The Most Beautiful Country, a photo contest organised by the Russian Geographical Society, will award a special prize for an image taken by a camera trap or a motion-activated camera system. Participants can take a photo of any wild animal in its natural habitat in any region of our country. The prize was instituted by the Amur Tiger Centre and PhosAgro. Sergei Aramilev, general director of the Amur Tiger Centre, believes that some camera trap photos are not only important for science but also have artistic value.

“It is clear that an expert who set up a camera trap had seriously prepared for the photo shoot. The person studied the animal and chose a place and angle for the camera. It is almost impossible to capture many moments in the lives of wild animals without camera traps or motion-activated camera systems. So these photos are not just pictures but a whole story. By establishing this prize with PhosAgro and the RGS, we want to support all those who study animals by using state-of-the-art technology,” Sergei Aramilev said.

Any person, regardless of their place of residence, citizenship and age, can take part in the contest. The only condition is that the photos must be taken on Russian territory. The photos submitted for the contest will be reviewed by an expert commission consisting of prominent photographers and heads of the largest photo services in the country.

The Most Beautiful Country is a major photo contest that the RGS launched in 2015. It has received over 622,000 photos from participants in the eight years of its existence.