Dutch photographer, Marsel van Oosten, has won the title of 'Wildlife Photographer of the Year' for 2018 in the prestigious competition, for his image titled 'The Golden Couple" as seen above. The striking image features snub-nosed monkeys in China and was shot in the Qinling Mountains, the only place where these monkeys are found, as they watch an altercation between two males in the troop.
“Whenever he did catch up and if the monkeys were on the ground, the light was seldom right,” writes the Natural History Museum, which runs the contest. “Also, the only way to show both a male’s beautiful pelage and his striking blue face was to shoot at an angle from the back. That became Marsel’s goal.
“It took many days to understand the group’s dynamics and predict what might happen next, but finally his perseverance paid off with this gift of a perfect situation, with a perfect forest backdrop and perfect light filtering through the canopy. A low flash brought out the glow of the male’s golden locks to complete the perfect portrait.”
The shot was captured with a Nikon D810, Tamron 24–70mm f/2.8 lens, and Nikon SB-910 flash at 24mm, 1/320s, f8, ISO 1600, Nikon SB-910 flash.
Here are the other finalists of this year’s contest:
15-17 Years Old: “Lounging Leopard” by Skye Meaker, South Africa 
10 Years and Under: “Pipe Owls” by Arshdeep Singh, India 
11-14 Years Old: “Duck of Dreams” by Carlos Perez Naval, Spain 
Animals in their Environment: “Bed of Seals” by Cristobal Serrano, Spain 
Behaviour: Amphibians and Reptiles: “Hellbent” by David Herasimtschuk, USA 
Behaviour: Invertebrates: “Mud-rolling Mud-dauber” by Georgina Steytler, Australia 
Behaviour: Mammals: “Kuhirwa Mourns Her Baby” by Ricardo Núñez Montero, Spain 
Plants and Fungi: “Desert Relic” by Jen Guyton by Germany/USA 
Under Water: “Night Flight” by Michael Patrick O’Neill, USA 
Urban Wildlife: “Crossing Paths” by Marco Colombo, Italy 
Earth’s Environments: “Windsweep” by Orlando Fernandez Miranda, Spain 
Black and White: “The Vision” by Jan van der Greef, The Netherlands 
Creative Visions: “The Ice Pool” by Cristobal Serrano, Spain 
Wildlife Photojournalism: “The Sad Clown” by Joan de la Malla, Spain 
Wildlife Photojournalist Award: Story: “Signature Tree” by Alejandro Prieto, Mexico 
Rising Star Portfolio Award: “Dream Duel” by Michel d’Oultremont, Belgium 
Wildlife Photographer Portfolio Award: “Mother Defender” by Javier Aznar González de Rueda, Spain 
10 Years and Under: “Pipe Owls” by Arshdeep Singh, India 11-14 Years Old: “Duck of Dreams” by Carlos Perez Naval, Spain Animals in their Environment: “Bed of Seals” by Cristobal Serrano, Spain Behaviour: Amphibians and Reptiles: “Hellbent” by David Herasimtschuk, USA Behaviour: Invertebrates: “Mud-rolling Mud-dauber” by Georgina Steytler, Australia Behaviour: Mammals: “Kuhirwa Mourns Her Baby” by Ricardo Núñez Montero, Spain Plants and Fungi: “Desert Relic” by Jen Guyton by Germany/USA Under Water: “Night Flight” by Michael Patrick O’Neill, USA Urban Wildlife: “Crossing Paths” by Marco Colombo, Italy Earth’s Environments: “Windsweep” by Orlando Fernandez Miranda, Spain Black and White: “The Vision” by Jan van der Greef, The Netherlands Creative Visions: “The Ice Pool” by Cristobal Serrano, Spain Wildlife Photojournalism: “The Sad Clown” by Joan de la Malla, Spain Wildlife Photojournalist Award: Story: “Signature Tree” by Alejandro Prieto, Mexico Rising Star Portfolio Award: “Dream Duel” by Michel d’Oultremont, Belgium Wildlife Photographer Portfolio Award: “Mother Defender” by Javier Aznar González de Rueda, Spain
