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Nature Photo Contest

Collage of winning images from the 2022 Global Photo Contest.
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The Nature Conservancy will not be hosting a Global Photo Contest this year.

Thank you to all the nature photographers who participated in our photo contest over the years! Please enjoy a recap of the winning photos from past years of the contest. We encourage you to learn about other ways you can get involved with TNC, from volunteering to becoming a member or visiting a TNC preserve.

More Ways to Be Involved

Past Global Photo Contest Winners

2023 Global Photo Contest

View 2023 Winners
A newt is silhouetted floating above a large mass of eggs. Light from above is diffused through the opaque eggs.
A bird in flight is silhouetted against a background of light and dark--the golden light of sunrise and a dark stripe of shadow.
A small community of boxy white building sits like an island surrounded by brilliant golden yellow farm fields.
Aerial view looking down on a lake. The water is red with a curling ripple of white through the center. Flamingos fly over the lake in a curving flock.
Looking down on a wide creek. The dark water splits the middle of the image, running between snow covered banks. View All
A newt is silhouetted floating above a large mass of eggs. Light from above is diffused through the opaque eggs.

Between the Stars: I photographed this moment underwater. I was able to do it by putting my camera in an underwater case, attaching it to a metal weight and placing it all under the eggs. I waited nearby for it to be dark, and when the newt appeared, I lit it with an LED lamp. I started the camera with a home-made wired remote release. It turned out 1-2 sharp pictures. © Litauszki Tibor/TNC Photo Contest 2023

A bird in flight is silhouetted against a background of light and dark--the golden light of sunrise and a dark stripe of shadow.

Dawn's Whispers: Graceful Hoopoe Silhouette at Sunrise: A Hoopoe took flight with its wings spread in a smooth motion across the canvas of the early-morning sky that was illuminated by the sunrise's bright hues.I saw that this bird would occasionally grab its prey in the air and other times on the ground. Additionally, I observed that each time it caught a prey, it flew in the same direction to a nearby tree. © Hermis Haridas/TNC Photo Contest 2023

A small community of boxy white building sits like an island surrounded by brilliant golden yellow farm fields.

Living inside the yellow fields: Aerial perspective of a small settlement of the city of Swidnica, surrounded by beautiful rapeseed fields. © Agnieszka Wieczorek/TNC Photo Contest 2023

Aerial view looking down on a lake. The water is red with a curling ripple of white through the center. Flamingos fly over the lake in a curving flock.

Magadi Airshow: The alkaline Lake Magadi provides breathtaking patterns on the surface of the lake to photograph flamingos. Lake Magadi, Kenya 12 Sept, 2023. © Neelutpaul Barua/TNC Photo Contest 2023

Looking down on a wide creek. The dark water splits the middle of the image, running between snow covered banks.

Black and White: Drone photo of a creek during a snowstorm, Salisbury Mills, New York © Derek Robertson/TNC Photo Contest 2023

2022 Global Photo Contest

View 2022 Winners
Aerial view of gullies that spread out in the shape of a tree, bisected by a highway.
A baby monkey clings to the carcass of its mother, which is being carried in the mouth of a leopard.
A polar bear nurses her cubs in a snowy landscape of an abandoned settlement with mountains in the background.
A mountain slope with frosted trees and a covering of light snow on the upper slopes.
A lightning bolt flashes above a volcanic landscape under thick, heavy clouds. View All
Aerial view of gullies that spread out in the shape of a tree, bisected by a highway.

Branching Out : On either side of a highway, gullies formed by rainwater erosion span out like a tree in Tibet, an autonomous region in southwest China. © Li Ping/TNC Photo Contest 2022

A baby monkey clings to the carcass of its mother, which is being carried in the mouth of a leopard.

An Unforgiving kingdom: A leopard known as Olimba carries the carcass of a female vervet monkey with its baby still hanging on for dear life. Picture taken in South Luangwa National Park in Zambia. © Shafeeq Mulla/TNC Photo Contest

A polar bear nurses her cubs in a snowy landscape of an abandoned settlement with mountains in the background.

Breastfeeding in town: A female polar bear breastfeeding her two cubs of the year in the harbour of the abandoned Russian settlement, Pyramiden. © Florian Ledoux/TNC Photo Contest

A mountain slope with frosted trees and a covering of light snow on the upper slopes.

Adi: Slope of Mount Adi, in Navarra. © Francisco Javier Munuera González/TNC Photo Contest

A lightning bolt flashes above a volcanic landscape under thick, heavy clouds.

Mystical Bromo: Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (TNBTS) is one of the 10 priority tourist destinations in Indonesia. © Hendy Wicaksono/TNC Photo Contest

2021 Global Photo Contest

View 2021 Winners
A gorilla walks through a cloud of butterflies in a grassy field.
A tree completely covered in millions of fireflies at night in India.
Overhead view of a carcass of an alligator on dry, deeply cracked soil.
An aerial view of a mountain range emerging above thick clouds.
Aerial view of colorful salt ponds near San Francisco Bay. View All
A gorilla walks through a cloud of butterflies in a grassy field.

Malui: Western lowland gorilla female 'Malui' walking through a cloud of butterflies she has disturbed in a bai. Bai Hokou, Dzanga Sangha Special Dense Forest Reserve, Central African Republic. December 2011. © Anup Shah/TNC Photo Contest 2021

A tree completely covered in millions of fireflies at night in India.

Fireflies: Just before Monsoon, these fireflies congregate in certain regions of India and on a few special trees like this one, they are in crazy quantity which can range in millions. © Prathamesh Ghadekar/TNC Photo Contest 2021

Overhead view of a carcass of an alligator on dry, deeply cracked soil.

Drought: Carcass of a Pantanal alligator (Caiman yacare) in the dry soil on the banks of the Transpantaneira highway, municipality of Poconé (Mato Grosso). © Daniel De Granville Manço/TNC Photo Contest 2021

An aerial view of a mountain range emerging above thick clouds.

Serra do Mar: In a helicopter flight through the sea mountain range, I came across this white cloud cover, which resulted in this magnificent image that resembles the head of a dinosaur. © Denis Ferreira Netto/TNC Photo Contest 2021

Aerial view of colorful salt ponds near San Francisco Bay.

Salt Ponds: If you have flown into San Francisco International Airport, you may have seen these colorful salt ponds over the bay. This aerial image was taken while flying my plane. © Jassen Todorov/TNC Photo Contest 2021

2019 Global Photo Contest

View 2019 Winners
Silhouette of sea lion illuminated by rays of sunlight under water, framed by kelp beds.
A small waterfall and stream tumbles alongside mossy rocks.
A polar bear swimming in water.
Silhouette of a bird singing against a green-hued background.
A zebra looks toward the camera. View All
Silhouette of sea lion illuminated by rays of sunlight under water, framed by kelp beds.

Burst: California sea lion framed by kelp beds in Monterey Bay, California. Grand Prize Winner for 2019 TNC Global Photo Contest. © Tyler Schiffman/TNC Photo Contest 2019

A small waterfall and stream tumbles alongside mossy rocks.

Wanayo Waterfall: A small waterfall and stream in Wasior, West Papua. © Diyanto Sarira/TNC Photo Contest 2019

A polar bear swimming in water.

Hope: Polar Bear in Svalbard, Norway June 2019. © Fernando O’Farrill/TNC Photo Contest 2019

Silhouette of a bird singing against a green-hued background.

Singing Silhouette: A Chestnut-sided Warbler sings out. © Raymond Hennessy/TNC Photo Contest 2019

A zebra looks toward the camera.

The Grevy's Illusion : A Grevy's zebra staring at the camera in Lewa, Kenya. © YARON SCHMID/TNC Photo Contest 2019

More Nature Photography

Three young people face Victoria Falls while their hair blows in the wind.

Nature In Your Words and Pictures

We asked what nature means to you—and you answered.

A leopard in South Africa.

Photos Can Save the World

The Nature Conservancy believes photography can help save the world. There’s a story to tell in anything and everything we want to protect. Through photography, we all have the power to tell it.

A close up of a baby gorilla among leaves.

Photos from TNC staff

The Nature Conservancy’s staff like to be outside and take a lot of pictures. Since they can’t enter TNC’s official photo contest, they held a little contest of their own.