New Joiners - Animals #527

This is a truly eye-catching shot. The colourful, mirror-like reflections create a beautiful and complimentary background. Given the challenging, lowering light, the heron is bitingly sharp, beautifully exposed and expertly captured. The near symmetrical composition is hugely effective. A stunning nature shot - well done!

As the photographer says, the colours work really well here - it is a impactful shot. The side-on viewpoint is intimate and inviting and the focus is perfectly on the butterfly's eye and body. The flower creates a colourful and attractive frame. A very good close-up shot.

This is almost a lovely wintry dog portrait, but the animal's eyes are just not quite sharp enough and the background is a bit busy - a slight change off viewpoint would have rectified this. I'd also consider switching to a vertical format to include the dog's ears.

This is a very charming shot, with the family huddled together, resting among the seaweed. In an ideal World, all the animals would be looking in one direction, but wildlife rarely does exactly what you want it to do! The seaweed makes a lovely frame for the animals and the low perspective creates a natural looking perspective. A very lovely shot...

The black and white treatment has really helped highlight and emphasise the extraordinary texture and depth of the elephant's skin. It is a very beautiful shot, with lovely contrast and razor sharp detail. A well captured and nicely processed portrait.

This is a great macro shot. At such a high level of magnification, depth of field is unbelievably shallow, yet the photographer has rendered the spider's eyes perfectly sharp. Although everything either side of the point of focus has drifted out of focus, I still think this shot works well - it would be hard to improve on this photo without 'stacking' to extend depth of field. A great close-up with oodles of impact!

I do like this shot. Its endearing and boasts lovely eye contact. Its a well captured shot - nicely composed, beautifully sharp and well exposed. I love the texture and look of the dog's snow covered fur. The image has a lovely seasonal feel to it.

This is another simple, but attractive shot. Less is so often more when shooting close-ups. The clean background really helps the dragonfly standout. The photographer has selected a good, side-on viewpoint and placed much of the insect within the plane of focus. Good technique - well seen and well-captured.

Light and mood are key ingredients in the vast majority of successful shots. The light in this instance is gorgeous, and I love that big dramatic sky. Unfortunately, the dog is a bit soft - its face and eyes are not critically sharp. When shooting at large aperture's such as f/1.4, focusing has to be pinpoint precise.

Again, lots to like about this shot, but the eagle's eye just isn't sharp enough to elevate this portrait into my top choices. Maybe the point of focus just wasn't quite on the eye, or movement caused the issue. Do remember to review images in the field and scrutinise image quality - adjust settings and reshoot if necessary.

Successful animal photographer is often about timing and recording the 'decisive moment'. The photographer has captured a very intimate moment of bonding. Good reactions has helped transform a fairly ordinary shot into something much more eye-catching and interesting. Well done.

Photography should be fun, and this shot just made me smile. This is an opportunists shot. One of the big benefits of camera phones is that today we rarely go anywhere without a camera. The photographer has reacted to the opportunity and captured a fun, feel-good photo.

This is definitely a 'marmite' type shot - you will either love it or hate it. It is very abstract and unconventional, which is exactly why it caught my eye. The high-key effect creates a very simple, studio like result. The bold composition is striking, with the cricket's long antennae cutting across the frame diagonally. I like it - but it is a shot that will certainly divide opinion.