Images: Weekly photo contest finalists.
A zip line disappears into the fog of the Costa Rican forest last month.
Jim Pavletich of Elk Grove Village
An impending storm approaches a farm house south of Springfield last September.
Candace Christman of Prospect Heights
A little girl walks in field with flowers in her hand.
Jessica Nelson of Lake Zurich
These beautiful birds emerged from wherever they found shelter after the snow fell on February 2nd in a Gurnee back yard during Snowmaggeden 2011.
Kim Vander Yacht of Gurnee
Morgan runs through a field of dandelions at sunset in Wisconsin last summer.
Lacey Dahlstrom of Grayslake
Our dog Remy, doing his best to see over the 2-3 foot snow drifts that surrounded our home after the blizzard.
Jennifer Evensen of South Elgin
Taken after a freezing rain on a backyard sculpture.
Sheila Hansen of Batavia
This photo was taken Wednesday morning of the blizzard where my son Brandon got major air off the porch of our home to land in the major white drifts of the driveway that took 4 hours to clear. His younger sister Maddie watched with laughter from below.
Dan Yunker of Batavia
This pelican bit off more than it could chew on a Mexican beach. It stole a fish from a fisherman, swallowed it, then it got stuck. Its pelican pal helped pull the fish out in an hour or so.
Kathleen Kraft of West Chicago
This photo of a seagull in flight was taken on the Rhode Island coast on a vacation.
Karen OGrady of Naperville
This is evidence that Jackie, my beagle, and Junior, my cat, actually get along.
Angela Cichosz of Carol Stream