Competition Voting Results

Eligible species for the Cockatoos competition, held in April 2016, were: Palm Cockatoo, Red-tailed Black-cockatoo, Glossy Black-cockatoo, Yellow-tailed Black-cockatoo, Carnaby's Black-cockatoo, Baudin's Black-cockatoo, Gang-gang Cockatoo, Galah, Long-billed Corella, Western Corella, Little Corella, Major Mitchell's Cockatoo, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo and the Cockatiel.

The results of member voting for the top 5 (or more, in the case of tied scores) images in each category are listed here.  In line with many other bird/wildlife photo competitions, we present the results in the following manner: the Winner is the image which received the most votes; and we also show the next four highest placed images, rating them as Highly Commended if they received at least 90% of the votes for the winning image, and Commended for scores less than that.

Advanced Level – Cockatoos

This category attracted 46 entries, from 19 photographers.  40 members voted, with the following result:

• Winner - Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, by Ian Wilson (Image ID 20079)
• Highly Commended - Long-billed Corella, by Ian Smissen (Image ID 19673)
• Commended - Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo, by Tony Ashton (image no longer available)
• Commended - Major Mitchell's Cockatoo, by Con Boekel (Image ID 19962)
• Commended - Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo, by Keith Lightbody (image no longer available)
• Commended - Gang-gang Cockatoo, by Tim Van Leeuwen (Image ID 19856)

Intermediate Level – Cockatoos

This category attracted 73 entries, from 24 photographers. 43 members voted, with the following result:

• Winner - Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, by Mark Lethlean (Image ID 19835)
• Commended - Gang-gang Cockatoo, by Marilyn Ellis (Image ID 20035)
• Commended - Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, by Bill Harris (Image ID 19979)
• Commended - Galah, by Mary Wheeler (Image ID 20050)
• Commended - Hybrid, by Mark Lethlean (Image ID 19767)
• Commended - Cockatiel, by Mark Lethlean (Image ID 19834)

Entry Level – Cockatoos

This category attracted 50 entries, from 16 photographers. 41 members voted, with the following result:

• Winner - Carnaby's Black-Cockatoo, by Gary Meredith (Image ID 20037)
• Highly Commended - Palm Cockatoo, by Bill Carroll (Image ID 19949)
• Commended - Red-tailed Black-Cockatoo, by William Woodhouse (Image ID 19845)
• Commended - Galah, by William Woodhouse (Image ID 19846)
• Commended - Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, by Patricia Sheumack (Image ID 20056)

The results of member voting for the top 5 images in each category of the Juveniles & Immatures competition, held in February 2016, are shown here.  In line with many other bird/wildlife photo competitions, we present the results in the following manner: the Winner is the image which received the most votes; and we also show the next four highest placed images, rating them as Highly Commended if they received at least 90% of the votes for the winning image, and Commended for scores less than that.

Advanced Level – Juveniles & Immatures

This category attracted 46 entries, from 16 photographers.  28 members voted, with the following result:

• Winner - Eastern Spinebill, by Ian Wilson (Image ID 19477)
• Highly Commended - Double-banded Plover, by Geoff Gates (image no longer available)
• Commended - Crested Tern, by Andrew Browne (image no longer available)
• Commended - Hooded Plover, by Geoff Gates (image no longer available)
• Commended - Strong-billed Honeyeater, by Andrew Browne (image no longer available)

Intermediate Level – Juveniles & Immatures

This category attracted 68 entries, from 21 photographers. 27 members voted, with the following result:

• Winner - Crimson Rosella, by Wilson Lennard (image no longer available)
• Commended - Glossy Black-Cockatoo, by Pamela Kenway (Image ID 19113)
• Commended - Eastern Spinebill, by Kathy Zonnevylle (Image ID 19336)
• Commended - Gang-gang Cockatoo, by Stephen Garth (Image ID 19301)
• Commended - Brown Thornbill, by Glenn Pure (Image ID 19131)
• Commended - Black-shouldered Kite, by Murray Chambers (Image ID 19070)

Entry Level – Juveniles & Immatures

This category attracted 66 entries, from 18 photographers. 28 members voted, with the following result:

• Equal Winner - Mulga Parrot, by Gunther Frensch (Image ID 19168)
• Equal Winner - Golden-headed Cisticola, by Peter Latta (Image ID 18945)
• Commended - Australian King-Parrot, by Bill Carroll (Image ID 19461)
• Commended - Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher, by Peter Latta (Image ID 16420)
• Commended - Blue-faced Honeyeater, by Mary Wheeler (Image ID 19249)

The My Best Bird Photo Ever competition was held in December 2015.  The results of member voting for the top 5 images in each category are shown here.  In line with many other bird/wildlife photo competitions, we present the results in the following manner: the Winner is the image which received the most votes; and we also show the next four highest placed images, rating them as Highly Commended if they received at least 90% of the votes for the winning image, and Commended for scores less than that.

Advanced Level – My Best Bird Photo Ever

This category attracted 54 entries, from 17 photographers.  33 members voted, with the following result:

• Winner - Crimson Chat, by Graham Cam (Image ID 18726)
• Commended - Whiskered Tern, by Ian Wilson (Image ID 18797)
• Commended - Spotted Pardalote, by Geoff Gates (image no longer available)
• Commended - Eastern Whipbird, by Warren Wilson (image no longer available)
• Commended - Black-fronted Dotterel, by Geoff Gates (image no longer available)

Intermediate Level – My Best Bird Photo Ever

This category attracted 104 entries, from 35 photographers. 29 members voted, with the following result:

• Winner - Australian Hobby, by Con Duyvestyn (Image ID 18581)
• Highly Commended - Striated Pardalote, by Bruce Mcnaughton (Image ID 18262)
• Commended - Australian Logrunner, by Philip Bender (Image ID 18808)
• Commended - Striated Thornbill, by Glenn Pure (Image ID 18380)
• Commended - Azure Kingfisher, by Paul Jensen (Image ID 18496)

Entry Level – My Best Bird Photo Ever

This category attracted 75 entries, from 26 photographers. 35 members voted, with the following result:

• Equal Winner - Eastern Reef Egret, by Karen Emery (Image ID 18714)
• Equal Winner - Australian Owlet-nightjar, by Karen Emery (Image ID 18713)
• Highly Commended - Cattle Egret, by Anne Burgess (Image ID 18550)
• Commended - Splendid Fairy-wren, by Carole O'Neill (Image ID 18717)
• Commended - Eastern Great Egret, by Karen Emery (Image ID 18715)

The LBJs competition was held in October-November 2015.   For those who are not sure what constitutes an LBJ, Wikipedia defines it as follows:

“Little brown job or LBJ is an informal name commonly used by birders for any of the large number of species of small brown passerine birds, many of which are notoriously difficult to distinguish. This is especially true for females, which lack much of the colouring present in males.”

In the interests of clarity, the theme is limited to images of birds which are predominantly brown or greyish-brown in colour.  In other words, a female, non-breeding (eclipse plumaged) male or juvenile Superb or Splendid Fairy-wren would qualify as an LBJ, but the brightly coloured (nuptial plumaged) male would not.

The Advanced level attracted 37 entries from 14 photographers.  The results of members' voting were as follows: Winner - Chris Morecroft's Mistletoebird (image ID 17786); Highly Commended - Geoff Gates' Striated Fieldwren (image no longer available); Commended - Con Boekel's Shy Heathwren (image ID 17923), Ian Wilson's Striated Fieldwren (image ID 18056), and Geoff Gates' Golden-headed Cisticola (image no longer available).

The Intermediate level attracted 81 entries from 26 photographers.  The results of members' voting were as follows: Winner - Glenn Pure's Buff-rumped Thornbill (image ID 17746); Highly Commended - Kathy Zonnevylle's Jacky Winter (image ID 17756) and Bruce Mcnaughton's Golden-headed Cisticola (image ID 17696); Commended - Kym Murphy's White-winged Fairy-wrens (image no longer available) and John MacKay's Buff-sided Robin (image ID 18039).

The Entry level attracted 54 entries from 19 photographers.   The results of members' voting were as follows: Winner - Michael Brown's Dusky Robin (image ID 17791); Commended - Karen Emery's Brown Honeyeater (image ID 17947), Pauline Follett's Jacky Winter (image ID 17890), Karen Emery's Grey-headed Robin (image ID 17828) and Gillian Rayment's White-browed Scrubwren (image ID 17851).

The Pigeons & Doves competition was held in July-August 2015.  According to Tim Low*, Australia is as much a land of pigeons as of parrots, with ten times as many pigeon genera as Europe, and twice as many as North and South America combined. We had a total of 18 species represented in images in the competition, with an additional four species (Banded Fruit-Dove, Flock Bronzewing, Partridge Pigeon and
Superb Fruit-dove) missing.

The Advanced level attracted 35 entries from 12 photographers.   The results of members' voting were as follows: Winner - Bruce Thomson's Brown Cuckoo-Dove (image ID 16704); Commended - Mark Lethlean's Common Bronzewing (image ID 16783), Brian O'Leary's Bar-shouldered Dove (image ID 16799) and Emerald Dove (image no longer available), and Les Peters' White-headed Pigeon (image ID 16837).

The Intermediate level attracted 55 entries from 22 photographers.   The results of members' voting were as follows: Winner - Adam Kraska's Brown Cuckoo-Dove (image ID 16967); Commended - Bill Harris' White-quilled Rock-Pigeon (image ID 16996), James Robins' Spinifex Pigeons (image ID 16697), Judy Leitch's Crested Pigeon (image no longer available), and Geoffrey Dennis' Brown Cuckoo-Doves (image ID 17057).

The Entry level attracted 23 entries from 13 photographers.   The results of members' voting were as follows: Winner - Mary Wheeler's Crested Pigeons (image ID 16856); Highly Commended - Pennie Marks' White-headed Pigeon (image ID 16906); Commended - Deb Oliver's Common Bronzewing (image ID 16893), Lewis Howard's Peaceful Doves (image ID 17099), and Jeffrey Robinson's Brush Bronzewing (image ID 16889).