Prizes

First place: $2,500 + matching donation to NTOTA + a 'Hidden Treasure' print by Melissa Groo

Second place: $1,000

Third place: $500

Dates to know

April 28: Submissions open

June 8, 11:59 PM EST: Submissions close

June 22: Winners announced

About this Challenge

Untamed Photographer is a collective of wildlife photographers who venture out into extreme conditions to get the shot. For this Challenge, we’re not asking you to go to quite those lengths, but we do want you to similarly capture the beauty of earth’s creatures through the lens of your camera or smartphone.

We want to see your incredible critter photography—whether you’re able to capture a wicked close-up of a wasp’s scowling face, a once-in-a-lifetime shot of an elk at Yellowstone, or a crisp portrait of your beloved cat stalking his prey, there are always bits of the wild to explore, even in your own backyard. Share the beautiful finished product with us, and from the grand adventure to the editing process, share what you went through to get the final shot.

Judges

Melissa Groo is a wildlife photographer with Untamed Photographer, writer, and conservationist with a passion for educating people about the marvels of the natural world. She believes that photography can be both fine art and a powerful vehicle for storytelling, and considers herself a “wildlife biographer” as much as a wildlife photographer. It is her mission to raise awareness and change minds about not only the extrinsic beauty of animals, but also their intrinsic worth.

Requirements

For your story to be eligible, it must be between 600 and 2,000 words and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until June 8, 2021, at 11:59 PM EST will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here. To learn how to embed rich images in your stories, check out our resource here.

The Capture the Wild Challenge is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+ visit https://vocal.media/vocal-plus.

To be eligible to win the grand prize, second place, or third place prizes, you must be over the age of 13 and residing in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need to have a Stripe account created and connected in order to receive the prizes. For this reason, entrants located outside of any of these countries will not be eligible to win.