15 pet and animal photos to inspire you: World Photography Day 2025 showcase.

May 8th, 2026
0870 Gillian Overholser polar bear in fireweed

One World. Many Lenses: Celebrating pets and wildlife through the photographer’s eye.

For World Photography Day 2025, we invited photographers around the globe to share their perspective through our photo showcase, One World. Many Lenses. The response was deeply inspiring, including thousands of submissions that illustrate how photographers see, experience, and interpret the world around them.

In this feature, we’re highlighting 15 standout images from the Pet and Animal category. And if these photos don’t remind you of why you picked up a camera in the first place—those fleeting expressions, the wild beauty, and the split-second moments of connection—we’re not sure what will. 

Why pet and animal photography connects with us.

There’s something about an animal locking eyes with the camera that makes you stop scrolling and pay attention. 

Pet and animal photography demands patience, quick reflexes, fast shutter speeds, and a genuine willingness to get low (or messy) for the shot. Whether it’s the raw intensity of wildlife in their natural habitat or the goofy charm of a beloved pet, these images capture personalities that transcend species.

The 15 photographers featured here show us what’s possible when technical skill meets true curiosity and respect for the creatures in front of their lens.

15 featured pet and animal photos from World Photography Day 2025.

Photographer: Clive Ingram

A kingfisher perches on a wooden sign that reads NO FISHING, holding a small fish in its beak. The bird has blue and orange plumage.
The rebel.

Photographer: Paul Meek

A young male lion stands in a grassy field, bathed in golden light. He's facing left, alert, with a developing mane. The background is blurred, emphasizing the lion.
The Golden Child

The Golden Child enjoying the golden hour at Ol Pejeta Conservancy. The perfect light providing lovely warm orange coloured highlights for the long grass. A future prince in the making observes the rest of the pride to work out their next move. 

Photographer: Gillian Overholser

A polar bear rests in a field of bright purple flowers. Rocks are scattered throughout the field. The background is a muted gray.
Polar bear resting in Fireweed.

Photographer: Chris Patterson

A hummingbird perches on a branch, looking up. It has a red head, green and brown body, and a snowflake on its beak. The background is blurred.
Anna’s hummingbird catches a snowflake in Olympia, Washington.

Photographer: Neil Arthurs 

(Category Winner)

A white horse stands in a grassy field with mountains in the background.
Wild and untamed

I absolutely love this photograph. On our way back to our accommodation after capturing some beautiful reflections, we spotted these horses by the roadside. Naturally, we pulled over and approached them carefully. With my trusty 100–400mm lens, I lay down—quite possibly in horse manure—to capture this shot.

One of the key tips in wildlife photography is to get to the animal’s eye level. Doing so creates a stronger connection between the viewer and the subject. Getting low also adds depth to the frame, with the grasses in the foreground gently blurred by the shallow depth of field, further enhancing the visual draw.

Honestly, I’d happily roll around in horse manure if it meant capturing more frames like this. I’m thrilled to have this image in my collection and was even more delighted in the moment I captured it.

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Photographer: Jieles van Baalen

A hummingbird hawk-moth hovers near a cluster of bright blue flowers, its long proboscis extended towards them. The moth has brown and orange wings and a black and white patterned abdomen. The background is a blurred gray.
Hummingbird Hawkmoth sampling Leadwort.

You clearly see the pollen grains on her completely uncoiled tongue or proboscis. Kockengen, Netherlands 12-09-2022

Photographer: Glenn Nagel

A rhino and its calf walk on a dirt path. The adult rhino is in the foreground, facing right, with the calf to its left. The background is a grassy plain with trees.

I recently came across this scene at the Solio Game Reserve in Kenya. It was heartening to see an area where rhinos are protected, and the population is thriving.

Photographer: Sophie Brind

Three giraffes stand in a grassy field under a hazy sky. The largest giraffe is in the foreground, with two smaller giraffes behind it.
Three giraffes in the mist.

Three Southern giraffes from the same family, Zimbabwe.

Photographer: Andrew Demske

A barred owl perches on a mossy branch, facing forward with large, dark eyes and mottled brown and white plumage. Green foliage blurs in the background.

In the hush of the woods, I felt his presence before I saw him. A barred owl, watching with ancient eyes, bathed in the softest light—an encounter that felt like the forest itself pausing to speak.

Photographer: Lesli Woodruff

A green chameleon sits on a branch, looking directly at the viewer. Its skin has a textured appearance. The background is a soft, blurred green.
He’s either trying to shake my hand or looking for a cocktail.

Amber Mountain Chameleon, Madagascar.

Photographer: Kelly Pino

Two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels wearing sunglasses and Hawaiian shirts relax on a green inflatable raft in a pool.
Relax hard and nap harder.

Photographer: Ayanava Sil

Two dogs sit in the foreground of a black and white image. In the background, two people ride horses in the fog, with a tall building behind them.
Misty morning whispers.

Photographer: Ian Mears

A brown mouse sits on a log, holding and eating a hazelnut. Other hazelnuts and greenery are visible. The background is dark.

The normally very secretive wood mouse collecting fallen hazel nuts.

Photographer: Anna McGrew

A monkey with gray fur and a white chest sits on a tree branch, surrounded by green foliage. It's holding onto another branch with one hand.
Mickey the Monkey

Base camp in Ivory Coast.

Photographer: Karen Fitzgerald

Two Atlantic puffins face each other on a grassy, rocky surface. One puffin has its beak open. They have black and white plumage and distinctive orange beaks. The background is a blurred blue-gray.
Atlantic puffins chatting in the rain.

What these images teach us about animal photography.

Looking through this collection, a few things stand out:

  • Get on their level. As Neil Arthurs demonstrated, eye-level shots create powerful connections between viewer and subject.
  • Patience pays off. Many of these moments required waiting, watching, and being ready when the magic happened.
  • Light transforms everything. From golden hour lions to soft forest light on an owl, these photographers understood how to use available light to elevate their subjects.
  • Personality shines through. The best animal photos capture character, not just species.

Thank you to our community and prize partners.

A huge thank you to every photographer who participated in the 2025 World Photography Day challenge. Your work reminded us why this community is so special.

We’re grateful to our prize partners for their ongoing support of photographers everywhere: Bay Photo Lab, Think Tank Photo, KEH, Imagen, Miller’s Professional Imaging, and Master Photographer James Harris. Their generosity helped make this celebration possible.

Want more inspiration? See all the World Photography Day 2025 contest winners →

Build your photography presence with Zenfolio.

These 15 photographers did something powerful: they showed up, shared their work, and connected with a global community.

Your work deserves the same visibility.

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We look forward to seeing where your lens takes you next.

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Contributor

  • Amanda Burse bio2024 2

    Amanda B lives with her fly fishing husband along with her four amazing children in the Western Maine Mountains. She was a professional wedding and portrait photographer for over 10 years and has been part of Zenfolio since 2013. She loves knitting socks, baking bread, and wearing flip flops (even in the winter).

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