See 15 Winning Images of the Close-Up Photographer of the Year Competition

Sarah Kuta

Daily correspondent

Beetles fighting for mating rights, a bear stalks through the rainforest and a dams for a waterfall are just a few of the many scenes that jury members amazed during the annual Close-Up Photographer of the Year competition.

Now in his sixth year, the competitions of photographers who excel in “reveal the hidden miracle of the world through close-up, macro and micro photography,” said a statement shared with Smithsonian magazine. The 2025 competition included more than 11,000 entries from 61 countries, which carefully rated a panel of judges to determine the winners and the top 100 images.

The jury, consisting of 25 photographers, scientists, journalists and editors, spent more than 20 hours of video calls through the entries. In the end, they awarded first, second and third place in 11 categories – ranging from insects to animals to underwater shots. They also mentioned six to eight finalists for each category.

All winning images are published on the website of the competition, as well as in A corresponding e -book.

“Every year I am blown away by the caliber of entries,” Tracy CalderWHO co-founder The competition with her husband, Dan Calder, in 2018, says in the statement. “Close-up photography is a celebration of curiosity, and this year’s top 100 is a real proof of the artistry of all involved, as well as an invitation to look, wonder and honor the world around us.”

Here is a look at some of the best photos of this year.

Clash of the Titans By Svetlana Ivanenko

Russian photographer Svetlana Ivanenko impressed by the jury members with her striking photo of two male deer ((Lucanus Cervus) Establishing for the mating of rights in an oak forest. Ivanenko traveled more than 430 miles to the Voronezh region in Russia to catch the ‘beautiful event’, she says in a statement.

And after having recorded that moment: “I want to share it with everyone,” she adds.

As a close-up photographer of the year of this year, Ivanenko receives a $ 3,000 cash prize, a trophy and a universal license for various photo editing and design apps. The same image also achieved first place in the insects category.

God in the shadow By Santiago J. Monroy García

Santiago J. Monroy GarcíaA Colombian photographer, earned the first place in the animals category for his dramatic photo of one Andes Beer ((Tremarctos Ornatus) Walk through the dense foliage of a highland rainforest.

He traveled to the nature reserve of Ecopalacio-Ongeveer 20 miles outside of Bogotá-om to see if he could keep a shot from a famous bear with the nickname ‘Nariz de Calavera’ or skull’s nose. The individual is one of the largest bears in the area and its kind is the only bear that is native to South America.

The photographer has set a motion camera so as not to disturb the nature of the reserve. Eventually, in November 2023, his trail camera recorded the image he had imagined, without the use of AAS.

“I wanted to conquer the bear who behaved naturally in his environment, looking for an intimate image that showed the unique ecosystem as if it was part of a dream,” he says in a statement. “Coincidentally, the rain had the lens splashed in exactly the right places, creating brush strokes and textures that immerse the viewer into the humidity and cold of the Highland Andes forests of Colombia.”

Queen of Hearts By Pierluigi Rizzo

Italian photographer Pierluigi Rizzo Combine two photos of a female Mediterranean black widow (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus) To make the winning shot in the Arachnids category. He saw the spider feeding on his prey in Pollino National Park in Calabria, Italy.

“On the first photo I shot the belly of the spider to emphasize the characteristic red spots of the spider,” he says in a statement. “On the second photo I wanted to capture the moment of food, so I placed a flash with a blue gel behind the spider to get his silhouette. The two photos were merged into camera. ‘

Dammelly at the waterfall By Yong Miao

A dams (Archineura Incarnata) is peaceful on a rock for a roaring waterfall in the Chinese photographer Yong MiaoThe image, which won the Butterflies and Dragonflies category of the competition. Taken in the Tianmuseum Nature Reserve in the province of Zhejiang, China, the photo records a moment when “time seemed to stand still,” says Miao.

“The head was lowered to the water surface, as if he appreciated his own reflection,” he says in a statement. “Every slight disturbance would let it fly away, so I immersed my body in the water and gently crawled. From a distance of approximately [6.5 feet]I have set my camera firmly and captured this precious scene. ‘

Bark is worse than his bite By Aran Gibbs

Irish photographer Aran Gibbs took a long evening walk on a mountain near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, when he saw a Caerostris Spider, also known as a bark spider, resting on a stick. With the help of his backpack for extra stability, he stabiled his camera and took this charming photo, which won the category invertebrate portrait.

Everything is a-ok By Gabriel Jensen

Even on difficult days, American photographer Gabriel Jensen believes that everything will prove fine. He reminds himself in this way with this photo, which is at work on his desk and displays a “comically calm” doctor’s fish (Acanthurus Chiurgus) in the jaws of a lizard visor (Synodus Foets) In Kona, Hawaii, he says in a statement.

With the help of his spread chest muscles and dorsal spines to fight back, the doctor’s fish eventually escaped – but not before Jensen could get the winning shot in the underwater category.

Moss By Piet Haaksma

Many people would be walking directly on a little garden moss, covered with dew drops – but not Dutch photographer Piet Haaksma. After a foggy, early spring night in Sneek, the Netherlands, he was so moved by the dreamy scene that he got out of his camera and started photographing. His resulting image – in conjunction with two combined recordings and adapted to reach a blue color – was the plant category this year.

Fungus By Barry Webb

British photographer Barry Webb This year won the category fungi and mucus shapes with its shot of half-inch high earpick fungus (Auriscalpium vulgare) grow on a pine cone in South England.

‘Auriscalpium vulgare Grows on pine cones and has attached an eccentric stem on one side of the cap, with unusual and distinctive downward pointed, tooth -like gills, “he says in a statement.

Webb was also a category winner for his fungal photos in the close-up photographer of the annual competition in the past.

A network of life and death By Jean-Philippe Delobelle

Female salsial beetles Place their eggs under the bark of trees. When these eggs come out, the larvae tunnels start to cut under the bark – and the tunnels get bigger and bigger as the larvae grow. French photographer Jean-Philippe Delobelle Such a network of tunnels spotted under the bark of a spruce tree in the French Alps and decided to take a photo. His image won the intimate landscape category.

The complicated tunnels are “a symbol of life for the larva and death for the tree,” he says in a statement.

Spring By Andres Luis Dominguez Blanco

Andres Luis Dominguez Blanco Maybe only 14 years old, but the Spanish teenager already understands how he can put together a fascinating photo. Blank’s recording of a colorful European bee eater ((Merops Apiaster) In the middle of the flight with an insect in his beak this year won the young photographer category of this year.

“After having previously observed bee eaters with binoculars, I knew exactly where they would fly after hunting insects,” he says in a statement. “This allowed me to place a skin strategically so that I could get a low point of view to fade the foreground and background flowers in the photo. I spent several weekend morning in the skin and saw how every bird catches 15-20 insects per hour, which offered me enough opportunities to capture some attractive images. “

Artificial landscape By Rob Blanken

Closely viewed by a microscope, a combination of crystallized amino acids caught by photographer Rob Blanken Van Nederland evokes a ‘fantastic landscape’, according to a statement.

To set up this shot, which took first place in the studio art category, whites mixed two amino acids with water and ethanol. He then heated the solution on a microscope slide. “Over time, the crystals form on the slide and they can be made visible using polarization filters,” he adds. “I make these images because of the fascinating shapes, colors and endless variations they offer.”

Runners-up: Mushrooms, Kelp and Giant Sequoias