News

Heads or tails? by Jodi Frediani, USA
 

Following the Natural History Museum’s October announcement of the winners of this year’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition—with a number of spectacular underwater images among those awarded—the organizers have released a shortlist of the 25 images vying for the competition’s People’s Choice Award. The online vote decides the winner and the four “Highly Commended” runners-up.

Underwater shooters will immediately be drawn to the amazing seahorse gripping tightly to a pink sea fan with his prehensile tail by talented DPGer Nick More (see below). In case you were wondering, that’s a male Bargibant's seahorse who’s going to give birth—and he certainly looks like he’s almost ready to pop! Fun fact: It was shot off the Bali coast using a good old Nikon D500 and Nikon 60mm f/2.8 macro lens with the help of Nauticam’s CMC-1 close-up optic. Who says you can’t create an awesome image with an APS-C DSLR?!

While Nick’s is the only underwater image shortlisted, there are several other images around water that impressed us: Jodi Frediani’s brilliantly composed shot of three northern right whale dolphins (two adult heads and a juvenile’s tail), captured in Monterey Bay, California; Auke-Florian Hiemstra’s heart-breaking photo of a young perch trapped in a discarded surgical glove found in a canal in The Netherlands, highlighting the impact on wildlife of Covid-19 waste; and a grim image by Eladio Fernandez of hundreds of fishermen catching American eels in their juvenile stage on the coast of the Dominican Republic—millions of these endangered eels are exported each year to fulfill an insatiable Asian (particularly Japanese) demand.

Cast your vote for these and the other shortlisted images online here. Voting closes at 2pm GMT on February 2nd.
 

PRESS RELEASE

Vote for your favourite: 25 images in the running to win the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award 2022

Online voting opens now, until 14.00pm (GMT) on Thursday 2 February 2023.

The public are invited to have their say and vote for their favourite image to win this year’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award run by the Natural History Museum, London. From a pair of red foxes sharing an intimate nuzzle, to a polar bear cub basking in a sea of flowers, 25 incredible images have been shortlisted that spotlight important stories of nature from across the globe.

Photographs were chosen from 38,575 entries across 93 countries and include a portrait of a characterful pregnant pygmy seahorse by Nicholas More, and Michał Michlewicz’s story revealing the impact of domesticated cats on local wildlife.

For the first time, the public can vote for their favourite using interactive screens located inside the newly designed Wildlife Photographer of the Year flagship exhibition at the Natural History Museum.

Voting ends on 2 February 2023. The top five images will be displayed online, joining the winners of the fifty-eighth competition announced earlier this year and chosen by an esteemed panel of judges. The winner will be showcased in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year voting screens at the Museum until the exhibition closes Sunday 2 July 2023.
 

A tight grip by Nicholas More, UK
 

Dr Douglas Gurr, Director of the Natural History Museum says, ‘Voters will have a challenge to choose from this stunning range of photographs which tell vital stories and connect people to issues across the planet. We are looking forward to finding out which of these images emerges as the favourite.’

Wildlife Photographer of the Year is developed and produced by the Natural History Museum and offers a truly global platform for amateur and professional photographers alike. Using photography's unique emotive power to engage and inspire audiences, the exhibition shines a light on stories and species around the world and supports the Museum in its mission of creating advocates for the planet.

The Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition in London is supported by global green energy company Ørsted.

Vote for the winner of the People’s Choice Award here: www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/peoples-choice
 

Covid litter by Auke-Florian Hiemstra, Netherlands
 

Fishing for glass eels by Eladio Fernandez, Dominican Republic