Winning Garden and Nature Photos!

Winning Garden and Nature Photos!  International Garden Photographer of the Year is an annual competition and exhibition dedicated to photography images, garden plants, insects and botanical flowers. This is only the sixth year that the competition is held in the UK, but it has become very popular and well liked. Amateur photographers from all over the world are invited throughout the year to send pictures and face competition in the leading categories, including: Earth's beauty, breathtaking spaces, beautiful gardens, landscapes and fragile young photographers under the age of 16. Here is a selection of winning photos...

1st place in category "Beautiful Gardens": Roger Foley for the image 'In the Four Seasons'

2nd place in category "Beautiful Gardens": Rachel Warne for the photo 'The Old Rectory'.

3rd place in category "beautiful gardens": Marianne Majerus for the photo 'Blue Dawn'

Honorable Mention in the category of "beautiful gardens": Dennis Frates for the photo 'Tropical Sunrise Garden'

< 2nd place in category "Wildlife Refuge": Vincentius Ferdinand for the photo 'Drink 2'

3rd place in category "Wildlife Refuge": Simon Roy on Thtmona 'Angry Breakfast'

Honorable Mention category "Wildlife Refuge": Matt Cole for the photo, 'Confused grasshopper'

Mention category "Wildlife Refuge": Radim Schreiber for the image, 'Firefly and Moon'

Mention category "Wildlife Refuge": Nina Jonsson for the photo 'hungry crowd'

Honorable Mention category "wildlife refuge" Magdalena Wasiczek the picture 'winding'

1st place in category "making the city greener": Claire Takacs for the image, 'Conversations from a dark porch along a high line'

2nd place in category "making the city greener": Max Rush for the image, 'Beans and the City'

3rd place in category "making the city greener": Malcolm Boyd for the image 'City against nature'

Mention category "making the city greener": Sam Kirk for the photo 'Broccoli Street'

1st place in category "fragile landscapes": Steve Nicholls for the image, 'The heart of the ferns'

2nd place in category "fragile landscapes": Debashis Bandyopadhya the picture, 'Summer Rise'

3rd place in category "fragile landscapes": Dennis Frates for the image, 'Naples beach at sunset '

1st place in category "Beauty of Plants": Magdalena Wasiczek the picture, 'Summer Rain'

Place second category "Beauty of Plants": John Grant for the photo 'Dancing'

3rd place in the "Beauty of Plants": Diane Varner for the photo 'Sweet Dawn'

1st place in category "breathtaking spaces": Dace Umblija for the picture, 'The boat house'

2nd place in category "breathtaking spaces": Andrew Baskott the picture 'Golden Evening'

3rd place in category "breathtaking spaces": Gerhard Pirner for the photo 'Orpheus'

Honorable Mention in the category of "breathtaking spaces": Renata Arpasova the picture, 'Fergie Sunset'

1st place in category "Trees, woods and forests": Kerekes István for the photo "Wood lovers"

2nd place in category "trees, woods and forests": Krzysztof Browko the picture 'six'

3rd place in category "trees, woods and forests": Gloria King for the photo, 'Trees in the fog'

Mention category "trees, woods and forests": Sergey Karepanov for the photo 'Refraction'

1st place in category "Beauty of the Earth": Henrique Souto for the photo 'Quince'

Second place category "Beauty of the Earth": David Thurston for the photo, 'Garden from Kong'

3rd place in the "Beauty of the Earth": Magdelena Kniecicka the picture, 'Delicious Mushroom'

Honorable Mention in the "Beauty of the Earth": Johanna Parkin for the photo 'Camomile Flowers'

1st place in category "portfolio": Joanna Stoga the picture 'Chi'

2nd place in category "portfolio": John Grant for the photo 'Comfort: Drift with flowers'

3rd place in category "portfolio": Nikki de Gruchy for the photo 'Garden Wall'

1st place in category "Young Photographers": Patrick Corning for the photo 'Hummingbird'

2nd place in the category "Young Photographers": Marguerite Chalkley for the photo 'Flowers to download'

3rd place in category "Young Photographers": Jasmine Clegg for the photo 'Spirit Fish'

And the International Garden Photographer of the Year 2012: Magdalena Wasiczek's Photo: 'Upside Down'