Wild Planet: Celebrating Wildlife Photography of the Year, Natural History Museum - review

A selection of stunning wildlife photography presented to remind us of the planet's brilliance
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Sue Steward4 April 2012

The ice rink of the Natural History Museum has melted away and its lawn transformed into an open-air gallery. Eighty photographs selected from the annual Wildlife Competitions by the “Spring Watch” presenter Chris Packham focus on the animals but also remind us of the planet’s natural beauty and design brilliance. “The plight of the wild planet is in our hands, hands that must urgently protect and heal earth’s unfortunate catalogue of problems,” he writes, prodding us to remember the dangers, threats and possible extinction facing many subjects.

Having viewed (and reviewed) the winners of this competition over several years, I’ve watched the standards of photography impressively raised. Pandering to the cuties (including a leopard cub and, god forbid, the meerkats) is thankfully low on the list now and no doubt chosen here to draw families. Winners of all ages now present original, artful approaches to nature’s own designs and palettes. The irresistible photogenicity of the planet and its inhabitants is represented by degrees of photographic sophistication. Geological upheavals are always marvels, often revealing their closeness to paintings. Lava highlights the saturated redness of a volcanic flow which bleeds into black lava like oils merging at a calculated border.

Of the animals, past favourites include the Sand Sprinters, ostriches with chicks walking up sand dunes, their shadows spread across the planes of sandy colour. The South Pacific Jellyfish is a model of sculptural perfection, its translucence exaggerated by the sun’s back-lighting through the water. And differently but equally stunning, snow geese in morning light, an epic scene where the birds immersed in flame-red mist like a classic naval battle aflame with canon fire and smoke. Thankfully, anthropomorphism has virtually vanished from the picture.

Until 30 September (020 7942 5000, nhm.ac.uk)

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