A celebration of British wildlife
Monday 10th September 2012
Culm divided cpt Stephen William Powles
A stunning and innovative series of images showcasing British wildlife at its best are today unveiled in The British Wildlife Photography Awards 2012.
With 12 categories covering everything from marine life and animal behaviour to creepy crawlies and urban wildlife; the awards beautifully reveal the unseen splendour and surprising diversity of Britain’s wildlife. There are also two special junior categories to encourage young people to connect with nature through photography.
The Wildlife Trusts’ category Living Landscape: Connectivity aims to encourage imaginative responses to capture this sense of connectivity or lack of it. Many wildlife-rich places are isolated and people are becoming more disconnected from the nature around them. Addressing these 'connectivity' issues is at the heart of The Wildlife Trusts’ recovery plan for nature, A Living Landscape.
Living Landscape: Connectivity's winning shot – Culm divided – was taken by Stephen William Powles on Knowstone Moor in Devon.
Powles’ describes it: “This is part of one of the largest expanses of Culm grassland in Britain. Culm grassland, found in North Devon and East Cornwall, is a unique and internationally threatened habitat. Sadly, the North Devon link road was put through the middle of this ecosystem. Taken at night, the image shows even more dramatically how the road has cut through this habitat. The deer sign further emphasises the conflict.”
Devon Wildlife Trust runs a long-term project - Working Wetlands - working alongside landowners to recreate A Living Landscape in the Culm area of Devon. http://www.devonwildlifetrust.org/working-wetlands/
The overall winning image – Gannet Jacuzzi - was captured on a remote location off the North coast of Scotland. Dr Matt Doggett who took it, said: “It was an incredible experience being in the water surrounded by these high speed divers.”
Judge Greg Armfield from WWF describes the photograph: “A striking image that manages to capture in parallel the raw power and grace of the diving gannets. A beautiful and evocative shot.”
Maggie Gowan, competition director, said: “This has been the highest level of entries so far since the competition launched in 2009. Especially satisfying has been the increase in young entries with the partnership between RSPB Wildlife Explorers and BWPA, which bodes well for the future of wildlife conservation and photography.”
Stephen Moss, the Chair of the Judging panel, comments: “British wildlife photography is now better than ever, with some fabulous images captured by some of our greatest photographers gracing this award and exhibition.”
An exhibition of 90 images, including winning and commended entries launches at the prestigious Mall Galleries in London on Monday 17 September and is open until Saturday 22 September. For full details of opening hours visit: http://www.mallgalleries.org.uk. A year-long nationwide tour of the exhibition will follow throughout the UK.
See the winners' gallery here: http://www.bwpawards.org/page/2012_winners
The winners:
British Wildlife Photographer
Dr Matt Doggett for 'Gannet Jacuzzi'
Young People’s Award WildPix / BWPA
Under 12. William Briggs for his image of a chaffinch
12-18. Ashley Butterworth, for his image of arctic terns
The Adult Category winners:
Animal Portraits
Neil McIntyre for 'Red deer stag in pine forest'
Urban Wildlife
Phil Jones for 'Starlings watching starlings'
Habitat
Alexander Mustard for 'Grey seal in underwater cave'
Hidden Britain
Dale Sutton for 'Leap for freedom'
Coast and Marine
Dr Matt Doggett for 'Gannet Jacuzzi'
Wildlife Behaviour
Amanda Hayes for 'Herring gull and puffin'
Wild Woods
Jeremy Walker for 'New Forest in Autumn'
Living Landscape: Connectivity
Stephen William Powles for 'Culm divided'
Wildlife In My Backyard
David Handley for 'Wasp house cleaning'
Documentary Series Portfolio
Mark Hamblin for his 'feature on Glen Tanar Estate'
British Seasons Portfolio
Jules Cox for 'Snow hare'
Wildlife in HD video
Raymond Besant for 'fulmars'
The Book: British Wildlife Photography Awards: Collection 3 will be published on 10 September.
Photos:
Available on request. Please credit all photographers and BWPA. Please always include the competition’s web address: www.bwpawards.co.uk.
Main Award Categories:
There are 12 categories to excite the imagination, as well as a special award to encourage participation by young people. These are: Animal Portraits, Animal Behaviour, Urban Wildlife, Hidden Britain, Coast and Marine, Wildlife in my Back Yard, Habitat, British Seasons, Wild Woods, Living Landscapes, Documentary Series, Wildlife IN HD VIDEO and the Young People‘s Awards - WildPix BWPA.
Young Photographers:
The WildPix Young People’s Awards are given to young photographers whose single image is judged to be the most striking and memorable of all the young entries. There are two categories; Under 12years and 12-18 years.
Sponsors:
SKY+HD, Canon,The Wildlife Trusts, RSPB Wildlife Explorers, WWF, Sparsholt College, Visit Woods.org.uk, Countryside Jobs Service, Wildlife Extra, Countryside Council for Wales, Buglife and Outdoor Photography Magazine.
Supporters:
National Trust, National Trust for Scotland, Natural England
Exhibition Venues:
1. Mall Galleries, London: 17 -22 September 2012
2. Nature in Art ,Gloucester: 9 October – 25 November, 2012
3. Nunnington Hall, Yorkshire: 3 November – 16 December 2012
4. Moors Valley Country Park, Dorset: 2 February – 17 March 2013
5. Luton Museum, Bedfordshire: 19 January - 31 March 2013
For all enquiries and images: mail@maggiegowan.co.uk or 07767 337 359
Tagged with: Photography & The Arts