Epic drone shot scoops inaugural Nature TTL Photographer of the Year

'Valley of the Scheldt' by Bart Heirweg, Highly Commended - Landscape category in the Nature TTL POTY 2020 (Image credit: Bart Heirweg)

The winner of the Nature TTL Photographer of the Year 2020 has been crowned, with French photographer Florian Ledoux taking home the title with his incredible drone shot of seals taken over the ice floats in Antarctica.

The inaugural international competition attracted 7,000 entries from wildlife, landscape and macro photographers in 117 countries around the globe – and the standard of entries definitely marks the contest as one to watch in 2021.

Will Nicholls, founder of Nature TTL and a professional wildlife cameraman and photographer in his own right, was quick in his praise of the winning entry. “Florian’s image provides a unique angle that is not often seen in wildlife photography. The judges had a tough choice to make, but the detail and strong composition of the seals surrounded by the broken ice made it stand out from the crowd.”

"I was wearing a piece of waterproof overalls in the stream of Dabie Mountain, waiting to observe this Matrona basilaris (damselfly). Matrona basilaris is the king of the stream here. There is a male Matrona basilaris every 3 meters. They were waiting for the female to fly over its territory; the male chased away a male opponent and then stopped at the tip of the grass. Against the background of the sky, I discovered the connection between the lines of the grass and the subject. Nature itself is a simple painting."

"For the last 4-5 years I have seen that, at the end of every winter, farmers of this huge grassland generally burn the grass and reeds to clean the land for upcoming crops. When the fire spreads across the land, small insects start coming out. Then the brave Black Drongo starts capitalizing on such a moment by eating them and flying above the live fire. The birds usually sit on a branch fearlessly and watch the movements of the insects as the fire spreads into a new area, then it flies close to the fire for the catch. This is a full frame image, and the calmness of the Drongo reminds me of the Roman Emperor Nero."

"I watched, intrigued, as the bird swam in circles, dipping his bill, taking water, then raising his beak to attempt to swallow his large prey. But every time the fish extended its sharp spines on its fins - you can see it hooked on the beak here - and lodged itself firmly. This went on for over 20 minutes, with no sign of either party tiring. I was fascinated to see the intricate veins in the birds throat pouch, as the overcast day backlit the thin skin, and I had to move and crouch low to the ground to get the shot."

"I have observed and photographed damselflies on the ponds in my local park in London for years. Last summer, during the July heat- wave on an especially hot and muggy but overcast day, I went with the intention of trying to capture some shots using exposure compensation as I'd recently begun experimenting more with it. The damselflies were out in great numbers all over the surface of the water and due to the lack of direct sunlight I was able to shoot with a bit of positive compensation to leave the water white or near white. It then just became a question of looking for the most photogenic pairing and this group stood out due to the symmetry. This breeding behavior lasted exactly 1 day, as the next day I went back and the activity had already subsided for another year."

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The editor of Digital Camera World, James has 21 years experience as a journalist and started working in the photographic industry in 2014 (as an assistant to Damian McGillicuddy, who succeeded David Bailey as Principal Photographer for Olympus). In this time he shot for clients like Aston Martin Racing, Elinchrom and L'Oréal, in addition to shooting campaigns and product testing for Olympus, and providing training for professionals. This has led him to being a go-to expert for camera and lens reviews, photo and lighting tutorials, as well as industry news, rumors and analysis for publications like Digital Camera Magazine, PhotoPlus: The Canon Magazine, N-Photo: The Nikon Magazine, Digital Photographer and Professional Imagemaker, as well as hosting workshops and talks at The Photography Show. He also serves as a judge for the Red Bull Illume Photo Contest. An Olympus and Canon shooter, he has a wealth of knowledge on cameras of all makes – and a fondness for vintage lenses and instant cameras.

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