Australian Geographic Nature Photographer shortlist introduced

Charged with sorting via 2,129 photographs from greater than 500 folks, judges have named their shortlist of 100 footage vying for prizes within the 2026 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year (AGNPOTY) competitors. Here are our favorites.

Now in its twenty third 12 months, the competition attracts the nation’s most famous nature photographers, who might submit their star photographs in one among 10 classes – Animals in Nature, Animal Behaviour, Botanical, Macro, Landscape, Threatened Species, Monochrome, Our Impact, Portfolio and Junior.

“The images are incredible, and the messages they deliver about our environment and the natural world are both beautiful and poignant,” mentioned South Australian Museum Director Samantha Hamilton. “All the shortlisted finalists should be congratulated for their hard work and support for the environment.”

The general winner, in addition to these choosing up class prizes, shall be introduced on August 27. The shortlisted photographs will function an exhibition opening on 29 August on the South Australian Museum, and from this a People’s Choice award shall be introduced in January 2027.

“The standard this year was extremely high but there wasn’t much disagreement among the judges,” mentioned 2025 winner and 2026 decide Ross Gudgeon. “It was very easy getting down to 200 photos, but it then got very difficult narrowing it down again to the final 100.

“In the tip it was just about consideration to element that was the distinction between making the shortlist or lacking out,” he added.

Birds feature heavily across multiple categories, including the image above by Western Australian photographer Georgina Steytler, who is shortlisted in the Animal Behaviour category with her snap titled “Strutting Tern.”

“The quirky courtship ritual of sooty terns includes the birds cocking their head to at least one aspect, dropping their wings and goose-stepping round one another in unison, flicking sand with their toes as they go,” Steytler revealed. “I used to be delighted to get this shot showcasing their great dance.”

Australian Geographic Picture Editor Lyndal Irons summed the AGNPOTY contest up well: “Every 12 months, this competitors turns a lens to our area and photographers discover angles we did not know had been lacking.”

So listed below are a couple of of our chosen highlights from the shortlist, with extra in our gallery. Head to the South Australian Museum website to see all 100 finalists.

Rachelle Mackintosh/Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year/South Australian Museum

Sydney, NSW photographer Rachelle Mackintosh, whose marine wildlife photos are unimaginable, has been shortlisted within the Animal Behaviour class for her picture titled “A Rock and a Hard Place,” taken at St Andrews Bay, South Georgia Island.

“Newborn elephant seal pups are breastfed for about three weeks before their mothers leave them to fend for themselves,” Mackintosh mentioned. “It’s hard to say whether this pup was related to either of these females, but, with their booming belches, they both let him know he was not wanted.”

Lincoln Macgregor/Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year/South Australian Museum

Lincoln Macgregor (NSW) made the Macro shortlist for this seize, titled “Shifting Shadows,” that includes a spiny leaf insect – an animal that goes via life largely unnoticed by people and different threatening species.

“The spiky silhouette of a spiny leaf insect reveals how well-defended these phasmids are from predators,” Macgregor defined. “I discovered it on a tree in my backyard one evening, backlit by a living room light. This image goes to show that you don’t always have to travel far to see extraordinary creatures.”

Matt Bell/Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year/South Australian Museum

Photographer Matt Bell (Victoria) demonstrates that persistence pays off relating to capturing a shot within the wild. And the wait isn’t a simple job whenever you’re photographing animals in Antarctica.

“Huddled in a Zodiac boat in icy waters off the Antarctic Peninsula, I waited patiently for an Adélie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) to propel itself from the water to the safety of an iceberg,” Bell mentioned of his picture “Penguin Pose,” which is shortlisted within the Animals in Nature class. “Persistence delivered as I captured this penguin in an almost levitational-like state, as if posing for the camera.”

François Brassard/Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year/South Australian Museum

We all know nature may be brutal, from apex predators to tiny organisms. Here, a pony ant – mostly often called a green-head ant (Rhytidoponera metallica), native to Australia, is experiencing the worst day of its life. Why? Because it has been paralyzed by a military of spider ants (Leptomyrmex sp.), who’re having a relatively nice day.

“Spider ants surround and immobilize a pony ant on the rainforest floor,” mentioned photographer François Brassard (Western Australia), of his picture titled “Surrounded by Foes,” shortlisted within the Macro class. “They will carry their unfortunate prey to their nest, where they will feed it to their sister larvae.”

Bridgette Gower/Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year/South Australian Museum

If you’ve got seen the dimensions and pace of elusive leaping spiders, you may know what an unimaginable shot that is from Queensland photographer Bridgette Gower. This outstanding picture, snapped in tropical Far North Queensland, completely captures how nature’s magnificence may be seen on even a tiny scale – if you happen to take the time to search for it.

“I came across this tiny jumping spider navigating a maze of fallen leaves within a low bush,” she mentioned. “I paused, watched and waited for the perfect moment. Eventually, it climbed to the very edge of a leaf – poised like a performer on a stage or a tiny king surveying its kingdom.”

Emma Parker/Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year/South Australian Museum

Western Australian photographer Emma Parker captured a really totally different form of mud wrestling happening in Roebuck Bay Marine Park. Her picture, “Crab Attack,” is now a standout within the Animal Behaviour class.

“I had this image in mind before my second trip to Broome,” mentioned Parker. “I wanted to observe and photograph a unique interaction between the species vying for space in the mudflats. After three days, I was lucky to witness a mud crab lift a mudskipper right out of the water.”

Kendra Campbell/

Finally, this poignant picture by Western Australia’s Kendra Campbell captures the uphill battle that sea turtles have in not simply reaching the water after hatching from sandy nests, however surviving until maturity. This child Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) has a protracted highway forward – and this photograph fittingly earned Campbell a spot within the finalists for the Threatened Species class.

“As I lay on the sand behind this hatching nest at sunset, I thought about how the statistics are against their survival,” she famous. “Then, that this may be the one in 1,000 that survives against the odds, returning to this same beach to nest in several decades.”

Source: South Australian Museum