Last chance to see Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008, last chance to enter for 2009

DPNow says: As with all photo competitions, DPNow urges all potential competitors to read the terms and conditions before entering their work in case a claim is made on the use or copyright of your pictures. Also, beware of any subsequent offers that ask you to pay for items that result from competitions before parting with any cash.

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008 exhibition at London’s Natural History Museum has been attracting record numbers of visitors but must close its doors for the final time on 26 April. Photographers hoping to feature in the 2009 exhibition have less than three weeks left to enter.

Entries for the world’s most prestigious wildlife photography competition close on 27 March (20 March for postal entries). Last year’s competition attracted more than 32,000 entries from 82 countries.

This year the competition is being sponsored by Veolia Environnement, a world leader in environmental services, and will be known as ‘Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009’.

As well as the Natural History Museum exhibition, the winning images tour regionally and internationally to more than 60 cities. The photos are also published in a hardback book and in a special supplement of BBC Wildlife Magazine. The competition, owned by the Museum and the Magazine, has been running annually since 1964.

Chair of the judging panel, zoologist, writer and photographer, Mark Carwardine said ‘Each year this great showcase for photographers raises the bar for innovative nature photography and plays an increasingly crucial role in provoking awareness of wildlife conservation’.

Mark said ‘Millions of people see the winning photographs through the exhibitions and the media coverage they generate. They not only get enjoyment from the visual impact of these images, they also gain new insights into the natural world.

‘The most important element for a winning photograph is originality. The judges will be seeing thousands of technically perfect, well-composed images. The ones that leap from the screen are those where the photographers have worked creatively to capture a different way of showing the drama, beauty or unique behaviour of the subject.’

 Last year’s overall winner was American photographer Steve Winter for his image Snowstorm leopard. Mark said ‘Everything comes together in this striking picture – the drama of the snow, the mystery of the darkness, the posture of the rarely photographed snow leopard and the intriguing composition’.

Other successful photographs from the 2008 competition included Brian Skerry’s Underworld shot of a blue cod strolling on its fins through an otherworldly garden of vibrant soft corals and starfish. The soft corals are sea pens – usually found at considerable depths. But they grow in the shallow waters of Long Sound Marine Reserve in New Zealand, where tannin-stained surface water blocks out sunlight, ‘tricking’ deep-water animals into settling at shallower depths.

Macro-photographer Danny Laps was highly commended for Saffrondrop bonnets. He found these diminutive mushrooms in a dark Belgian wood, and was charmed by their delicate, glowing colours, softened by the light streaming through the beech leaves. The judges were taken by how David Hall’s Soft-coral community resembled a Japanese print for colour and delicacy, and how the simplicity of Miguel Lasa’s Polar sunrise – a polar bear backlit by the first rays of sunlight – provided a fresh look at a well-photographed subject.

Mark explained ‘It’s not what you photograph – it’s the way you do it. Pictures of common or familiar species, close to home, stand just as much chance of winning as pictures of more exotic or rare ones. I’d particularly like to urge professional and keen amateur photographers to consider the Urban and Garden Wildlife category. It’s often overlooked, but our gardens and parks provide most of us with our best access to photographing wild animals and plants.’

Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009 has 17 categories (14 for adults and three for children). The adult categories range from animal behaviour and plants to urban wildlife and underwater photography. There are also special awards for images of endangered wildlife and portfolios taken by photographers aged 18–26.

Photographers can enter online at www.nhm.ac.uk/wildphoto or by posting a CD of images to the competition office. All images must be in digital format – scans of transparencies, or originally captured digital images. Up to three images can be entered in each category for a flat fee of £20 (£27 if entering by post). Prize money is £10,000 for the overall winner and up to £1,000 for the category winners.

Entry is free for the three youth categories, 10 years and under, 11–14 years and 15–17 years.

The overall winner of the Veolia Environnement Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year title receives £500 and a day’s workshop with a professional wildlife photographer. Category winners receive £250.

Exhibition information for visitors:

• Venue: Natural History Museum
• Dates: 31 October 2008 – 26 April 2009
• Opening times: every day, 10.00–17.50 (closed 24–26 December)
• Visitor enquiries: +44 (0) 20 7942 5000
• Admission:  £7, £3.50 concessions, £18 family ticket (up to two adults and up to three children). Free for Members, Patrons and children aged three and under.
• Nearest tube:  South Kensington
• Website: www.nhm.ac.uk/wildphoto

Visitors can buy tickets at the Museum or online. People wanting to visit the exhibition on weekends are strongly advised to book ahead. Latest details of UK regional and international tour venues are available on the website.

Reader feedback:

Discuss this story: