Once again, there were many fine entries in this competition which made my final choices difficult.  The “City Slickers” topic was understandably broad, but in all of my selections the natural and man-made elements combine effectively to create a stronger image than just a bird on its own.  In each of my final selections, the man-made element is much more than a simple prop upon which the bird is perched; there is a conscious narrative or statement being made by each of these photographers, which sets them apart.

Winner: Crested Tern - Doug Castle (Image ID 27219)

For me, the standout image of the competition, that works on so many levels.  It is simple, yet sophisticated.  The towering, shadowy cityscape figures looming in the background, dwarfing the beautifully elegant tern, is surely a metaphor for what mankind’s unrelenting “progress” will mean for the continued existence of so many other species, of which our shorebirds are such an obvious barometer.  The tern is well-exposed, and sharp; an excellent capture.

Highly Commended: Great Egret - Peter Bennet (Image ID 27429)

A super shot, with lovely placement of the egret in centre-stage foreground, and a great sense of scale with the skyscraper horizon.  Your eye just keeps being drawn back to that elegant bird, near-luminous amongst the “tangled and unkempt” wetland.  I also appreciated the creative decision by Peter to deliberately expose for the foreground, and leave the cityscape blown-out, to enhance the focal point on the bird.  Well done!

Commended: Common Blackbird - Catherine Noone (Image ID 27512)

Obviously strong, deliberate framing to this image, which is effective, although I would have cropped the LHS by say 10% to eliminate the distracting empty space behind the irrigation pipe.  In fact, a square cropping of this image could have been even better again.  The soft light on the blackbird, and the classic pose, perfectly illustrate the understated beauty of this bird.

Commended: Spotted Bowerbird - Michael Schmid (Image ID 27486)

A striking action portrait, crisp and sharp.  Simple, effective composition, with no distracting background elements.  There’s an obvious contrast between this very beautiful bird, and the industrial (ie ugly) pipe it’s using as a perch, but as Michael notes, the pipe could well be a valuable source of life-giving water to it.  To be a little picky, I would have liked to see a little more space at the bottom of the frame, and some “burning-in” post work on the end of the pipe that is a little overexposed, but a fine image nonetheless.

Commended: Spotted Dove - Richard Barton (Image ID 27435)

This was one of two excellent Spotted Dove images by Richard, but the quality of the light, the soft yet rich colours, and the careful composition in this one really makes it stand out.  All of the out-of-focus elements, both man-made and natural, combine beautifully, and the dove looks very relaxed on the brickwork.  The dove could be a little sharper, but it’s still a very attractive image, quite evocative of lazy summer days in a suburban backyard.

Commended: Common Myna - Rodney Appleby (Image ID 27567)

Great timing by Rodney to capture the mynas on the individual rungs, and his humorous comments about the corporate ladder were appropriate!  What this image screams out for is a vertical cropping, which would have made it significantly stronger.  Nevertheless, this is still an interesting, engaging image of a bird that typically is despised by so many of us!