Tracey Lund won top prize at the World Nature Photography Awards
Photo: Tracey Lund / World Nature Photography Awards
The award World Nature Photographer of the Year announced its list of best nature photographs of its 2024 edition. The winner in the main category, considered “Nature Photographer of the Year”, was the British Tracey Lund, who recorded the exact moment in which geese dive to grab a fish in Shetland, an archipelago in Scotland.
“Thousands of geese were in the sky above us and then they began diving into the sea in search of local fish. An unbelievable spectacle to witness, let alone photograph. I took 1,800 images that day, but only had 2 to use,” Tracey told organization of the award.
The winner of the main category took home US$ 1 thousand — the equivalent of just over R$5 thousand. There are also several other categories and, in each of them, the organization chose three photos in the following order: golden; silver and bronze.
O Earth Below we separated the photographs listed as “golden” from all categories. The other photos are available on the award website.
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“Thousands of geese were in the sky above us and then began diving into the sea in search of local fish. An unbelievable spectacle to witness, let alone photograph. I took 1,800 images that day, but only had 2 to use” – Tracey Lund, winner in the photography of the year category.
Photo: Tracey Lund / World Nature Photography Awards
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“That morning, we decided to follow four cheetahs on the hunt. Five hours later, our Maasai guide whispered, “They are attacking the zebras,” and I was convinced that they were going to attack the animals spread across the valley. Seconds later, the cheetahs invaded a small group of zebras. A cheetah ran toward us, clinging to a foal. In those seconds, I took this photo of the mother zebra making one last attempt to save her foal. She failed. I will remember those seconds for the rest of my life.” – Alex Brackx, winner in the “Behavior – Mammals” category.
Photo: Alex Brackx/World Nature Photography Awards
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“Play is very important in the development of California sea lion pups and everything in their environment is a potential toy. Unfortunately, it is increasingly common to see them playing with human trash. On this day, in two dives, I managed to collect six pieces of trash they played with, including the one in the photo, and remove them from the ocean. It’s extremely sad to see what our waste is doing to them. This image was taken in the Coronado Islands, Baja California, Mexico.” – Celia Kujala, winner in the “Nature Photojournalism” category.
Photo: Celia Kujala/World Nature Photography Awards
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“It was late afternoon in Puerto Egas, Santiago Island, Galapagos and the colorful Sally Light Foot crabs were returning to the lava rock-encrusted shore. I knew that when a wave arrived, the crabs would lock in, holding on tight to avoid being swept away. by the water, so I set up my tripod and pre-focused on the rocks, setting a very slow shutter speed to blur the moving water” – Bill Klipp, winner in the “Behavior – Invertebrates” category.
Photo: Bil Klipp/ World Nature Photography Awards
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“Once, a photographer I respected, Suchat Chanhomhuan, took me to Doi Hua Mot Mountain, Umphang Wildlife Sanctuary, Tak Province, Thailand, to see a strangely shaped living organism that looked like an owl. The scientific name of this plant is Thismia thaithongiana.” – Chatree Lertsintanakorn, winner in the “Plants and fungi” category.
Photo: Chatree Lertsintanakorn/World Nature Photography Awards
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“Traditional stilt fishermen try their luck with the changing tide at sunset in Koggala, Sri Lanka. Traditional and artisanal fishing methods like these, used for subsistence, do not pose significant threats to the ocean’s natural resources and, on the contrary, make local communities interested in ocean health.” – Ioannis Pavlos, winner in the “People and Nature” category.
Photo: Ioannis Pavlos Evangelidis/World Nature Photography Awards
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“Every winter, huge schools of herring migrate from the open ocean to the fjords of northern Norway and attract large numbers of large predators such as orcas and humpback whales. Witnessing orcas feeding using the so-called carousel feeding technique is very exciting but not easy to capture due to several factors: limited light and visibility, fast action, cold surface and water temperature. Being able to free dive and capture the action in a continuous frenzy in these conditions is difficult, but I managed to create a series of photos I never dreamed of capturing.” – Andy Schmid, winner in the “Underwater” category.
Photo: Andy Schmid/World Nature Photography Awards
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“I took this image during a trip to the Galapagos Islands. The islands are full of iconic marine iguanas and lava lizards. This was the only time I saw a lizard basking on an iguana’s head, both obviously enjoying the occasion with beatific smiles!” ” – John Seager, winner in the “Behavior – Amphibians and reptiles” category.
Photo: John Seager/World Nature Photography Awards
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“I was aware of this black anglerfish that lives in a reef where I regularly dive and I had in mind a portrait that would emphasize the character of this predator.” – Nicolas Remy, winner in the “Animal Portraits” category.
Photo: Nicolas Remy/World Nature Photography Awards
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“Winter in Stokksnes, Iceland. The beach with its black sand and the majestic mountain called Vestrahorn, I love the color contrast between the white mountains and the black dunes with yellow grass.” – Ivan Pedretti, winner in the “Landscapes of Planet Earth” category.
Photo: Ivan Pedretti/World Nature Photography Awards
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“In a hidden shelter in Kenya, I patiently waited late into the night to capture the graceful moment a leopard approached the lake, turning elegantly.” – Richard Li, winner in the “Black and White” category.
Photo: Richard Li/World Nature Photography Awards
Source: Redação Terra
Tags: award highlights nature photographs
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