Ahead of International Women and Girls in Science Day on 11 February, the winners of the inaugural Woman Science Photographer of the Year competition were announced today at an awards ceremony organized by the Royal Photographic Society (RPS ) in Bristol.
The awards have been specially organized by the RPS Women in Photography group. The group’s goal is to celebrate and educate female and female-identified photographers around the world, and to encourage other women and girls to pursue their passion for science.
Entries were judged by a panel of professional photographers Yas Crawford, Kym Cox and Gigi Williams, as well as Teri Walker, chair of the RPS Women in Photography group.
The winning image is ‘Watershed Triptych’, by Margaret LeJeune. This eye-catching image shows maps of watersheds (areas of land where water converges) all illuminated by bioluminescent algae.
The winner in the under 18 category was Kelly Zhang for her photograph “The Beauty of Soap Bubbles”, a portrait showing how light on the surface of a soap bubble can produce visually stunning patterns.
The winning images will be shown in an exhibition at the Royal Photographic Society in Bristol, UK until 30 March 2023.
Overall Winner – Margaret LeJeune
Three maps of various watershed maps of US areas, illuminated by bioluminescent algae. This alga, also known as “marine spark,” spawns red tide algal blooms, which can kill fish and other marine life. These three images show the largest watershed areas in the US. Photo by Margaret LeJeune
Young Photographer of the Year – Kelly Zhang
Soap bubbles with swirling patterns on their surface caused by thin film interference. The light reflected from the outer layer of soap interferes with the light reflected from the inner layer of soap, resulting in this swirling multicolored surface. Photo by Kelly Zhang
Finalist – Lianna Nixon
A small group of atmospheric scientists from the MOSAiC expedition team move a “flux sled” through a crevasse in the Arctic ice. This is the first instrument deployed on the new MOSAiC floe and will be used to study sea ice surface reflectivity. After weeks of searching for the perfect ice sheet, the MOSAiC expedition team transported tons of research equipment onto the sea ice to study the central Arctic climate system and its future. Photo by Lianna Nixon
Finalist – Danielle Edwards
green potato bugs (Cuspicona simplex) growing on the surface of a potato. The bright lime green eggs were studied and photographed over time until the eggs hatched and nymphs emerged. Once hatched, the nymphs continue to cluster together until they finally disperse individually. Photo by Danielle Edwards
Finalist – Jindra Jehu
This piece, titled ‘Colony 2022’, is a sculptural work made of paper and motor oil that has been transformed by the growth of pink oyster mushrooms. The work questions the ability of the ‘gray kingdom’ to convert hydrocarbons into fungal sugars. Jindra Jehu’s photo
Finalist – Lecture by Soma Owen
White-bellied pangolin rescued (Phataginus tricuspis) prepares for his morning feeding. Taken in Lekki, Lagos, Nigeria, at a center that rescues, rehabilitates and releases pangolins. Photo by Prelena Soma Owen
Finalist – Irina Petrova Adamatzky
A macro photograph of a forked praying mantis, showing its body’s ocelli (photoreceptors). These help organisms react to light under all conditions. The compound eyes are also clearly visible in this image, giving it an alien look. Photo by Irina Petrova Adamatzky
More images from Scientific Focus:
Finalist – Christine Fitzgerald
A photo collage created from a cross-section of an extinct solitary rough coral from Anticosti Island, Quebec, Canada. The coral is from the Late Ordovician mass extinction, which occurred approximately 450 million years ago. Photo by Christine Fitzgerald
Young photographer runner-up – Lina Yeleuova
In March 2022, more than 150 women participating in the UniSat educational program from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan launched three state-of-the-art nanosatellites into the stratosphere. The nanosatellites, which belong to a class of small spacecraft, are equipped with several cameras, one of which is capable of capturing elliptical images of the Earth in 4K resolution. Photo by Lina Yeleuova
