Editor's note: Call to Earth is a CNN editorial series committed to reporting the environmental challenges facing our planet and showcasing solutions to those challenges. Rolex's Perpetual Planet initiative partnered with CNN to raise awareness and education about key sustainability issues and inspire positive action.
(CNN) — Winning photos of the competition include ants throwing acid, a shrimp floating on a rainbow-colored starfish and a butterfly watching a wedding party. Close-up Photographer of the Year 2023.
Now in its fifth year, the competition celebrates micro and macro photography in an effort to reveal the hidden wonders of the natural world, from microscopic fungi to majestic animals. Micro is the term used for photography of small objects that require magnification, while macro involves taking close-up pictures of larger organisms.
This unusually colorful sea grass won in the photomicrograph category. (Gerhard Vlcek/cupoty.com)
Contest co-founder and juror Tracy Calder told CNN that the photographs reveal the extraordinary interactions between animals and plants, demonstrating how everything in the natural world is interconnected and interdependent. “They celebrate animals and behaviors that people have never seen or encountered before,” he said.
Hungarian photographer Csaba Daróczi won this year's grand prize for his black-and-white image of a Eurasian Nuthatch flying in the wild. Captured by a GoPro from inside a hollowed-out tree trunk, this stunning image offers a bird's-eye view of the long tree-lined backdrop.
Csaba Daróczi's photograph is titled “The Forest Bird”. (cupoty.com)
The Young Close-Up Photographer of the Year title went to 17-year-old Spaniard Carlos Perez Naval for his picture of a Moorish gecko on a wall covered in pyrolusite crystals. “These magnesium minerals form impressive patterns that look like decaying trees, but are so small that they are difficult to detect,” he said in a press release.
Carlos Pérez Naval, 17, took this photo in his hometown of Calamacha, Spain. (Carlos Pérez Naval/cupoty.com)
“I wanted to catch a gecko in the “Petrified Forest” for a long time, but it recently appeared in my village, probably brought fruit baskets from warmer regions. Due to climate change, they can now live here,” he added.
In the Plants category, the winner was this photograph, captured by Rhea Blumenthal, reminiscent of a Monet painting of a reflection of a magnolia tree in water. (cupoty.com)
A jury of 23 photographers, scientists and naturalists selected the winners in each category from a total of 12,000 nominees from 67 countries. Many were taken in the photographers' local areas, showing off the beauty found in their own backyards, Calder said.
Carpenter ants shooting acid secretions, in a photo by René Kregels. (cupoty.com)
Calder and her husband, Daniel, founded the competition in 2018. They are both professional photographers. While many other photography awards have close-up categories, they believed that an entire competition dedicated to macro and micro photography was needed.
“Guest at the wedding”, photo also by Csaba Daróczi. (cupoty.com)
It's often easier for people to support conservation stories with “cute” or more obvious animals and plants: rhinoceroses, pandas, orchids. But lesser-known insects and plants that we often think of as insects play a huge role in keeping everything in balance. Close-up photos often show these animals and plants,” he said.
A photo of a “Stifra,” part insect and part cricket, won the invertebrate category. Taken by Tibor Molner in Ecuador. (cupoty.com)
“It's also fun to show people things they can't see without a macro lens or microscope. There are many creatures and plants around us that we show but are never noticed. This competition is a way to get to know you,” he added.
A 1 millimeter tall mushroom with a frosted top won the mushroom category. Captured by Barry Webb in the UK. (cupoty.com)
In the man-made category, the winner was Elizabeth Gusta, who photographed threads using a long exposure. (cupoty.com)
