Alpena Man Places Third in National Photo Contest

The National Marine Sanctuary held their annual ‘Get Into Your Sanctuary’ photo contest, and thousands of people involved with marine sanctuaries across the country submitted photos.

In the sanctuary recreation category, Alpena native Bryan Dort placed third nationally with a photo he took with a drone of a shipwreck in Presque Isle.

“I try to find that cross between the history, the ecosystem that surrounds those wrecks and then responsibly recreating in and around the wrecks,” said Dort. “So, that’s kind of what I try to capture and what I hoped to capture in this one.”

Dort takes photos as a ‘citizen scientist,’ which the sanctuary then uses his photos for research.

“Some of them are about recreation, some are about wildlife, the different ways that we can use and enjoy the ocean,” said Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary Superintendent Jeff Gray.

Dort volunteers often with the Marine Sanctuary, and has been flying drones for six years now. He combined his love of both to capture an excellent photo.

“I flew three flights that day, each about 25 minutes and took over a thousand photos, so that was one that I selected out of that thousand,” said Dort.

This is Dort’s first time placing in the contest since 2018 when he won first place in the Sanctuary Portrait category.