Prize-winning shot pure chance

Dunedin photographer Ken Trevathan struck gold with this image of a Sally Lightfoot crab (Grapsus grapsus) squirting liquid. Photo / Ken Trevathan

An amateur photographer from Dunedin who has travelled to far-flung corners of the globe to take pictures has won a national award for a shot of a colourful crab taken on the Galapagos Islands.

Ken Trevathan, 67, received a gold medal in the ''Natural History Prints'' category at the 2013 Photographic Society of New Zealand's Canon National Exhibition competition, for his shot of a Sally Lightfoot crab (Grapsus grapsus) excreting.

Mr Trevathan, who has visited about 70 countries, said capturing the crab at the right moment came down to luck.

"Just by pure chance this one started to excrete at the moment I pushed the shutter," he said.

"I never saw a crab do that the whole time I was there, including when I took the actual photo."

He took the photo while on a 12-day visit to the island as part of an expedition with other photographers.

He has been contacted by people who thought the image was so colourful it must have been altered digitally - when in fact it was unmodified.

Mr Trevathan, who has just returned from a six-week trip to central Asia, said he enjoyed travelling to parts of the world most never had the chance to visit.

A member of the Dunedin Photographic Society and the Dunedin Camera Club, Mr Trevathan's interest in photography went back to when he left school and worked for Dunedin photographers Hurst and Palmer.

After a "long break", he became interested in photography again about three years ago.

Asked why he enjoyed taking photos, he said: "I suppose its just the arty thing. It's nice to create good things and interesting things."

The photo will be on display at the National Exhibition of Photography held between May 1 and 5 at the Wellington Town Hall.