The winners of the prestigious Nature TTL Photographer of the Year 2023 have been unveiled, with an alarmingly rapid ice melt taking the top prize.
Over 8,000 images were entered into the competition this year, with nature photographers from all over the world competing to secure the £1,500 cash prize.
Thomas Vijayan, from Canada, took the overall prize with his image Austfonna Ice Cap, showing a paradoxically beautiful waterfall that has been created by global warming’s impact on the ice sheet. Vijayan’s striking panoramic composition, made up of 36 stitched images, leaves no room to doubt the reality of climate change and its impact on rising sea levels.
“This is nature in its most urgent state of decay. The vibrant colours of the towering waterfall are juxtaposed with the reality of its creation,” says Audrey Granger, Manager of Nature TTL. “The stark reality is that this image shows global warming’s impact on sea ice, where it is melting at alarming rates.”
© Lucy Monckton/ Nature TTL
Lucy Monckton, from the United Kingdom, was crowned the Young Nature TTL Photographer of the Year 2023 with her image of a honey bee swarm during their search for a new hive (above)
In total, photographers competed in 8 different competition categories celebrating the natural world: Animal Behaviour, Camera Traps, Landscapes, Small World, The Night Sky, Underwater, Urban Wildlife, and Wild Portraits.
PDF NPOTY 2023 CAPTIONS
Animal behaviour winner
Polar bear seal hunting, Svalbard, Norway © Florian Ledoux/Nature TTL
‘We witnessed a polar bear‘s patience during a sleepy hunt on the ice in Svalbard’s frozen expanse. This male polar bear stalked seals at their breathing holes. After they evaded him, he opted to rest, vigilant and patient. As we endured the long Arctic day of 24 hours without sleeping, we eventually retreated, in awe of his resilience. In this Arctic symphony of survival, the polar bear’s unwavering determination left an indelible mark on our souls.’
Camera trap winner
Jaguar, Solidaridad, Quintana Roo, Mexico © Fernando Constantino Martínez Belmar/Nature TTL
‘This jaguar had been seen before, so I decided to place a camera trap in a broken wall that led to the jungle. I placed one of the flashes strategically to get the jaguar’s shadow reflected on the wall behind. Poaching, deforestation, and habitat fragmentation have caused an increase in interactions with humans, and most of the time, it doesn’t end well for these cats.’
Small world winner
This image was captured in Rondane National Park in Norway. It shows a dead moth lying on the surface of a bacterial film. As I looked through the viewfinder, it looked like a painting to me.’
The night sky winner
‘I keep searching for new perspectives on photographing wildlife. This picture was taken with a remote-controlled camera placed into a fish tank. It was lucky that the wild boar stayed unmoved for the moment the picture was taken. In Hungary, where this composition was captured, the Milky Way is very rarely low enough in the sky to touch the horizon, and this phenomenon occurs only for a few days in the month of August.’
Underwater winner
Blubber jellyfish, Manly Beach, Sydney, Australia © Rowan Dear/Nature TTL
‘Over the last few years, I have witnessed a large gathering of Jelly Blubber in Sydney around March to April when the wind and currents are right to bring them from further up North. This year, we had 2-3 times more than I had ever seen. One area had a large condensed gathering, which extended down by around 5m deep. From the surface, shooting downwards, it was great to get a real depth perception of how many there were and create this alien-like environment.’
Urban wildlife winner
© Florian Smit/ Nature TTL
‘This image shows a brown rat in an abandoned house captured back in 2018. I used three flashes to illuminate the scene, and used a PIR motion sensor to trigger the camera.’
Check out these tips for photographing urban wildlife
Wild portrait winner
‘Compared to their female counterparts, male California sea lions are larger, have thicker necks, and possess a protruding, grey sagittal crest. During mating seasons, the males become territorial and protect their harem of up to 30 females. This male allowed us to stay with the group for a long period and was more curious about us than territorial. The sea lions in this area have expanded in number compared to other colonies in Mexico. This is thanks to the protection offered by being a UNESCO World Heritage site and a National Marine Park, where the no-take zone protects the entire food chain, providing a rich food source for the sea lions.’
Check out these tips for taking striking animal portrait photographs