It’s that time of year again. The British Wildlife Photography Awards have been announced, showcasing wildlife from around the UK, and this years results have seen one of the badgers that visit my garden, in a rainstorm, and a backlit puffin in flight receiving Highly Commended honours.

The badger in particular is a shot I’m delighted to see make it through (best viewed large to see the small rain drops). With badger culls in the UK seemingly never ending, anything that helps give recognition to these wonderful animals and how we can live side by side with them, can only be a good thing. On a more personal note it also marks the third image from my Back Garden Safari project to gain formal recognition in various competitions, which I’m especially thankful for. The image was taken with a Nikon D5500, 16-80mm lens, 3 x Nikon SB28 flashguns and a Camtraptions PIR sensor.

Secondly, an image that has done the rounds a little over the last year or so. A puffin in flight on Skomer Island, taken with a slow shutter speed to emphasis the backlight coming through it’s wings. It’s an image I’ve been fond of since the I first saw it appear on the back of my camera last year, especially after 300 failed attempts to capture it. The reason for so many failed efforts was the 1/60th second shutter speed I was using at 400mm, in order to show as much movement in the wings as possible whilst trying to retain a sharp enough head. Tricky, but good fun!

A huge congratulations to those who feature this year, especially the winner George Stoyle. You can see a selection of winning images on the British Wildlife Photography Awards website and for those who want to see the entire selection of successfully chosen photos, grab yourself a copy of the 2016 competitions coffee table book.