Photographer Stuart Chape is used to hanging out the doors of airplanes and helicopters.
“I’ve been doing it for 40 years,” the retired environmental scientist said. “I’ve spent the past 40 years, along with many others, trying to save the planet.
“I started doing aerial coastal photography in the 1980s in Western Australia – I found it was the best way to get an understanding of the issues we faced.”
Stuart is meticulous in his preparation and regularly charters light aircraft and helicopters to get the shots he wants.
And all that planning has paid off.
His sweeping and brilliantly hued image of the Tasman River in New Zealand has been named winner of the 2025 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year (AGNPOTY) People’s Choice Award.
The striking picture, titled Glacial Blue (above), was taken at Lake Pukaki looking towards the mountains of Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park and has been on exhibition at the South Australian Museum with the 98 other AGNPOTY finalists since August last year.
Stuart snapped the picture from the open door of a light airplane with a Fujifilm GFX 100 ll camera sporting a GF32-64mm lens.
The striking blue colours obviously resonated with visitors to what has been a highly successful exhibition – it is expected to draw a record breaking 20,000 visitors before it closes on Sunday 1 February.
“I’m interested in patterns formed by landscapes and ecosystems and chartered a plane to get the photo,” Stuart said.
“It snowed just two days before the flight – something that was a bit unexpected in October – but it added another dimension to the photo.
“The glaciers grind up the bedrock and the sediment, called glacial flour, diffracts light to create the blue colours. Another aspect of this image is that it highlights the incredible beauty of glacial landscapes that are under threat from global climate change.”
AGNPOTY, which is in its 23rd year, is owned and operated by the South Australian Museum and attracted 1,864 images from 449 photographers in 18 countries in 2025.
Western Australian photographer Ross Gudgeon was named the overall winner with his image Fractal Forest; a unique look inside a cauliflower coral shot in Indonesia.
The exhibition is also on display at the Australian Museum in Sydney until 15 February.
The South Australian Museum last month issued a call for entries for the 2026 AGNPOTY.
Entries are accepted covering content from across the ANZANG bioregion – Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and New Guinea, and Stuart intends to enter the competition again.
Photographers are invited to submit entries through 10 categories: Animals in Nature, Botanical, Animal Behaviour, Macro, Landscape, Threatened Species, Monochrome, Our Impact, Portfolio and Junior.
That includes the return of the Botanical and Animal Behaviour categories following feedback during a review of the competition.
The overall winner receives $10,000; category winners receive $1,500; while the Junior and People’s Choice winners take home $500. Entries close on 5 February.
“I’ve missed out (entering for 2026) this year, but I plan to head to Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre in South Australia in June to take some photos,” Stuart said. “I’m driving over and hiring an aircraft.
“But it’s really pleasing to win – it’s my first People’s Choice award.
“The Glacial Blue photo has won four awards over the past 18 months in major competitions around the world, so while I am not entirely surprised people liked it, it is very pleasing to know that the image resonates with so many people.
The 2026 AGNPOTY entry form and other information on the exhibition can be found on the South Australian Museum website.
