{"id":199360,"date":"2025-06-20T08:14:13","date_gmt":"2025-06-20T08:14:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/199360\/"},"modified":"2025-06-20T08:14:13","modified_gmt":"2025-06-20T08:14:13","slug":"leaping-lemur-mom-wins-bigpictures-12th-annual-nature-photography-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/199360\/","title":{"rendered":"Leaping Lemur Mom Wins BigPicture&#8217;s 12th Annual Nature Photography Competition"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>      <img data-perfmatters-preload=\"\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/GPW_Donglin_Zhou_4K-copy-800x501.jpg\" alt=\"Seven golden monkeys climb and leap across sharp, gray limestone cliffs. One monkey is airborne mid-jump, while others walk, climb, or perch amid the jagged rocks. Sparse branches are visible in the lower left corner.\" width=\"800\" height=\"501\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800308\"  \/>\u2018Leap of Faith\u2019 by Zhou Donglin, Grand Prize Winner. | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences <\/p>\n<p>The 12th edition of the annual California Academy of Sciences\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bigpicturecompetition.org\/\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"follow external noopener\">BigPicture Photography Competition<\/a> celebrates the world\u2019s best nature, landscape, and wildlife photographers. <\/p>\n<p>This year\u2019s contest drew thousands of entries from around 60 different countries, featuring talented amateur photographers and well-known professionals in the wildlife and conservation fields. <\/p>\n<p>Competition categories include Aquatic Life; Art of Nature; Human\/Nature; Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora; Photo Story; Terrestrial Wildlife; and Winged Life, alongside a People\u2019s Choice award and a Grand Prize. <\/p>\n<p>Chinese wildlife and conservation photographer Donglin Zhou won this year\u2019s Grand Prize for her fantastic photograph, \u201cLemur\u2019s Tough Life,\u201d seen above, which shows a common brown lemur (Eulemur fulvus) making an incredible leap in Madagascar with her baby on her back while other lemurs watch in the distance. <\/p>\n<p>Zhou hiked across rugged limestone rocks and waited for hours to capture this incredible photo. Zhou is also the co-founder of SKW Nature and has previously won awards for both her photography and ecological filmmaking projects, including The Snow Leopard and Pallas\u2019 Cat Chronicles. Her works have been displayed at the Natural History Museum in London, the California Academy of Sciences, the Zhejiang Museum of Natural History, and the Wildlife Conservation Summit in Singapore. Zhou won $5,000 for her victory. <\/p>\n<p> Category Winners  <\/p>\n<p>Alongside Zhou\u2019s Grand Prize-winning photo above, the other category winners are featured below. Each category winner took home $1,000 in cash. <\/p>\n<p> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Aquatic_Kat_Zhou_4K-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"Close-up of an octopus guarding its cluster of translucent eggs, each containing developing embryos, surrounded by the octopus\u2019s tentacles with visible suction cups inside an underwater den.\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800320\"  \/>\u2018My Octopus Mother\u2019 by Kat Zhou, Aquatic Life Winner. | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Art_Sandra_Bartocha_4K-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"Abstract image of swirling blue and white colors resembling turbulent ocean waves, with soft, blurred textures creating a sense of movement and dynamic energy.\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800316\"  \/>\u2018Unwavering Energy\u2019 by Sandra Bartocha, Art of Nature Winner. | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences. Read <a href=\"https:\/\/petapixel.com\/2023\/12\/05\/the-emotion-of-nature-sandra-bartochas-creative-photography\/\" data-wpel-link=\"internal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PetaPixel\u2018s interview with Sandra Bartocha<\/a> for more information on her nature photography. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Human_Ami_Vitale_4K-800x558.jpg\" alt=\"A group of people in green uniforms surround a rhinoceros in tall grass. Some hold ropes, while one person has fallen near the animal. The scene appears tense, with people moving quickly. Dense greenery is in the background.\" width=\"800\" height=\"558\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800315\"  \/>\u2018Rhino Rebound\u2019 by Ami Vitale, Human\/Nature Winner. | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences. <a href=\"https:\/\/petapixel.com\/ami-vitale-photographer-biography\/\" data-wpel-link=\"internal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read PetaPixel\u2018s interview with Ami Vitale<\/a> to learn more about her conservation photography and career. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Landscape_Marcin_Giba_4K-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Abstract image of a dark, oval-shaped patch with cracks, resembling an eye, surrounded by light blue shading and intersected by dashed black lines on a white background.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800317\"  \/>\u2018Icy Stare\u2019 by Marcin Giba, Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora Winner. | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Terrestrial_Amit_Eshel_4K-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"A pack of five white Arctic wolves stands and walks across a snowy, white landscape, blending into the background. One wolf is close to the camera, looking forward, while others are scattered in the distance.\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800319\"  \/>\u2018Part of the Pack\u2019 by Amit Eschel, Terrestrial Wildlife Winner | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Winged_Dvir_Barkay_4K-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"A translucent-winged bat flies below a large green leaf with three small bats clinging to its top side, set against a dark background.\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800318\"  \/>\u2018Tiny Tent Makers\u2019 by ADvir Barkay, Winged Life Winner | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/PhotoStory_Takuya_Ishiguro_1_4K-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"A close-up of a fly covered in dewdrops perched on a plant, with sunlight shining brightly in the background over a field of green grass and blurred foliage.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" class=\"size-large wp-image-800314\"  \/>\u2018The World of Familiar Insects\u2019 by Takuya Ishiguro, Photo Story: In My Backward Winner | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bigpicturecompetition.org\/2025-winners\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"follow external noopener\">Click here to view the full photo series<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond the winners, the jury of professional wildlife and conservation photographers also selected finalists for each category. These are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bigpicturecompetition.org\/2025-winners\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"follow external noopener\">available to view on the BigPicture Photography Competition\u2019s website<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>Alongside the category winners, there will also be a People\u2019s Choice Award. Voting for the People\u2019s Choice award will take place from July 1 to July 31. Additional information, plus a fun photographic memory game, are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bigpicturecompetition.org\/peoples-choice-award\" data-wpel-link=\"external\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"follow external noopener\">available on the competition\u2019s website<\/a>. PetaPixel will feature all the contenders once voting opens next month. <\/p>\n<p>\u2028<strong>Image credits:<\/strong> BigPicture Photography Competition and the California Academy of Sciences. Individual photographers are credited in the captions.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u2018Leap of Faith\u2019 by Zhou Donglin, Grand Prize Winner. | BigPicture Photography Competition, California Academy of Sciences The&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":199361,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3847],"tags":[933,80727,80728,80729,1442,48766,6179,729,52289,70,32744,16,15,1717],"class_list":{"0":"post-199360","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wildlife","8":"tag-animals","9":"tag-bigpicture","10":"tag-bigpicturecompetition","11":"tag-californiaacademyofsciences","12":"tag-competition","13":"tag-contest","14":"tag-landscape","15":"tag-nature","16":"tag-photocontest","17":"tag-science","18":"tag-spotlight","19":"tag-uk","20":"tag-united-kingdom","21":"tag-wildlife"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114714697458720834","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/199360","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=199360"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/199360\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/199361"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=199360"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=199360"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=199360"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}