NewsBite

EMBARGOED UNTIL 11:01 AEST 02/02/24 // International Garden Photographer of the Year winners // Pictured: Breath of the Forest Triglav National Park, Slovenia Zelenci Springs is a nature reserve near the town of Kranjska Gora, in Slovenia. Its multiple springs are considered as one of the main sources of the River Sava. This scene was taken on a late October morning, when the 'breath' of the wetland trees appeared as low hanging fog over the area. I combined three exposures together to form this HDR photo. // CREDIT: Zsolt Varanka/IGPOTY // SPEAK TO OLIVIA HARRIS FOR USAGE

Bloomin’ marvellous: International Garden Photographer of the Year

Olivia Harris
1 min read·February 03, 2024 - 4:05PM
News Corp Australia Network

The International Garden Photographer of the Year stands as one of the world’s most esteemed photography competitions, encompassing all facets of garden, plant, and botanical imagery. It celebrates the term “garden” in its broadest sense, encompassing everything from backyard greenery to breathtaking National Parks all over the world.

Among the photos is a tiny slime mould covered in ice by Barry Webb. Looking like a crazy chef’s ice-cone creation, the image was awarded first place in the World of Fungi category.

“The Craterium minutum slime mould was found on decaying vegetation, at the edge of a compost heap in my garden, captured following a hard frost,” Webb said of the image.

“I was surprised to see the unusually cube-shaped ice formations on the fruiting body of this slime mould. This shot is comprised of 87 focus-bracketed images, focus-stacked together.”

SCROLL DOWN TO SEE THE IMAGE

This year’s overall winner features layered conifer branches that resemble dancing cranes often featured in Japanese woodcuts. See the shot below and explore this year’s winning entries.

 

Craterium minutum slime mould with cube-shaped ice formations, captured in Beaconsfield, UK, after a frost. Picture: Barry Webb/IGPOTY
Craterium minutum slime mould with cube-shaped ice formations, captured in Beaconsfield, UK, after a frost. Picture: Barry Webb/IGPOTY

 

A summer morning in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, with sunlight filtering through linden leaves and a view of the distant hills. Picture: Manuela Gohner/IGPOTY
A summer morning in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, with sunlight filtering through linden leaves and a view of the distant hills. Picture: Manuela Gohner/IGPOTY

 

A delicate Nigella flower captured in Tyne and Wear, UK, with a dreamy bokeh background, created from 43 focus-stacked images. Picture: Angi Wallace/IGPOTY
A delicate Nigella flower captured in Tyne and Wear, UK, with a dreamy bokeh background, created from 43 focus-stacked images. Picture: Angi Wallace/IGPOTY

 

A frosty, misty dawn at River Brathay in the UK’s Lake District National Park, displays a stunning contrast of cold blues and warm sunrise hues. Picture: Drew Buckley/IGPOTY
A frosty, misty dawn at River Brathay in the UK’s Lake District National Park, displays a stunning contrast of cold blues and warm sunrise hues. Picture: Drew Buckley/IGPOTY

 

Autumn in Colorado transforms aspen trees into a forest of gold, creating a shimmering spectacle unique to the region’s native deciduous tree. Picture: Honey J. Walker/IGPOTY
Autumn in Colorado transforms aspen trees into a forest of gold, creating a shimmering spectacle unique to the region’s native deciduous tree. Picture: Honey J. Walker/IGPOTY

 

Three green Cribraria slime moulds on a forest floor in the UK glisten in the sunlight, resembling miniature watermelons. Picture: Barry Webb/IGPOTY
Three green Cribraria slime moulds on a forest floor in the UK glisten in the sunlight, resembling miniature watermelons. Picture: Barry Webb/IGPOTY

 

The iconic Allée des Baobabs in Madagascar, showcases the majestic baobab trees against a backdrop of a starry sky and sunrise. Picture: John Seager/IGPOTY
The iconic Allée des Baobabs in Madagascar, showcases the majestic baobab trees against a backdrop of a starry sky and sunrise. Picture: John Seager/IGPOTY

 

The hollow, ancient Ghost Oak in Savernake Forest, Wiltshire, stands amidst younger beeches, providing a vital habitat for diverse woodland species. Picture: Stephen Davis/IGPOTY
The hollow, ancient Ghost Oak in Savernake Forest, Wiltshire, stands amidst younger beeches, providing a vital habitat for diverse woodland species. Picture: Stephen Davis/IGPOTY

 

A spider in Barcelona’s nature reserve creates an illusion of a pupil within the eye-shaped hollow of a tree. Picture: Pepe Badia Marrero/IGPOTY
A spider in Barcelona’s nature reserve creates an illusion of a pupil within the eye-shaped hollow of a tree. Picture: Pepe Badia Marrero/IGPOTY

 

An October sunset in Suffolk, England, illuminates a vibrant garden border with grasses, sunflowers and a silver maple. Picture: Annie Green-Armytage/IGPOTY
An October sunset in Suffolk, England, illuminates a vibrant garden border with grasses, sunflowers and a silver maple. Picture: Annie Green-Armytage/IGPOTY

 

Long exposure captures mist rolling around Colmer’s Hill in Dorset, UK, enhancing its ethereal beauty within the area’s natural beauty. Picture: Scott Macintyre/IGPOTY
Long exposure captures mist rolling around Colmer’s Hill in Dorset, UK, enhancing its ethereal beauty within the area’s natural beauty. Picture: Scott Macintyre/IGPOTY

 

An underwater view of a mangrove tree in Bunaken National Marine Park, Indonesia, highlights the ecosystem’s role and the issue of plastic pollution. Picture: Leena Roy/IGPOTY
An underwater view of a mangrove tree in Bunaken National Marine Park, Indonesia, highlights the ecosystem’s role and the issue of plastic pollution. Picture: Leena Roy/IGPOTY

 

Spring brings acidic greens and emerging colours to Beth Chatto’s Water Garden in Essex, UK, accentuated by the evening sun. CREDIT: Julie Skelton/IGPOTY
Spring brings acidic greens and emerging colours to Beth Chatto’s Water Garden in Essex, UK, accentuated by the evening sun. CREDIT: Julie Skelton/IGPOTY

 

In Colombo, Sri Lanka, a squirrel nibbles on a grass seedhead, captured in the photographer’s quest to portray their playful and foraging nature. Picture: Fernando Avanka/IGPOTY
In Colombo, Sri Lanka, a squirrel nibbles on a grass seedhead, captured in the photographer’s quest to portray their playful and foraging nature. Picture: Fernando Avanka/IGPOTY

 

Springtime in Hood River, Oregon, frames Mount Adams in a sea of orchard blossom. Picture: Mara Leite/IGPOTY
Springtime in Hood River, Oregon, frames Mount Adams in a sea of orchard blossom. Picture: Mara Leite/IGPOTY

 

At Yellowstone’s Mammoth Hot Springs, a dead tree, encased in calcium carbonate from shifting springs, stands as a testament to nature’s dynamism. Picture: Gigi Williams/IGPOTY
At Yellowstone’s Mammoth Hot Springs, a dead tree, encased in calcium carbonate from shifting springs, stands as a testament to nature’s dynamism. Picture: Gigi Williams/IGPOTY

 

In Poland, a glowing snail is captured against a backdrop of cobwebs, showcasing the beauty of a neglected garden at dawn. Picture: Katarzyna Załużna/IGPOTY
In Poland, a glowing snail is captured against a backdrop of cobwebs, showcasing the beauty of a neglected garden at dawn. Picture: Katarzyna Załużna/IGPOTY

 

This year’s overall winner features layered conifer branches that resemble dancing cranes often featured in Japanese woodcuts. The composition was altered in post-processing to enhance the shape and movement of these “birds”. Picture: June Sharpe/IGPOTY
This year’s overall winner features layered conifer branches that resemble dancing cranes often featured in Japanese woodcuts. The composition was altered in post-processing to enhance the shape and movement of these “birds”. Picture: June Sharpe/IGPOTY

 

A serene morning at Llyn Padarn in Snowdonia, Wales, illuminates the park’s famous lone tree. Picture: Andrea Graham/IGPOTY
A serene morning at Llyn Padarn in Snowdonia, Wales, illuminates the park’s famous lone tree. Picture: Andrea Graham/IGPOTY

 

Horticulturalist Lauren Springer’s home garden in Colorado reflects her naturalistic style and climate-appropriate planting. Picture: Claire Takacs/IGPOTY
Horticulturalist Lauren Springer’s home garden in Colorado reflects her naturalistic style and climate-appropriate planting. Picture: Claire Takacs/IGPOTY

 

Two camouflaged mantises perch on dried thistle heads in Barcelona. Picture: Pepe Badia Marrero/IGPOTY
Two camouflaged mantises perch on dried thistle heads in Barcelona. Picture: Pepe Badia Marrero/IGPOTY

 

A pair of fading Agapanthus flowers are photographed on a soft box lamp. Picture: Marlene Finlayson/IGPOTY
A pair of fading Agapanthus flowers are photographed on a soft box lamp. Picture: Marlene Finlayson/IGPOTY

 

Red algae flourish on thongweed in the Cairns of Coll, Scotland, highlighting seaweed’s crucial role in marine ecosystems and carbon capture. Picture: Leena Roy/IGPOTY
Red algae flourish on thongweed in the Cairns of Coll, Scotland, highlighting seaweed’s crucial role in marine ecosystems and carbon capture. Picture: Leena Roy/IGPOTY

 

A blue-tailed damselfly waves from atop a daisy in the Cotswolds, UK. Picture: Rory Lewis/IGPOTY
A blue-tailed damselfly waves from atop a daisy in the Cotswolds, UK. Picture: Rory Lewis/IGPOTY

 

The Great Beech, a 200-year-old majestic tree in Balrath Woods, Ireland, stands regally in autumn colours. Pictured: Todor Tilev/IGPOTY
The Great Beech, a 200-year-old majestic tree in Balrath Woods, Ireland, stands regally in autumn colours. Pictured: Todor Tilev/IGPOTY

 

A foggy autumn day in a beech forest in the Beskid Mountains, Poland, creates an atmospheric woodland landscape. Picture: Piotr Grochala/IGPOTY
A foggy autumn day in a beech forest in the Beskid Mountains, Poland, creates an atmospheric woodland landscape. Picture: Piotr Grochala/IGPOTY

 

A brightly-coloured stink bug contrasts with a decayed leaf in a rainforest in China. Picture: Minghui Yuan/IGPOTY
A brightly-coloured stink bug contrasts with a decayed leaf in a rainforest in China. Picture: Minghui Yuan/IGPOTY

 

The Three Sisters, part of the Bidean nam Bian mountains in Glencoe, Scotland, captured on a dramatic winter afternoon. Picture: Adam Burton/IGPOTY
The Three Sisters, part of the Bidean nam Bian mountains in Glencoe, Scotland, captured on a dramatic winter afternoon. Picture: Adam Burton/IGPOTY

 

A tiny springtail explores 4mm tall slime moulds growing on an old fencepost. Picture: Barry Webb/IGPOTY
A tiny springtail explores 4mm tall slime moulds growing on an old fencepost. Picture: Barry Webb/IGPOTY

 

Bluebell fields surround a red-roofed barn at Emsworthy Mire in Dartmoor National Park, UK. Picture: Timothy Burgess/IGPOTY
Bluebell fields surround a red-roofed barn at Emsworthy Mire in Dartmoor National Park, UK. Picture: Timothy Burgess/IGPOTY

 

A late October morning at Zelenci Springs in Triglav National Park, Slovenia, showcases a foggy ‘breath’ of the wetland trees. Picture: Zsolt Varanka/IGPOTY
A late October morning at Zelenci Springs in Triglav National Park, Slovenia, showcases a foggy ‘breath’ of the wetland trees. Picture: Zsolt Varanka/IGPOTY

Add your comment to this story

To join the conversation, please Don't have an account? Register

Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout

More related stories

Original URL: https://www.ntnews.com.au/news/photos/bloomin-marvellous-international-garden-photographer-of-the-year/news-story/277d7584c3b60b0c497770972f90f60a