Annual photography competition

Highly commended in the Wildlife Close Up category by Mark Cox

Photography is a great way to capture a moment and to get outside and connect with nature, and to celebrate this we host a photo competition each year.

When you enter, you have the chance to have your photo featured on our social media, calendar, and more! The GWT 2024 calendar featured some of your amazing finalist photos from the 2023 competition.

Thank you to everyone that has entered our previous years photo competitions - there have been some truly incredible submissions. Take a look at the galleries of entries below, they'll be sure to inspire you to grab your camera and head outside.

Click the (i) icons to find the image credit, or on the photos themselves to find comments from the judging panel and where the photo placed in the categories.

Wildlife photography best practices

Be careful with using flash
Lots of cameras and phones will automatically turn flash on when the light conditions decrease, so be mindful of this before taking photos. Wildlife can be very sensitive to light, and many can be scared or even temporarily blinded by the sudden flash of light. If the light conditions aren’t good, a night vision camera is your best bet.

Be mindful of where you are walking
It is best to stick to designated paths or tracks when out on our reserves to minimise any damage to habitats or disturbing wildlife that are used to no footfall in their patch.

Keep a low profile
Keep your distance and don't get too close - this is especially important when the wildlife you are photographing has any young with them.

Are you photographing a protected species?
If you are looking to photograph and specific species, look up its protected status before heading out. There are laws that protect certain species, disturbing them during breeding seasons can impact their success rate of raising young and can be seen as a criminal offence.

Don't use lures
Avoid use food to bait wildlife into coming closer, playing calls to birds, or similar behaviour. Just be patient and quiet and the wildlife will come to you!

Remember, the welfare of the wildlife should come first.

A person with long hair pointing a camera at the photo

2024 galleries

The GWT photography competition this year was split into mobile entries and camera entries for the first time. We know that not everybody owns a camera, but we want everyone to have the opportunity to enjoy nature as part of this competition.

As part of the camera or mobile entry, there were three categories; urban wildlife, wild places, and species spotlight.

Overall and category winners

Congratulations to:

Overall camera winner and camera species spotlight category winner - Rory Lewis, erythristic meadow grasshopper
Overall mobile winner and mobile species spotlight category winner - Rose Lennard, strange goings on at the allotment
People's Choice winner and camera urban wildlife category winner - Graham Hill, the stare

Camera wild places category winner - Natasha Scott, Stuart Fawkes nature reserve
Mobile urban wildlife category winner - Sally Terrett, new postie on the block
Mobile wild places category winner - Sarah Whittle, A winter sunrise on the River Severn

Erythristic meadow grasshopper © Rory Lewis

Strange goings on at the allotment © Rose Lennard

The stare © Graham Hill

Stuart Fawkes nature reserve © Natasha Scott

New postie on the block © Sally Terrett

A winter sunrise on the River Severn © Sarah Whittle

Runners up

Please click on each image to see the category and photographer.

Winter waxwing © Rob Whybrow

Caught © Tom Henderson

Bee on rosebay willowherb © Cara Ennis

Sparrowhawk on the hunt © Chris Newton

Deer in the meadows © Michael Garland

Common lizards basking in the afternoon sun © Stephen Merry

Stain glass © Laura Lyons

Tiny shiny thick-legged flower beetle © Lucy Lea

He roams © Abbie Wood

A birds eye view © Stella Thomson-Pigott

Misty morning © Robin Lewis

Listen to the light © Jason Conway

Winner_Citizens of Nature (c) Katie Harper

2023 galleries

This year's photo competition has been bigger and better than ever, with 21 shortlisted entries, seven category winners and an overall winner.

For the first time, we handed the voting for the overall winner over the the public, with nearly a thousand of you taking part to choose your winner.

The winners

Please click on each image to see the category and photographer.

Bee Bunkhouse (c) Ciaran Clark

Getting a better view (c) Terry Stevenson

Conservation grazing in action (c) Richard Gibbs

Sawbill's Grip (c) Jonathan Bull

Slime time © Anthony James Wojcik

Orange-tip (c) Cara Ennis

Runners up

Brimstone caterpillar (c) Robert Bryant

My first sighting of new life (c) Teresa Farr

Macro Moments

Third place

My first sighting of new life (c) Teresa Farr

Belle among the bluebells (c) Steph Gore

Hedgehog (c) Alycia Timmis

Bad hair day (c) Alan Waterman

Hide n seek with hairy footed flower bee' (c) Teresa Farr

Into the mist (c) Ritchie George

Three of a kind (c) Eden Tanner

Target acquired (c) Rich Garner

Wood mouse in its den (c) Chris Newton

Hellebore (c) Hollie-Anne Prior

Tree fungi at Soudley Ponds (c) Kate Townley

Juvenile Swallows (c) William Lambourne

The Blossom Blackbird (c) Hope Whittaker

Dragonfly (c) Mark Cox

2022 galleries

Check out this year's entries!
If you didn't place this year, don't be discouraged - you may see your pictures elsewhere on the website, in our newsletters, on social media and more.

The category winners

Congratulations to:
Overall winner, Chris Newton
Wild youth winner, Hope
Comedy snaps winner, David Adamson
Connecting to nature winner, Amy Gatley
Macro moments winners , Roger Cope and Stuart Williams
My favourite nature reserve winner, David Elder

Barn owl in flight (c) Chris Newton

Pond skaters skating into the danger zone of a toad

Skating into danger (c) David Adamson

'Happiness is' (c) Amy Gatley

Marbled white butterfly at Daneway Banks

Marbled white (c) Roger Cope, Daneway Banks

Brimstone butterfly (c) Stuart Williams

Coombe Hill at dawn (c) David Elder

'A breast burst of colour' (c) Hope

The runners up and highly commended entries

Congratulations to Tim Adams, Ian Bishop, Katherine Boon, Claire Cohen, David Elder, Penny George, Ritchie George, Sophie Harris, Rachel Hayward, Thomas Hill, William Lambourne, Rose Lennard, Sam McStravick, Alfie Owen, Caroline Richardson and Stuart Williams.

Child with marsh fritillary butterfly on finger

Child with marsh fritillary butterfly (c) Caroline Richardson

Dew-covered self-heal flowers (c) Penny George, Horsbere Brook

Newly emerged six-spot burnet moth at Daneway Banks (c) David Elder

Pink nymph grasshopper (c) Penny George, Barrow Wake

Damselflies (c) Stuart Williams

Woorgreens (c) Rachel Hayward

Coombe Hill (c) Ritchie George

Hare portrait (c) Claire Cohen

Wren singing (c) Katherine Boon

Cygnets at Cannop Ponds (c) Tim Adams

Water vole (c) Tim Adams

'Slow loving in the Cotswolds, Roman style’ (c) Rose Lennard

Hares boxing (c) Thomas Hill

A squirrel peering at a deer taking a drink

Fox (c) Sophie Harris, 'Licking of the lips'

Skylark at Cleeve Hill Common (c) William Lambourne

Jumping spider (c) Alfie Owen, PC2022

Fungi (c) Sam McStravick

Meadow pipit at Cleeve Hill common (c) William Lambourne

And then he said... (c) Aleksander Domanski

2021 galleries

Throughout the lockdowns and reopenings, many of us continued to explore the wild places of Gloucestershire. There were many fantastic entries this year, with the Wildlife Close Up category being especially popular.
Click the (i) icons to find the image credit, or on the images themselves to find out more about the photo, comments from the judging panel, and where the photo placed in the categories.

The category winners

Congratulations to:
Overall winner, Aleksander Domanski
Wildlife close up winner, Mike Barby
On your doorstep winners, Mark Halling and Aleksander Domanski
Juniors winners, William Lambourne and Alfie Owen
My Wild Life winner, Kate Young
Out on the reserves winner, Adam Smith

And then he said... (c) Aleksander Domanski

Gull (c) Mike Barby

Winter landscape at Barrow Wake (c) Adam Smith

Three goldfinches feeding on a bird feeder

Goldfinches (c) Mark Halling

Childhood memories (c) Kate Young

Thrush (c) William Lambourne

House spider on hand lit with green light

Creature of the night (c) Alfie Owen

The runners up and highly commended entries

Congratulations to Jasmine Bell, Mark Cox, Aleksander Domanski, Sophie Harris, William Lambourne, Tony Rogers, Julia Sharpe, Sophie Shone, Terry Stevenson, Anthony James Wojcik and Kate Young.