What a pleasure it is to review such a fine collection of images representing the theme of “Feeding”.  A very good proportion of these pictures have impact – that elusive and difficult to define experience that elicits a response in the viewer along the lines of “Wow – look at that!”

With impeccable timing these photographers have captured moments of drama and gore – insects caught in mid-air or in mid beak, and the bloodied remains of prey animals in the fearsome talons of raptors.  To capture such moments is a demanding task in itself; to capture them in spectacular light, and to so arrange them in the frame that they present a pleasing and engaging composition – that represents another level of challenge entirely.

Many of these images effectively capture interesting feeding behavior, but if the light is behind the bird rather than on it, if details of feathers and eye are not sharp, if the bird is behind shrubbery or grass stems which cross its body or cast unflattering shadows, or if the background is distracting ... then the interest of the subject is compromised when it comes the meeting the demands and criteria of photographic competition.

Six images have been selected for commentary and commendation, but many others in this collection are worthy of praise.  Congratulations to all for getting out there and capturing this behavior in the first place, and congratulations to the winners for creating images of beauty that capture the bird and the behavior in wonderful light, and give pleasure to all who look at them.

Winner:  Broad-billed Sandpiper, by Chris Young  (Image ID 33082)

It is very hard to find anything to criticize in this image, which addresses the theme of “feeding” very effectively.  The great advantage of this picture is the beautiful light that is on the bird, enabling us to see every detail of the plumage.  There are no spectacular colours to excite the viewer, but the understated beauty of the feathers is a significant point of interest, and the blurring of both foreground and background is very effective.  The photographer has selected a very narrow depth of field which really works to maximum advantage in this shot.  There is much to appreciate in the fact that this bird is manifestly “feeding”.  The half-closed eye and the bracing of the legs suggest that something of significance has been detected and grasped by that probing bill, and the small bubbles at the intersection of bill and sand give a sense of movement.  Congratulations on a beautiful picture.

Runner Up:  Musk Lorikeet, by Warren Bennett  (Image ID 32611)

This is a dramatic capture which emphasizes the brash and garish colours of the lorikeet’s head.  There is nothing subtle or understated here, but an “in your face” confidence that demands our attention.  This picture is sharp everywhere it needs to be – with the dramatic eye, the facial plumage and the details of the bottle brush all in excellent focus.  As a point of composition, it is good that the eye is not in the middle of the frame, but above and to the right of centre.  Aesthetically, there is perhaps a clash between the colour of the flower and the red on the lorikeet, and in a perfect world we might wish for a callistemon that better complemented the plumage of the bird, but we photographers can only play with the cards we are dealt, and this is an arresting image.

Commended:  Pied Stilt, by Warren Bennett  (Image ID 32610)

This is a very fine image which captures the moment of “feeding” very effectively.   The bird itself is well lit and the horizontal crop works very well in this case, giving the bird “room to move” and providing context and ambience.  There is a nice highlight in the red eye, bringing the subject to life, but what makes this image stand out is the artistic trail of water running unbroken from the tip of the bill back into the pool.  The flailing claws of the crab, raised as it were in ill-fated supplication, give a sense of the drama of a life and death struggle on the beach.  A small point of criticism is that there is an ambiguous smudge associated with the mangrove roots on the far left, and once I had noticed it I found it something of a distraction.  Perhaps a slightly tighter crop would have worked just as well?  Nevertheless, this is very well executed.

Commended:  Great Knot, by Chris Young  (Image ID 32622)

Many of the comments made about the image of the Broad Billed Sandpiper can be applied to this beautiful photograph of a Great Knot.  Once again we have the bird captured in beautiful golden light, and once again the details of the bird are impressively sharp and engaging.  The almost uniformly grey background and foreground are beautifully blurred, allowing all of the attention to be focused on the bird itself.  The puddle in the foreground provides a partial reflection of the subject, adding another dimension of interest which effectively complements the whole.

Commended:  Glossy Black Cockatoo, by Warren Bennett  (Image ID 32608)

This image is “made” by the liquid gold in the puddles, and the way in which that colour complements the plumage of the cockatoo.  Remove that glorious light and the photograph is unremarkable, – a largely grey parrot on a grey background- but paint back that shiny gold leaf and every aspect of the image is lifted to another level.  At once we have atmosphere and ambience, beauty and contrast, interest and engagement.  In addressing other details of the image it should be noted that we can see some details of the plumage – particularly that of the bird’s head – and that there is a nice highlight in the eye, bringing the bird to life.  At the intersection of the beak and the water there is a nice reflection and a beautiful golden ring .  But it’s the gold, gold, gold that makes this picture special.  Congratulations on a very nice capture.

Commended:  Noisy Friarbird, by Ian Fellowes  (Image ID 32543)

What a moment of drama and interest has been captured here!  A fraction of a second earlier or later and we would have had a very different shot.  The viewer’s eye is drawn immediately, indeed insistently, to the shape of that snapping beak, and the mind’s eye is drawn to the imagination of what the next moment will bring.  The entire bird is in sharp focus, and the plumage is detailed and well exposed.  The branch on which the bird is perched is also in focus and its texture adds a level of interest to the composition … but all of the drama is in that prehistoric head with its snapping beak and flaming red eye.  A small point of criticism is that the background of this image is rather busy, and while it is nicely blurred, there is still a level of distracting detail happening.  Perhaps the image could have been strengthened by a slightly greater degree of cropping, and the background could have been darkened a little in post-production.  When all is said and done however, this is still a fine image.  “Wow – look at that!”