I love the detail and vibrancy of the shot, which has great eye contact to give this frog a real sense of personality and character. The colour palette also works really well, making the subject the star of the show. To make the composition a little more equal, you might consider cropping to make the top match the bottom.
Owl shots are ten a penny but this image really stands out. First, the bird's intent and determination have been captured extremely well through careful focussing, along with the elegant shape of the wings. The owl is perfectly placed in the frame too, against an uncluttered background and clear of any distracting grasses and reeds. Finally the colours are soothing but also highly evocative. A cracking shot.
To capture an image like this displays an amazing amount of patience, waiting for the mouse to be in just the right place at the right time. The fact that you managed to shoot it looking directly at the camera makes for a striking portrait, while the colours are beautiful. I like the high level of detail, and the fact that the background has been beautifully blurred out.
I love the minimalistic nature of your composition - with absolutely no distractions in the background, you're free to concentrate on the subject. The flurry of snow creates a sense of movement, while the character just peeping into the frame from the right gives you the impression of a never-ending stampede.
The contrast of the beautiful soft bokeh against the texture and pin-sharp detail of the fox's head caught my attention. Timing is everything and here we can see a great expression from the fox bearing its teeth as it studies its what's behind. To improve the contrast and make the fox stand out more, increase the blacks in post production.
The hummingbird feeding has a seductive, almost perfect symmetry; the colour and detail captured in the plumage and the flower almost defy belief and is in itself a technical tour de force. I love the way the hummingbird stands out against the soft background and it held my attention for an age.
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If ever there was an animal that encapsulates the folkloric quality of the countryside, it's the hare. While crows, ravens and foxes may get the best stories, the brown hare is the one that is able to carry the air of untamable and mystical nature, making it the true king of the British wild. This portrait, so simple in its execution, allows the hare's mythical personality to shine through. The red of the eyes is piercing and the iconic ears are a gorgeous palette of tones. It's a perfect image.
Effective composition is so important in great wildlife photography and this image really ticks all the boxes. The vignette created by the clouds and foreground water looks natural and uncontrived, and the placement of the birds in the frame is perfectly balanced. The exposure is beautifully controlled too, creating a silhouette effect but still retaining detail in the wings. An evocative and satisfying image.
This puffin portrait has an exquisite compositional balance with the saturated colours around the beak offset against the almost monochrome plumage. If you found the world’s most cooperative Puffin and spent an hour or two in a studio I doubt you could achieve a more perfect image. It has character and mood that would be rare in a human portrait.
A highly unusual and very beautiful image that captured my imagination immediately. The horizontal bands of colour and tone frame a decisive moment in the Swan’s take-off perfectly. Its striking simplicity coveys a somewhat foreboding atmosphere that compels you to linger and investigate.
Often the most simple compositions are the most striking and the photographer's clever use of graphic shapes really works here. While it's a shame we can't see more of the head and eyes, the curve of the neck blends wonderfully into the sinuous shape of the flamingo's body and wings. The lighting and processing are beautifully executed too.
This is a beautifully composed underwater shot of a green turtle. A shot we've seen a lot but this one really stands out from the crowd. The angle the photographer has taken has been well thought out and we feel close to the turtle adding impact. Timing is impeccable, capturing the pilot fish swimming alongside the turtle. With deep the blue see above, the little yellow fish has given a much-needed splash of colour to bring all the elements together.
On initial inspection this scene looks rather chaotic but the zebra immediately pulls the eye in. The graphic stripes really stand out against the muted brown tones from the surrounding herd.The blur at the top and bottom of the frame also helps to focus our attention on the iconic black and white stripes and the story unfolds from there.
The framing of this shot really highlights just how small this intriguing little creature is. The bokeh created is beautiful, leading to a very pleasing colour palette. The depth of field is perfect for highlighting the subject, with fantastic eye-contact. Perhaps consider increasing the contrast slightly to make the image pop a little more.
European ground squirrels are apparently very shy so the photographer has done an awesome job to get so close, while at the same time keeping the creatures sharp and the background nice and uncluttered. This image would make a great greetings card or poster but it might be worth trimming back some of the very blurry foreground.
A decisive moment has been skilfully captured here, with the perfect choice of aperture and shutter speed: wide enough to blur out the background nicely, but fast enough to capture the action and preserve the reflection. The only suggested improvement might be to use a tighter crop or even a square format, as the unlucky fish does get lost a bit amidst the bubbles and spray. Otherwise, a technical tour de force.
There's sometimes a risk with wildlife photography that we can end up producing picture-postcard scenes that make nature seem almost cutesy and approachable. Equally, there's a risk that we anthropomorphise the subjects, almost as if they were Disney characters. However, sometimes that approach, whether it's deliberate or not, actually works in the image's favour. Not only is this is a beautiful image with its simple composition and cool tonal pallette, it's one that gives us some small insight into the social behaviour of polar bears. I'd strongly recommend reading the photographer's caption that accompanies this image to get some further insight into the background of this image.
We are in awe of the skill and patience required to capture images like this one. Okay we've seen these kinds of shots before a few times, so they may have lost a little of their impact, but that doesn't take anything away from the camera craft on display here. This is technically and aesthetically perfect.
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We've reached the APOY 2017 **Wildlife photography** round! We now want you to turn your lens on the animals we share our planet with, both at home and abroad. Your shots can either take the form of portraiture or can be your attempt at the ultimate wildlife shot. With camera equipment becoming so much more affordable and compact cameras boasting impressive zooms, wildlife photography is now far more accessible. And you don’t have to travel thousands of miles for this category. While exotic animals in faraway lands are an attractive subject, there is an array of exciting wildlife right on your own doorstep. Foxes, squirrels, badgers and birds are a common sight in many urban and countryside locations, and make for fantastic images. So get outside and keep your eyes peeled!
I love the blue and purple hues in this image, it makes a nice change from the usual green backdrops we often see in puffin portraits. The shallow depth of field really makes the puffin stand out. It looks as though the light was quite bright so the photographer has done well to capture details in the highlights.
