Wildlife Photo Competition 1 2014 : Judges Critiques

This round gets twelve Marks of Excellence because I cannot bring myself to eliminate any more. This black and white polar bear for example is just so handsome. Well done.

How sweet, and what a great frame mother makes for this baby lama. Well spotted , sensitively composed, and you got a great big-eye pose from the baby.

The colours are nice and strong here, thanks to the overcast conditions I would think, but also because the tide is out and everything is still wet. Starfish are good subjects, they are beautiful, can make graphic shapely compositions and they belong to that special group of animals that humans endear to. This one does look a bit poorly though…

Beautiful, but this is a bird. Before entering a photo competition it is advisable to read the guide lines. Maybe you should post this in the “Birds” competition?

Your exposure is excellent, really setting off the detail of this mountain goat’s winter coat and beard. He is a handsome beast (and of course a wonderful encounter) and you have recorded that very well. A little something extra however would have helped this get further in this competition, he is somewhat static.

Ok, I see what you see and I understand why you have entered this photo. A slow shutter has brought movement to one of the animals and this helps the other one come to our attention. Unfortunately I am having trouble identifying this monkey (?). The blurry one is too blurry, the other is cropped off and turning away… Of course an animal’s identity bears no importance here, we are looking for nice photography, but the overall effect is a little confusing, not very easy to look at. I suggest you try again, continue with this technique until you clinch it, you certainly could get something worth the while.

More birds, and a whole flock this time ! ☺

How sweet is this hairy porcupine! You certainly win the “aww” votes with this charming pose but once again this photo lacks a little magic something to make it extra special. Focus is a little too far back (on its feet) and so its face has lost its punch and detail.

Synchronised jumping by humpback whales, an amazing experience and exciting subject to photograph. This is where animal photography overlaps with sports photography making action-wildlife, a great subject. You had lovely light and you have framed a nice sky and background but you have spoiled the whales somehow, perhaps by locally over adjusting the levels which gives the whales their rather unnatural low contrast compared to the water and surrounding scene.

If this is in your aquarium at home you could set up a studio-like area within the tank. With some experimenting you would get nice original seahorse shots on a black or white (for example) background with no reflection and good lighting… It is an intriguing subject but the surrounding scene is pretty distracting, and focus is lacking on the seahorse.