Wildlife/Animals nominee

Little bears can be very busy and the cub residents of Free the Bears Fund‘s enclosure number six in Cambodia are no exception.
‘Bear Apartment Six’ is a composite print made up of 16 photographs. The single images have been meticulously pieced together to form a visually enthralling scene of bustling bear activity, indicative of an apartment building.
Photographed over 90 consecutive minutes in June 2016, three sun bear cubs are the stars of the show as they climb in and out of their den entrance. Cheeky, joyful and adorable, sometimes they’re solo and sometimes they’re with their bear buddies. Each bear was rescued from the illegal wildlife trade when they were only a few months old, and will now be in the care of Free The Bears for the rest of their lives.
We have 2 year old Bearzilla, seized from people keeping him as a pet in Phnom Penh; Pooh, aged just under 2 years, surrendered by developers building a hydro dam in the Stung Treng Provence; and 15 month old Soriya Sundance, handed over by a Government Official who obtained her from ethnic minority hunters in the Mondulkiri Province.
This Limited Edition print ‘Bear Apartment Six’ sold

Internationally renowned animal photographer Alex Cearns is the Creative Director of Houndstooth Studio. Her images have won a multitude of awards and have been published widely across Australian and international print and online media, in books, magazines, campaigns, and even in an Australia Post stamp collection. Inspired by the joy of working with animals, Alex’s philanthropy and passionate advocacy for animal rescue has earned her high regard among Australia’s animal lovers and a strong following on social media. She is the International Fund for Animal Welfare's (IFAW) Terrestrial Photographer of the Year 2016, and received an Australian Of The Day honour in March this year from the team behind the Australian of the Year Awards.
Alex is the photographer and author of three books published by Penguin Australia. Her 4th book will be published by HarperCollins New York in November 2016.
Alex is the Global Ambassador for Tamron’s Super Performance Series Lenses, and an Ambassador for Spider Holster. She is a popular tour leader with World Expeditions and leads global animal adventure tours to all parts of the world.
Oh and she is a self-confessed crazy dog lady who loves to hug on all