The Close-Up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY) 2024 competition has unveiled its winners, showcasing the hidden beauty of the natural world. This year’s top prize went to Svetlana Ivanenko for her dramatic shot of two stag beetles locked in battle, their imposing horns clashing in a fight for dominance.
“These elusive beetles engage in fierce battles for mating rights,” Ivanenko shares. “I traveled 700km to capture this incredible moment.”
Now in its sixth year, CUPOTY 2024 received over 11,000 entries from 61 countries, proving once again why it’s one of the most prestigious macro photography contests.
Standout Winners: 15-year-old Andrés Luis Dominguez Blanco won Young Close-Up Photographer of the Year for his stunning shot of a European Bee-eater mid-flight with an insect in its beak.
Other notable winners include:
- Pierluigi Rizzo’s eerie black widow spider feasting on its prey.
- Barry Webb’s delicate ear-pick fungus growing on a pine cone.
- Santiago J. Monroy García’s moody Andean bear portrait in a Colombian rainforest.
From the tiniest fungi to fierce insect battles, CUPOTY 2024 proves that close-up photography can reveal the extraordinary in the everyday. Scroll through the winning images and see the magic for yourself!

Two stag beetles (Lucanus cervus) battle for dominance in the Voronezh region of Russia.

A European Bee-eater in mid-flight with an insect in its beak. Southern Spain at the end of spring 2023.

A female Mediterranean black widow (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus) feeds on its prey in Pollino National Park, Calabria, Italy.

A 15mm tall ear-pick fungus growing on a pine cone. New Forest, UK.

A 15mm tall ear-pick fungus growing on a pine cone. New Forest, UK.

An Andean Bear stands amidst the dense foliage of a highland rainforest. Ecopalacio Nature Reserve, La Calera, Colombia, about 30km from Bogotá, Colombia.

Garden moss covered in dew drops. Sneek, Netherlands

A Caerostris spider rests on a stick in the Malaysian jungle. Semenyih, near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.