If you've been looking for a reason to feel a little Québécois pride lately, you can rejoice in knowing that a Quebec photographer, Jean-Simon Bégin, just won Canadian Geographic's 2021 Canadian Photos of the Year competition.
Bégin was awarded $5,000 as his prize and was also given the title of Canadian Photographer of The Year.
Wondering what the heck Canadian Geographic is? Think National Geographic but, you know, Canadian.
And to little surprise, the winning photos are oh so Canadian.
In a press release by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, three photos by Bégin are featured that show caribou and a dancing bird.
"Bégin is based in Quebec City, but many of the images that caught the eye the judges were captured on two expeditions to Nunavik, Quebec's far north, this past September. Another image of note — of a sharp-tailed grouse 'drumming,' or performing its mating dance — was captured in Abitibi, Que., in the spring of 2021," the press release explained.
One of Bégin's breathtaking photos shows a couple of caribou crossing the Leaf River in Nunavik.
Royal Canadian Geographical Society
In another, we see a cute little bird — a male sharp-tailed grouse, to be exact — performing its mating dance amid orange light.
Royal Canadian Geographical Society
The final one shown in the press release is another beautiful photo of a caribou in Nunavik shaking water off itself as the sun is setting.
Royal Canadian Geographical Society
"It's quite easy to make a beautiful shot," Bégin said, "but if you can make a beautiful picture that expresses an issue, you will for sure succeed at changing something. I don't want to just be seen as a good wildlife photographer; I want to also bring something better to the world."
