Twenty-five incredible images make up the shortlist for the 2023 People’s Choice Wildlife Photographer of the Year award. Earlier this week, the paintings were selected by the Natural History Museum in London, which hosts the annual exhibition, and an international judging panel, according to the museum’s website. Among the stunning wildlife portraits is a picture of a polar bear sleeping on an iceberg near Norway’s Svalbard archipelago and a photo of two lionesses nursing one of five cubs in a pride in the Maasai Mara in Kenya.
Other photos featured include a group of penguins hanging out in Atka Bay, Antarctica, as well as a photo of a group of starlings forming a giant bird shape in the sky.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(568x416:570x418)/wildlife-photographer-of-the-year-shared-parenting-113023-1-b6b4e4e1efa249aeb9a1c4848895e59b.jpg)
Lion entry for Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Mark Boyd, Wildlife Photographer of the Year
A stunning photo of a rare snow leopard has won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year award
The judges narrowed down the selection of 25 selected images from 49,957 entries submitted from 95 countries, according to CNN.
Now until January 31, the public can vote online for whichever picture they think is the best.
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/wildlife-photographer-of-the-year-troublemaker-113023-1-a4e3678fcded417aa80d9c4bc94e3908.jpg)
Penguin submission for wildlife photographer of the year.
Stefan Christmann, wildlife photographer of the year
The winner and the four best images will be announced on February 7th. They will be exhibited online, as well as at a personal exhibition in the Natural History Museum.
The photos will be on display at the London attraction until June 30.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/wildlife-photographer-of-the-year-starling-murmuration-113023-1-32dfab7d3b5747fcbb2f67a062318477.jpg)
Bird entry for Wildlife Photographer of the Year.
Daniel Dencescu, Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Silly bears and weird birds among the finalists for the 2023 Comedy Wildlife Photo Awards — see the shots
The winner of the People’s Choice Award for Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2022 was Sascha Fonseca’s “The World of the Snow Leopard,” winning the competition with a whopping 60,466 votes.
The image shows a rare and elusive snow leopard on a snowy mountain in the Indian Himalayas, looking up at a colorful sky. Fonseca said she set an unbaited camera trap on the cliff for three years to capture the footage. “I’m incredibly proud to be the winner of this year’s People’s Choice Award and I thank all the supporters around the world for making this happen,” he said. the German photographer in the previous announcement. “Photography can connect people to the wild and inspire them to appreciate the beauty of the unseen natural world.”
Fonesca added: “I believe that a better understanding of wildlife leads to deeper concern, which hopefully results in active support and greater public interest in conservation.”
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education