The 2019 Wild Life Photographer of the Year

Natural History Museum, London. Until 30th June
By Rebecca Dickson

Now in its 54th year, the Wild Life Photographer of the Year Awards are the longest running and most prestigious nature photography awards in the world. Showcasing the very best nature photographs from over 45,000 entries, this truly global competition attracts entries from nearly 100 countries. The exhibition, which will be seen by millions of people around the world, encourages the public to see nature photography as an art form, drawing our attention to the beauty that surrounds us.

From the thousands of entries, only one hundred images have been chosen to be exhibited. This extraordinary collection explores the natural world from a micro-shot of an iridescent clam, to the beautiful human quality found in an image of socialising penguins, or the tragedy of a starving polar bear, that hauntingly reminds us to act before the impact of our species becomes irreversible. This competition and exhibition share their ethos with the museum and Ørsted, one of the sponsors, a Danish green energy company who believe that we are simply custodians of the earth and it is our responsibility to protect our blue planet.

This year, we, the public, get to vote on our favourite image from 25 of the thousands of original entries by visiting here. The winner will be awarded the LUMIX People’s Choice Award, which is supported by Panasonic, the developer of the LUMIX camera. We have until the 5 February 2019 to cast our vote. The shortlisted images are on display at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition until the exhibition closes on 30 June.

The top five LUMIX People’s Choice Award images will also be displayed online at wildlife photographer of the year (link) joining the 100 – strong winning portfolio selected by the panel of judges. Ian Owens, The Director of Science at the Natural History Museum and member of the judging panel, said, ‘Inspiring audiences to connect with the natural world is at the heart of what we do as a museum, and that’s why we’re so proud to run this competition. The LUMIX People’s Choice Award is special to us because it gives the public the chance to choose the winner, and I’m looking forward to seeing which of these beautiful photographs emerges as the favourite.’

Ice and Water by Audun Lie Dahl, Norway
The Bråsvellbreen glacier moves southwards from one of the ice caps covering the Svalbard Archipelago, Norway. Where it meets the sea,
the glacier wall is so high that only the waterfalls are visible, so Audun used a drone to capture this unique perspective.
DJI Phantom 4 pro + 24mm lens; 1/120 sec at f 6.3; ISO 100. Panorama of 3 images.

Curious Encounter by Cristobal Serrano, Spain
Any close encounter with an animal in the vast wilderness of Antarctica happens by chance, so Cristobal was thrilled by this spontaneous
meeting with a crabeater seal off of Cuverville Island, Antarctic Peninsula. These curious creatures are protected and, with few predators, thrive.
Canon EOS 5D Mark IV + Canon EF 8-15mm f4L Fisheye USM lens; 1/250 sec at f8; ISO 160; Seacam housing and flash.

The Extraction by Konstantin Shatenev, Russia
Every winter, hundreds of Steller’s sea eagles migrate from Russia, to the relatively ice free northeastern coast of Hokkaido, Japan. They hunt for fish among the ices floes and also scavenge, following the fishing boats to feed on any discards. Konstantin took his image from a boat as the eagles retrieved a dead fish thrown onto the ice.
Canon1DX + EF300 f4IS USM lens; 1/1250 sec at f13; ISO800.