Scottish wildlife photography competition

This video from Scotland says about itself:

4 July 2014

This is what you could experience with a visit to the Scottish Seabird Centre.

From Wildlife Extra:

Scottish Seabird Centre launches 2015 photography competition

The Scottish Seabird Centre, visitor attraction, conservation and education charity, has launched its 2015 photography competition.

The categories to enter are: Landscape, Scottish Wildlife, Worldwide Wildlife, Environmental Impact, Creative Visions of Nature and World Flora – under 16s can enter in all categories.

However, as the Scottish Seabird Centre Nature Photography Awards are in their tenth year, to mark this anniversary there are two new categories: Nature’s Foragers and Nature Condensed.

Following the success of last year’s awards, which had over 430 entries, the judges for are Scottish Natural Heritage’s award-winning photographer Lorne Gill, professional freelance photographer Graham Riddell and Scottish Field Editor Richard Bath, and they will be joined by guest judges for the two new categories.

Tom Brock OBE, Chief Executive of the Scottish Seabird Centre, says: “These awards will identify the best photographic talent from all age groups and encourage people to study, appreciate and share the wonders of the natural world in a sustainable way.

“Our Nature Photography Awards have grown significantly over the last ten years, and are now firmly established as a high quality and prestigious annual photography competition.

“The new categories make this year’s competition even more exciting. I would encourage amateur photographers and film fans worldwide to take a chance and submit their best images and short films.”

For the first of the new categories, and to celebrate Scotland’s Year of Food & Drink, the Centre has introduced the category Nature’s Foragers where entrants are invited to consider our natural larder and how different species engage with it.

The challenge will be to compose an image that can say something about the diversity of natural provisions available or the canny way some wildlife find their lunch.

The guest judge for this category will be Hebridean author Fiona Bird who has written Kids’ Kitchen (Barefoot Books, 2009); The Forager’s Kitchen (Cico Books, 2013) and Seaweed in the Kitchen (Prospect Books, 2015).

Manuela Calchini, VisitScotland Regional Partnerships Director, says: “The Year of Food and Drink is all about celebrating our outstanding culinary delights and unique dining experience.

“It’s fantastic to hear that the Scottish Seabird Centre has incorporated this message into their 2015 photography competition.

“Food and drink is such an integral part of our lives so I’m sure there will be plenty of opportunity for entrants to get snap happy and capture that prize-winning picture.”

Fiona Bird adds: “I am delighted to be invited to judge the foraging category. We should all relish the opportunity to explore and taste Scotland’s natural larder.

“Most foragers eat locally and every forager eats seasonally; they are, of course, mindful that if they pick all of the spring blossom there won’t be autumn berries, and the birds and the bees will lose out.”

For the second new category, budding film makers have the opportunity to enter for the first time in the Nature Condensed category.

Entrants in this category will create a maximum of one minute’s footage, focusing on any of the themes outlined in the photographic categories.

This new category will also have a guest judge, Laura Miller, News Anchor from STV Edinburgh.

Laura says: “‘I am delighted to be involved in the Scottish Seabird Centre Nature Photography Awards 2015 in this their tenth anniversary year.

“The competition is the perfect platform for local amateur photographers, young and old, and it showcases a wealth of talent.

“I feel privileged to be judging the inaugural ‘short film’ category and can’t wait to see this year’s entries.’’

The deadline for entries is Sunday 18 October.

Judges will meet to decide on a shortlist in each category. The shortlist will then be on display from 20 November in the Seabird Centre and online for the public to cast their votes, until Sunday 21 February 2016.

In each category there will be a winner selected by the judges as well as a winner selected by the voting public. Winning photographers have the opportunity to secure a whole host of prizes, which will be unveiled soon at http://www.seabird.org.

To enter the Nature Photography Awards visit www.seabird.org.