Soaring Winners of the 2022 Bird Photographer of the Year Competition

Balck and White, Silver Award Winner – Pawel Smołik, “The Guardian of Mordor.” © Pawel Smołik | Bird Photographer of the Year
“The photo was taken on the black lava beach of Skarðsvík on the west coast of Iceland. While walking there I noticed that, after diving in the ocean, one of the area’s Great Cormorants would sit on a sharp, pointed ridge to dry its wings. The waves, which were unusually large that day, were crashing on nearby rocks, creating a floating mist of water. The sight of this cormorant with its black wings spread, combined with the aura of the place and the colour of the sand and rocks – all shades of black – reminded me of The Lord of the Rings movies. For this reason, and to emphasise the ominous sense of foreboding, I decided to present the photo in black and white.”