30 Stunning And Emotional Photos That Won The European Wildlife Photographer Of The Year 2020
More than 19,000 photos from 38 countries were submitted to this year’s contest held by The German Society for Nature Photography (GDT). The winners of the prestigious European Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest were awarded on Thursday, October 22 in the first virtual award ceremony.
And one photograph stood out from the rest. It was Jasper Doest’s “A Monkey’s Mask,” a moving snap that shows a Japanese macaque removing a human mask in between performances for a human crowd. Photographed at a sake house in north Tokyo, the picture “silently talks to us by questioning humans dealing with wild animals and nature.” Thus, it justly won the award of the overall winner.
Scroll through the rest of the winner photographs down below to see the ever-changing beauty (and pain) of the living world around us.
More info: GDTfoto.de
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Category Birds: "Night Hunter" By Jonas Classon (Se)
Category Plants And Fungi: "Spirits Of The Bamboo Forest" By Agorastos Papatsanis (Gr)
Category Mammals: "A Quick Sip" By Javier Aznar (Es)
The overall winner, Jasper Doest, took the moving photograph of a monkey wearing a human mask in a traditional Japanese sake house north of Tokyo. The artist explained that after dinner, the tavern’s guests can watch Japanese macaques performing tricks with various props on a makeshift stage.
“In the old days, the Japanese macaque or snow monkey was a sacred religious symbol, known to mediate between gods and humans. Today, the animal has been reduced to a secular scapegoat, a defaced outcast, and target of mockery.”
This photo is part of Jasper’s larger series of photos that he shot for National Geographic called “Sacred No More.” According to the artist’s website, “The Japanese macaque, best known as the ‘snow monkey,’ is revered as a bridge between man and the gods, but it has become so habituated to humans in recent years that its population has increased tenfold.”
Category Mammals: "Hareball" By Andrew Parkinson (Gb)
Category Birds: "Following Mum" By Oscar Dewhurst (Gb)
Category Men And Nature: "Crab Road" By Tom Schandy (No)
One member of the jury, Angel Fitorthis, said that Jasper’s photo is, in fact, the icon of our time. On behalf of the jury, he stated: “A macaque on stage takes off his mask in front of a fake forest. As the mask slips, the wall of arrogance that we have built between us and nature over many centuries suddenly collapses. Never before has a portrait of an animal mirrored us like this: a naked monkey behind a human mask.”
Category Plants And Fungi: Winner: "Blooming Desert" By Marco Gaiotti (It)
This pink is shocking against the bleak background. And it makes sense colour-wise. I like it very much.
Category The Underwater World: "Constellation Of Eagle Rays" By Henley Spiers (Gb)
I love this one. It’s hard to tell whether it’s a pencil sketch or a photo. It could be butterflies or bird as well. And I love the air of mystery and calmness of the underwater world.
Category The Underwater World: Runner Up: "Hitch-Hiking Octopus" By Magnus Lundgren (Se)
Category Birds: "Natural Colours" By Salvador Colvee (Es)
Category The Underwater World: Winner: "Whale Milk" By Mike Korostelev (Ru)
Category Other Animals: "Firefly Light Trails In The Rainforest" By Konrad Wothe (De)
Category Fritz Pölking Junior Prize: "A Flurry Of Snow" By Florian Smit
Category Young Photographers To 14 Years: Runner Up: "A Home In Pink" By Carlos Perez Naval (Es)
Category Birds: Winner: "Penguin Defence" By Ben Cranke (Gb)
Category Birds: "Storm Brewing" By Oscar Diez (Es)
Category Mammals: "A Study Of Art" By Klaus- Peter Echle (De)
Category Plants And Fungi: "Swamp Colours" By Mauro Battistelli (It)
This is so impressive and powerful! I almost can't believe it's real. Great work of nature and beautiful photo... I admire both of them - Nature and Art
Category Young Photographer 15 To 17 Years: Runner Up: "Musketeers" By Grzegorz Dlugosz (Pl)
Category Other Animals: Runner Up: "Curious Glances" By Manuel Plaickner (It)
Category Men And Nature: "The New Lighthouse Keepers" By Audun Rikardsen (No)
Category Men And Nature: Winner: "Empathy" By Marcus Westberg (Es)
Category Young Photographers To 14 Years: Winner: "Backlight" By Andres Domingues Blanco (Es)
"Latest report from the ground: Everything's under control in my area. Nothing to worry about here..."
Category Nature´s Studio: Winner: "Galaxy" By Thomas Hempelmann (De)
Category Birds: "Strange Encounters" By Hannes Klostermann (De)
Some fish can fly and some birds are great underwater swimmers. And some humans are very good photographers.
Category Nature´s Studio: "Owl Forest" By Bertold Nagy (Hu)
Category Men And Nature: "Saving Orang-Utans" By Alain Schroeder (Be)
Category Men And Nature: "Busy Lines" By Pere Soler Isern (Es)
Category Other Animals: "In A Hat" By Katarzyna Gubrynowicz (Pl)
Wow! This looks to me like some creature with the face of rhino, eyes of snail, and the pearl shell in the back. I'm not high, I swear
Category Plants And Fungi: "Wrapped" By Theo Bosboom (Nl)
Category Landscapes: "Etna's River Of Fire" By Luciano Gaudenzio (It)
Category Birds: "Beautiful Plumage" By Jan Pederson (Se)
Category Mammals: Winner: "So Big And Yet So Small" By Cristoph Kaula (De)
Now that's some clever use of negative space. I'm really curious how the photographer achieved this affect.
Category Mammals: "A Wild Chase" By Vladislav Kostylev (Ru)
They almost both look like rabbits! Though one of them is the arctic fox.
Category Landscapes: "Alienscape" By Fortunato Gatto (Gb)
The landscape looks otherworldly-- really lovely textures in the sand and water.
Category Nature´s Studio: "God's Power" By Leonardo Papera (It)
Category Other Animals: Winner: "A Father And His Offspring" By Jaime Culebras (Es)
Category Landscapes: "Waterfall In A Storm" By Luis Manuel Vilarino Lopez (Es)
Category Landscapes: "Moonlight" By Riccardo Marchegiani (It)
The mountains are lit from the right, as the moon is. I presume is the setting sun
Category The Underwater World: "An Icy Mobile Home" By Greg Lecoeur (Fr)
Category Birds: "Courting At The Onset Of Winter" By Manuel Plaickner (It)
Category Mammals: "The End Is Near" By David Lloyd (Gb)
Category Mammals: "Black & White" By Christoph Kaula (De)
Category Mammals: "Dust Bath" By Bence Mate (Hu)
Category Mammals: "The Fortress" By Emile Sechaud (Fr)
Category Other Animals: "Underground Sky" By Javier Tur (Es)
Category Plants And Fungi: "A Sheet Of Music" By Juan Garcia Lucas (Es)
Category Landscapes: "Elements" By Marijin Heuts (Nl)
Category Nature´s Studio: "Jellyfish Trails" By Henley Spiers (Gb)
Category Plants And Fungi: "The White Tree" By Felipe Foncueva (Es)
I honestly thought that this was some abstract oil painting or wall mural.
Category Men And Nature: Runner Up: "Fighting No Matter What" By Alvaro Herrero Lopez- Beltran (Es)
Overall Winner: "A Monkey's Mask" By Jasper Doest (Netherlands)
For people who are saying that this photograph is not worthy of of the grand prize because it does not depict wildlife, I urge you to read the story behind the photograph from the photographer: "In contemporary Japan, the Japanese macaque has grown from a revered religious symbol to a secular scapegoat, a defaced outcast and target of mockery – sacred no more." At Utsonomiya's Kayabuki Tavern, Japanese macaque Fuku-chan takes off its papier-mâché mask during a performance with Yume-chan, one of the proprietor’s oldest monkeys. Following dinner in the tavern, customers have the opportunity to watch the macaques perform tricks on a makeshift stage with the help of a variety of stage props. It reminds me of a Japanese poem from the 17th century by Matsuo Bashō: "year after year / the monkey wears / a monkey’s mask", referring to a monkey doing the same tricks over and over, or people making the same mistakes over and over in an unchanging life. When will we ever learn?
Part of this contest was to also demonstrate humanity's impact (whether good or bad) on animal populations. This is such a powerful image not for its beauty, but because it is jarring and elicits feelings of disgust from many of us. It should make us sad and angry. Photos like this are important because it makes us aware of how horrible practices like this are still going on and how we need to take a stand to protect wildlife. There is nothing "wild" about the animals in this photo and that is why it is so disturbing.
Load More Replies...The worst part about this is that they were probably raised in captivity due to some factors not limited to being orphaned at a young age in the wild, being injured severely at a very young age and needing rescue, being born in captivity in the first place, their habitat being destroyed, and so much more that can lead to them forget how to survive in the wild without humans. They probably can never be released into the wild ever again. So why take a picture of them in an uncomfortable costume where they're obviously unhappy? At least show us if they're happy during their day to day lives!
I urge you to read the photographer's comment regarding this photograph in my comment above. Sometimes truly powerful photography doesn't always show the "bright side of things". I know that we want all animals to be happy and live free from captivity, but sadly, that is not always the case. I believe that the photographer wanted to bring attention to this antiquated practice and how humans can sometimes destroy natural habitats and the lives of animals. Photographs like this are draw awareness, elicit feelings of anger and sadness, and ultimately makes us want to learn more about how to stop these practices and protect animals.
Load More Replies...Chimpanzees & gorillas share 98.3% of their genetic code with humans~~so if they can't be returned to the wild, let them act for their upkeep. That’s what actors & actresses do~~put on costumes & pretend for a living. [Some of us wish they couldn’t speak as few have more than room-temperature I.Q.s.]
Category Other Animals: "A Good Father" By Javier Aznar (Es)
Category Landscapes: Winner: "Mammutus Clouds Over The Dolomites" By Georg Kantioler (It)
Category The Underwater World: "Fish Explosion" By Nicholas More (Gb)
Category Men And Nature: "Five Metres Eighty" By Miguel Rubio (Es)
I'm pretty sure these giraffes are just walking through the city while people would normally be asleep...Because of habitat loss they have to migrate through cities to find their usual feeding areas again. Elephants do this a lot, too.
Category Nature´s Studio: "The Forest" By Manuel Enrique Gonzalez Carmona (Es)
Category Birds: "The Last Rays Of Sun" By Petr Bambousek (Cz)
Category Mammals: Runner Up: "Scratching" By Wolfgang Veeser (De)
Category Other Animals: "Dead Leaves" By Petr Bambousek (Cz)
Category Plants And Fungi: "Alpine Spirites" By Leonardo Papera (It)
Category Landscapes: "Navarra" By Thomas Wester (De)
Category The Underwater World: "Vitruvian Frog" By Kai Kolodziej (At)
Category The Underwater World: "Hullaballoo" By Cristobal Serrano (Es)
Category Men And Nature: "Far Away From Home" By Brais Seara (Es)
Category Young Photographer 15 To 17 Years: Winner: "Tiny Details" By Lili Sztreharszki (Hu)
Category Other Animals: "Symmetry" By Norbert Kaszas (Hu)
Category Other Animals: "Levitation" By Csaba Daroczi (Hu)
Gorgeous- it reminds me of a traditional Chinese or Japanese ink painting.
Category Landscapes: Runner Up: "Yin And Yang" By Theo Bosboom (Nl)
Category Landscapes: "Illusion" By Heike Odermatt (Nl)
Category Landscapes: "Blue Mountains" By Miguel Angel Artus Illana (Es)
Category The Underwater World: "Croc Impresionism" By Jacob Degee (Pl)
Category The Underwater World: "The Big Race In Pink" By Magnus Lundgren (Se)
Category Nature´s Studio: Runner Up: "Blue River" By Gheorghe Popa (Ro)
Category Other Animals: "Invisible Father" By Jaime Culebras (Es)
Category Plants And Fungi: Runner Up: "Frosty Aura" By Hannu Ahonen (Fi)
Category Plants And Fungi: "Greenhous Effect" By Thierry Salmon (Be)
Category Nature´s Studio: "Foam" By Sergio Tapia (Es)
Category Nature´s Studio: "Frozen" By Petra Draskovic Pelc (Si)
Category Fritz Pölking Prize: "Another Excluded Migrant" By Alejandro Prieto
Category The Underwater World: "Relations" By Pietro Formis (It)
Category Men And Nature: "Agricultural Art" By Paolo Crocetta (It)
Category Nature´s Studio: "The Bird" By Jan Piecha (De)
Category Birds: Runner Up: "Bride And Groom" By Bernt Østhus (No)
Category Nature´s Studio: "Random Result" By Jan Leßmann (De)
Category Plants And Fungi: "Systematic Chaos" By Esteve Garriga (Es)
Category Men And Nature: "Dead Toad Fashion" By Britta Jaschinski (Gb)
WTF? What would one even keep in a shape like that? Another dead frog?
This priceless, irreplaceable, unique crown jewel of a planet. PROTECT HER!
This priceless, irreplaceable, unique crown jewel of a planet. PROTECT HER!