Competition Results Autumn 2007

In view of the weather this Summer - and I use the word 'Summer' advisedly - the judges were surprised not to have seen more images of Chinese Water Deer but the mix of pictures was excellent and choosing winners in the open and members' sections was extremely difficult yet again.

What has been rewarding for the judges is seeing how some entrants have improved throughout the year, not just in the quality of their print production but also in composition and interpretation of the subject matter.

There were more entries in this quarter than in the Summer event and there is still all to play for as the points gap has closed between several entrants in both the members and open sections. A photographers three best scores will produce an overall winner but if there is a tie then other factors will come into play.

In the latest round the members' winner was George Trebinski who again submitted several excellent pictures but his winning shot was of a moving roe buck in a stubble field. The buck was chasing a doe but George was unable to change lenses on his Canon 5D camera to get both animals in the one frame and had to use his 400 L f2.8 lens with a 1,4 converter at 1/4000^th of a second. George wins £30 and a pack of Canon printing papers from the London Camera Exchange (Salisbury)

Second in the members' category was Kevin Messenger's image of a roe buck with a buttercup in its mouth. The picture was taken on a Canon 30D with a 170-500mm lens and was well caught at the optimum moment to show the flower to its best advantage. The splash of yellow really stands out. Kevin wins £25.

Winning third place and £20 was member Dave Blake with a nicely captured shot on his Canon EOS 20D with a 100-400mm IS USM lens of a 'Dozing Buck'. The deer is very sharp and the closed eye expression portrays an animal relaxing in the sun. The background is suitably out of focus to make the buck stand out and like the other winners it was well spotted and the shutter depressed at the optimum time.

The last of the prizes in the members' category went to Chris Howard with a shot of a Sika stag browsing on leaves. Taken on Canon 5D with 100-400 IS USM lens it shows the animal actively stripping the branches and with a leaf and branch in its mouth.

In the Open section the prizes go to familiar names who are consistent in the quality of the images that they submit. First place goes to Alex Hedger with a portrait of a young red stag. Alex lay still in the long grass and this stag approached very close and totally unaware of the photographer. Alex used a Nikon D70 camera with a Nikon 70-200mm lens. It is a fine example of maintaining a discrete presence and letting the animal approach the photographer. He wins £30 and a pack of Canon printing paper from the London Camera Exchange (Salisbury)

Graeme Purdy, who has won the previous two open quarterly events, was place second in this one. Nevertheless, he has captured an image that typifies one of the hazards found in our parks and countryside - the ubiquitous plastic bag.

The predicament this animal found itself in might not have been too serious - although I'm sure that it was at least irritating - but similar bags can easily be swallowed with fatal consequences. The picture is well graded, smooth, sharp and well composed for effect and was only second by one point. The picture was taken on a Canon 1D Mk2 & 300mm lens. Graeme wins £20.

There is one round of the 2007 competition left and that closes on 20^th October. We have had some great pictures submitted so far and we look forward to seeing even more in the final round. Don't forget the overall Open prize is the Canon 400D SLR with 18-55mm lens and the members category prize is a Canon Pixma printer. Both fantastic prizes donated by Canon UK.

The 2008 event will be announced fully in the January 2008 issue of DEER and on the web site. It will be a larger competition than 2007 with some valuable prizes so makes sure that you get out there and take some prize winning shots in plenty of time.

Good luck to all of you entering next time.