The Wildlife Photographer of the Year

It seems like the last year was enough to cause the world’s wildlife photographers to snap.

And the best of those snaps will be on show at the World Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards.  Now in its 58th year (!), the judges have trawled through tens of thousands of entries from 100+ countries before landing on the winning images, which will be displayed on special lightboxes (alongside dozens of runner-up shots) throughout the Natural History Museum’s gallery when the show opens this October.

The winning images will be divvied up into a dozen different categories, ranging from Black & White, to Underwater, to photographers 10 Years Old and Under. Yes, nine year olds took photos so good they’re winning awards.

Here’s a teaser of a few shortlisted images:

The right look by Richard Robinson

Despite being hunted to the brink of extinction, the right whale has bounced back from a breeding population of a literally just a dozen females to a couple of thousand today. This particular one decided to give New Zealand photographer Richard Robinson a curious peek while he stood on the bottom of the ocean…

The disappearing giraffe by Jose Fragozo

Those pillars that the giraffe is darting between are carrying the weight of Kenya’s new Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway – it was specifically raised above the land so that the wildlife could still move freely beneath it. And photographer Jose Fragozo had to take this shot from a moving vehicle riding over bumpy land…

The octopus case by Samuel Sloss

Taken in the volcanic sands of Lembeh Strait, Indonesia, photographer Samuel Sloss was actually ‘muck diving’ here – it involves moving extremely slowly and patiently through the sand so as not to disturb it and cloud the water. He was rewarded with a shot of this little guy, who briefly opened his shell to see what was going on outside.

Treefrog pool party by Brandon Güell

To get this image, photographer Brandon Güell had to wake up at 4am for days on end, and wade chest-deep in mosquito-rich waters in the hopes of catching these gliding treefrogs enter a rare breeding frenzy. And, lo and behold, it paid off in this beautiful, amphibian orgy.

There are literally dozens more incredible images just like these ready to be unveiled when the show opens – and you’ll even get to vote for your own favourite too…

NOTE: Wildlife Photographer of the Year is now open at the Natural History Museum. You can find out more, and book tickets (from £17) at their website right HERE.

The Natural History Museum | Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD

Main image: Dmitry Kokh

The Natural History Museum makes a pretty good date spot, incidentally. Find more inspiration in our pick of 101 London Date Ideas