VICTORIA — In big, backlit displays, 100 photographs from around the globe await visitors to the Royal British Columbia Museum, the landmark a few blocks from the Inner Harbour and the MV Coho ferry dock.
The annual Wildlife Photographer of the Year show is on display now, showcasing the winning images from 96 countries in 18 divisions, including the Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition and the “World in Our Hands” category, devoted to photojournalism.
These photos were chosen from 43,000 entries in the worldwide competition. And Royal B.C. Museum CEO Jack Lohman is proud to announce that several winners are his countrymen.
Garth Lenz of Victoria is among the “World in Our Hands” winners for his “Oil spoils,” an aerial shot showing the scale of the Alberta tar sands.
Connor Stefanison, a biology student at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C., took the Eric Hosking Portfolio award for his series of six nature photographs showing animals hunting, resting or foraging.
Adam Gibbs of New Westminster, B.C., received a commendation in the “Wildscapes” category for “The enchantment,” his photo of an alpine lake bathed in shadow and autumn color.
This year’s photos take viewers from Kenya and the Philippines to Brazil, Thailand and beyond. In so doing, they highlight activities in one part of the world that can affect lives and landscapes elsewhere. Colorful images of the illegal ivory trade in Manila, for example, are shown alongside darker photographs of undercover rangers who police elephant tusk poaching in Kenya.
British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest also appear in the show, in close-up shots of animals and in images of landscapes in all seasons.
“This year’s winners offer a deeply aesthetic window into our natural world,” Lohman noted.
“The photojournalism in the show connects superbly with [the museum’s] mission to better understand our world, nature and the threats it faces.”
The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, organized by the Natural History Museum of London and co-owned with BBC Worldwide, receives entries from professionals, amateurs and young photographers. The international judging panel includes some of the world’s most respected nature photographers and wildlife experts.
Visitors to the museum will also have a chance to read each photographer’s description of what happened as the shot was taken, along with the technical details on cameras, lenses, aperture and exposure.
The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition will stay on display through April 6.
Meantime, the Royal B.C. Museum, 675 Belleville St., will host activities for photo enthusiasts, including a Spring Break Nature Photography-Inspired Day Camp from March 11-13 and March 18-20. The camp fee is $135.
Programs for adults include Robert Bateman’s lecture, “Paying Attention to our Place Through Art and Photography” on Jan. 15 and a Photography Day Camp for Grown-Ups on March 15. The fee for that program is $45.
Daily admission to the Royal B.C. Museum is $16 for adults and $10.15 for seniors, youth age 6 to 18 and students age 19 and older with identification, while children age 3 to 5 get in free. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily except Dec. 25 and Jan. 1, when it’s closed for the holidays.
For information about the museum’s permanent exhibitions, IMAX movie theater and many events, see www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca or phone 250-356-7226.
For information about the Black Ball Ferry Line between Port Angeles and Victoria, see CohoFerry.com or phone 360-457-4491.
