Chinese photographer wins international award

China's Bao Yongqing has been named the overall winner of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition for 2019, claiming one of the world's top photography awards.

The competition is developed and produced by the Natural History Museum in London. This year's competition, the 55th, drew more than 48,000 entries from 100 countries.

The winning entry by Bao, a native of Qinghai province, is titled The Moment. It captures a remarkable standoff between a Tibetan fox and a marmot, and was taken on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

"Photographically, it is quite simply the perfect moment," said Roz Kidman Cox, the chairwoman of the judging panel.

"The expressive intensity of the postures holds you transfixed, and the thread of energy between the raised paws seems to hold the protagonists in perfect balance," Cox said. "To have captured such a powerful interaction between a Tibetan fox and a marmot - two species key to the ecology of this high-grassland region - is extraordinary."

Museum Director Michael Dixon said the picture captured "nature's ultimate challenge - the battle for survival".

Bao, in a group interview on Wednesday, said of the photo: "It is very difficult and rare to capture this kind of moment, so I knew it was something very special. It took about two or three hours to get this photo. I was watching them for a long time.

"I have paid attention to this competition for a long time, and my first purpose was to show my image to the world, and secondly to protect the environment and my homeland," he said.

"In my hometown, everyone looks after the animals, so when I go home with this award, it will be an encouragement to our people to be more protective of animals and the environment."

In addition, the photographer said: "This competition is one of the most important among photographers in China, so I wanted to draw people's attention to animal protection.... I hope it will introduce a passion for animals to more people."

Bao made his first trip outside China to accept the award, which was accompanied by a prize of $10,000 ($12,800).

The exhibition at the Natural History Museum in Kensington will open on Friday and run through the end of May next year, when it will go on a national and international tour. Entries for next year's competition will be accepted beginning on Oct 21.

julian@mail.chinadailyuk.com

(China Daily Global 10/17/2019 page1)