Dancing Stoats and David Bowie Spiders: 60th WPOTY Preview
A ‘dancing’ stoat, a moonlight hunter and a David Bowie spider are just a few of the extraordinary images from the Natural History Museum, London’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, now in its 60th year.
The upcoming Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition will showcase 100 photographs from around the world from 11 October 2024 in London. To mark the sixtieth anniversary, the Museum’s flagship exhibition will feature a timeline of key moments in the competition’s history.
The sixtieth competition attracted a record-breaking 59,228 entries from photographers of all ages and experience levels from 117 countries and territories. Entries were judged anonymously on their creativity, originality, and technical excellence by an international panel of industry experts.
The winners of each category, and the prestigious Grand Title and Young Grand Title awards, will be announced on 8 October 2024 at a ceremony hosted by wildlife TV presenters and conservationists Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin.
This year, the competition has introduced a new award in both the young and adult competitions: the Impact Award, to recognise a conservation success, a story of hope and/or positive change. The special prize forms part of the Natural History Museum’s vision of a future where both people and planet thrive.
Among the newly-released Highly Commended images is the first ever awarded smartphone image showing the successful completion of a mule deer doe’s circle of life by Randy Robbins.
Nature TTL author Will Fortescue witnessed the complex relationship of mating lions, whilst Tommy Trenchard records the distressing moment a shark was hauled aboard a Spanish longliner in the Southern Atlantic Ocean.
Dr Doug Gurr, Director of the Museum says, “As we celebrate sixty years of Wildlife Photographer of the Year, we also celebrate the generations of visitors who have been inspired by the beauty and majesty of its images, and the millions of connections made with nature.”
The 60th edition of Wildlife Photographer of the Year opens at the Museum in South Kensington on Friday 11 October until Sunday 29 June 2025. The exhibition will also embark on a UK and international tour to inspire millions to appreciate and conserve the natural world.
