Kangaroo playing Air Guitar rocks the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards

The winner of this year's Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards is the picture "Air Guitar Roo" taken by Jason Moore, capturing the moment when a kangaroo appears to be playing an air guitar in an open wildflower field in Perth. The photograph, taken in August 2021, triumphed over 5,300 other entries submitted by 1,842 participants from 85 countries. It also secured the top spot in the Creatures of the Land category, reported the New York Post.

"I ended up shooting about 40 or 50 frames of the kangaroos," says Moore

Describing how the picture was taken, Moore mentioned that he had been out since sunrise with the hope of photographing waterfowl at a lake but had a disappointing morning. “When I arrived, there were a number of kangaroos in the field," he added. The morning light was still favourable, so my camera was grabbed, and I headed off to a spot where I could get down to eye level with my subjects, amongst the biting ticks – the lengths we go to just to get that perfect image, he explained.

"I ended up shooting about 40 or 50 frames of the kangaroos with various content, including mums, joeys, and also some action shots of them bouncing along through the yellow field," stated the photographer. Further, he explained that the shoot turned out to be a great session, and several images that he captured are quite fond of him, as per the official statement on their website.

"Not many people know that kangaroos are normally fairly docile and even a bit boring most of the time. However, when this roo striking the air guitar pose was seen, it immediately brought a smile to my face, and I knew that something really special had been captured," said Moore.

Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards

In addition to Moore's winning shot, six other category winners were also announced. The photograph of two greenfinches taken by Jacek Stankiewicz secured the Junior Award and the Affinity Photo People’s Choice Award, the latter being the first time a junior entrant has won this award. The Creatures of the Air Award was won by Vittorio Ricci for a photo capturing a striated heron falling out of the sky and into the water, while the Under Water award was topped by Otter Kwek with a shot of an otter resembling a ballerina in Singapore, reported UK's Daily Mail.

The Portfolio Award was claimed by Timea Ambrus for a collection of four images depicting a ground squirrel appearing as though it’s attempting to fly. Lily Bernau took the Video Award for her film showcasing a penguin seemingly refusing to enter the sea. Apart from the category winners, 10 entries received high commendation. The awards, established in 2015, aim to celebrate the more lighthearted aspect of wildlife photography while advocating for conservation efforts. Each year, the competition lends support to a sustainable conservation organization. This year, the Whitley Fund for Nature is the beneficiary. The UK charity aids conservation leaders operating in countries across the Global South. In its 30th year, the fund has contributed to raising £20 million for over 200 conservationists in 80 countries.