50 Years of Wildlife Photographer of the Year – in pictures

Seen in the Guardian Natural History Museum’s new book released on Wednesday marks five decades of the WPY competition, celebrating the art of wildlife photography. Started in the 1960s, the 160 prize-winning and commended images represent 50 years of different times, styles and specialisms – showcasing some of the iconic images of wildlife on planet Earth, part of an exhibition in London from 24 October

 

Angie Scott (Kenya) 2002:The elephants are obviously relaxed, but also that they are perfectly composed and almost perfectly still – hardly a ripple in the water. They all appear to be meditatively watching the heron walking slowly in front of them, looking for fish they might disturb when drinking.

Photograph: NHM

Stefano Unterthiner (Italy) 2011:On the frozen Lake Kussharo, on Hokkaido, Japan, a population of whooper swans (Cygnus cygnus) gathers around the lake in winter, migrating there to take advantage of areas of open water kept ice-free by hot springs.

Photograph: Stefano Unterthiner/NHM

Danny Green (UK) 2009:One of the last great wildlife spectacles to be seen in northern Europe is the winter evening gathering of hundreds of thousands of starlings over their roost sights. Here the stage is Gretna Green in Scotland, the swooping, swirling flock boosted by huge numbers of wintering starlings from Scandinavia.

Photograph: NHM

Bence Máté (Hungary) 2010:Leaf-cutter ants in a Costa Rican rainforest at night. The picture captures four activities: workers cutting holes, carrying bits of leaf back to the nest, tiny lookouts watching for parasitic flies and big soldiers on guard, all in perfect, contrasting detail.

Photograph: Bence Máté/nhm

Natural History Museum, Rosamund Kidman Cox:A cover image of 50 Years of Wildlife Photographer of the Year: How Wildlife Photography Became Art.

Photograph: NHM

More here

Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013

Every year we are amazed at the quality of wildlife images in this competition, it has to be the most prestigious in the world, and we get to see in our own back yard. The Natural History Museum in London hosts the competition exhibition and if there was ever a reason to go to London then this is it.

2013: Wildlife Photographer of the Year – Grand title winner Greg du Toit (South Africa)

Essence of elephants

Ever since he first picked up a camera, Greg has photographed African elephants. ‘For many years,’ he says, ‘I’ve wanted to create an image that captures their special energy and the state of consciousness that I sense when I’m with them. This image comes closest to doing that.’ The shot was taken at a waterhole in Botswana’s Northern Tuli Game Reserve, from a hide (a sunken freight container) that provided a ground-level view. Greg chose to use a slow shutter speed to create the atmosphere he was after and try ‘to depict these gentle giants in an almost ghostly way.’ He used a wide-angle lens tilted up to emphasise the size of whatever elephant entered the foreground, and chose a narrow aperture to create a large depth of field so that any elephants in the background would also be in focus. Greg had hoped the elephants would turn up before dawn, but they arrived after the sun was up. To emphasise the ‘mysterious nature’ of these ‘enigmatic subjects’, he attached a polarising filter and set his white balance to a cool temperature. The element of luck that added the final touch to his preparation was the baby elephant, which raced past the hide, so close that Greg could have touched her. The slow shutter speed conveyed the motion, and a short burst of flash at the end of the exposure froze a fleeting bit of detail.

2013: Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year Udayan Rao Pawar (India)

Mother’s little headful

One night, Udayan camped near a nesting colony of gharials on the banks of the Chambal River – two groups of them, each with more than 100 hatchlings. Before daybreak, he crept down and hid behind rocks beside the babies. ‘I could hear them making little grunting sounds,’ says Udayan. ‘Very soon a large female surfaced near the shore, checking on her charges. Some of the hatchlings swam to her and climbed onto her head. Perhaps it made them feel safe.’ It turned out that she was the chief female of the group, looking after all the hatchlings. Though he saw a few more females and a male, they never came close. Gharials were once found in rivers all over the Indian subcontinent. Today, just 200 or so breeding adults remain in just 2 per cent of the former range. ‘The Chambal River is the gharial’s last stronghold,’ says Udayan, ‘but is threatened by illegal sand-mining and fishing.’

There are many different categories, these shown here are just the most prestigious, you can see all the categories and gaze in wonder at the entries and winners here

2013: Eric Hosking Portfolio Award

Connor Stefanison (Canada)

The flight path

Connor’s photography draws on the wilderness skills he acquired over a childhood spent largely outdoors. This female barred owl had a territory near his home in Burnaby, British Columbia. He watched her for some time, familiarising himself with her flight paths until he knew her well enough to set up the shot. ‘I wanted to include the western red cedar and the sword ferns so typical of this Pacific coastal rainforest.’ Setting up his camera near one of the owl’s favourite perches, linked to a remote and three off-camera flashes, diffused and on low settings, he put a dead mouse on a platform above the camera and waited for the swoop that he knew would come. ‘She grabbed the mouse, flew back to her perch and began calling to her mate. It is one of the most exciting calls to hear in the wild.’

 

The exhibition details are:

Exhibition and tickets

Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013 exhibition
Natural History Museum
18 October 2013 – 23 March 2014
10.00-17.50 (last admission 17.15)
Open late the last Friday of every month

The world-renowned annual exhibition opens at the Museum on 18 October 2013. It shines a spotlight on the rarely seen wonders of the natural world.

100 images have been selected from tens of thousands of international entries and are displayed in the exhibition gallery to dramatic effect on sleek backlit installations.

 

Exhibition information for visitors

Visitor enquiries:   +44 (0)20 7942 5000
Admission:              Adult £12*, child and concessions £6*,                                    family £33* (up to 2 adults and 3 children).
Free for Members, Patrons and children                                    aged 4 and under.

 

The exhibition goes on tour around the country, you can follow this link to find if it will be in a town near you

The exhibition comes to Oxford next year

• Oxford
  15 June 2014 to 15 September 2014
  Oxford University Museum of Natural History
  http://www.oum.ox.ac.uk

   

LSP Awards 2013

Inspired by photography legend Sebastiao Salgado’s GENESIS Project, the LSP Awards 2013 will be accepting submissions until 8th September 2013 into four categories with Winner and Runner-Up prizes and an Overall Winner prize for the submission of outstanding images into all four categories.

Salgado says of this body of work, “I have named this project GENESIS because my aim is to return to the beginnings of our planet: to the air, water and the fire that gave birth to life, to the animal species that have resisted domestication, to the remote tribes whose ‘primitive’ way of life is still untouched, to the existing examples of the earliest forms of human settlement and organisation. A potential path towards humanity’s rediscovery of itself. So many times I’ve photographed stories that show the degradation of the planet, I thought the only way to give us an incentive, to bring hope, is to show the pictures of the pristine planet – to see the innocence. And then we can understand what we must preserve.”
Sebastião Salgado via Jori Finkel for the NY Times.

Main Theme:
The Planet Earth

Categories:

               

 Here for more details

Further links about Salgado

https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2013/03/12/sebastiao-salgado-genesis-exhibition-at-the-natural-history-museum/

https://oxfordschoolofphotography.wordpress.com/2013/03/11/sebastiao-salgado-the-unfiltered-lens/

Photography Exhibitions Summer 2013

Daniel Blau announces winners of 5 Under 30 competition

The five winning photographers will exhibit work at the Daniel Blau gallery in Hoxton in July, Daniel Blau has announced the names of the winning photographers in 5 Under 30, its inaugural photography competition for young photographers.The photographers include 27-year-old Marianne Bjørnmyr, 29-year-old Madoka Furuhashi, 26-year-old Andi Schmied, 22-year-old Tereza Cervenova, and 25-year-old Lara Morrell.

For more visit www.danielblau.com

The Photographers Gallery

Deutsche Börse Photography Prize 2013 winners are Broomberg & Chanarin for War Primer 2  19 Apr – 30 Jun 2013

Plate 26, George Bush serves a Thanksgiving turkey to US troops stationed in Baghdad in 2003, 2011

CHRIS KILLIP British born Killip has been taking photographs for nearly five decades.What Happened – Great Britain comprises black and white images of working people in the north of England, taken by Killip in the 1970s and 1980s. After spending months immersed in several communities, Killip documented the disintegration of the industrial past with a poetic and highly personal point of view.

18 Apr – 30 Jun 2013

©Chris Killip

Cristina De Middel (b.1975, Spain) is nominated for her publicationThe Afronauts (self-published, 2011). Until June 30th

In her first book, The Afronauts, De Middel engages with myths and truths, reality and fiction. In 1964, after gaining independence, Zambia started a space programme in order to send the first African astronaut to the moon.

©Cristina de Middel

Sebastião Salgado Genesis

Natural History Museum

11 April – 8 September 2013
Waterhouse Gallery

Sebastião Salgado’s Genesis is the culmination of 8 years work exploring 32 countries. It is Salgado’s 3rd long-term photographic exploration of global issues, following his previously acclaimed collections, Workers and Migrations.

About 216 of Sebastião Salgado’s black-and-white documentary photographs are on show in Genesis. They capture some of the furthest and wildest corners of our world, portraying indigenous communities that continue to live in accordance with their ancestral traditions, and showing rare insights into their lands.

During the 8 years in which Salgado travelled around the world to produce this collection of images, he often stayed with the people he photographed.

Salgado reflects: ‘Many of us live in cities, cut off completely from the planet. My wish was to experience living with people with real links to nature… For me to go back to nature was a huge pleasure. I wished to present the planet in my language, photography. And so came Genesis.’

The exhibition’s design follows the 5 themes in Genesis: Sanctuaries, Planet South, Africa, Northern Spaces, and Amazonia and Pantanal.

Sebastião and Lelia Salgado © Richard Beliel

Many of the places represented in Salgado’s images are important research areas particularly for studying the variety of species biodiversity.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year

This is now on tour and can be found at various locations

Basingstoke
18 May 2013 to 27 July 2013
Willis Museum
Market Place, Basingstoke, RG21 7QD
0845 603 5635

Bedford
22 June 2013 to 15 September 2013
The Higgens Art Gallery and Museum
Castle Lane, Bedford, MK40 3XD
01234 718618

 

EXPOSURES

Julia Martinez: Nude Photography

13th – 29th  June 2013

The photographer, The artist, formerly a photographic model, moves behind the lens

Art Jericho, 6 King Street, Oxford OX2 6DF, Opening hours vary, but are often Wed-Sat 11am – 5pm (or by appointment) and Sun 1-5pm.

ROCK PORTRAITS 90/94 Dean Ryan

4th July – 3rd August 2013

Live music photography at the Jericho Tavern

A first viewing of photographs of The Verve, Pulp and many more at the celebrated Oxford venue.

Art Jericho, 6 King Street, Oxford OX2 6DF, Opening hours vary, but are often Wed-Sat 11am – 5pm (or by appointment) and Sun 1-5pm.

 

 

Sebastião Salgado: Genesis Exhibition at The Natural History Museum

The world premiere of Sebastião Salgado: Genesis unveils extraordinary images of landscapes, wildlife and remote communities by this world-renowned photographer. These pictures depict the majesty of nature and the balance of human relationships with our fragile planet.

Salgado’s Genesis is the culmination of 8 years work exploring 32 countries. It is Salgado’s 3rd long-term examination of global issues, following his previous acclaimed collections Workers and Migrations.

The photographs in this exhibition capture some of the furthest corners of our world. They portray indigenous communities that continue to live in accordance with their ancestral traditions and cultures, and show rare insights into their lands and lives.

Sebastião Salgado has been awarded many major photographic prizes in recognition of his accomplishments, most recently receiving the Gold Medal Award for Photography from the National Arts Club in New York.

 

Image: © Sebastião Salgado/Amazonas Images/nbpictures

Sebastião Salgado: Genesis
11 April – 8 September 2013
Waterhouse Gallery

Ticket prices* £10 adults, £5 child and concession, £27 family
Free for Members, Patrons and children under 4

Full details here

 

 

Sebastiao Salgado: The Unfiltered Lens

Fascinating interview by Bryan Appleyard with Sabastiao Salagado on the release of his new  book on landscapes and the environment called “Geneis”

In the rainforest everything is backlit. The light streams towards you, silhouetting the trees. Also the Brazilian sun burns, so children are given broad-brimmed hats. They grow up always looking from shadow into light.

“I realised recently that most of my photographs are shot against the light,” says Sebastião Salgado, “and that is why. I was raised in the shadows. The sun injured my nose and it was necessary to have a hat, so everything came to me from light into shadow.”

Salgado’s pictures are among the most influential of our time. In particular, his staggering shots of the Serra Pelada goldmine in Brazil, in which thousands of workers both assault the earth and become one with it, have defined, more vividly than any written account, the effect of industrialisation on the Third World. He has also photographed famines, migrations, the entire global effort of human survival beneath the crushing burden of modernity.

Read all of this essential article here

This is the beautiful book published by Taschen, click on the cover to get the special Amazon deal and pay only £38.24

Images: © Sebastião Salgado/Amazonas Images/nbpictures

Wildlife photos: How to take the best shots

From the BBC website we have this

Even though the latest digital cameras can take dozens of photographs within a matter of seconds, and reveal instant results, it is still not as easy as you might think to snap a winning image.

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition – run by the Natural History Museum and BBC Worldwide – receives thousands of entries. With the 2013 entry deadline approaching, what could you do to make your images stand out? Watch this slideshow – click here – to get some expert tips.

Enter Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2013 now and take part in one of the world’s most prestigious photography events. The competition is open to professional photographers, amateurs, young and old, worldwide until 25 February 2013. Full details here

Adults may enter up to 20 images for £20.00.  Entrants aged 17 and under may enter up to 10 images FREE.

Here are some other great tutorials that will help you to get great shots

12 Great Online Tutorials on Wildlife Photography

10 Tips for Improving Your Wildlife Photography

 

 

Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Wildlife and environment are the most common subjects students tell me they are interested in. Photographing animals is tough; difficult places, hours if not days of waiting around and expensive equipment are all things that that make it difficult. Enjoying the work of those that can manage to hit all of these points is still enjoyable and this exhibition at the Natural History MuseumCromwell Rd, London, SW7 5BD This exhibition is on show until 3rd March

Paul Nicklen (Canada)

Bubble-jetting emperors

This was the image Paul had been so hoping to get: a sunlit mass of emperor penguins charging upwards, leaving in their wake a crisscross of bubble trails. The location was near the emperor colony at the edge of the frozen area of the Ross Sea, Antarctica. It was into the only likely exit hole that he lowered himself. He then had to wait for the return of the penguins, crops full of icefish for their chicks. Paul locked his legs under the lip of the ice so he could remain motionless, breathing through a snorkel so as not to spook the penguins when they arrived. Then it came: a blast of birds from the depths. They were so fast that, with frozen fingers, framing and focus had to be instinctive. ‘It was a fantastic sight’, says Paul, ‘as hundreds launched themselves out of the water and onto the ice above me’ – a moment that I felt incredibly fortunate to witness and one I’ll never forget.

2012: Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year – Winner

Wildlife photography is one of the most popular items we write about. So many people would love to make pictures of wildlife but don’t have the time, gear or knowledge so being able to see the work of these winners is a joy

Paul Nicklen (Canada)

Bubble-jetting emperors

This was the image Paul had been so hoping to get: a sunlit mass of emperor penguins charging upwards, leaving in their wake a crisscross of bubble trails. The location was near the emperor colony at the edge of the frozen area of the Ross Sea, Antarctica. It was into the only likely exit hole that he lowered himself. He then had to wait for the return of the penguins, crops full of icefish for their chicks. Paul locked his legs under the lip of the ice so he could remain motionless, breathing through a snorkel so as not to spook the penguins when they arrived. Then it came: a blast of birds from the depths. They were so fast that, with frozen fingers, framing and focus had to be instinctive. ‘It was a fantastic sight’, says Paul, ‘as hundreds launched themselves out of the water and onto the ice above me’ – a moment that I felt incredibly fortunate to witness and one I’ll never forget.

The exhibition of this prestigious award is held at the Natural History Museum

Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition 2012
19 October 2012 – 3 March 2013
Open 10.00 – 17.50 daily

This world-renowned annual exhibition at the Natural History Museum provides a spotlight on the rarely seen wonders of the natural world.

The 100 winning images that will be on show are selected from 1,000s of international entries and are beautifully displayed in sleek backlit installations.

Admission:              Adult £10*, child and concessions £5*,                                    family £27* (up to 2 adults and 3 children).

You can book tickets on line here and directions are here

The competition is hosted by the NHM and the BBC and there is a link to pictures on the BBC website here

There is a fabulous book associated with this competition have a look at it here

Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2011 highly commended images

The Guardian has a selection of images from the highly commended section of this award, as with the winning selection we featured last week these are quite stunning. More can be seen on the Guardian site here

Behaviour: Birds – Taking Flight, Paul Goldstein Paul arrived very early on the shores of Lake Nakuru, Kenya, before the rising sun had burned off the mist. He had returned to photograph the greater and lesser flamingos and used shade, shadow and silhouette to create drama, rather than emphasising their vivid colours with sunlight. He was helped by a combination of circumstances: rain during the night, a rapidly clearing sky, enough time for the cold air to form mist over the alkaline waters, and a hyena hunting for young or infirm birds along the far shore of the soda lake. The predator set up a wave of panic, with those closest to it taking flight and those nearest to Paul standing alert. Ten minutes later, not only had the whole flock lifted up, but the mist had also burned off, completely changing the scene. Photograph: Paul Goldstein/WPY

Behaviour: Mammals – The Charge by Eric Pierre (France) Eric had been tracking Arctic wolves on Victoria Island, Canada, when his guide spotted a herd of muskoxen 3 miles (5km) away. Approaching, Eric could see that the herd was nervous, probably because wolves were also on its trail. He made a detour and stopped about half a mile away upwind. Suddenly, he realised that the herd was now running towards them, oblivious of them. “I’ve seen muskoxen run away,” says Eric. “I’ve seen them react to a threat by forming a circle, and I’ve even seen a male charge. But I’ve never seen a herd spread out into a charging line like this. I could hear the thundering of their hooves. It was one of those situations where it really mattered that I made the right choice between technical accuracy, aesthetics and security.” Photograph: Eric Pierre/WPY

The exhibition information:

Exhibition and tickets

2011 Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition
21 October 2011 – 11 March 2012

Open 10.00 – 17.50 daily

Book tickets now

This world-renowned yearly exhibition at the Natural History Museum provides a spotlight on the rarely seen wonders of the natural world.

From 21 October, enter an atmospheric space inside the exhibition gallery and be inspired by this year’s competition winners. The images are selected from 1000s of international entries and are beautifully displayed in sleek backlit installations