2018 World Press Photo: First Place, Nature Stories

04 / 12 / 2018
Return to BlogI’m humbled and honored to named the first place winner in the 2018 World Press Photo awards for my National Geographic story “Warriors Who Once Feared Elephants Now Protect Them.” Thank you to all my friends at Reteti Elephant Sanctuary Community United for Elephants for trusting me to share your powerful story, to my editors Alexa Keefe and Sarah Leen for giving us the platform to share it and now to World Press Photo, for further casting the light on this important story of community and conservation.
I was awarded a World Press Photo, Second Place, Nature, stories, in 2017 for “Pandas Gone Wild.” In 2015, I received a Second Place, Singles, award in the World Press Photo Nature category for “Orphaned Rhino,” which is also from my body of work on Northern Kenya, like this year’s prize. This work is a long term examination of the change in the relationship between people and animals in the region.
In the photo above, keepers feed baby elephants at the Retiti Elephant Sanctuary in northern Kenya, the first sanctuary in Africa to hire indigenous women as keepers.
Please have a look all of the World Press Photo stories. Some will break your heart, others may make you laugh and hopefully inspire all of us to work harder to find solutions to our planet’s most pressing challenges.
You can also see my lecture at the World Press Photo Festival, where I shared the full arc of my photographic journey, including this story on the Retiti Elephant Sanctuary.
You May Also Enjoy

Help Vital Impacts Meet the Match
I had the pleasure of speaking with the incredibly talented and thoughtful Mark Edward Harris from Make It Better Foundation about the power of a single image to impact our understanding of the world. At this critical moment for humanity, we cannot afford to feel overwhelmed or hope that someone else will address our challenges. [ … ]

Black Rhino Revival
I am honored to have been able to collaborate with The Nature Conservancy to document the incredible efforts and critical steps Kenya has had in achieving stable habitats for the survival of the species. Black rhinos once thrived across Kenya, but rampant poaching in the 1970s and ’80s drove them to near extinction. However, government [ … ]

Ami Named Royal Photographic Society Honorary Fellow
I am honored to share that I have been named an honorary fellow of the Royal Photographic Society, alongside such photographic luminaries as James Balog, James Friend, Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen, Michelle Sank, Marilyn Nance, Yasmine Crawford, and William Kentridge. This prestigious recognition is part of an initiative that celebrates the unique power of photography to challenge societal [ … ]

My Earth Essence Presets with Luminar Neo
I’m excited to announce my partnership with Luminar Neo. We have launched an exclusive Earth Essence Presets Collection that captures the essence of classic darkroom techniques. These presets are crafted to help you make subtle, yet powerful enhancements to your portrait, landscape, and wildlife photography. Guided by a strong commitment to ethical standards, my image [ … ]