This is a look at a 3 year old pond that I shot last summer. I maintained this pond the 1st two years enabling the pond to get off to a good start. My goal is to strive for a naturalistic look and feel to my work where it is hard to figure out where the pond stops and the land begins.
I believe the number one problem with most professionally built ponds is-a lack of “naturalism/realism”; the edges are too hard, the rocks are piled too high or too deep around the edges. A lot of pond-builders have a poor understanding of how plant material works; not only in the water but surrounding the water as well.
I look for opportunities to bring the plant material right down and into the water to create a lush and inviting scene whenever possible. The more varied and larger amount of plant material in the pond also helps the pond become more successful ecologically. btw, this is in Ohio, near Canton which is zone 5. My thanks to Lake Cable Nursery. 
The Whispering Crane Institute 