Sonia Nuttman, Pigeon Rescue (PEOPLE 2023)

This photo was taken of my daughter Zahra in her nonna and nonno’s garden. Amongst the myriad of fruit trees that her nonno grows, reflecting his Italian heritage, are nets that cover each tree to protect them from birds. On occasion a bird manages to sneak its way in, and Zahra loves to rescue each and every one. I felt that the image captures a child’s compassion and nurture of a common pigeon that most of us see in our everyday lives but rarely stop to pay attention; not necessarily noteworthy or striking to most, but here we see how precious and wonderful this little bird is in the eyes of a child.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.