Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition Opening At Paignton Zoo
 By Philip Knowling
Paignton, UK - A stunning selection of pictures from the 2007 Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition will be on public display in the foyer of Paignton Zoo over the festive and mid-winter period. Entry is free.
This is the largest and most prestigious wildlife photography competition in the world. Organized by BBC Wildlife Magazine and the Natural History Museum, it features top wildlife photography from around the world. The competition started in 1964 and today attracts over 32,000 entries in 19 categories.
Paignton Zoo spokesperson Phil Knowling said: “The exhibition is a must-see for photography enthusiasts and nature lovers alike. It’s a great opportunity to inspire and educate. It brings visitors face-to-face with the wild world in all its moods – there’s beauty, tranquility, ferocity and tenderness.”
Categories highlight endangered species, animal behaviour, plants and photographic composition. There are separate competitions for children and young adults. The winner in the Urban and Garden Wildlife section, Danny Green, has photographed dormice at Paignton Zoo.
The aim of the competition is to raise the status of wildlife photography and encourage young people to pick up cameras. Both amateurs and professionals are eligible. The exhibition – the end result of the international competition - tours across the UK and around the world.
Paignton Zoo is open 10:00am to 4:30pm seven days a week. For more information go to www.paigntonzoo.org.uk or ring (01803) 697500.
Paignton Zoo is a member of the British & Irish Association of Zoos & Aquariums (BIAZA). BIAZA represents its member collections and promotes the values of good zoos and aquariums. For further information please telephone 020 7449 6351.
Picture Captions:
24 David Tipling ( Nationality - United Kingdom, Country of Residence - United Kingdom)
Animal Behaviour: Birds - Highly Commended
Porpoising penguin
Birds are among the most popular subjects for photographers entering the competition. But the challenge here is to take a picture with
aesthetic appeal that also shows active or interesting behaviour.
It was a dull day on David’s trip to Antarctica but within minutes of going below deck the weather changed and he caught the sight of an
Adélie penguin porpoising. Dashing back on deck, David captured his winning shot.
He said: “The mirror-like state of the sea provided a perfect canvas. Moments later the opportunity was gone as a breeze ruffled the sea
surface.”
There are five species of penguin in Antarctica: emperor, king, chinstrap, Adélie and macaroni. Adélies are the smallest and spend most
of the winter offshore feeding. They often lay two eggs, vulnerable to birds such as skuas, but usually only one survives. Once hatched,
their chicks are the fastest-growing species of any penguin.
 © David Tipling / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
Nikon D2X + Nikon 300mm f2.8 lens; 1/1000 sec at f5.
© David Tipling / Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008
31 Anup Shah ( Nationality - United Kingdom, Country of Residence - United Kingdom)
Animal Behaviour: Mammals - Specially Commended
Zebra crossing
The pictures in this category are selected to show action and interest value as much as aesthetic appeal.
Capturing a stampeding herd of plains zebra in the Serengeti for his winning image took careful planning and an understanding of the
animals’ behaviour. Setting up a remote camera at the watering hole, Anup suspected the animals would sense that something was
different and flee the scene.
 © Anup Shah / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
Canon EOS 1V + 20mm lens; Fujichrome Velvia 100F.
© Anup Shah / Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008
38 Ines Labunski Roberts ( Nationality - United Kingdom, Country of Residence - United States of America)
Animal Behaviour: All Other Animals - Highly Commended
Frog refuge
The majority of animals on Earth are species other than mammals and birds, and most of them behave in ways that are little known or
understood. So this category offers plenty of scope for unusual behaviour and different pictures.
Near a thermal pool in California’s Sierra Nevada, Ines uncovered a group of young American bullfrogs huddled in an open drainpipe.
Taken on a winter’s morning, the frogs in Ines winning shot were probably in the pipe sheltering from the cold.
Ines said: “I do not have the opportunity nor the patience to photograph animals, so every unexpected encounter is like a cherished gift to
me. It was especially so with these little guys, who were huddled together in an open plastic drainpipe, probably to avoid the extremes
of the heat of the natural hot spring or the freezing cold of an early winter.”
There are more than 5,300 species of frog and toads. Most breathe through their skin, through a process called cutaneous gas exchange,
but they also have lungs. The American bullfrog is native to North America, and usually green or brown. Adults can grow up to 20
centimetres, and they are sometimes farmed as food – their hind legs making it onto the menu.
© Ines Labunski Roberts / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
Canon EOS 20D + Canon 24–85mm lens; 1/200 sec probably at f8.
© Ines Labunski Roberts / Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008
 2007 Wildlife Photographer of the Year
Contact Name: Greaves, Paul Total No 5
Company: Western Morning News - Plymouth
Mailout Ref: 6799
Picture Captions:
56 Régis Cavignaux ( Nationality - France, Country of Residence - France)
Animal Portraits - Highly Commended
Owl glare
This category – one of the most popular in the competition – invites portraits that capture the character or spirit of an animal and must do
so in an original way.
Regis said: ‘Step by step, I crept towards the long-eared owls. They were dozing in wild rose bushes in Champenoux, France. They
looked over sometimes, but ignored me. It took me an hour to get close enough, then one turned to look straight at me. Its eyes seemed
as bright as the berries.’
Like all owls, the long-eared owl can see and hear extremely well. But the tufts on its head are not ears, they’re feathers the owl raises
when alarmed. This species is highly nocturnal, so it is rarely seen in the wild except on migration or when roosting. In winter it forms
communal daytime roosts, where 12 or more birds might gather.
 © Regis Cavignaux / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
Nikon D2Xs + 400mm f2.8 lens; 1/350 sec; ISO 250; monopod.
© Régis Cavignaux / Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008
85 Gary Steer ( Nationality - Australia, Country of Residence - Australia)
Creative Visions of Nature - Highly Commended
Seascape
Pictures in this category should take inspiration from nature but reveal new ways of seeing natural subjects or scenes. They can be
figurative, abstract or conceptual but must provoke thought or emotional reactions, whether through their beauty or imaginative
interpretation.
Gary’s winning picture was taken as night fell on over the Pacific ocean, just minutes from the popular spot of Coogee Beach in Sydney,
Australia.
Gary said: “Designs and patterns of nature have and do inspire artists. With this picture I am attempting to depart from reality and, with a
camera rather than brush and paints, to produce impressions of nature.”
Chairman, Mark Carwardine said: “This is a superb interpretation of a familiar scene. It works because of the lack of detail - there are four
striking bands of colour and otherwise little else to distract the eye. Using a slow shutter speed to blur the details of the incoming wave
has retained that graphic simplicity.”
© Gary Steer / Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2007
Canon EOS 5D + Canon EF 35-350mm lens; 21 secs at f9.9; Manfrotto tripod.
© Gary Steer / Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008
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