Igor Shpilenok works in the reserve at Kamchatka, Russia. Igor is a fellow of the International League of Conservation Photographers and a winner of the 2006 BBC Wildlife Photographer Competition. Igor’s work has been published in numerous international and Russian magazines, including Smithsonian, National Wildlife, Geo, and BBC Wildlife.

“How does a bear behave when encounter a human? In most cases he runs away. But before running he almost always would rise to stand on his rear feet. And this behavior does not indicate the attack, as many people think...” – Igor Shpilenok. (Photo by Igor Shpilenok via Wildlife Photo Russia)

Palestinians flee from their neighbourhood in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, during the ongoing Israeli bombardment, Saturday, December 2, 2023. (Photo by Fatima Shbair/AP Photo)

This aerial photograph shows a stork with two chicks on a nest installed on a high voltage line mast in Bouee, western France, on June 3, 2025. (Photo by Loïc Venance/AFP Photo)

Pedestrians walk past an art installation by French street artist James Colomina called the “The Briefcase” (bottom) at Shibuya Crossing in the Shibuya district of central Tokyo on May 20, 2025. The display shows a red briefcase – a symbol of work and conformity – with arms, legs and a tie poking out on the ground to illustrate a “salaryman” who has lost his identity, swallowed by his daily routine. (Photo by Richard A. Brooks/AFP Photo)

A curious leopard cub toys with a camera at MalaMala Game Reserve in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. (Photo by Barcroft Media)

Sabera Bayanne, 20, a student of the Shaolin Wushu club, practices in Kabul, Afghanistan January 29, 2017. On a snowy mountaintop to the west of Kabul, a group of Afghan girls practise the flowing movements of Wushu, a sport developed from ancient Chinese kung fu martial arts, stretching and bending and slashing the air with bright swords. (Photo by Mohammad Ismail/Reuters)

Underwater photographer of the year – winner. Dancing Octopus by Gabriel Barathieu (France). Location: Island of Mayotte, off the coast of south-east Africa. “Balletic and malevolent”, one judge said of this octopus, hunting in a lagoon. Barathieu waited until spring tides when there was just 30cm of water on the flats and plenty of light in the shallows. (Photo by Gabriel Barathieu/UPY2017)

A long exposure photograph shows a tree burning during the Kincade fire off Highway 128, east of Healdsburg, California on October 29, 2019. California braced on October 29 for the most powerful winds this season that threaten to spread destructive fires raging in the state and could spark new blazes. (Photo by Philip Pacheco/AFP Photo)