Imogen Smith (Wh) placed third in the finals of the Royal Biological Society’s Photographer of the Year competition, held at the Francis Crick Institute. Imogen’s entry was shortlisted from over 200,000 entries, with her zebra photo being ‘highly commended’ by the judges.
Imogen took her striking image on safari in Lewa National Reserve, Kenya. It shows a Gravy’s zebra, the most threatened of the three species of zebra. It is characterised by thinner stripes than the other species. Her photograph, therefore, shows stripes not only as a means of camouflage for the animal but also as a mechanism of identification for the observer.
Imogen said: “It was a really special evening held at the Crick, which is a really amazing centre of research. We were given canapés on arrival and were able to tour the gallery, which had been set up with giant prints for the competition. It was a lovely ceremony in which they highlighted the strengths of each participants image.”
