The Watcher

• Prize
  Bronze in Nature/Wildlife
• Photographer
  Giovanna Arnaud Fleming
• Agency / Studio
  Gioflemingphotography

With small tusks and a solemn stare, this walrus seems like a stern guardian of the Arctic. In truth it is awkward and endearing, grunting, shuffling and dozing in ungainly heaps, a comic figure in a fragile world. Its icy stage is shrinking year by year, yet here it sits as if keeping watch, reminding us that even the most humorous creatures face a serious future.

A consequence of growing up in mountainous areas is a sensitivity to the subtle cycles and seasonal changes of the landscape. The trees, the rivers, the fields, the snow cover, and the mountains, which show different aspects of themselves from one hour, one day, one season, to the next. The world’s wild places - mountains, glaciers, polar ice – are under increasing pressure, both from climate change and the relentless intrusion of human activities. One way to inspire people to value and make an effort to preserve these areas is by sharing images of them. These images need to convey not only