The most prestigous award possible to win as a wildlife photographer certainly is the “Wildlife Photographer of the Year” award, an initiative led by the Natural History Museum of London, sponsored by different companies each year which is why you might find people referencing it as the “BBC Wildlife Photographer of the year” or the “Shell Wildlife Photographer”. That’s the same. The unoffical community abbreviation seems to be WPOY.
The online gallery with the winners and the winning images of the 2010 award has just been published, make sure to surf by and have a look, it always is worth a visit:
But don’t get depressed thinking you will never make it – It is easy to think that if you would only live in South Africa you certainly would win that award more easily than, let’s say, living in The Netherlands. Is this really true? Let’s have a quick look at a) where the winning photographers actually come frome, and b) where the winning images were taken.
If we have a quick count of the home countries of the winning photographers, and summarize to, well, continents or areas, you get this result (pardon me for counting photographers multiple times in case they won more than one award, my spreadsheet currently doesn’t allow more detail). A certainly strong European flavor in this competition:
| Area | # Photog’s |
|---|---|
| Europe | 51 |
| USA | 17 |
| South Africa | 8 |
| Australia | 4 |
| India | 2 |
| Israel | 2 |
| Brazil | 1 |
But where the photographers are from is not as relevant for our discussion as where the images were actually made. So, drilling down on the area the winning photos were made in, no surprise Africa comes up first. But right then, European wildlife and landscapes make it on the ranks of the award.
| Area | # Photos |
|---|---|
| Africa | 12 |
| Southern Europe | 11 |
| Central Europe | 8 |
| Central America | 8 |
| Scandinavia | 8 |
| USA | 8 |
| South America | 7 |
| UK | 6 |
| India | 5 |
| Indonesia | 4 |
| Australia | 3 |
| Indian Ocean | 2 |
| Israel | 2 |
| Antarctica | 1 |
| Southern Pacific | 1 |
Antarctica? For sure. One winning image. Underwater, at a southern sea coral reef? Certainly. One winning image. Canary Islands? Yikes, three winning images!
Conclusion: You do not necessarily need to book a transcontinental flight to stand a chance in this competition. Look closer to your home, and for you Europeans out there: Embrace the European Wonders of Nature!
Of course, alternatively, if you don’t think you will make it at home you could travel as far as the Australian Kent Miklenda who shot this awarded image on the Lofot islands, northern Norway:
Related posts:
- Wildlife photography workshop cancelled – where are you guys?
- Travel planning – which countries to visit as a landscape photographer?
- Exhibition tip: WPOY exhibition in Nymphenburg, Munich
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