Every year, since 2017, Dig the Dunes has held a calendar contest. This year is no different. We collected hundreds of entries and went through three rounds of judging to pick our top photo for each month. We are excited to announce the winners for 2025. Calendars are now available for pre-order, and you can save $5 until November 15.
Cover - Steve Bensing
All of his life, Steve has been involved in photography. His subject matter varies, but Steve loves the outdoors and the opportunities he finds in the Indiana Dunes area. His work has been recognized in various ways. In 2024 he won first place in the Northwards Wildlife Photo Contest and had his photo selected for the center of the board of the Chesterton-oploy game. He is honored to have his photo chosen as the cover of the 2025 Dig the Dunes Calendar. Steve is president of the Duneland Photography Club. He continues to learn and to encourage others in their photography.
January - Chad Howell
Chad was born and raised in Northwest Indiana. He works and lives in the area with his wife and two dogs. They spend as much time hiking around the Dunes as they can. Chad enjoys landscape and travel photography.
February - Peggy Carter
Peggy has lived in Northwest Indiana all her life. She has always enjoyed the Dunes. Peggy loves taking landscape and nature photos in every season. She is an active member of the Duneland Photography Club where she is currently the Public Relations Coordinator. She has received several awards and recognition for her work. Even though in the past Peggy took for granted being surrounded by the Dunes and Lake Michigan, she now appreciates it more than ever.
March - Angela Mitrisin
Angie has lived in miller beach for about 10 years and loves the beach so much. It never gets old and the view is always beautiful. Angie has two children, Blake 11 and Mya 3. They know how lucky they are to have the beach as their backyard.
April - Michael Seefeldt
Michael enjoys hiking in the Dunes and around the Region, taking photos along the way. He is a volunteer for both the State Park and National Park Service.
May - Jennifer Fredericks
Jennifer has lived in Gary’s Miller neighborhood for over 25 years, with her partner, Brian DeFries, and 2 senior rescued miniature dachshunds, Max and Judy. After many years of trying to restore their home, (envision the movie The Money Pit) they tore it down and started over, just as covid began. While Jennifer travels quite a bit for work, her very favorite spot is on the deck, with coffee in hand, enjoying the incredible nature show in front of her house.
June - Shannon Kerns
Dutton, Shannon's dog, (featured in photo), is a 2 year old French Bulldog, who helps support local businesses by sharing dog friendly events and establishments in Northeast Indiana and Southwest Michigan. Dutton was awarded his AKC Canine Good Citizenship, and takes pride in giving back to the community. We hope you enjoy this #doseofdutton
July - Michelle Wolsiefer
Michelle Wolsiefer, from Michigan City, Indiana studied photography at Purdue University and has lived in or near Michigan City all her life. She walks the beach almost every morning to catch the sunrise and if the clouds cooperate, goes out for storms and sunsets too. Our Dunes can look different every day depending on the weather and sometimes it just can’t be missed.
August - Betty Gross
Betty is an avid hobbyist photographer. She has been in pursuit of this hobby since she was 9! Betty was also a frequent visitor of the Dunes for about 62 years before moving about 3 hours away. She still visits every chance she can get.
September - Adam Medved
Adam Medved lives in Portage Indiana. He enjoys nature and sunset photography as a hobby along with boating and hiking with his wife Ashley and two dogs Aspen and Valley.
October - Patricia Hall
Patricia enjoys daily walks and capturing scenery in everyday life. Always enjoying the view, she creates her own sunshine even on cloudy days. As a mom of four boys, photography has been her passion and joy.
November - Steve Wick
Steve is a resident of Portage, along with his wife Kelli and three young adult children. Steve works as a media producer and musician and enjoys photography as a hobby. Both his images and music have been inspired by the local beauty of the dunes and NWI shoreline. He can regularly be found hiking the nearby National Park/State trails, kayaking and fishing the Calumet River.
December - Kelli Stone
Kelli lives in Chesterton along with her husband Asa. Together they have two children, Gage and Dean as well as a bonus kid, Blake and their two fur babies Dash and Maggie. Kelli enjoys reading and crafting. Along with her family she also enjoys hiking, biking, kayaking and traveling.
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