BigPicture: Natural World Photography

  • BigPicture grand prize winner is The Forest of the Monarchs by Jaime Rojo, showing monarch butterflies completely covering trees in a sun-dappled forest in Mexico.

    Grand Prize winner: The Forest of the Monarchs by Jaime Rojo

  • BigPicture Aquatic Life winner is Tadpole Migration by Shane Gross, an underwater photo of a school of Western toad tadpoles swimming in a sunlit pond.

    Aquatic Life winner: Tadpole Migration by Shane Gross

  • BigPicture Terrestrial Wildlife winning photo is Beauty of Thar Desert by Hema Palan, showing a snake slithering through a shrub at night

    Terrestrial Wildlife winner: Beauty of Thar Desert by Hema Palan

  • BigPicture Winged Life winner is Underwater Harmony And Chaos by Franco Banfi, an underwater photo of northern gannets diving into the sea.

    Winged Life winner: Underwater Harmony And Chaos by Franco Banfi

  • BigPicture Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora winner is In Celebration by Geo Cloete, showing a colorful split-screen scene of sea anemones at night

    Landscapes, Waterscapes, and Flora winner: In Celebration by Geo Cloete

  • BigPicture Art of Nature winner is Stardust Forest by Kazuaki Koseki, showing a forest at night twinkling with Japanese fireflies

    Art of Nature winner: Stardust Forest by Kazuaki Koseki

  • BigPicture Human/Nature winner is Good Fire by Maddy Rifka, showing a Hoopa Valley Tribal member participating in a cultural fire in a California forest

    Human/Nature winner: Good Fire by Maddy Rifka

  • BigPicture Photo Story winner is Ghosts of the North by Peter Mather showing a long exposure of an Alaskan wolf in the snow.

    Photo Story winner: Ghosts of the North by Peter Mather

The winning images in the Academy’s 11th-annual BigPicture exhibition are a love letter to the natural world. Journey to where life is lush, unusual is beautiful, and animals inspire us to be more human.

Golden light bathes a monarch butterfly-cloaked forest. A school of tadpoles becomes a soaring squadron when seen from below. A long exposure transforms an Alaskan wolf into an ethereal specter.

Each of the winning images in the BigPicture: Natural World Photography exhibition enshrines a fleeting moment that might otherwise escape our attention. Visit the exhibition at the Academy to embark on a visual odyssey around the world, where the triumphs, tragedies, and textures of our planet are on dazzling display.

BigPicture: Natural World Photography is open daily through April 13, 2025. Find it in the Piazza.

BigPicture: Natural World Photography wordmark

This year's winners

2024's winning photographs were selected from more than 7,300 submissions from 70 countries. Visit BigPicture to learn more about the eight winning images and 40+ finalists from all seven competition categories.

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BigPicture Peoples Choice winner Hunting Cape Gannet by Wayne Lai shows a diving gannet encircled by a school of sardines

The votes are in...

This year's competition included an all-new category: People's Choice. Nearly 5,000 total votes were cast for the 20 finalists, with Hunting Cape Gannet by Wayne Lai receiving the most votes. Congratulations, Wayne!

Explore People's Choice
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BigPicture finalist A Moment In The Sun by Kathleen Borshanian shows an Arctic fox pup sitting on a lush cliffside in Alaska

Beyond the captions

Visit bioGraphic, the Academy’s online magazine about nature, conservation, and regeneration, for a showcase of 11 winning images paired with captivating backstories about the science behind the scenes.

Above: Terrestrial Wildlife finalist A Moment in the Sun by Kathleen Borshanian

 

Launch bioGraphic
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Photographer Suzi Eszterhas

Eyes on the prize

Chaired by world-renowned wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas, BigPicture's esteemed panel of seven judges includes international photo editor Sophie Stafford and award-winning nature and conservation photographers Jahawi Bertolli, Sandesh Kadu, Karen Kasmauski, Jo-Anne McArthur, and Kiliii Yuya.

About the judges
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More to explore

Planning a visit? These other exhibits and events are ready for their close-up.

Crocoite; Photo: Kat Whitney
Gems and Minerals Unearthed

Marvel at nearly 400 dazzling and dramatic gem and mineral specimens from the Academy's geology collection.

Color of Life
Color of Life

Live animals and hands-on exhibits reveal the significant role color plays across a vibrant spectrum of species.

Coyote specimen with amber eyes on exhibit in California: State of Nature at Cal Academy. Photo by Gayle Laird
California: State of Nature

A colorful new exhibition reveals the surprising ways people, places, and species are connected in California.

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NightLife: Unusual Perspectives
NightLife: Unusual Perspectives

Expect the unusual as art and nature collide at this NightLife celebrating the new BigPicture exhibition.

A woman and child in front of the Philippine Coral Reef tank
Steinhart Aquarium

Come face-to-fin with nearly 60,000 animals—from deep-sea oddities to Claude, our alligator with albinism.

Generously supported by
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