Wild

This picture reminds me of the book called 'Where the Wild Things are'. In this photograph, a child and their imagination form monsters and strange shapes. The shadow has become its own creature. I like the composition and the square crop. The hard lines of the bricks are challenged by the abstract lines of the characters. The slightly off centre main figure allows us to dwell on the spread fingers, outstretched leg and blowing hair - most of the main areas of movement. A simple but very engaging image.

The first thing that catches your eye in this picture is the dead fledgling, the second is the newspaper headline! It wasn't until later that I noticed the odd fly or two. A really cleverly thought out and composed image with a powerful double narrative.

I think that images should be able to stand alone without reading a supporting narrative and for me this picture does just that. I don't know whether this was intended to be a documentary image but it has ended up sitting very powerfully in that genre. Are they hawks or doves? Where is the building? Is it in America or a consulate abroad? What has caused the birds to fly and why are there so many there? This work felt particularly poignant with world events at the moment. I love the composition you have chosen. The clever use of black and white forces you to look at the shapes and details without the distraction of colour. Fantastic photograph that really tells the story I was seeking.

This picture raises the old quandary as a photographer of whether to get the picture or whether to intervene. In this case, you decided to get the picture. Having lost all my frogs, newts and more in my pond to a grass snake I would have taken the other course but I will not judge you for that! The focus is exactly where it should be - at the heart of the action. With the beady eye of the snake really sharp. The movement of the frog adds drama to the picture. Again the focus in in just the right place with the leg of the frog already down the snake's throat. I think I would be inclined to crop it - perhaps even to a square - but I think that is subjective. A brilliant image that really captures the story I wanted.

What I love about this image is that wrestling is a sport that is striving to be wild, unpredictable and dangerous in appearance but it is often a carefully choreographed routine. This image captures this sense of theatre with the costumes and overacting from the main protagonists. The lack of an audience (and interest from those who are close by such as the man who looks to be more interested in his chips), brings a sense of melancholy to the piece and also makes the wildness they are aiming for seem more ironic - rather as if they are two animals in a zoo. I find the angle of the top rope slightly distracting but it does help to give a sense of scale. There is also some pixelation in the sky that makes the clouds look slightly blocky. An interesting topic and good composition with a strong narrative.

This is a very clever image indeed. The cute lion cub lulls you into a false sense of security that this is a creature akin to a domesticated kitten in a warm, red sandy landscape. The soft hair on the oversized ears and swollen dappled tummy encourage this perception. However, on closer inspection you realise that the red around the mouth, nose and on the paws is not sand but blood and that stuck on the front fang is a piece of flesh. This is not a bundle of cuteness but an alpha predator in training. This is the first time I have ever seen a lion cub depicted in this way and it is beautiful but awe-inspiring in the wildness it conveys at such a young age. The composition, colours, blurring of the background and pin sharp focus on the front half of the cub are all really impressive. It is not at all over saturated or over sharpened - it could be right in front of you. Out of all the big cat images that were submitted, this one really stood out as offering a unique story about these beautiful animals.

I love this as a documentary image with so many powerful narratives about England being part of a small island, about the British weather, about humans trying to tame nature and nature fighting back. The composition is fantastic and the wild moment of the break of the wave is perfectly ensnared for posterity. The people in the picture are important. They give it scale and context. The black and white treatment removes the distraction of colour allowing us to dwell on shape, text and form. An excellent image.

However many times I moved away from this picture I kept coming back to it. It really touched me emotionally. It raised feelings of empathy, hopelessness that there is nothing I can do to help, despair at the cruelty of humanity etc. I can see the intelligence and frustration of this poor creature, who should be free but is constrained. It is a perfectly composed image and tells the story that I wanted. The only thing I would work on slightly if I could, would be the focus on the eyes but I do understand that sometimes this isn't always possible, when an opportunity has to be grabbed, as may be the case here. An outstanding picture. Thank you for sharing.

Out of around 2,000 images, this was one of the only that showed the interior of a structure. I love the composition, the out of control foliage and the rigid but rusty (crumbling?) ironwork. The elegant architectural floral decorations really contrast well with the tangled mess of plants. There is only one thing slightly bothers me and that is that the image is not quite central. The supporting beam at the right hits the bottom corner of the image perfectly but this is not the case at the bottom left. However, I am not going to let this spoil my enjoyment of an otherwise lovely image that has layers of stories to tell and fits in with the competition title perfectly. It is beautifully sharp and a very interesting image with a strong historical as well as contemporary narrative.