Ten-year-old Jamie Smart from Wales, who has been hailed as Generation Alpha's answer to Sir David Attenborough, has disclosed that her winning photograph in the prestigious Young Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition was captured entirely by chance. The young photographer, who goes by the moniker Eagle Eyed Girl on social media, explained that the award-winning image of a garden spider resulted from an impromptu decision to explore her family garden early one autumn morning near Llandrindod Wells. Smart noticed water droplets everywhere and recognized it as an ideal moment to photograph local wildlife, leading to the discovery of a tiny spider that would change her life. Her candid revelation adds a layer of authenticity to her remarkable achievement, demonstrating that sometimes the most extraordinary moments happen when least expected.
The winning photograph features a minuscule garden spider, barely half a centimeter long, tucked inside its freshly woven daily hideout among dead dock leaves. Smart employed sophisticated macro photography techniques, using flash with a diffuser and experimenting with various settings and angles to illuminate the spider in breathtaking detail. Her technical prowess at such a young age reflects years of dedicated practice and natural instinct for composition. Smart has developed a particular passion for photographing spiders and actively works to dispel common fears about these arachnids, emphasizing that they don't want to harm humans and possess incredible hunting behaviors that reveal their unique personalities. She believes macro photography of insects opens a window into an underappreciated world most people never examine closely.
Jamie's journey into wildlife photography began when she was just six and a half years old, sparked by an early fascination with dinosaurs that evolved into a love for living creatures. Her father James, a carpenter who had abandoned his hobbyist photography years earlier, has become her dedicated partner in this endeavor, now learning videography to support her social media presence and help her navigate the professional wildlife photography industry. The family has transformed their garden into a thriving wildlife haven over the past two years, eliminating pesticides and allowing natural ecosystems to reestablish themselves. This hands-on conservation approach has given Jamie unprecedented access to diverse subjects right outside her door, fostering both her technical skills and her deep understanding of animal behavior and habitat preservation.
With more than 170,000 followers on her Instagram account @eagle_eyed_grl, Jamie has built a significant platform for her mission to educate the public about wildlife and inspire conservation action. She hopes that by sharing her passion through stunning imagery, she will ignite similar enthusiasm in others and motivate them to protect vulnerable species. Her success has already opened extraordinary opportunities, including a trip to Australia to photograph animals at the wildlife hospital established by the late Steve Irwin, where she worked alongside his son Robert Irwin. Additionally, a prize from the 2023 RSPCA Young Photographer awards allowed her to spend two intensive days with professional wildlife photographer Danny Green at Bradgate Park in Leicestershire, resulting in a compelling image of a monarch stag bellowing at a rival that earned a commendation in the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2025 competition.
The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, organized by the Natural History Museum in London, attracted a record-breaking 60,000 entries from 113 countries this year, making Jamie's victory even more impressive. Her success represents part of a broader trend of young British photographers making significant impacts in the field. Fellow UK-based photographer Kutub Uddin, who specializes in captivating close-ups of fungi and slime mold, emphasized that the competition helps people connect emotionally with nature, fostering respect and appreciation that often becomes the first step toward sustainable thinking. Italian-born photographer Fortunato Gatto, who relocated to Scotland to pursue his passion for unspoiled nature, stressed the importance of strong institutions and visionary individuals in supporting dreams of a better future through creativity and collective effort.
The exhibition featuring Jamie's winning image and other selected photographs will be on display at Wolverhampton Museum & Art Gallery until January 25, 2026, before moving to Bristol Museum & Art Gallery until April 26, 2026. For aspiring young wildlife enthusiasts without access to extensive nature reserves, Jamie offers practical advice: start by installing bee boxes and bug hotels in whatever outdoor space is available. She describes her rural Welsh home as a beautiful place in the sticks where woodlands offer endless exploration opportunities, and she particularly enjoys discovering the different world of nocturnal wildlife that emerges after dusk. Her story demonstrates that age is no barrier to making meaningful contributions to conservation, and that passion combined with dedication can transform a simple backyard into a gateway for global impact and recognition.
