Landscapes with Animals

A simple but well executed capture of a rural scene in the mountains. Composition is great, with the cow nicely positioned in the frame so it acts as an initial focal point, but then leads the eye to look through the clouds down to the valley below. The inclusion of the little trees help balance the composition too, with the cloud structure also seeming to frame the cow. Lovely tones and colours giving a great feel to the shot. Congratulations on your third place finish.

I am not sure who would have been most surprised here; you or the deer, as you both round the bend and come face to face. The deer are large enough in the frame to be a clear subject, but we get a fabulous view of the spectacular scenery of the wintery Scottish highlands, with a dusting of snow on the mountain-tops. Great contrast in tones between the warmth of the sunlit vegetation and the chill of the snow. Great image, well done on your top ten placing.

How privilaged you are to be able to get a guanaco to pose so elegantly for your photograph! Super composition, with the animal placed over on the left third line meaning we have an uninteruppted view of the stunning landscape beyond. Great balance between the landscape and the wildlife, perfect for what I was looking for in this contest. Lovely contrast between the warmth in the foreground and the cooler tones beyond. Well done on your top ten placing.

A lovely scene of an African landscape, with elephants and zebras calmly going about their business. I like the layers of the composition, with the elephants in the near-ground, the zebras in the middle distance, and the group of elephants and trees in the distance. Shadows have maybe been lightened a little too much bringing an HDR look which looks a little unnatural for a natural scene, but still a lovely capture. Well done on your top ten placing.

This image perfectly captures the life and the landscape of this remote part of the arctic. The low sun casts a lovely light on the scene, blending the warmth of the sky with the chill of the snow. A great balance between the wildlife and the landscape, which is exactly what I was looking to see, with not only reindeer munching vegetation through the snow, but a couple of beautiful arctic foxes too. A fantastic capture of the beauty of the natural world. Congratulations on your second place finish.

What a great capture of this confident-looking goose, as it struts it's stuff with the picturesque Caerphilly castle as a splendid backdrop. Great balance between the wildlife and the landscape, with neither dominating. Well done on your top ten placing.

A difficult contest to judge, with so many great entries, but this super image gets my top spot. The balance between creatures and landscape is just what I was looking for, with both being important features but neither dominating. There is a little humour to the image too, and your presence on the hilltop has certainly stirred the curiosity of most of these sheep. I really like the lighting, with the backs of the sheep illuminated from behind, but sufficient balancing of the exposure to ensure the faces are not too shadowy. The landscape looks brooding; I hope you managed to avoid getting caught in the storm. Congratulations on your winning image.

A great image capturing these unfortunate birds needing to take refuge on the shore to escape the stormy seas. Lighting is lovely, with the turbulent water nice and bright, set off against the dark and brooding sky. Maybe not the most pleasant of conditions to be out with your camrra, but you have been rewarded with s super shot. Well done on your top ten placing.

The warm sunlight contrasting with the icy chill of the snow really bring this image to life. The main subjects of the photo, the sheep in the foreground and the church in the background, stand out from the snow. Exposure has been well controlled, always tricky in the snow, meaning the snow is white and not the dirty grey that results from reliance on the camera's auto-exposure. Great balance in the composition, a lovely rural winter scene. Well done on your top ten placing.

This is a great example of what I was looking to see in this contest; the landscape shows off the swan, and the swan shows off the landscape, perfectly complementing each other. I love the capture of the gentle mistiness of the landscape, with the serenity of the swan positioned perfectly in the composition. The muted colours look natural and suitably illustrate a chilly damp day. Great work, ell done on your top ten placing.