Ghostly scorpion among 23 mind-blowing images from Close-up Photographer of the Year

Discover the hidden worlds of dazzling beetles, jumping spiders, tropical corals and drifting squid.

Close up macro shot of a white tailless whip scorpion. — A tailless whip scorpion (Amblypygi sp.) in mid-moult at Rio Nuevo Nature Reserve, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. 'In the depths of the Rio Nuevo Nature Reserve, Cost Rica, I encountered a rare and fleeting moment: a tailless whip scorpion in mid-moult. Suspended about a metre above my head, the delicate creature was still soft and unhardened, its body glowing in an almost translucent white.

Photo Credit: Rafael Steinlesberger / CUPOTY

Lily Watts

Published: February 5, 2026 at 7:00 pm

The overall winner and runners up of this year's Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY) have been revealed, with the top prize going to Australian photographer Ross Gudgeon for his stunning image of a cauliflower soft coral, captured in Indonesia.

Now in its seventh edition, CUPOTY shines a light on the extraordinary worlds often hidden in plain sight, using the power of macro, micro and close-up photography to transform how we see nature.

This year's competition attracted more than 12,000 entries from 63 countries, with a panel of 22 expert photographers, naturalists and editors selecting the winners and Top 100 images across 11 categories.

"This was the toughest competition yet," says CUPOTY's co-founder Tracy Calder. "The winning image embodies everything close-up photography can achieve - it shows us a perspective we've never seen before and reveals hidden beauty in a familiar subject. The judges were captivated."

Close-up Photographer of the Year gallery

Invertebrate Portrait, 1st Place - Good Boy by Laurent Hesemans

A macro shot of a moth looking into the camera. — "I love any opportunity to spend time with members of the Bombycid family," says Hesemans. "Incredibly photogenic, the large eyes and antenna positions of these moths always lend their portraits a somewhat melancholy feeling." - Photo Credit: Laurent Hesemans / CUPOTY

Insects, 1st Place - Blue Army by Imre Potyó

A slow shutter capture of Danube mayflies swarming a river, creating a blue haze with warm city lights reflected in the water in the background. — Danube mayflies (Ephoron virgo) swarm in Szentendre, Hungary. - Photo Credit: Imre Potyó / CUPOTY

Insects, Finalist - Little Speleologist by Valeria Zvereva

A small brown springtail is making it's way though icicle structured white fungus. — A springtail (Collembola sp.) travels through the thickets of a fungus (Hydnum coralloides) on a fallen tree in the Moscow region, Russia. - Photo Credit: Valeria Zvereva / CUPOTY

Invertebrate Portrait, 2nd Place - Thomisus Onustus on Guard by Wayne Sayers

A pink spider is perched in a pink flower looking directly at the camer and weaved it's web around it. — A female heather crab spider (Thomisus onustus) guards her recently laid eggs in Dorset, UK - Photo Credit: Wayne Sayers / CUPOTY

Fungi, Finalist - Entomopathogenic Fungi Taking Over Blue Bottle Flies by Raghuram Annadana

Two Blue bottle flies on a stick encased in fungi against a dark background. — Blue bottle flies (Lucilia sericata) overwhelmed by fungi in Bengaluru, India. - Photo Credit: Raghuram Annadana / CUPOTY

Underwater, Finalist - Ghost of the Reef by Simon Biddie

An aerial shot of a small orange fish camouflaged on orange and white floral patterned coral. — A ghost goby (Pleurosicya mossambica) on coral in Marsa Alam, Egypt. - Photo Credit: Simon Biddie / CUPOTY

Insects, 2nd Place - Love Under the Stars by Valeria Zvereva

a larger mosquito is perched over a smaller one, both looking at the surface they're on, with blue surroundings and small spores surrounding. — Mating games of mosquitoes (Limoniidae) on a fallen tree in the Moscow region, Russia - Photo Credit: Valeria Zvereva / CUPOTY

Insects, Finalist - Bug Invasion on a Sunny Day by Bernard Van Elegem

three potatoes sit on top of loose soil each with striped potato beetles on at sunset. — Colorado potato beetles (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) enjoying a snack in Afsnee, Belgium. - Photo Credit: Bernard Van Elegem / CUPOTY

Underwater, Finalist - Kraken by Andre Johnson

A sharpear squid in the centre of the frame has iridecsent markings and it's arms up and is facing the camera in black-water. — A juvenile sharpear enope squid photographed in the open ocean off West Palm Beach in Florida, USA. - Photo Credit: Andre Johnson / CUPOTY

Insects, Finalist - Parasitic Play by Raghuram Annadana

Yellow and red dome-shaped banana skipper eggs are being parasitised by a wasp on a green surface. — Banana skipper (Erionota thrax) eggs being parasitised by a wasp (Agiommatus sp.) in Bengaluru, India. - Photo Credit: Raghuram Annadana / CUPOTY

Young, Finalist - What Planet Are You Living On? Don't Take Me! by Marina Gavrikova

Jumping spider with green iridescent eyes on a textured surface. — A jumping spider in the Moscow region, Russia. - Photo Credit: Marina Gavrikova / CUPOTY

Tiny jumping spider found wandering around a university campus in England

Insects, 3rd Place - Gotcha! by Aleksey Molchanov

Reflections of reeds and a water bug moving through water. — Reflections of reeds and a water bug in Bolshoye Krasnoperskoye Lake in the Leningrad region, Russia. - Photo Credit: Aleksey Molchanov / CUPOTY

Invertebrate Portrait, 3rd Place - Fake Sun by Giovanni Vicari

A close up shot of a solitary bee is sleeping on a steam, facing the camera. — A solitary bee (Amegilla sp.) sleeps on a dry stem at night in Fiano Romano, Italy. - Photo Credit: Giovanni Vicari / CUPOTY

Arachnids, Finalist - Under the Peak by Minghui Yuan

a spider is upside down in a translucent purple hill-shaped web. — A spider rests beneath its three-dimensional web on Euphorbia neriifolia in Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, China. - Photo Credit: Minghui Yuan / CUPOTY

What are arachnids and how do they differ to insects

Underwater, 3rd Place - Featherhome by Luis Arpa

a small dark blue shrimp with yellow legs is camouflaged in colour and pattern to the feather star it's amongst. — A crinoid shrimp (Laomenes amboinensis) photographed in Tulamben, Bali. - Photo Credit: Luis Arpa / CUPOTY

Insects, Finalist - Carry Mud Dumplings by Takuya Ishiguro

A close up shot of a wasp mid-flight above mud, sticks and rocks with a grassy background carrying a mud ball. — A wasp (Oreumenes decoratus) carries a mud ball back to its nest in Miyagi, Japan. - Photo Credit: Takuya Ishiguro / CUPOTY

5 ways animals use mud

Arachnids, Finalist - Veil of Renewal by Rafael Steinlesberger

Close up macro shot of a white tailless whip scorpion. — A tailless whip scorpion (Amblypygi sp.) in mid-moult at Rio Nuevo Nature Reserve, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. - Photo Credit: Rafael Steinlesberger / CUPOTY

Butterflies, 2nd Place - The Invasion by Pedro Luna

grey box tree moths are perched on a surface with orange trails of other moths in the background. — Invasive box tree moths (Cydalima perspectalis) swarm in Ripoll, Spain. - Photo Credit: Pedro Luna / CUPOTY

Butterfly emergency declared

Young, 3rd Place - Emerald Glow by Jameson Hawkins-Kimmel

A cuban tree frog's head poking out from inside a vibrant green leaf. — Cuban tree frog (Osteopilus septentrionalis) in the photographer's backyard in Florida, USA. - Photo Credit: Jameson Hawkins-Kimmel / CUPOTY

Arachnids, 1st Place - Dinner by Artur Tomaszek

A lynx spider feeds on a few, looking directly at the camera with a black background. — A lynx spider (Oxyopes sp.) feeds on termites in Hong Kong. - Photo Credit: Artur Tomaszek / CUPOTY

Underwater, Finalist - The Octomom by Gabriel Jensen

A close up shot of a red octopus with it's arms up over her eggs. — This Caribbean reef octopus aerating her eggs beneath the Blue Heron Bridge at Riviera Beach, Florida. - Photo Credit: Gabriel Jensen / CUPOTY

Butterflies, Finalist - Butterfly's Powder by Gastone Pivatelli

A blue bird perched on a twig reaches up for A small white butterfly which is flying directly above. — A European bee-eater (Merops apiaster) stuns a small white butterfly (Pieris rapae) with blows of its beak before eating it in northern Italy. - Photo Credit: Gastone Pivatelli / CUPOTY

Why is this butterfly sighting so special?

CUPOTY Overall Winner - Fractal Forest by Ross Gudgeon

A macro shot looking up through pink coral with white bushy spikes at the tip and blue background of the water. — The inside of a cauliflower soft coral in Lembeh Strait, Indonesia. - Photo Credit: Ross Gudgeon / CUPOTY

See more wildlife photography

Picture researcher across BBC Science Focus, BBC Countryfile and BBC Wildlife

Lily is the picture researcher across BBC Science Focus, BBC Countryfile and BBC Wildlife. She holds a degree in Photojournalism, where she specialised in social documentary reportage. Her photographic work has been shortlisted for the BarTur Photo Award’s Unity in Diversity category and exhibited internationally as part of the Urban Photo Awards. Before joining the team, she worked on freelance projects and as a product specialist for leading camera brands.