While many students are content to see their photographs displayed at the Festival of the Arts each May, junior Billy Bird was recently recognized by National Geographic. Bird’s image of paddlers at sunset placed fifth out of 1,800 student entries in the National Geographic’s Student Expeditions Photo Contest.

Bird took the photo last summer on an expedition at Kejimkujik National Park in Nova Scotia, Canada. As a canoe pushed ahead against the landscape, he lined up the shot.

“I just sort of took a photo to see how it turned out,” Bird said.

The photo is a product of what Bird labeled the “best night of his life” in the paragraph he wrote for the contest submission. Bird and friends spent the evening paddling toward their campsite.

“I discovered that there was nowhere in the world I would have rather been,” he said. “No amount of television, text messages, or Internet can ever add up to the jubilation I felt that night.”

Contestants were asked to submit a photograph that “captures the spirit of exploration and discovery” and write a short paragraph about their photo. From the submitted photographs, judges narrowed the field down to 28 finalists before selecting the winner. First, second and third place winners each received cash prizes.

Bird had entered a few photo contests prior to entering the one at National Geographic, but had never had such success. He plans to enter more contests in the future and is considering pursuing photography as a career. He emphasized that there is no formula for capturing a great image.

“Every photo is going to be different. It’s not like a math problem,” Bird said. “Once you know what you’re doing, you can get a good photo almost every time.”