Thirteen-year-old Abi O’Brien from Nottingham has been awarded a prize in this year’s RSPCA Young Photographer Awards.
Abi’s image entitled ‘’Moonlight Silhouettes” was awarded a Commended in the ‘12-15 Mobile Phone & Devices’ category of the charity’s prestigious annual photography competition, after being singled out from more than 4,000 entries this year.
Every year, the RSPCA Young Photographer Awards invites youngsters aged 18 years and under to capture the animal kingdom on a camera or a mobile device.
Abi said: “I’m so happy that the judges liked my photo so much.
“Skye and I are both very perceptive.
“We both noticed the beautiful, iridescent moon shielded by the protection of the car window.
“Skye is very fidgety and it’s hard for her to sit still, especially in situations like this where we are both waiting for my brother to finish football training, the car was still, but our minds were not.
“There was something itching at us. This situation was so plain, so ordinary, we needed to make it extraordinary.”
This year’s awards were judged online by a panel of experts in wildlife photography, including wildlife photographer, TV presenter and RSPCA vice president Chris Packham; wildlife photographer Rachel Bigsby (a new judge for this year), former competition winner-turned-professional photographer Catriona Parfitt; professional wildlife photographer and photographic guide Ellie Rothnie; and RSPCA photographers Andrew Forsyth and Emma Jacobs.
udge and awards host Chris Packham said: “This year’s contest was difficult to judge as we received so many superb photographs.
“We have seen a fantastic array of animals featured across this year’s competition. Every year I am impressed by the level and skill in the photographs that are submitted. This year’s entries were magnificent – top work everyone!
“The RSPCA Young Photographer Awards is a real celebration of animals and the natural world and I love taking part every year. I hope everyone who entered continues with their love of animals and photography and they should all be proud of their achievements.”
This year, there were ten categories; under 12 (taken with a camera), 12–15 years (taken with a camera), 16–18 years (taken with a camera), under 12 (taken on a mobile/device), 12–15 years (taken on a mobile/device), 16–18 years (taken on a mobile/device), Pet Personalities, Pet Portraits, Small World and Portfolio.
The winning images across the ten categories were announced during an awards ceremony hosted by Chris Packham on Thursday, 15 December 2022 at the Tower of London.
