The winners of the Close-up Photographer of the Year competition were recently announced. The annual contest “celebrates close-up, macro, and micro photography,” in 11 separate categories. The fourth year of the competition attracted more than 9,000 entries from 53 countries.
A poignant shot of salamanders being devoured by a pitcher plant by Canadian photographer Samantha Stephens was named the overall winner. The delicate features of a damselfly's wings, slime molds imprisoned in ice, and an unbelievable shot of the moment two drips of oil mix are among the other remarkable winning photographs. Scroll down to marvel at many more gorgeous winners of the Close-Up Photographer of the Year 2022.
Related: Close-Up Photographer of the Year: Stunning Winning Pics
1. “Nature’s Pitfall” by Samantha Stephens. Overall winner and Winner Animals.
Two young spotted salamanders are trapped within a carnivorous northern pitcher plant at Algonquin Provincial Park in Ontario, Canada.
2. "Three Sisters" by István Tamás Vida. Plants Finalist.
Pulsatilla pratensis hungarica (a species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae) blooms in Debrecen, Hungary, in spring. It is a highly protected plant located on an old Russian combat-training ground, which is now a nature reserve.
3. "Microspur" by Lung-Tsai Wang. Animals Finalist.
A nest of green cat spider babies at the top of some Setaria viridis grass in the mountains of central Taiwan Province.
4. "From Below" by Boldizsár Szűcs. Underwater Finalist.
In Hungary's Gemenc, this raft spider was photographed while submerged and scanning the sky over a forested floodplain.
5. "The Footprint Friend" by Juan Jesús González Ahumada. Second Place, Animals.
Miniature toads, barely a centimeter in size, seek refuge in the huge paw print of a mastiff on the edge of a pond near Monda, Spain.
6. "Sunflower Dreams" by Don Komarechka. Manmade Finalist.
Dozens of water droplets on a dandelion seed appear to reflect the image of a sunflower.
7. "Flying Willow Tit" by Luca Lorenz.
A willow tit in the Swiss mountains during winter.
8. "A Tale in the Sand" by Paul Lennart Schmid Third Place, Animals.
A Sahara sand viper burrows itself into the sand in preparation for an ambush.
9. "Wings" by Bert Faber. Butterflies & Dragonflies Finalist.
Damselflies keep their wings closed when resting. But this one opened its wings a bit, giving the photographer the opportunity to capture its fine details.
10. "By the River Bank" by Guanghui Gu. Butterflies & Dragonflies Finalist.
A swarm of butterflies congregates around a puddle on a country road in Haining County, Zhejiang Province, China.
11. “Schistidium Capsule” by Harald Cederlund. Third Place, Micro.
The photographer found this Schistidium moss from a concrete foundation in Ulleråker, Sweden, and shot it in his living room.
12. "Doner Kebab and Pizza" by Anton Trexler. Third Place, Young.
Starlings forage for food at Berlin's Alexanderplatz.
13. "Shining Snail" by Alex Pansier. Third Place, Invertebrate Portrait.
A common snail climbs along a blade of grass.
14. "A Rare Moment in Nature" by Raj Bharathi. Insects Finalist.
A lacewing lays eggs in Singapore's Pasir Ris Park.
15. "Levitation" by Ferenc Kocsis. Insects Finalist.
A Tisza mayfly flies over the surface of a river in Tiszafüred, Hungary.
16. “Oil & Water 44” by Matt Vacca. Winner, Manmade.
This picture captures the moment two drops of oil are merging.
17. “Frequency” by Mike Curry. Winner, Intimate Landscape.
The intricacies of a building are reflected in the waves at London's Canary Wharf.
18. "Ice Encrusted Comatricha” by Barry Webb. Winner, Fungi.
These mature Comatricha (slime molds), growing on an old fence post, are encased in ice.
Check out all the winning images on the Close-up Photographer of the Year website.
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