The Gerard Mills Memorial Prize for Wildlife Photography is a showcase and celebration of the diversity of our wildlife, through photography. This competition is an acknowledgement to students who capture the true essence of local wildlife through their photography.

Honouring a UniSC legend

The Gerard Mills Memorial Prize honours the memory of UniSC Honorary Senior Fellow, Mr. Gerard Mills. Gerard devoted much of his life to education, art, and photography. He spent almost four years taking more than 30,000 photos of wildlife activity, each week walking kilometres of UniSC's 100-hectare Sunshine Coast campus to find rare and elusive species.

Mr. Mills documented almost 600 species including everything from the tiniest beetles to the biggest kangaroos, from snakes and birds to bandicoots and sugar gliders.

Competition details

This year’s competition is open from Tuesday 1 October and ends at midnight 27 October 2024.

Winners will be announced at the Design Showcase at the UniSC Art Gallery on Friday 1 November 2024. If the winners are not present at the reception, they will be notified by email.

Works by finalists will be displayed on screens at the UniSC Maker Space (UniSC Sunshine Coast) and The Rise (UniSC Moreton Bay) during November.

Prizes

School student category

• First prize: A$250 gift voucher
• Second prize: A$150 gift voucher

UniSC student category

• First prize: A$1,000 cash 
• Second prize: A$300 cash
• Third prize: A$200 cash 

*The UniSC IT team may use a photograph for their next Windows upgrade which will sit as the background to the login page on all UniSC Windows computers (in computer labs and staff computers) and will be in contact with the photographers in advance.

2023 Prizes

School aged student category

• First prize: Spencer Hitchen - Glossy Black Cockatoo (A$250 gift voucher)
• Second prize: Phillippa Loneragan – Fairy Wren (A$150 gift voucher)
• Highly Commended:  Bryce Riley Lues – Bees
• Highly Commended: Arwen Brown – Spider

UniSC student category

• First prize: Lauren Railey – Cattle Egrets, UniSC Sunshine Coast (A$1,000 cash)
• Second prize: Matt Austin – Dingo, K'gari (A$300 cash)
• Third prize: Heather Smith – Red Arrow Dragonfly, UniSC Sunshine Coast (A$200 cash)
• Highly Commended: Edward Adams – Iridescent Lead Cylinder Beetle, UniSC Sunshine Coast 

Windows Desktop Prize (UniSC students only)

The UniSC IT team will select an appropriate image to roll out for their next Windows upgrade which will sit as the background to the login page on all UniSC Windows computers (in computer labs and staff computers).

• 2023 winner: Alena Noemi Stoll - Ducks, UniSC Sunshine Coast
• Runners up: Madelen Michelsen (Bees), Lauren Railey (Galah), Heather Smith (Dragonfly)