9 Shots From the Nature Photographer of the Year Comp That’ll Leave You in Awe

9 Shots From the Nature Photographer of the Year Comp That’ll Leave You in Awe

Most of the news about our planet focuses on what’s gone wrong, from climate change to species extinctions, pollution, environmental injustice, and everything in between. While all of that is undeniably important, sometimes taking a break from the bad is important.

We thought this was the perfect time to show you a little gallery of some of the most incredible animal and landscape pictures ever taken, snapped as part of the Nature TTL Photographer of the Year 2022 Competition. As we’ve pointed out before: It’s hard to keep up the good fight if you can’t remember what you’re fighting for.

It’s the third time this comp has been run by Nature TTL, which is essentially an online community for nature photographers. We love their work, as it is incredible. It also brings some much-needed dopamine. For this year’s comp, over 8,000 photos were submitted. Here are nine of the best.

All captions and images have been provided by Nature TTL and the contestants, and we encourage you to go check out the full list of winners, as well as runners-up.

Ice Bear

‘Ice Bear’ by Geoffrey Reynaud, France. Image: Geoffrey Reynaud (via Nature TLL)

A large grizzly bear passes in front of my camera trap. In the Yukon, Canada, a unique phenomena happens every year. The bears will freeze their fur and stay out until the month of December, despite the temperature reaching as low as -30 degrees Celsius. This picture was taken by a camera trap set up along the river about 2 days before a snow storm. The temperature was starting to drop to -15C, and the bear was only starting to become an “ice bear”. – Geoffrey Reynaud.

A Cat and Its Prize

Nature TTL
‘A Cat and Its Prize’ by Dennis Stogsdill, USA. Image: Dennis Stogsdill (via Nature TTL)

We had received word about a serval hunting birds along the shore of Lake Ndutu (lower Serengeti) so we raced over to see. Upon arrival, we quickly realised that it was in fact a caracal and not a serval, and it was hunting flamingos that were feeding in the shallows. Within a minute of arrival, the caracal started stalking and eventually was successful (in dramatic fashion) at hunting one of the beautiful but unlucky birds. In this image you see the caracal walking off with its prize. – Dennis Stogsdill.

Nature Fights Back

‘Nature Fights Back’ by Bertus Hanekom, South Africa. Image: Bertus Hanekom (via Nature TTL)

A thunderstorm passes over a sunflower which, against the odds, has managed to survive on a rubbish dump in the semi-arid Karoo region of South Africa. – Bertus Hanekom.

Vantage Points

‘Vantage Points’ by Achintya Murthy, India. Image: Achintya Murthy (via Nature TTL)

Malabar Parakeets are wonderful creatures. They are also called blue winged parakeets. They usually flock together and are seen in huge numbers. In the midst of a bunch of activities, it was my privilege to shoot this image from a bird hide. These two are fighting over a stump that had paddy grains as its feed. – Achintya Murthy.

Sunset Ray

‘Sunset Ray’ by Andy Schmid, Switzerland. Image: Andy Schmid (via Nature TTL)

A Pink Whipray splitting a school of Bannerfishes, shot against the setting sun on a late afternoon at the famous dive site “Tuna Factory” that is located close to Malé, the capital of the Maldives. Photographed while SCUBA diving. – Andy Schmid.

The Journey of a Moth

‘The Journey of a Moth’ by Tibor Litauszki, Hungary. Image: Tibor Litauszki (via Nature TTL)

I managed to photograph this moth in summer at dusk. To keep track of the flight, I used an LED headlight, and I lit the moth with a flash. I made the twilight mood with multi-exposure inside the camera. – Tibor Litauszki.

I See You

Nature TTL
‘I See You’ by Tomasz Szpila, Poland. Image: Tomasz Szpila (via Nature TTL)

When a huge lion looks you right in the eyes, you immediately forget that you are sitting safely in the car. Instinctively, you cower and slowly retreat deeper inside the car so as not to provoke a predator. Fortunately, he and his brothers were busy consuming the young buffalo that had been hunted several minutes earlier. – Tomasz Szpila.

City Hare

Nature TTL
‘City Hare’ by Jan Piecha, Germany. Image: Jan Piecha (via Nature TTL)

During the daytime this place on the outskirts is totally crowded by people going about their daily business. But at night, it belongs to the animals that come out to play under the streetlights. – Jan Piecha.

The Night Sky

‘The Top of Australia’ by Josselin Cornou, France. Image: Josselin Cornou (via Nature TTL)

This photo was taken during a trip to Kosciusko, the highest point in Australia. It is also one of the best places to capture the Milky Way, in part thanks to the dark skies. – Josselin Cornou.

Have a great weekend, all.


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