Millions of monarch butterflies won the 2024 competition. What stunning natural photography will come out of 2025?
(Image credit: Jaime Rojo / GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024)
About the competition
(Image credit: GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024)
Organized by the German Society for Nature Photography (GDT) since 2001, this is one of the most photo competitions thanks to its highly qualified jury, stringent selection criteria, and ban on digital manipulation.
Celebrating innovation, creativity and daring compositions, it's a trendsetter for modern nature photography. An exhibition of the 104 prize-winning images is touring through Germany and several other European countries.
The German Society for Nature Photography (GDT) European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2025 is now open for entries, with a special anniversary edition of the competition celebrating 25 years.
All European amateur and professional photographers, as well as GDT members, are eligible to enter the competition. And, in honor of its quarter-century edition, photographers can submit up to 25 images instead of the standard 20, in categories 1 to 8, equalling a total of 40 entries in all.
The eight main categories are: Birds, Mammals, Other Animals, Plants and Fungi, Landscapes, The Underwater World, Man and Nature, Nature Studio. There are a pair of youth categories – 14 and Under, and 14 to 17 – and a trio of special categories – the Fritz Pölking Prize, Fritz Pölking Junior Prize and the Rewilding Europe Award.
This year, the competition is inviting photographers to capture the essence of rewilding in action – images that go beyond the scenic beauty and tell powerful stories of revival, resilience and hope.
There will be cash and material prizes up for grabs worth a total amount of over $35,000 / £28,000 / AU$55,500). All winning images will be shown as large-format prints in an exhibition, which will have its premiere at the International Nature Photography Festival in Lünen in October, and will then be presented to millions of visitors in museums, galleries and at festivals across Germany and Europe for several years.
Last year’s overall winner was Jamie Rojo for his image In The Forest of the Monarchs, showing millions of monarch butterflies covering every available tree and leaf. He captured the incredible image in Mexico’s El Rosario butterfly sanctuary while on assignment for National Geographic magazine. Every autumn, millions of monarch butterflies fly thousands of miles from North America to the warmer climes of Mexico over winter.
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"In June 2023, I heard about an explosive proliferation of willow ermine moth caterpillars (Yponomeuta rorrellus) along the river Waal near Boven-Leeuwen, not far from my hometown, Arnhem, Netherlands. I drove to the location the same evening and couldn't believe my eyes: a giant old willow tree and much of the surrounding vegetation wrapped in white silk. And millions of caterpillars crawling all around. It’s obvious why the work of these caterpillars is often compared to that of the famous artist Christo who covered the Reichstag in Berlin and countless other buildings as well as trees in silk. After a few months, the webs disappeared and the willows sprouted new foliage – the caterpillar invasion left no permanent damage." (Image credit: Andere Tiere / GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024)
"A common octopus (Octopus vulgaris) crawls across the seabed at night in search of prey. Thanks to a sophisticated combination of tactile abilities and nocturnal vision, octopuses are among the most effective nocturnal hunters in the sea. Everything about how octopuses perceive the world is beyond our imagination. In addition to their unique eyes, octopus skin contains special light-sensitive proteins called opsins that allow the entire body to perceive light. Given this, it is not surprising that these animals use more than two-thirds of their brain for visual processing. Although color-blind, octopuses use polarized vision to improve contrasts and detect enemies, conspecifics and even camouflaged prey. Last but not least, the position of the eyes on an octopus' head and its horizontal pupils mean that the animals have 360° vision with no 'blind spots'. Who can beat that?" (Image credit: Angel Fitor / GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024)
"After observing a pair of nesting black woodpeckers (Dryocopus martius) for several days, I decided to set up a camouflage hide at a suitable distance. I installed the hide behind a fir tree so as not to disturb the birds and at the same time make my image visually more exciting by photographing through the branches. Once I had found a good angle, I just had to wait for the adult birds to appear. Here, you can see the male approaching with food for the hungry offspring in the brood cave." (Image credit: Luca Melcarne / GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024)
"On the day this photo was taken, my father picked me up after school and we drove to an agricultural area on the edge of the Sierra de Grazalema Nature Park. We were able to take some nice pictures, and, on the way home in the car, I saw a young stonechat sitting on a fence and repeatedly flying to the ground to prey on small insects. One time, it returned to perch on the fence right next to a lock – as if to stand guard." (Image credit: Alberto Román Gómez / GDT European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2024)
After graduating from Cardiff University with an Master's Degree in Journalism, Media and Communications Leonie developed a love of photography after taking a year out to travel around the world.
While visiting countries such as Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Bangladesh and Ukraine with her trusty Nikon, Leonie learned how to capture the beauty of these inspiring places, and her photography has accompanied her various freelance travel features.
As well as travel photography Leonie also has a passion for wildlife photography both in the UK and abroad.
