Laurent Ballesta, a French underwater photographer and biologist, was named the Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year for his enigmatic image, Creation, which depicts camouflage groupers spawning in Fakarava, French Polynesia.
Laurent and his team returned to this lagoon every year for five years, diving day and night to avoid missing the annual event, which only occurs around the full moon in July.
Chair of the judging panel, writer and editor, Rosamund ‘Roz’ Kidman Cox OBE says, ‘The image works on so many levels. It is surprising, energetic, and intriguing and has an otherworldly beauty. It also captures a magical moment – a truly explosive creation of life – leaving the tail-end of the exodus of eggs hanging for a moment like a symbolic question mark.’
Vidyun R Hebbar (10) was named Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2021 for his colourful image of a tent spider as a tuk-tuk passes by. Vidyun entered the competition for the first time when he was eight years old, and enjoys photographing the often-overlooked creatures that live in the streets and parks near his home in Bengaluru, India.
Dr Natalie Cooper, a researcher with the Natural History Museum and jury member, says ‘The jury loved this photo from the beginning of the judging process. It is a great reminder to look more closely at the small animals we live with every day, and to take your camera with you everywhere. You never know where that award-winning image is going to come from.’
This year’s photographic competition received 50,000 submissions from all over the world. A panel of judges chose the winners for a number of categories at an awards ceremony held at the Natural History Museum and streamed live online.
Three new categories were added to this year’s competition, including ‘Oceans – The Bigger Picture’ and ‘Wetlands – The Bigger Picture,’ to highlight the importance of these vital ecosystems.
Each entry was anonymously judged by a panel of experts for its originality, storytelling, technical excellence, and ethical approach during a thorough process before winners were selected.
If you would like to see the 2021 shortlisted entries and winners, The Wildlife Photographer of the Year #WPY57 exhibition is open to visitors at the Natural History Museum until Sunday 5th June 2021.
Tickets must be booked in advance online and cost £17.25 for adults, £10.25 for children (under 4 free) with concessions £13.75. To book, go to –https://www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/wildlife-photographer-of-the-year.html
Open to photographers of all ages, nationalities, and abilities, the next Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition opens for entries on Monday 18th October 2021 and closes at 11.30am on Thursday 9th December 2021.
For information on how to enter go to www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/competition
Main image: Creation © Laurent Ballesta, France, Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2021, Grand Title Winner
Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 31
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