A pair of gentoo penguins leap from the sea, pretending - just for a moment - that they're not flightless birds at all.
Two great crested grebes have a moment. A majestic tree stands sentinel over an ancient forest. A backlit wave breaks on an isolated reef. A tiny pygmy seahorse surveys his underwater world.
These are just some of the 100 incredible images that have been shortlisted by the South Australian Museum as part of this year’s Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition.
The competition is in its 23rd year and is Australia’s most prestigious contest for nature photographers.
This year it attracted 2129 entries from 501 photographers in 17 countries. The 100 shortlisted entries will feature in the 2026 exhibition, which opens on Saturday 29 August at the South Australian Museum.
The 2025 exhibition drew a record of nearly 25,000 visitors, highlighting the significance of the competition to the wider public.
Photographers were invited to enter across 10 categories: Animals in Nature; Animal Behaviour; Botanical; Macro; Landscape; Threatened Species; Monochrome; Our Impact; Portfolio and Junior.
The overall winner will be revealed along with the category winners by video announcement on the evening of Thursday 27 August.
There will also be a People’s Choice award, announced in January.
The overall winner will receive $10,000; category winners will receive $1500; while the Junior will take home $500.
Entries were accepted covering content from across the ANZANG bioregion – Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and New Guinea.
The judges this year were specialist landscape and aerial photographer Mieke Boynton, the 2025 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year winner Ross Gudgeon, and multi-award-winning nature photographer Jake Wilton.
'Beautiful and poignant'
South Australian Museum Director Dr Samantha Hamilton said last year’s Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year exhibition drew record numbers of visitors to the Museum.
"And the nearly 25,000 people who saw the exhibition were not disappointed," Dr Hamilton said.
"Our feedback shows the exhibition hit the mark in terms of visitor satisfaction and we expect more of the same this year.
"The images are incredible, and the messages they deliver about our environment and the natural world are both beautiful and poignant.
"All the shortlisted finalists should be congratulated for their hard work and support for the environment."
'Work of the highest standard'
"The standard this year was extremely high but there wasn’t much disagreement among the judges," 2025 winner and 2026 judge Ross Gudgeon said.
"It was very easy getting down to 200 photos, but it then got very difficult narrowing it down again to the final 100. In the end it was pretty much attention to detail that was the difference between making the shortlist or missing out.
"We didn’t know who the photographers were while judging, so I’m really looking forward to the shortlist announcement, to finally find out who took what."
Advocating for nature
Australian Geographic Picture Editor Lyndal Irons said that every year the competition "turns a lens to our region and photographers find angles we didn't know were missing".
"At Australian Geographic, we believe that visual storytelling demands rigour and reverence. The 2026 shortlisted artists named today demonstrate both," Ms Irons said.
"Importantly, they also advocate for nature with a conviction that comes from genuine understanding.
"In this, Australian Geographic's 40th year, the competition’s output is more important than it’s ever been, and we continue to be proud to partner with the South Australian Museum on the Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year again in 2026."
More information on the competition and exhibition can be found on the South Australian Museum website.
