Italian Stanislao Basileo’s ‘Iceberg’ Wins FIO Photography Contest

The esteemed Italian photographer, Stanislao Basileo, has achieved a significant accomplishment. His remarkable image, taken in the picturesque landscapes of Iceland, has secured him the first prize in the prestigious Nature Photography Contest ‘Las Aves Silvestres’. This notable competition was organized by the General Directorate of Tourism and was held under the umbrella of the International Ornithological Tourism Fair (FIO).

The award-winning piece, aptly named ‘Iceberg’, was shot in the stunning glacial lake of Jökulsárlón, located in Iceland, and was selected as the best amongst a considerable number of 6,101 images. These images were submitted by talented photographers from 35 different countries across Europe, America, Asia, and Africa, as stated by the Government of Extremadura in their press release.

The 19th edition of this esteemed contest celebrated its awards ceremony in the beautiful setting of Villarreal de San Carlos, in the Monfragüe National Park. The event was presided over by Roberto Brasero, a well-known journalist and director of the Meteorology department at Antena 3 Noticias.

The winning photograph, which bagged the title in the ‘C2 Birds in their surroundings’ category, surpassed three other powerful contenders. These included ‘Looks’ by Óscar Díez Martínez, which won in the ‘C1 Portraits of birds’ category; ‘Guifette’ by David Greyo from Switzerland, in the ‘C3 Birds in action’ category, and ‘Looking at the navel’ by Ignacio Medem, in the ‘C4 Artistic vision of birds’ category.

Moreover, the photograph ‘De merienda’ by the young artist Darío Fernández Lagóstena, won in the ‘Young photographers’ category, which was open to participants under the age of 18.

The special ‘Extremeño Photographer’ award was given to Joaquín Figueredo for his image ‘Avispa arevida’. This award was open to participants who were either born or registered in the region.

In the new category of nature videos, the top spot was secured by Juan Luis Santos Martínez for his compelling video ‘Anthropocene’.

As a reminder, this competition offers a substantial prize pool of 6,800 euros. Out of this, 2,000 euros are awarded to the absolute winner. Additionally, winners are also presented with various gifts from sponsors, including Skua Nature, Fujifilm, OM System, Swarovksi Optik, FotoTécnica Import, AcademiadeFotografos.com, CEFNA, Namen Color, NYA-EVO, and El Millarón.

The award ceremony was graced with the presence of several prominent figures, such as Victoria Bazaga, the Minister of Culture, Tourism, Youth and Sports; Anabel Domínguez, the general director of Tourism, and Borja García, the deputy mayor of Serradilla.

The FIO concluded on Sunday, February 25, with an array of activities for attendees of all age groups. These included informative conferences, guided tours, bird-watching observatories in various parts of Monfragüe, interactive workshops, entertaining shows, book launches, and the screening of the documentary ‘Aguilucha’ (Spain, 2023), directed by Alfonso Penella.

The concluding colloquium, themed ‘Communicating about birds and nature: new challenges and opportunities’, saw an engaging discussion featuring Rosa M. Tristán, Germán López ‘The Merelus’, Ernesto Montoya ‘Vieja Tierra’, and Antonio Sandoval.