This year, among the striking images of at-risk animals and beautiful landscapes at the annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibit at Victoria's Royal BC Museum, one photograph is swimming in praise.
Shane Gross, a Nanaimo-based marine conservation journalist took the Adult Grand Title Winner photo, The Swarm of Life, which pictures western toad tadpoles dappled in light beneath a lake's surface near Campbell River.
Gross told Victoria B次元官网网址 many of his images can take months or years to get, but with this one he was lucky.
"After researching the best time of year to visit the tadpoles I spent about six hours in the lake that day getting to know the lake, the tadpoles, their behaviors and trying different angles and lighting techniques," he said. Gross brought out their "amazing golden flecks" by front-lighting the tadpoles.
The photograph was chosen out of 59,228 entries from 117 countries and territories at the annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards by the U.K.'s Natural History Museum.
Gross brings a passion for conservation to his craft, which is why he co-founded the Canadian Conservation Photographers Collective (CCPC) with a few friends.
"We believe that by coming together, we are stronger ... Our goal is to fight for the rights of nature using our skills as photographers, videographers, and storytellers."
It's a similar sentiment behind the 100 photos from photographers across the globe that will travel from London's Natural History Museum to Royal BC Museum from Feb. 14 to April 27. The exhibition "captures and illuminates the intricate beauty of our world while highlighting the global effort to restore Mother Earth," reads the Royal BC Museum website.
"We are bombarded with important facts and statistics about the degradation of our planet every day, but it rarely results in change. Humans are visual and emotional creatures, so to evoke change we can use the power of visual storytelling," Gross said.
"I think the exhibit has the power to change individual lives and goals. I know that certain images and films have changed mine."
