Polar bear image earns “Highly Commended” in Wildlife Photographer of the Year

How would it feel to find yourself face to face with one of the Arctic's most formidable predators?

A striking new photograph offers exactly that vantage point – captured, remarkably, from a seal's perspective, writes Maddy Molloy for the BBC.

The image, taken by Norwegian wildlife photographer Audun Rikardsen, has been named among the “Highly Commended” entries in this year's Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.

While working as a guide with Arctic Wildlife Tours, Rikardsen rigged an underwater camera fitted with a motion sensor beneath a seal's breathing hole, then waited. At 4am, a female polar bear approached and peered down into the hole – directly into the camera's lens.

Rikardsen then had to wait a further eight hours for the bear to move away before he could safely retrieve the camera and review what it had captured. On seeing the results, he said he was so extremely happy that he was screaming, joking that he had probably woken every polar bear for miles around.

It is not the first time Rikardsen's work has been recognised by the competition. He has previously won two Wildlife Photographer of the Year categories – Birds in 2019, and Oceans: The Bigger Picture in 2025.

This year's overall winners will be announced on Tuesday, 13 October 2026, with an accompanying exhibition opening at the Natural History Museum in London from Friday, 16 October 2026.