Young wildlife photographer has work in Natural History Museum
A young wildlife photographer phenom from Pincher Creek has captured another international award.
On Oct. 17, Josiah Launstein was awarded as a finalist in the age 11-14 category in the 2017 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition at the Natural History Museum in London, U.K.
The competition is the museum’s annual showcase of “the world's best nature photography and wildlife photojournalism on one global platform.”
It’s the third time Launstein has received an award in the prestigious competition over the past three years.
The 12-year-old captured his winning image “The hairy raincoat” while in Thailand filming a production with Nikon about his wildlife photography. His black-and-white image depicts a close-up view of raindrops in the furry coat of a monkey moth caterpillar.
Launstein is the only Canadian to receive an award in this year’s competition, which had almost 50,000 entries from 92 countries. The top 100 images were chosen by a panel of judges.
Launstein’s image is on display at the Natural History Museum in London. The exhibition will tour the U.K. and internationally, being showcased in museums and galleries in more than 50 countries. In Canada, it will be shown at the Royal BC Museum in Victoria from Dec. 8 and at the Royal Ontario Museum on Dec. 16.
Launstein comes from a family of photographers, many who have won international awards. In 2016, they opened the “Launstein Imagery Wildlife Art Gallery” in Blairmore to showcase their exclusive images and art, and to bring awareness to wildlife conservation efforts.