This year, among the stunning visuals of wildlife and breathtaking landscapes featured in the annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibit, running from February 14 to April 27 at Victoria’s Royal BC Museum, one image shines with acclaim.
Shane Gross, a marine conservation journalist based in Nanaimo, earned the title of Adult Grand Title Winner with The Swarm of Life, portraying western toad tadpoles illuminated beneath the surface of a lake near Campbell River, located on the northern part of Vancouver Island.
Gross mentions that many of his photographs can take months or even years to capture, but he encountered luck with this particular shot.
“After determining the optimal season to observe the tadpoles, I spent around six hours at the lake that day, familiarizing myself with the setting, the tadpoles, their activities, and experimenting with various angles and lighting techniques,” he explains.
Gross highlighted their “remarkable golden flecks” by using front-lighting on the tadpoles.
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The photograph was selected from 59,228 submissions across 117 nations and territories during the annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards, organized by the U.K.’s Natural History Museum.
Bringing a fervor for conservation to his work, Gross co-founded the Canadian Conservation Photographers Collective (CCPC) along with several friends.
“We believe that by uniting, we are more powerful … Our mission is to advocate for nature’s rights using our expertise as photographers, videographers, and storytellers.”
A similar ethos drives the 100 photographs from artists worldwide that will journey from London’s Natural History Museum to the Royal BC Museum from February 14 to April 27. The exhibition “captures and highlights the intricate beauty of our world while emphasizing the global initiative to restore Mother Earth,” according to the Royal BC Museum website.
“Every day, we are inundated with crucial facts and figures concerning the degradation of our planet, yet it seldom leads to change. Humans are visual and emotional beings, so to inspire transformation, we can harness the power of visual storytelling,” says Gross.
“I believe the exhibition has the potential to reshape individual lives and aspirations. I know certain images and films have significantly influenced mine.”
To organize your visit, navigate to royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/visit/plan-your-visit
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