Troublemaker - Stefano Unterthiner - Wildlife Photographer of the Year2008

2008 Animal Portraits - Winner

Stefano Unterthiner Click to enlarge Troublemaker

Stefano Unterthiner (Italy)

Troublemaker

'I nicknamed this young adult Troublemaker. He was interested in me, so getting a close-up wasn't difficult. But he would leap at me and kick off my back like a trampoline. It was part play, part confrontation, part attention-seeking, part curiosity. I think Troublemaker's expression captures the spirit of these wonderful monkeys.' Black-crested macaques live on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. They usually forage in the forests, but sometimes their search for food takes them to the edge of the trees to the coast. They wander along the beach scouring the rocks for fallen fruits and nuts or, in the case of the young ones, paddling in the waves.

Nikon D2X + Nikon 12-24mm lens; 1/250 sec at f10; ISO 125; graduated neutral-density filter; flash.

This photograph is available to buy as a print.