GDT reveals its Nature Photographer of the Year winners
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The German Society of Nature Photographers (GDT) revealed the winners and finalists of its annual Nature Photographer of the Year competition. Unlike its European Wildlife Photographer of the Year, open to all European residents, this competition is a members-only affair.
This year, 507 GDT members from 11 countries submitted over 8,000 images for consideration. Following a pre-selection process from a jury, members were allowed to vote for 10 images, each, across categories including Birds, Mammals, Landscapes and Other Animals.
Patience and persistence paid off for Konrad Wothe. He was declared the Overall Winner for his image “Dipper flying through waterfall.” A vision spanning over two decades, Wothe credits advances in camera technology for finally making the shot a reality. He initially attempted to capture his vision on film. It took thousands of exposures and countless trips to the dipper’s nesting site to get the desired result.
To learn more about Wothe’s background, the jury and to view all of the selected images, from the present and past, make sure to visit the GDT’s website.
Overall Winner: “Dipper flying through waterfall” by Konrad Wothe
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Konrad Wothe |
Image description: White-throated dipper flying through waterfall.
Runner-up, Birds: “Common redstarts in meadow orchard” by Christian Höfs
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Christian Höfs |
Image description: Territorial fight between two male redstarts in the orchard in front of my house.
Finalist, Birds: “Courtship display” by Karsten Mosebach
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Karsten Mosebach |
Image description: Puffin courtship display during the mating season in Newfoundland.
Category Winner, Mammals: “Chamois” by Radomir Jakubowski
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Radomir Jakubowski |
Image description: Chamois photographed through blades of dew-covered grass in the Vosges.
Runner-up, Mammals: “King of the Alps” by Karsten Mosebach
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Karsten Mosebach |
Image description: An ibex silhouetted against a lake and the blue evening sky in the Alps.
Winner, Other Animals: “West coast dragon” by Dr. Gerald Haas
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Dr. Gerald Haas |
Image description: Wind and waves create striking patterns in the sand along the west coast of Fuerteventura. This dragonfly was a perfect eye-catcher.
Runner-up, Other Animals: “Weevil” by Torsten Christ
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Torsten Christ |
Image description: Unidentified weevil (Curculionidae) on the stem of a mushroom.
Finalist, Other Animals: “Spider disco” by Thomas Kirchen
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Thomas Kirchen |
Image description: A beautiful rainbow of colours caused by the diffraction of sunlight on the fine, silken threads of a spider’s web.
Winner, Plants and Fungi: “Stars above” by Paul Kornacker
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Paul Kornacker |
Image description: Quiver trees (Aloe dichotoma) are native to southern Africa. This photo was taken in Namibia near Keetmanshoop.
Runner-up, Plants and Fungi: ‘Carnivore’ by Klaus Tamm
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Klaus Tamm |
Image description: I discovered this spoonleaf sundew in a bog in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Winner, Landscapes: “Deforestation” by Hanneke Van Camp
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Hanneke Van Camp |
Image description: Even today, old-growth forests in Sweden are regularly cut down and replaced with commercial plantations. Undisturbed forests can harbour over 2000 species (many of which are endangered) and must be preserved at all costs.
Runner-up, Landscapes: “Radiance” by Thomas Froesch
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Thomas Froesch |
Image description: For just a brief moment, the sun broke through the dark clouds and illuminated a waterfall on the Faroe Islands.
Finalist, Landscapes: “Full-circle rainbow” by Peter Schwager
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Peter Schwager |
Image description: Photographed during a doors off helicopter flight over Iceland’s highlands at an altitude of approx. 300 metres – a rare spectacle.
Winner, Nature’s Studio: “Abstraction” by Katja Manski
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Katja Manski |
Image description: Long-exposure photography unifies the movements of the waves, reeds and camera into an abstract image (Bornholm).
Winner, Special Category, Both eerie and beautiful – Germany’s mires: “Misty morning” by Andreas Volz
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| Copyright: © GDT Nature Photographer of the Year 2025, Andreas Volz |
Image description: Spider webs in Kochelmoos.
Our DPREVIEW Tribute:
After nearly 25 years of operation, DPReview closed on 10 April 2023. This difficult decision was part of the annual operating plan review that parent company, Amazon, shared earlier this year.
Over the course of 25 years, DP Review built up a reputation as being one of the most informative places to go for information about that new camera or lens you’re after. DP Review began as an independent reviews site based in the UK in 1998, the brainchild of Philip and Joanna Askey, but it was eventually purchased by Amazon in 2007 and relocated over to Seattle in the USA in 2010.
Cheers DPReview – thanks for the great work and content that guided photographers, videographers and techno junkies the world over!
