Remya Warrier is a passionate wildlife photographer, naturalist and conservationist hailing from Kerala, India. By utilising a higher shutter speed, I was able to freeze those airborne, luminous droplets, resulting in the captivating image presented here.” About photographer Remya Warrier It was crucial to find an angle with a dark background for the composition, as only against such a backdrop could the flying droplets of water gleam like stars. The next step involved waiting patiently, peering through the viewfinder in anticipation of capturing the golden moment when the lions would shake off the water from their manes.

We quickly located the pride, consisting of a dozen lions, including two males and a few cubs. Fortunately, the Black Rock lion pride had been spotted near our camp earlier that day. On that particular day, dark rain clouds were gathering, and we decided to venture out in search of male lions as they presented our best photographic opportunity. This breathtaking phenomenon is rarely witnessed elsewhere but is unknown to many who avoid visiting during the monsoon season. “‘It’s all about learning to dance in the rains.’ At the line of the equator at an altitude of over 5,000 ft (1,534 m), the Mara rains create a captivating display of water and sun, blending together in a vibrant tapestry of light and shade. Thanks for trusting us with your beautiful work, and please keep the flag of authentic photography flying high. On that note, every photographer in this Winner’s gallery submitted RAW photographic files for our inspection.Ĭongratulations to every photographer that made it through thousands of entries to appear in our weekly selections, Top 101, Finalists and these Winners. It is what it is we will keep working hard to deliver on our promise of celebrating Africa (the real Africa) and doing good. Technology-driven change is a constant in this industry, some good and some bad. AI will become as much a part of photo editing as Photoshop is now, and it’s up to us to draw firm lines in the sand if we are to continue celebrating authentic photography.

We have no interest in permitting computer-generated images into our space, but using AI to enhance images is another story. Lastly, a word about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance and generate photos: we suspect that AI will dominate all photographic competitions going forward – including the submission of computer-generated images – and so we will need to change how we manage our selection process. We don’t decide these things beforehand each year, the entries lead us down different paths of celebration. What stood out for us this year was how well our entrants captured movement (sometimes in poor light), and this year we decided to select our top three entries based on that aspect of photography. This gallery of our winners emphasises the gobsmackingly awesome biodiversity of this place. This year found us enjoying more high-quality entries in the final selection month than ever before, and this final selection of the winners was a particularly tough one. We would like to thank our generous sponsors, Hemmersbach Rhino Force and Mashatu Botswana, whose support has been invaluable. The winner and two runners-up will share the impressive $10,000 prize money, and they and their partners will join our CEO Simon Espley and his wife, Lizz, on the ultimate private safari in the wilderness paradise of Botswana. Ladies and gentlemen, prepare to be dazzled as we unveil the highly anticipated winners of our prestigious Photographer of the Year 2023 competition! After careful consideration, we are thrilled to reveal the talented individuals who have best captured the essence of Africa through their extraordinary photographs.

Dramatic black white portrait