Close-up Photographer of the Year: The Bird of the Forest by Csaba Daróczi
Hungarian photographer Csaba Daróczi has declared himself the 2023 Close-up Photographer of the Year. The captivating moment of a Eurasian nuthatch in mid-flight above a hollowed-out tree stump is captured in his winning entry.
In addition to a universal license for the Affinity Photo, Designer, and Publisher applications, Daróczi will get a £2,500 cash reward (about $3,100) in celebration of his grand prize achievement. In addition, he will get a trophy, a NiSi macro close-up lens, and a NiSi macro focusing rail (NM-200S) from Affinity Photo, the competition sponsor.
With around 12,000 entries from photographers in nearly 70 nations, the competition attracted a sizable audience. The top three photos from each of the 11 different categories—which include a special category for photographers under the age of 17—are presented below, with Daróczi’s outstanding shot taking home the coveted top spot in the Animals category.
More: Close-up Photographer Of The Year, Instagram
Animals – 2nd Place: Dune Wrestling by Victor Tyakht
Animals – 3rd Place: Natural Architecture by David Joseph
Butterflies & Dragonflies – Winner: The Wedding Guest by Csaba Daróczi
Butterflies & Dragonflies – 2nd Place: Letting Go by Steve Russell
Butterflies & Dragonflies – 3rd Place: Sunrise Beauty by Wim Vooijs
Fungi & Slime Moulds – Winner: The Ice Crown by Barry Webb
Fungi & Slime Moulds – 2nd Place: Autumn Emergence by Jay Birmingham
Fungi & Slime Moulds – 3rd Place: Fungi and Fairy Dust by Sophia Spurgin
Human Made – Winner: Asymmetrical Threads by Elizabeth Kazda
Human Made – 2nd Place: Colour Study 51 by Paul Gravett
Human Made – 3rd Place: Ferro Field by Jack Margerison
Insects – Winner: Wood Ants Firing Acid Secretion by René Krekels
Insects – 2nd Place: Mosquito Egg Raft by Barry Webb
Insects – 3rd Place: Circular Trenching Behavior by a Leaf Beetle by Liang Fu
Intimate Landscape – Winner: Undertow by Csaba Daróczi
Intimate Landscape – 2nd Place: Ice Fossiel by Piet Haaksma
Intimate Landscape – 3rd Place: The Sorcerors Apprentice by Jack Krohn
Invertebrate Portrait – Winner: Jumping Stick by Tibor Molnar
Invertebrate Portrait – 2nd Place: Orange Isopod by Manfred Auer
Invertebrate Portrait – 3rd Place: Dancing Sands, Violin Crab by Lior Berman
Micro – Winner: Beach Grass by Gerhard Vlcek
Micro – 2nd Place: Amoeba by Håkan Kvarnström
Micro – 3rd Place: Twisted Dandelion by Harald Cederlund
Plants – Winner: Reflexion by Ria Bloemendaal
Plants – 2nd Place: Tears in my Eyes by Wim Vooijs
Plants – 3rd Place: Golden Agave by Beth DeBor
Underwater – Winner: Dreamtime by Simon Theuma
Underwater – 2nd Place: Heart of the Sea by Liang Fu
Underwater – 3rd Place: Pinkaboo by Chris Gug
Young Photographer Of The Year – Winner: Small Wanders by Carlos Pérez Naval
Young Photographer Of The Year – 2nd Place: Comatricha Nigra by Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas
Young Photographer Of The Year – 3rd Place: Dicyrtomina Ornata by Alexis Tinker-Tsavalas