Xi'an post-80s photographer wins intl award

The photo "Monkey Cuddle" (金丝猴的拥抱) taken in the Qinling forests of Northwest China's Shaanxi province by Zhang Qiang, a photographer born in the 1980s, won the People's Choice Award for the Wildlife Photographer of the Year (WPY), also known as the Oscars of ecological photography.

Zhang is from Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province. "It has always been my dream to share the lives of the wild animals in the Qinling Mountains," he said.

"Monkey Cuddle" was shot at the end of October 2020. At that time, with the help of forest rangers, Zhang managed to find several wild golden monkey families deep in the Qinling Mountains.

In order to not disturb the animals, he used a special super-telephoto lens.

The photo shows a golden monkey with its eyes closed, snuggling up in the furry embrace of its family.

Before the WPY award, "Monkey Cuddle" had already received a lot of attention from photography circles at home and abroad, and it has been selected for inclusion in many professional photography publications.

In 2021, "Monkey Cuddle" and another of Zhang's Qinling golden monkey photo called "Take Care” won the single championship and high-praise award in the American National Wildlife Photo Contest. "Monkey Cuddle" also appeared on the cover of the award-winning photography magazine.

"Wild animals in the Qinling Mountains that I am most passionate about shooting include crested ibis, golden monkeys, giant pandas, and takins. They all have rich emotional expressions, showing both the warmth and wildness of nature," Zhang said.

Zhang's photography career has given him a more intuitive view of ecological protection and a clearer understanding of the relationship between man and nature.

He hopes that his photos will give people a deeper respect for life and allow people to feel close to nature.