The votes have been tallied and the winners announced. From a field of over 7,000 photos captured in 13 different countries, the top honours have been awarded in this year's GDT Nature Photographer of the Year competition. Only members of the German Society for Nature Photography (GDT) are eligible to participate in the competition, which features a diverse collection of stunning photographs showcasing the beauty of the natural world.
Scenes of a marriage. For these two red kites, an electricity pole is the perfect perch to look out for prey.
© Silke Hüttchen / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
The overall winner in this year's contest was German photographer Silke Hüttche who captured the stunning symmetry of a pair of kites perched on a telephone pole.
"I have this habit of constantly looking for birds wherever I am," Hüttche explained. "So every time I pass this electricity pole I take a look up for there is always some kind of bird sitting there. As was the case on this somewhat dull day in September 2021 when I glanced up and spotted the kite sitting there on the one end and shortly after a second one arriving to settle on the opposite end ... Hoping for some action-filled photography, I took out my camera and waited. Initially my wish was for some kind of interaction between them. But they just seemed to have nothing to say to each other and kept looking in opposite directions. In the end I was fascinated by this scene of perfect symmetry, and luckily both birds remained still for long enough until I had the picture I wanted."
Also picking up honours in this year's competition was Jens Cullmann's photo of a buffalo enveloped in an orange dust cloud, and a striking image of a snail making its way along a grass stalk against a pure white background, snapped by Sebastian Vogel.
Here's a look at some of our favourite images from this year's competition (the perfect accompaniment to Earth Day – an annual event that aims to unite the globe in support for environmental protection):
A grey partridge photographed near Marburg, Germany in early summer.
© Christian Höfs / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Filigree along the stalk. The Mainzer Sand Dunes offer great opportunities to photograph snails climbing filigree grasses.
© Sebastian Vogel / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Mystical glacier. The Pasterze glacier at the foot of the Grossglockner Mountain, Austria.
© Britta Strack / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Mess. A bird's eye view of wild boars resting in the reed belt of a pond.
© Oliver Richter / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Harbour idyll. A kingfisher sits in the harbour of Pellworm and catches small fish out of the salt water.
© Jan Leßmann / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Smile. Two American crocodiles (Crocodylus acutus) in the mangroves of the Jardines de la Reina in Cuba.
© Laura Becker / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Old trees. Corydalis mingles with old trees in the Teutoburg Forest.
© Jan Leßmann / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
A Scottish stag stands majestically on a mountain. Peering through a pine forest, all photographer Jan Leßmann could see was the deer's antlers.
© Jan Leßmann / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
"For weeks I had gradually approached closer to the little owl, and one evening in the last sunlight I was able to photograph this portrait."
© Karsten Mosebach / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
The matriarch - a soul-touching view. The matriarch cow kept an eye on us until the last member of her small group had passed us.
© Peter Lindel / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
On the way to hell. A dead moth on the Rio Tinto - photographed in Spain in 2019.
© Florian Smit / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
A yellow-collared mouse taking a short break from foraging at night on the ledge of an old and dusty cellar window.
© Maximilian Fellermann / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Colour in the Dark. A male alpine longhorn beetle waits for a female on a cut surface of a tree.
© Daniela Graf / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Autumn fog inferno. In autumn, fog often forms in the Vosges Mountains in Eastern France. In this image, the rising sun in the foreground illuminates the swirling fog, turning it bright orange.
© Radomir Jakubowski / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Not the breath of the lion, but the body heat of a fresh zebra kill creates a cloud of haze in the morning backlight.
© Peter Lindel / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Observer. In the heat and dust of the day a herd of African buffalo comes to drink.
© Jens Cullmann / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Bark detail of a Himalayan birch (Betula utilis).
© Jens Cullmann / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Reflection. Reflections of two great egrets in the water, photographed in Lower Saxony.
© Sandra Westermann / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
Water lily painting. A sensual perception of water lilies and the intuitive capture of this fleeting moment led to this transparent image.
© Antje Kreienbrink / GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2023
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