BOW VALLEY – It took three years to capture the image wildlife photographer Jason Leo Bantle had envisioned.
His dedication has led to his image being shortlisted for the World Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2019. For more than 50 years the Natural History Museum in London, U.K. has been running the competition.
"It's a great honour to be recognized as highly commended by the longest running wildlife photography competition in the world," said Bantle. "It's a competition that celebrates pure untouched pictures of animals in the wild and it's something I've been working towards my whole career."
It is the only competition Bantle enters every year.
This year there were more than 48,000 entries from around the world and Bantle's image was shortlisted as one of the 100 pictures that will be part of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year (WPY) touring exhibit. The awards ceremony will take place on October 15 at the Natural History Museum where the grand prize winner will be announced.
Bantle's image, entitled "Lucky Break" depicts a mother raccoon poking her head out from a hole in the windshield of an abandoned car in rural Saskatchewan. Over a three-year period, he sat in a blind waiting for the perfect moment. The first year, he attempted to capture an image of the raccoon, he was unsuccessful. During the second year, he returned to the abandoned Ford Pinto and the raccoon eventually ventured out, but never during the day.
"You have to learn their habits and think about the impact you will have on that animal when you are photographing it."
Bantle noted the direction the wind was blowing had an effect on whether the mother raccoon would venture out of the car because of his scent.
On the third year, he spent four nights watching over the car. On the fourth night the mother raccoon finally ventured out through the narrow hole.
"It was definitely a wow moment," described Bantle.
While it is a "fun and whimsical" picture, he insists there is a deeper message to the image.
"Nature is incredibly resilient. We left that car behind as garbage and nature was able to find a use for it. It goes to show how adaptable nature is."
Bantle owns seven galleries that showcase his photography around Canada, including one in Banff and Canmore. At the end of the day, Bantle says he wants his images to promote not only the animals, but also to help in the conservation of the animals and their environment as a whole.
