An annual photography competition held by Earth Sciences New Zealand has put our exceptional natural environment in the spotlight.
A charismatic turtle and an intense struggle with an otherworldly sand dune were just some of the 300 competition entries submitted by Earth Sciences NZ's staff, whose scientific endeavour gives them a unique glimpse into our world.
Watch the highlights video:
Headwind, Eleanor Haigh
Moorings Technician Eleanor Haigh captured this otherworldly shot on a trip to Te Paki sand dunes, near Cape Reinga/Te Rerenga Wairua. It won the Our Places category.
Eleanor hadn’t planned to take her camera out of the car because the wind was so forceful, but once she saw the beautiful pattens and holidaymakers dwarfed by the dunes, she quickly changed her mind.
It was a high-risk exercise; she used her full body to shield the camera and was finding sand in her ears days later.
The judges chose this photo because of its lovely colour contrast and how effectively it captures the insignificance of the human presence in a vast, unforgiving landscape.
Bull kelp, Simon Hayes
This unusual photo won the Our Work category. At first glance, this looks like long hair floating in the water. It is in fact bull kelp.
Hanging off a rock ledge on the Otago coast, Web Manager Simon Hayes was mesmerised watching it roll back and forth in the waves.
The judges loved this picture for its semi-abstract composition and beautiful simplicity.
Duuuuuuude, why is it so cold?, Crispin Middleton
A regular photo competition winner, Principal Technician Crispin Middleton says hello to this green turtle at Poor Knights Island.
He got this photo, which won the Special Award category, during winter - despite the cold, some turtles hang around for the whole season.
The judges said that this is an amazing shot with great detail, excellent subject separation, strong central composition, and a lovely background.
A quick breather, Rasool Porhemmat
Scientifically important environments are often challenging to get to. Hydrologist Rasool Porhemmat captures this perfectly in his winning Our People category shot, which shows his team climbing Mt Philistine in Arthur’s Pass for fieldwork on Rolleston Glacier.
The photo reflects Rasool’s love for his work, which the judges said shone through because of the “clearly happy” people in the shot. They also commented on the difficulty of showing slope steepness in a picture, which Rasool managed to do well thanks to his use of diagonals and receding perspective.
Waimakariri River gravel fan, Paul White
This striking infographic created by Principal Scientist Paul White won the Data Visualisation category. It shows abandoned river channels weaving their way around Christchurch Airport.
Paul used LiDAR and spatial filtering of 2D digital terrain models (DTMs) to identify features of braided river gravel. This gravel was sourced from the Waimakariri River and forms aquifers that are vitally important to the groundwater supply of Christchurch.
Matches, Shannan Crow
Last but not least, the People’s Choice winner.
After hundreds of public votes, Shannan’s contrasting image of the 2024 Craigieburn Forest fire took first place.
Shannan was drawn to enter this photo because of its abstract nature, where the scorched trees are highlighted by recent snowfall.
Shannan leaned into the elements shown by cropping it into a square rather than the standard 3 x 2 size as a way of highlighting the symmetry and evenness.