Hotshots
Highlights f rom Close-up Photographer of the Year 2021, an annual global competition celebrating close-up, macro and micro photography
Martin Gregus
Winner, Young category
‘Rat in Tyre Hub’
Ezra Boulton, UK 16-year old Ezra took won this category for his photo of a rat peering out of an abandoned car wheel near to where he lives, which he had spotted the day before. “It was framed so pleasingly by the concentric circles of the tyre that I came back with my camera in the hope of capturing the moment,” he explains.
Juan Ahumada
Winner, Animals ‘Dancing In The Dark’ Juan Ahumada, Spain
Juan’s shot of a daddy-long-legs swayed the judges in this category. “This opilione moves along a dry branch in a small hollow, created by a landslip on the hillside of Sierra Blanca, Andalusia,” says Juan. “These creatures are blind and use their front legs to guide themselves in the dark. With little space to move, I managed to light the subject from behind, and used a 20-second exposure to capture the movement of its long legs.”