Stephen Dalton

Stephen Dalton (born 1937) is an English wildlife photographer and author. He is known for his pioneering work, from the early 1970s onward, in high-speed nature photography. He was the first person to record pin sharp images of insects in flight. His work covers a wide variety of animals: from amphibians and birds to mammals and invertebrates. In the early 1960s he took a full-time photography diploma at London's Regent Street Polytechnic, about which he later recalled, "I had some of the happiest days of my life studying something I became fascinated by". Working with an electronics specialist he devised a flash tube/capacitor combination which provided the required combination of high-power flash and extremely short flash duration. After two years of experimentation he was able for the first time to obtain sharp photographs of insects in flight.

Critical reception

In 2015 the Society of German Wildlife Photographers (GDT) awarded Dalton the Fritz Steiniger Prize. The citation notes that "The results of his experiments in high-speed flash photography and his subsequent publications were landmark events in the world of photography and caused a great stir worldwide" and that "his work of fascinating intensity and striking beauty has set visual and artistic standards that are still valid today".