EDIT: This image has since been disqualified. It’s been a busy couple of weeks for me. So busy in fact I totally forget the winners of the Veolia Enviroment, Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009 had been announced! It’s the second year in a row an image has won via a trap-cam which may or may not bother some…but as ever there were some absolutely stunning images all round with one or two from the UK, and it’s always nice to see us being represented!

I liked…
A couple of my favourites this year are Henrik Lund’s ‘Ice Fox’, taken in Southern Finland which was specially commended in the Animals in their Environment category. A beautiful fox sitting on a frozen river…the image really stands out for me because the frosty white surroundings really make the fox pop out with it’s warm contrasting colours. Also, the winner of the Black and White category, ‘Starling Wave’ by UK photographer Danny Green. A beautiful image of a flock of starlings but taken with a slow shutter to really capture those amazing patterns in the sky as the birds dance around.

And the winner is…
Photographer José Luis Rodríguez won the prestigious title of WPOTY 2009 with his image of a leaping Iberian Wolf, taken in Spain. Some of you may recognize the image, or think you do…José won the Adult Category in the European Wild Wonders photography competition with another shot from the same trap camera, here.

Trap camera’s, right or wrong?
As I mentioned above, some may not be too keen on the fact it was taken with a trap camera, the same as 2008’s winner. I can see two sides to the story: sure you can argue the photographer should be there to take the image, to fire the shutter at the decisive moment and use their own judgment when to do so and at what settings…however…at the same time I think there are plenty of situations in which being there simply wouldn’t allow the shot to be taken. And in those cases, knowledge of the subject and how and where to set the camera ahead of time can go as far as being there in person. So I can certainly see both sides and think it’s quite an interesting debate…it certainly seems to spark off lengthy discussions when it’s mentioned on forums!

Go check them out!
Please do make sure you check out the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009 online gallery to see all the images that were successful this year. And if you really want to see them in their full glory, you can visit the exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London which runs from 23 October 2009 to 11 April 2010…it’s well worth it to fully appreciate the images. I’ve always loved seeing the winning images from the competition each year, with this year being even more special as it was my first year entering, which you can read about here. But in ending, I shall say congratulations to all those who won and I look forward to seeing if the 2010 competition can better 2009…