There seems to be a lot of scrutiny surrounding photography contests these days. And much of that is increasingly justified by revelations of shady contests and phantom organizations behind them.
We’ve covered some of the more recent stories, including seemingly fake contests judged by famous photographers who had no idea they were participating in the said evaluation.
A more recent scandal is either more lighthearted in nature, or sad, depending on your outlook on life, and that scandal is the tale of the photograph featuring a stuffed anteater that won a wildlife photography prize. Not only has this award drawn derision from nearly every corner of the photography community but also has captured the attention of the wider media as well.
Further, the claims on the part of the photographer that he did all of this without knowing it wasn’t real have drawn eye rolls at best and laughter at worst.
One always looking to cash in on some easy laughs, US comedian and late night talk show host Conan O’Brien, known for his sardonic wit and topical commentary, lampooned the recent discovery of the fake anteater in the photo with a skit on his program.
To be fair, the anteater in question is a taxidermied specimen so it isn’t as if the photographer Marcio Cabral attempted to posit a stuffed product from Amazon as the real thing.
For his part, Marcio Cabral says that he is innocent of any wrongdoing and that he was unaware the animal was a taxidermy anteater. Additionally, he stresses that he would like to move on with his life and that the furore surrounding the wildlife photography prize has “ruined his career.
There’s little doubt that such a public outing would be tough to weather for a professional photographer but it definitely doesn’t look like the story is going anywhere anytime soon, especially if Conan O’Brien and his fellow comedians have anything to say about it.
If you’d like to watch monologue you can do so on YouTube by clicking here.
