Thank you to all who entered this year’s photo competition. It’s been amazing to see the places – mountains, huts, forests – you have all been visiting, not to mention the incredible encounters many of you have had with native wildlife.
If readers ever need extra motivation to get outside and go for a tramp, enjoying the photos shown on these pages should do the trick.
We’d like to especially thank our sponsor Panasonic which has supplied the prizes to our winning photographers.
A selection of finalists
Huts and camping: Meg Hut
Photographer: Lauren Murray
Wildlife: Kea Sentinels
Photographer: Hannah James
Huts and camping: Makino Hut snowstorm
Photographer: Kay Bayley
Wildlife: Kākā in flight
Photographer: Neco Wieringa
Out There: Hiking with baby
Photographer: Kate McDonald
Huts and camping winner
Campsite on Hump Ridge
Photographer: Thomas Girard
Thomas took this pahoto on Hump Ridge and it shows Lake Poteriteri in the distance. “It was such an amazing feeling to camp on the heights of Fiordland,” Thomas said.
Judges’ comments
Alistair Hall: This is an instantly engaging scene that tells a story of a tramp to the tops: gear drying, food being prepared, the sun setting after a long day’s walk. If you haven’t been there, done that, you will want to after seeing this photo.
Shaun Barnett: Many of the elements of what draws us to the backcountry come together in this nicely-executed shot: golden light, an appealing campsite, a tramper busy preparing a meal. Details like the steam from the billy, the hanging clothes and well-judged angle help convey the story.
Thomas receives the Panasonic TZ90 travel camera worth $599.
Out There winner
Descending Mt Edgar Thomson
Photographer: Bianca Bratton
Bianca’s photo shows a climber descending the summit snowfield of Mt Edgar Thomson in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park.
Judges’ comments
Alistair Hall: You can’t be more out there than the climber in this photo, seemingly heading into the unknown.
Shaun Barnett: Bianca’s shot stood out for its bold simplicity. A lone figure in a red jacket rimmed by the immersion cloud below, giving a great sense of being high in the mountains. The fluffy white cloud contrasts strongly against the dark, textured rock and the scene has subtle, subdued colours caught in an elegant composition.
Bianca wins a Panasonic FZ300 camera worth $899.
2022 Wilderness Outdoor Photograph of the Year and Wildlife winner
Rifleman with food
Photographer: Tim Preston Marshall
Tim said of his photo: “This is an adorable female titipounamu/rifleman that I spotted hunting insects to feed her chicks in Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park.”
Judges’ comments
Alistair Hall: Spotting a rifleman is hard enough. Taking a photo of one with food in its mouth while ensuring focus and image brightness is the mark of an excellent photographer.
Shaun Barnett: Photographing a creature as small as New Zealand’s tiniest bird is never easy, especially in the low light of the forest. Not only has Tim taken a sharp image of this titipounamu, but he has captured the bird just after it has caught some prey. We can almost read self-satisfaction on the rifleman’s face, which elevates the image into an excellent behavioural shot, rather than a straight natural history portrait.
Tim receives a Panasonic Lumix G85 with 12-60mm lens worth $1199.
