Of all the photography awards out there, this one is probably the most special: the Comedy Wildlife Photography Award. Each year, photos are sent into the race that show otherwise majestic and graceful animals in other situations.
While extremely entertaining, the competition also has a serious background: the photo prize is intended to raise awareness of global species extinction and the protection of wildlife. According to The Comedy Wildlife press release, 10 percent of the net proceeds will be donated to the Whitley Fund for Nature, a UK charity that supports leading conservationists in their homelands in the South.
In addition to the winners in the six categories, a further ten entries received the “Highly Commended” award.
Grand Prize Winner
“Not so feline reflexes”
“This three-month-old cub and his brother were in a tree. The other lionesses were in other trees and on the ground. He wanted to go down and ran over the branches to find the right place. It was probably the first time he climbed a tree and his descent didn’t go very well. However, after he hit the ground, he was fine. He got up and ran off with some other cubs.”
Category: Creatures of the Air
«Misleading African Points of View 2»
Category: «Underwater Creatures»
“Say Cheese”
«A pair of triggerfish looking at the camera, taken in the Azores… Even though they look funny, these fish can be quite aggressive. In this case they didn’t try to bite me, but my camera body got a few scratches… life is hard… at least I wasn’t hurt.”
Category: “People’s Choice Award”
“Talk to the fin!”
“This photo was taken in the Falkland Islands. These two gentoo penguins were hanging out on the beach when one of them shook himself off and knocked off his mate.”
Category: «Junior Prizes»
“I CU boy!”
At the Junior Award, the photos were judged by people under the age of 18.
«A few hundred kilometers away, we hired a guide and explored the nature of a small town called Bikaner. On the last day of our trip we came across a pipe in town where we saw an owl bird. We waited for a while and it wasn’t long before one of the spotted owls came out of the quiver. It was really funny when he came out and looked right at me. Before entering the pipe, he closed one of his eyes and looked as if to say, “I see you, boy!”
Category: «Portfolio»
“Football Dreams”
“Honorable Winners”
Even though they received nothing in the main categories, the following photos were marked as “highly commendable”. We don’t want to keep this one from you either:
«It’s all starting!»
“Hello all”
“I photographed a raccoon on a beach in Florida feeding it crabs. Then he thanked me like that.”
Monkey Wellness Center
“Walking near a Cambodian temple where groups of wild monkeys lived, I came across this scene: a wild monkey totally relaxed while his friend cared for him.”
«Pegasus, the flying horse»
“It’s actually an Indian Saras Crane attacking a ‘Bluebull’ from behind. The bull happened to venture near Sara’s Nest, where it had laid a single egg. The Saras Crane, the largest flying bird in the world, opened his huge wings and attacked the bull from behind, driving him out of the nest.”
“I’m going to strangle you!”
“I followed a group of meerkats on foot in the Kalahari Trails Game Reserve in South Africa. Most of the animals, including the adults, were in a playful mood. This gave me a unique opportunity to capture very interesting and dynamic interactions between some members of the group. In the photo I chose, there is no aggression between individuals, but rather an interaction that reminds us of people when one of your friends makes fun of you and you pretend to strangle him and then he opens his mouth.”
“Excuse me… Excuse me!”
“Jump Jack”
“Sitting tight!”
“I wanted to see and photograph the eastern screech owl’s nest in a park in Florida. One morning, a few days before the two owls fledge, an owl tried to squeeze into the nest box with its mother, perhaps to see the outside world for the first time. It was hilarious and I was glad I was there that morning to shoot it. The moment only lasted a few seconds as the mother didn’t seem very happy with the arrangement. Look at her facial expression.”
“Fight Back”
“Keep Calm and Keep Your Head”
«Two king penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) at Volunteer Point in the Falkland Islands. The bird on the right may have an inscrutable expression on its face, but it must be wondering where its partner’s head has gone. Perhaps he is a student of Rudyard Kipling: ‘If you can keep your wits about you when everyone around you is losing theirs and blaming you…'”
(lacquer)
