National Geographic has just announced the results of the prestigious 2016 Nature Photographer of the Year contest. As you can see from the pictures below, the judges had a hard time choosing the very best image but the first place along with a 10-day trip for two to the Galapagos Islands, two 15-minute image portfolio reviews with organisation's photo editors and a $2,500 cash prize went to Greg Lecoeur for a superb shot of predators hunting sardines underwater.
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The competition attracted thousands of entries from photographers all over the world. Esteemed judges included National Geographic's senior photo editor Kathy Moran as well as magazine's photographers Joe Riis and Jim Brandenburg. They rated images in four categories - action, landscapes, animal portraits, and environmental issues.
More info: nationalgeographic.com
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Honorable Mention, Environmental Issues: No Snow, No Ice? Barter Islands
A solitary bear sits on the edge of one of the Barter Islands. There is no snow, when at this time of year, there should be. In speaking with the locals in Kaktovic, they've noted that it's been an unseasonably warm winter, and that the ice will be late in forming this year. This will have an impact on the local polar bear population, when it comes time to hunt seals for their food in the winter months...
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First Place Winner, Landscape: Struggle Of Life, Netherlands
To restore original natural dynamics in streams many measures are necessary. In the 'Leuvenumse beek' a nature organisation tried to increase heterogeneity of the river bottom and water retention by putting dead wood in the streamsystem. In autumn when rainfall is high, pieces of forest get flooded. Once i saw this little beech in the water, trying to survive under these harsh conditions. I returned sometimes to this place to take pictures. One evening all the conditions were satisfactory.
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Third Place Winner, Landscape: Pacific Storm, Pacific Ocean
A colossal Cumulonimbus flashes over the Pacific Ocean as we circle around it at 37000 feet en route to South America.
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Honorable Mention, Landscape: Serendipitous Green Meteor, India
This Green Meteor was captured while taking a time-lapse to document the urbanization around the Skyislands in India. The camera was set at 15s exposure for 999 shots and this came into one of those shots. Green Meteor’s greenish color come from a combination of the heating of oxygen around the meteor and the mix of minerals ignited as the rock enters Earth's atmosphere. I think for those 15 seconds, I was the luckiest photographer on the planet to have capture this phenomenon.
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Grand Prize Winner: Sardine Run, South Africa
I captured this image during the migration of the sardines along the wild coast of South Africa. Natural predation, sardines are preyed upon by cape gannet birds and common dolphins. The hunt begins with common dolphins that have developed special hunting techniques. With remarkable eyesight, the gannets follow the dolphins before diving in a free fall from 30 to 40 meters high, piercing the surface of the water head first at a speed of 80km/h to get their fill of sardines.
By Giedrė | Bored Panda
