Close Up Photographer of the Year 2023 – in pictures
Attracting more than 9,000 entries from 53 countries, the annual celebration of close up photography was won by a poignant shot of salamanders being devoured by a pitcher plant, by Canadian photographer Samantha Stephens. Here is a selection of the best entries to the CUPOTY
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The overall prize went to this shot of two spotted salamanders being consumed by a northern pitcher plant in Algonquin provincial park, Canada
Photograph: Samantha Stephens
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A beautiful raft spider shot from underwater in the Gemenc forest in Hungary, the largest floodplain forest in central Europe
Photograph: Boldizsár Szűcs
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A detailed shot of the wing of a damselfly seen in the New Forest in the United Kingdom, by the winner of the young photographer award
Photograph: Nathan Benstead
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A female jumping spider photographed on scorching hot rocks on Mjältön, Sweden
Photograph: Gustave Parenmark
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A huge atlas moth, with a wingspan of more than 9in, photographed on an areca nut plantation in Sirsi, India
Photograph: Uday Hegde
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Shot with a macro lens, this captures the moment that two drops of oil merge
Photograph: Matt Vacca
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A scarlet waxcap frosted in morning dew and spiderwebs, captured at Ebernoe cricket pitch in West Sussex
Photograph: Jeremy Lintott
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A sea fan on the island of Aruba, dipped in seawater creating tiny seawater lenses
Photograph: Angelo Richardson
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A green cat spider guarding its nest of tiny offspring in the mountains of central Taiwan
Photograph: Lung Tsai Wang
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A snake digging itself in the sand to ambush its prey, next to tracks left by a dune gecko in the Negev desert in Israel
Photograph: Paul Lennart Schmid
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A mimic octopus in larval form, shot in complete darkness 300ft below the surface of the ocean at Anilao in the Philippines
Photograph: Pietro Cremone
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A schistidium moss, with intricate capsules shaped like tiny flowers. It is only 1mm wide and thrives on rocks or concrete. This one was photographed in Ulleråker, Sweden
Photograph: Harald Cederlund
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Starlings feasting on crumbs from pizza and doner kebabs at Alexanderplatz in Berlin, Germany
Photograph: Anton Trexler
