbrook, Western Australia

No way I'm missing my turn this month 😉

First things first for my first photo, "el mas alto del mundo":

photo 1: Lake Titicaca, Bolivia side

photo taken from the Inca Trail, on Isla del Sol.

Another lake that really stood out during my trip to Myanmar:

Photo 2: Inle Lake, Myanmar

Photo #1: Irazú Volcano Lake (Costa Rica), especially for its color. From what I’ve read in the years since, this lake regularly disappears, so we were lucky to see it in 2012.

Photo #2: the Katse Dam lake in Lesotho:

Photo #3: Lake Bunyonyi in Uganda

Hi there

Photo No. 1

A dog seems to be standing guard near a small rice field. Behind it, down below, stretches the majestic Lake Maninjau (about 100 km²), near Bukittinggi (Sumatra, Indonesia)

Photo 1: Lake Kariba (Zambia)

Photo 2: Laguna Miñiques, Chile

Photo 3: Laguna Salar El Laco, Chile

Photo 2: Summer morning mist over Lake Como (Lario), Italy.



C.

Hello! 🙂

Photo 1 - Ngorongoro Crater Lake in Tanzania.

Photo number 1

Mattupetty Lake in Munnar, Kerala.

hi,

Photo 1: Chiloé, Chile

Photo 2: Hokkaido, Japan

Photo 3: Lillehammer, Norway

Photo 2 - The dawn glow over the ponds surrounding Angkor Wat (Cambodia)

xrctn-3 - Absolute tranquility, Near Vik, Norway

Photo 2: Lake Nakuru (Kenya)

Photo number 2

Sunset over Lake Arjuzanx, Landes

Don’t need a long trip for mine:

Photo 3: Lake Annecy

For context, the photo was taken during an open-air art exhibition around the lake. The little one on the balance bike? Pure chance, but I loved it...

Photo No. 3

The lagoons of Cagliari, close to the city. Tons of pink flamingos can be found there.

Hello,

Photo 1: Lake Talé Noï in southern Thailand. It’s called the lake of pink lotuses, but they’re actually water lilies. It’s the largest waterfowl park in Thailand.

Photo 2: Songkhla Lake, located in southern Thailand, spanning the provinces of Songkhla and Phatthalung. Fishermen use a system of bamboo fishing traps shaped like giant spiders, with a counterweight system to lower and raise these nets.

Photo 3: Inle Lake, Myanmar. I just had to include a photo of this magical place when talking about lakes.

Photo 3: Lake Eychassier in the Queyras



Catherine

Photo 3: Jökulsárlón Glacial Lagoon (Iceland)

Good evening

Photo No. 2



In front of Nanjing Railway Station (Jiangsu, China), a plaza slopes down toward Xuanwu Lake; it's one of the most popular spots in the evening to watch the sunset over the city.

Good evening

Let’s stay in China for my photo No. 3



Hongcun (Anhui), at the foot of the majestic Huangshan mountains, is probably the most beautiful village in China, with the icing on the cake being the Moon Pond right in its center.

Last day to post your photos! 😉

Tomorrow (Monday the 23rd) at 00:01 Paris time, voting begins (I don’t know about you, but I can already tell it’s gonna be tough for me!)

Saved by the gong 😛

Photo 3 - Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi (Vietnam)

I hadn't realized the end of the month was already here. Photo 1 Freezing weather on Lake Geneva

Photo 2 Lake Maggiore at sunset

Photo 3 Lake Kawa Idjen in Java

Hi there! To avoid being influenced, I vote early.

3 points: photo 3 by Muriel 18, Lake Bunyonyi in Uganda. My absolute favorite—it’s like an impressionist painting!

2 points: photo 2 by Xrctn, an aerial view of a salt lake in Australia. My second favorite—this bird’s-eye perspective looks almost like a microscopic cross-section.

1 point: photo 3 by Tylassin, the church in Lillehammer, perfectly framed with its reflection in the water lilies.

Carassou

Hi there! 🙂

Xrctn 2: 3 pts Salt lakes in all their glory, near Cranbrook, Western Australia Envallis 1: 2 pts Ngorongoro Crater Lake, Tanzania. Philippebrg 3: 1 pt Inle Lake, Myanmar.

For the first one, Xavier’s, there wasn’t a photo! I would’ve given it 10 points without hesitation. The lines, the colors—it’s a stunning photo! For Envallis’s first pick, I love the misty grandeur. The way the dark metal of the car overshadows the graceful bodies of the flamingos and antelopes too. For my third choice, it was much trickier. It could’ve easily been Kate’s Lake Arjuzanx, Bruno’s Lake Annecy, one of Agnès’s Chilean lagoons, Ragamuffin’s Chinese train station. And others... But I think the soft light in this photo of Inle Lake tipped the scales in its favor.

Catherine

the vote (I don’t know about you, but I feel—I know—it’s gonna be tough!)

Actually, pretty tough. Still, my February votes:

3 points: Kate no.2 (France)

2 points: Muriel18 no.3 (Uganda)

1 point: Rouquine38 no.2 (Kenya)

A dozen other photos could’ve taken their place...

hgb