Wildlife photographer of the year - October 25, 2007
The annual Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year prize has really excelled itself this year. To put the standard of things in perspective, none of the stunning images that I’ve chosen to use here were winners in their respective categories. Seriously, these were not judged to be the best pictures on offer...
This photo from Paul Nicklen, entitled ‘Love of a leopard seal’, is the result of an unlikely infatuation. “From the first time I got in the water with this massive female leopard seal in Antarctica, it seemed to attempt to communicate with me,” says Nicklen. “Every day, it would offer me penguins, dead and alive, like this chinstrap. When I kept refusing to eat the offerings, it looked agitated before going to get me another penguin.”
I’d have eaten the penguin – you don’t want annoy something that size.
© Paul Nicklen / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
Normally fisheye lenses strike me as cheating, but when they produce pictures like this one by Jeff Yonover who can really argue?
© Jeff Yonover / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
Arne Naevra’s ‘polar meltdown’ image is probably destined to illustrate features on climate change for years to come.
© Arne Naevra / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
See all the photos from the competition, run by the Natural History Museum and BBC Wildlife Magazine, at the official gallery website.
Comments
The polar meltdown picture is really hard to see. I can not believe what are doing with our planet..look that polar bear..it's so unfair for all of them. We need to change the things that happen in our planet.
Posted by: Jose Diego Pignataro Lopez | October 30, 2007 11:22 PM
wow!!!
Posted by: michelle dhansinghani | November 6, 2007 03:30 PM
I love the poler Bear.
Posted by: Caitlynn Thomas | November 9, 2007 02:19 PM
best collections......
Posted by: himanshu tailor | November 17, 2007 10:13 AM
I think that it is so unfair for those poor animals to be stuck on some dumb little stack of ice and stranded there for some time. I think people need to be more conservitive about what they do. Global warming is really effecting these inicient animals! God Bless...Good day to all! :)
Posted by: Flicka Reed | January 7, 2008 11:40 PM
About the polar bear photo, I wonder... was this photo taken in summer, or does this photographer usually travel to the Arctic in winter to take photos? Also, could the polar bear have been stalking a seal? I thought polar bears were excellent swimmers. Something tells me he's not exactly stuck.
Posted by: Portia | May 22, 2008 01:55 PM