There is just over a week left to enter the National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year contest. The winner will receive a 10-day trip for two on the Galápagos Islands with National Geographic Expeditions, along with two 15-minute portfolio reviews with the photo editors at National Geographic.
The categories for this year are Landscape, Environmental Issues, Action and Animal Portraits. IBTimes UK presents a small selection of the animal portraits received so far. You can see more – and enter your own photos – at the competition website. But be quick – the deadline for entries is 4 November 2016.
Two Plus Four by Gunther Riehle: 'We were camping on 3m-thick frozen sea water, just 1.5 miles away from a big emperor penguin colony, with lots of mega cute chicks. The image shows four emperor penguin chicks with adult penguins shielding them from the forces of the storm.'Gunther Riehle/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Never Bother Dad When He's Sleeping by P Kuhn: 'During our trip to Botswana, we came across two lionesses and their six cubs, resting under a bush during midday. This male lion came along to visit the den. The females were very wary at first. We were told that a male lion will kill cubs that aren't his offspring. Fortunately, he laid down with the cubs and closed his eyes to sleep. This little guy was trying so hard to get him to play, but dad was definitely not happy to be woken up.'P Kuhn/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Water Drops by Takeshi Marumoto: A snow monkey in Nagano, Japan.Takeshi Marumoto/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Moving At A Snail's Pace by Samira Qadir: 'While enjoying the sights of Chicago's Garfield Conservatory, I found this unlikely traveller taking a closer look at this Bromeliad. Sometimes you have to slow down to appreciate the tiny wonders right in front of you.'Samira Qadir/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016From the Shadows by Harry Lyndon-Skeggs: 'Hiking with the local guides, we stumbled upon this mountain gorilla peering curiously from the depths of the Impenetrable Forest.'Harry Lyndon-Skeggs/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Brown Pelican by Bernardo Delgado: 'By chance, while I was walking through a dolphin park, this brown pelican came from nowhere and stood right in front of me.'Bernardo Delgado/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Mother Ostrich by Yu Huiping: 'A mother ostrich watches over her chicks in the savannah of Africa.'Yu Huiping/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Now You See Me by S Dere: 'A baby owlet uses its camouflage to hide from its predators, but spots me from quite a way away.'S Dere/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Dawn in the Mara by Porus Khareghat: 'A big male lion looking as if he was paying his gratitude to the sun god for the warm rays.'Porus Khareghat/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Cape Buffalo with Yellow-Billed Oxpecker by Barbara Fleming: "I had been wanting to get this image for at least two years and just recently, on my last safari in November, was able to successfully capture it. Light was key. Side-light, lighting the oxpecker and keeping the buffalo in the shade was crucial. I wanted a darker pallet for this image, and think I got it. I captured both subjects in focus, very difficult to do as both were moving and in different focal planes."Barbara Fleming/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Salmon Claws by Peter Mather: 'A grizzly bear sow and cub use a fallen log to fish for chinook salmon on a small creek in Yukon Canada. The long, sharp claws of grizzly bears are perfect for filleting salmon. Image taken by a remote camera trap.'Peter Mather/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016Admiring Dawn On The Frozen Continent by Edson Vandeira: 'It was very early in the morning on King George Island, Antarctica, and I was walking along the beach admiring the sunrise, when suddenly I had a wonderful surprise: I met this Gentoo penguin also looking at the sun that was just on the horizon. At that moment I had the sensation that, like me, he had woken up very early to contemplate such a beautiful dawn.'Edson Vandeira/National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2016
