Wildlife Photographer of the Year - Plants and fungiWildlife Photographer of the Year - Plants and fungi 

This is ‘Old Man of the Glen’ by Fortunato Gatto from Italy. This photograph was taken in Glen Affric, the Scottish Highlands in the UK, and is the 2024 category winner of ‘Plants and Fungi’. This is a view inside the forest. There are bushes and trees. It is full of vegetation. There is very little sky to be seen. There is a tree in the left of the photograph with yellow leaves on it. There are still some hints of green, but it doesn't look as if it's in full leaf. It looks quite naked, as if it's lost some leaves and the others are turning and about to drop. Perhaps it is autumn when this photograph was taken. The tree has loads of texture to it and makes you want to go up and touch it. It is craggy and rough, the trunk goes straight up, and then there is a branch, a thick branch that curves off to the top left of the image. Then another branch curves to the right but bends down towards the lower right of the image. And then there are branches that come off it. And this is where you have this cluster of yellow leaves. The branches twist and turn, they undulate, making loads of strange shapes. Every single bit of forest is intertwined. There are loads of different shapes and textures. There are hardly any straight lines. The trunk of the tree looks sturdy, as if it has been there a long time. It might be quite an old tree. In front of the tree are green bushes. These have thin green stems. Perhaps it had leaves which have since dropped. Among these green bushes are also purple flowers, possibly heather. This vegetation sits at the bottom of the photograph. A kind of crest covers the branches of the big tree. It is a silvery grey green colour. It looks like lichen and covers the branches like hard icing on a cake. Hanging from some of the branches, are wisps of sage green, it's not string like, but looks quite fluffy, as if there were bits of hair coming off the branches. The right two thirds of the photograph is taken up with deep red or maroon coloured vegetation. This looks like fern or bracken that has turned to its deep, rich colour in autumn. It is a strong contrast with the green bushes at the front of the image. It is such a lovely colour palette with greens, yellows, dark browns, reds – very autumnal. You can imagine yourself standing in the forest and the sounds and smells, maybe loads of rustling from the leaves and the trees, and then there are crunching sounds as you move around. Perhaps some sort of strange creaking noises might come from the tree, as the branches rub against each other. A light breeze would allow all the leaves to make a rustling sound. There's lots of light in the photograph. Perhaps it was a sunny day when it was taken. It is very vibrant with lots of colour and texture. It looks like a painting. There is something artistic about the composition. The frame is bursting full of vegetation. As you look closer, all you see are more trees and branches. I want to be there. It is beautiful.