Aussie photographers shine in BigPicture photo competition

16 June 2025

A 'breathtaking' image of a mother lemur precipitously leaping between jagged rocks in Madagascar, her baby clinging tightly to her back, has taken top honours in the 12th annual BigPicture: Natural World Photography Competition.

Photographers from nearly 60 countries submitted over 8,000 images to this year’s competition.

Leap of Faith
by Zhou Donglin,
Grand Prize Winner — Leap of Faith by Zhou Donglin, Grand Prize Winner

To capture the essence of Madagascar’s remarkably agile lemurs, photographer Donglin Zhou traveled to the country’s rugged Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park. Setting out before sunrise on a November morning, Zhou spent over an hour climbing her way to the top of a jagged limestone peak, hoping for a close encounter with the elusive brown lemurs (Eulemur fulvus).

For most of the day, sightings were disappointingly distant, but as the sun dipped low, a small troop descended. When one mother lemur, with a baby clinging to her back, made her big jump over a deep crevice, Zhou captured her in a single, breathtaking instant. The resulting photograph stole the hearts of the competition’s jury, who awarded it the highest honour.

“Donglin Zhou’s photo is pure magic. The flow of the lemurs across the spires leads our eyes through the frame, culminating in the lemur captured mid-air in a ray of light over the massive chasm below. With all of the lemurs lined up so perfectly, at first glance, it looks like a painting,” said Suzi Eszterhas, BigPicture jury chair.

A number of Australian photographers were recognised as finalists in the competition - Georgina Steytler, for her image Puddle Jumper, Talia Greis in the Aquatic and Landscape categories, and Doug Gimesy, for his images Baby on board and On their side in the Winged Life and Human Nature categories.

Puddle Jumper
by Georgina Steytler
Aquatic Life Finalist
No fish are graceful on land. But amphibious mudskippers do their best. Using their flexible front fins, mudskippers wrench themselves across intertidal mudflats, over rocks, and even up the trunks of mangrove trees. To capture this moment, photographer Georgina Steytler spent hours in the mud over the course of several days. She took thousands of photos before getting this mudskipper perfectly midflight. But Steytler says the effort was well worth it to highlight “how remarkable these little fish are—a true cross between aquatic and terrestrial life.” — Puddle Jumper by Georgina Steytler, Aquatic Life Finalist. No fish are graceful on land. But amphibious mudskippers do their best. Using their flexible front fins, mudskippers wrench themselves across intertidal mudflats, over rocks, and even up the trunks of mangrove trees. To capture this moment, photographer Georgina Steytler spent hours in the mud over the course of several days. She took thousands of photos before getting this mudskipper perfectly midflight. But Steytler says the effort was well worth it to highlight “how remarkable these little fish are—a true cross between aquatic and terrestrial life.”

Talia Greis, Theatre of war. Finalist, Aquatic category. Theatre of War. The world’s largest Giant Cuttlefish aggregation graces the shores of Whyalla every winter. Over 100,000 of these gliding giants come together to mate, lay eggs, and flaunt their hypnotic light reflecting cells. With courtship comes conflict, and males battle to win the affection of a wandering female. As a last resort, a Giant cuttlefish may shoot a cloud of black ink as a decoy to make for a hasty escape.

Talia Greis, Finalist, Landscape category.

Doug Gimesy, Baby on Board, Winged life Finalist. What my image shows is a magnificent Grey-headed Flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) mother carrying her pup (baby) - attached by hands, feet and mouth on the nipple - as she flies between trees at a Melbourne colony.
My hope is images like this will help more people appreciate (and even fall in love with) this wonderful, gorgeous, often misunderstood, keystone species.
Flying-fox mums usually carry their young when heading out to feed at night until they are too heavy to carry; at about 6-8 weeks of age. They then leave them at night with other young ones in ‘crèche trees’, returning home in the morning to connect, feed and cuddle - like all good mums would.
This also means, if you ever find a flying fox caught somewhere (netting, barbed wire, anywhere), please call wildlife rescue immediately - there may be a baby in a crèche tree getting cold, thirsty and hungry, just waiting and hoping for mum to come home. — Doug Gimesy, Baby on Board, Winged life category Finalist. "What my image shows is a magnificent Grey-headed Flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) mother carrying her pup (baby) - attached by hands, feet and mouth on the nipple - as she flies between trees at a Melbourne colony. My hope is images like this will help more people appreciate (and even fall in love with) this wonderful, gorgeous, often misunderstood, keystone species. Flying-fox mums usually carry their young when heading out to feed at night until they are too heavy to carry; at about 6-8 weeks of age. They then leave them at night with other young ones in ‘crèche trees’, returning home in the morning to connect, feed and cuddle - like all good mums would. This also means, if you ever find a flying fox caught somewhere (netting, barbed wire, anywhere), please call wildlife rescue immediately - there may be a baby in a crèche tree getting cold, thirsty and hungry, just waiting and hoping for mum to come home."

Doug Gimesy, On their side, Human Nature category finalist. What my image shows is Lyn Watson from the Australian Dingo Foundation standing inside the enclosure of one of her pure-bred ambassador dingoes, 'Aussie'. Lyn has worked tirelessly on the side of dingoes for many years, to help ensure they are recognised as unique and important to the ecology of the Australian landscape, and that they continue to survive and thrive. Part of her work involves preserving and breeding a genetically pure dingo population at her research centre (just on the outskirts of Melbourne), as well as communication education and advocacy. Her hope is that one day, dingoes may be reintroduced into the wider Australian landscape, and help restore balance to the ecosystem instead of being persecuted and killed on a massive scale. 
For years now, Lyn has been ‘On their side’. — Doug Gimesy, On their side, Human Nature category finalist. "What my image shows is Lyn Watson from the Australian Dingo Foundation standing inside the enclosure of one of her pure-bred ambassador dingoes, 'Aussie'. Lyn has worked tirelessly on the side of dingoes for many years, to help ensure they are recognised as unique and important to the ecology of the Australian landscape, and that they continue to survive and thrive. Part of her work involves preserving and breeding a genetically pure dingo population at her research centre (just on the outskirts of Melbourne), as well as communication education and advocacy. Her hope is that one day, dingoes may be reintroduced into the wider Australian landscape, and help restore balance to the ecosystem instead of being persecuted and killed on a massive scale. For years now, Lyn has been ‘On their side’."

Awards for this year’s competition include $12,300 in cash prizes for the winning images selected by a diverse panel of judges, including Jury Chair and renowned wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas, joined by editor Sophie Stafford and nature and conservation photographers and filmmakers Fernando Faciole, Britta Jaschinski, Anthony Ochieng Onyango, Peter Mather, and Aishwarya Sridhar.

Later this year, all winning images will be shown in the annual BigPicture photography exhibit, set to open on Saturday, October 4, 2025 at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, CA.

In addition, beginning July 1, members of the public can cast a vote for their favourite People’s Choice Award photo. The winning image will receive $300. The People’s Choice Award winner will be announced in early August, and the winning images will be viewable in the exhibition as well.

You can see a selection of the category winners and finalists below.

My Octopus Mother
by Kat Zhou
Aquatic Life Winner. Octopuses may be known for their ability to change color and shape, but their reproductive strategies are equally versatile. Some of the world’s 300 or so octopus species are monogamous, others polyamorous. Some mate beak to beak, sucker to sucker, while others prefer to keep their distance. Male blanket octopuses, for instance, load up a modified arm with sperm, then detach and pass it off to a female. Photographer Kat Zhou was diving off the coast of Florida when friends alerted her to this female octopus and her eggs tucked into a pipe of some sort, perhaps a remnant of a shipwreck. Zhou returned four times, trying to capture the mother’s determination to protect her young when they’re most vulnerable. — My Octopus Mother by Kat Zhou Aquatic Life Winner. Octopuses may be known for their ability to change color and shape, but their reproductive strategies are equally versatile. Some of the world’s 300 or so octopus species are monogamous, others polyamorous. Some mate beak to beak, sucker to sucker, while others prefer to keep their distance. Male blanket octopuses, for instance, load up a modified arm with sperm, then detach and pass it off to a female. Photographer Kat Zhou was diving off the coast of Florida when friends alerted her to this female octopus and her eggs tucked into a pipe of some sort, perhaps a remnant of a shipwreck. Zhou returned four times, trying to capture the mother’s determination to protect her young when they’re most vulnerable.

Unwavering Energy by Sandra Bartocha, Art of Nature Winner. When wind blows across the ocean’s surface, it forms a wave. A single wave can travel thousands of kilometers before breaking on land; for example, some waves generated off the coast of New Zealand roll all the way to the West Coast of North America, taking up to two weeks to reach their final destination. And while small waves can move as slowly as 8 kilometers (5 miles) per hour, tsunamis in the middle of the Pacific Ocean reach speeds of 965 kilometers (600 miles) per hour.

Rhino Rebound by Ami Vitale, Human/Nature Winner. In January 2024, officials from the Kenya Wildlife Service undertook a massive mission: translocating 21 black rhinoceroses (Diceros bicornis) to a region where they hadn’t lived for half a century. Black rhinos can weigh as much as a small sedan and are known to gore people, which makes moving them a daunting task. But when Kenya’s 16 existing rhino sanctuaries became too crowded, officials had little choice. Photographer Ami Vitale was documenting the translocation of this female from the OI Pejeta Conservancy in central Kenya to the Loisaba Conservancy in the north when the rhino reacted poorly to anesthesia and stopped breathing. Veterinarians and handlers initiated a special resuscitation for large animals and administered drugs to reverse the effects of the anesthetic, saving the animal’s life. Vitale says this image—captured the moment the rhino recovered—speaks to the danger that people are willing to face. — Rhino Rebound by Ami Vitale, Human/Nature Winner. In January 2024, officials from the Kenya Wildlife Service undertook a massive mission: translocating 21 black rhinoceroses (Diceros bicornis) to a region where they hadn’t lived for half a century. Black rhinos can weigh as much as a small sedan and are known to gore people, which makes moving them a daunting task. But when Kenya’s 16 existing rhino sanctuaries became too crowded, officials had little choice. Photographer Ami Vitale was documenting the translocation of this female from the OI Pejeta Conservancy in central Kenya to the Loisaba Conservancy in the north when the rhino reacted poorly to anesthesia and stopped breathing. Veterinarians and handlers initiated a special resuscitation for large animals and administered drugs to reverse the effects of the anesthetic, saving the animal’s life. Vitale says this image—captured the moment the rhino recovered—speaks to the danger that people are willing to face to bring back a species.

Icy Stare
by Marcin Giba
Landscapes, Waterscapes, & Flora Winner
Not long ago, it would have been nearly impossible for photographer Marcin Giba to take this image of a fissure on a foot-marked frozen lake in the southern Polish city of Rybnik—and it could become impossible again. Rybnik is one of Poland’s largest producers of coal, and with that abundance has come rampant consumption. Until recently, most homes and residential buildings burned coal for heat, cloaking the city in a thick layer of pollution and giving it the unenviable title of the “smog capital of Poland.” In 2010 alone, Rybnik experienced 130 days where the pollution was both hazardous and visible to the naked eye. Needless to say, such smoggy conditions aren’t conducive to the kind of drone-based photography that Giba uses in his work. — Icy Stare by Marcin Giba, Landscapes, Waterscapes, & Flora Winner. Not long ago, it would have been nearly impossible for photographer Marcin Giba to take this image of a fissure on a foot-marked frozen lake in the southern Polish city of Rybnik—and it could become impossible again. Rybnik is one of Poland’s largest producers of coal, and with that abundance has come rampant consumption. Until recently, most homes and residential buildings burned coal for heat, cloaking the city in a thick layer of pollution and giving it the unenviable title of the “smog capital of Poland.” In 2010 alone, Rybnik experienced 130 days where the pollution was both hazardous and visible to the naked eye. Needless to say, such smoggy conditions aren’t conducive to the kind of drone-based photography that Giba uses in his work.

Part of the Pack
by Amit Eshel,
Terrestrial Wildlife Winner.
Reaching Ellesmere Island, in Canada’s far north, is an adventure of its own. It took six domestic flights for Israeli photographer Amit Eshel to get within striking distance, and then days of traveling by dogsled and snowmobile to make it to the northern part of the island. Eshel undertook the journey in hopes of spotting Ellesmere’s wolves, which have no known history of being hunted and are unafraid of the few human visitors they encounter. — Part of the Pack by Amit Eshel, Terrestrial Wildlife Winner. Reaching Ellesmere Island, in Canada’s far north, is an adventure of its own. It took six domestic flights for Israeli photographer Amit Eshel to get within striking distance, and then days of traveling by dogsled and snowmobile to make it to the northern part of the island. Eshel undertook the journey in hopes of spotting Ellesmere’s wolves, which have no known history of being hunted and are unafraid of the few human visitors they encounter.

Tiny Tent Makers
by Dvir Barkay,
Winged Life Winner.
Bats are not ordinarily known for their cuteness. Then again, the Honduran white bat (Ectophylla alba) is no ordinary bat. One of the smallest fruit-eating bats in the world, it’s roughly the size of a golf ball and the weight of a quarter. Even with its wings outstretched, the diminutive species only reaches around 10 centimeters (4 inches). But it’s not only the bat’s stature that’s unique. It’s also one of the few species that makes tents in which to roost. — Tiny Tent Makers by Dvir Barkay, Winged Life Winner. Bats are not ordinarily known for their cuteness. Then again, the Honduran white bat (Ectophylla alba) is no ordinary bat. One of the smallest fruit-eating bats in the world, it’s roughly the size of a golf ball and the weight of a quarter. Even with its wings outstretched, the diminutive species only reaches around 10 centimeters (4 inches). But it’s not only the bat’s stature that’s unique. It’s also one of the few species that makes tents in which to roost.