Inspirations
Stunning imagery from the world of Canon photography
Revel in some amazingly inspirational and creative images from the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016 competition
01 Night blow by Audun Rikardsen
In the polar winter the sun was below the horizon, but there was just enough light to see that killer whales had come into the fjords outside Tromsø, Norway. Extreme cold and high humidity created a magical frost mist over the water but also ice crystals that froze to my face and camera. I hung over the side of the boat and pointed my camera in the direction of the sound of the whales’ blows or occasional glimpse of a fin. After six freezing hours, this was the shot that made it all worthwhile.
02 Flamingo veil by Theo allofs
I took off in my powered paraglider at sunrise. Steering with one hand on the brake, the other holding a camera, I spotted a large flock of lesser flamingos feeding in the shallows on algae and other plankton in Lake Logipi, northern Kenya. I had to fly very high so as not to scare them. Leaving trails like beautiful veils in the muddy water, the flamingos gathered into a circle, creating their ephemeral design.
03 The disappearing Fish by iago leonardo
In the open ocean there is nowhere to hide, but the lookdowns, at the top of this image, are masters of disguise. I was free-diving, with special permission, around Contoy Island. Using only natural light, I framed them against a shoal of grunt to highlight the contrast between the two species.
04 dawn of The bison by Jasper doest
I have been documenting European bison since they were reintroduced to the Netherlands in 2007 (they were hunted to extinction in the wild in Europe in 1927). On this particular morning I found the herd cooling off at a lake amid a swarm of midges. The first rays of sunlight started to emerge over the trees, creating a beautiful visual show.
05 playing pangolin by lance van de vyver
I had been tracking the pride for several hours when they happened across this pangolin and started to roll it around like a ball. I focused in on this young lion’s claws and the pangolin’s scratched scales, blackand-white simplified the composition. The pangolin’s armour plating creates an impregnable barrier, but it would be 14 hours until the lions finally lost interest.
06 study in mud by laurent chagnard
I was watching the flamingos in a small swamp when one bird took a break from feeding and lifted its head to take a breath. For a fleeting moment, the mud clung to its face and neck, allowing me to capture this image before the dark slime dripped off.
07 snapper party by Tony wu
For several days each month (in tandem with the full moon), thousands of two-spot red snappers gather to spawn around Palau in the western Pacific Ocean. The currents were unrelenting and light was low, and the water was clouded with sperm and eggs. I was intrigued to see that the fish rapidly changed colour during mating from their standard red to a multitude of hues and patterns.
Catching sight of a crow in the park, I thought the spindly twigs of the sycamore tree made it feel almost supernatural, like something out of a fairy tale. But the bird kept moving, making it difficult to keep it silhouetted against the moon. Finally, as the light was failing, I managed to turn an ordinary moment into something magical.
Lens Canon ef 400mm f/5.6l is usm Exposure 1/250 sec, f/6.3, iso500