Pictures of the Month 2021
From this month on, there is a slight change to the selection procedure. In line with the procedure used for the Picture of the Year, a small committee will agree a short-list of pictures, based on criteria of sharpness/focus, composition, light/exposure, and rarity. From this selection which is presented to the person choosing the Picture of the Month, one winner will be chosen.
January
Kingfisher © Roger Cresswell, Cambridge, 25th January
Mike Foley chose Picture of the Month for January: "With so many wonderful photographs to look at, I am rather relieved that I have had technical help to reduce the number to ten. Even so, it has been a challenge. Not being a photographer I am in awe at the patience and expertise that is often needed to get a really good photo. To me, a particularly striking bird is the Jonathan Stephenson's Carrion Crow, in a snow scene made bleaker by having such bedraggled plumage. Garth Peacock's Cattle Egret was high up the list as a potential bird of the month, as was Mike Weedon's Iceland Gull, but after a lot of thought my choice for Picture of the Month has to be Roger Cresswell's Kingfisher. Roger has thoughtfully caused a deliberate blurring of the background which focuses the eye fully on the bird, enhancing the excellent artistic composition."
February
Jackdaw © Jonathan Stephenson, St. Ives, 23rd February 2021
Sue Greenway chose this month's picture. She says, thank you for giving me the opportunity to choose a picture of the month. I have been informed that February can be a difficult month to photograph birds due to the quality of light. I am not a photographer so I am relieved that I only have 10 fantastic photos to choose from. My husband ( who is a photographer) helpfully suggested some subcategories to score each photo on. This still made it difficult to choose but in the end, the one photo that made me smile and keep coming back to was Jonathan Stephenson's Jackdaw. In this photo, I could really feel the character of the bird and the sense of its movement as it shook the water from itself.
March
White-tailed Eagle © Ian Dawson, Grafham Water, 6th March 2021
Duncan Mackay made this month's selection:
"I enjoyed several of this month's images. Some are excellent compositions, others are technically almost perfect... but combining both photographic criteria with what the image tells you about the bird and its behaviour, I think the series of White-tailed Eagle photos by Ian Dawson takes some beating. The mobbing gull for scale, together with the dramatic bending of the feathers really gives the photograph a lot of feeling which makes this image very arresting. Number 5 is my choice".
April
Bearded Tit © Neil Bramwell, Ouse Fen RSPB, 22nd April 2021
Tim Watling has made the April selection: "A difficult decision between two pictures and I have chosen this Bearded Tit. It is centrally positioned in the frame, all in focus and brightly lit. The plumage detail is well defined with bright white-looking specs on the chest, the wing colours are all picked out and the long tail is showing to two points. The bird’s size is shown by the scale against the reed background. What a lovely bird."
May
Long-tailed Tit © Jonathan Heath, 16 May 2021, Cambridge Research Park,
Louise Bacon writes: due to an administrative glitch, the POTM shortlist only appeared on May 25th, and no other volunteer came through speedily to make a selection, so the Chair went for the easiest option which was to dump it on the other occupant of the house!
It was relatively easy to get to my top three picks from the 10 that I was asked to select from, although I very nearly stopped at the first picture, which happens to be the one I went for... however, there were two excellent photos which did make the choice a little harder. Ian Dawson's Pied Flycatcher just shows how beautiful a black and white bird can be, and Richard Patient's Channel Wagtail (pic 2) was also an excellent composition clearly showing the features key to identification of this hybrid. In the end, Jon Heath's Long-tailed Tits won it. Activity, a well-composed picture and cute fledglings usually win it for me any time...
June
Peregrine Falcon © Simon Stirrup, Ely Cathedral, 25 June 2021,
Alan Fersht has selected the June winner:
"In my opinion, the first of a series of Peregrine shots taken by Simon Stirrup on the 25th June is outstanding and deserves to win. Lots of action, interesting, nicely sharp, good lighting and nicely composed."
July
Tawny Owl © Nigel Sprowell, undisclosed site, 26 July 2021
Tracey Graves chose this month's picture.
“As a new member, I was honoured to be asked to judge this month’s photos. By coincidence, I had my first ever Tawny Owl sighting in July, with two chicks appearing in my garden, but my shot was nowhere near the quality of Nigel’s adult owl. Presumably it is relatively used to humans, to have been able to get so close, but any night-time photography is tricky. Well done.”
August
Ringed Plover © Pat Doody, Borrow Pit Brampton, 1 Aug 2021
James Hanlon chose this month's picture.
"Some lovely pics to look through for the month of August, with fledged juveniles, fluffy chicks, passage waders and active singers all featuring in the mix. Choosing a favourite is never easy as there are many quality photos that didn't even make the short-list. Of those that I enjoyed the Cuckoo shots from both Howard Slatter and Roger Cresswell, good images of a shy species. Jonathan Stephenson's Kingfisher with raised wings shows a lovely pose; Ian Dale's Sand Martin is nicely captured though the Coot spoils the backdrop a little. But it was Pat Doody's action shot of a cringing Ringed Plover getting dive-bombed by a territorial Little Ringed Plover that made my final choice with a blend of action and species comparison".
September
Black Tern © Garth Peacock, Dernford Reservoir, 3 September 2021
Pam Peacock selected this month's picture. "My eye was immediately caught with Charlie Kitchin’s Hoopoe, a stunning bird on a sunny day. Ed Gill captured the piercing stare of a Sparrowhawk perched with clenched talon in a tree illuminated with dappled sunlight but it was the crisp flight shot of Garth Peacock’s juvenile Black Tern that is my choice for this month".
October
Dunlin © Steve Cooper, Dernford Reservoir, 21 Oct 2021
Louise Bacon has made the selection for October.
Lots of photos of egrets not surprisingly this month, including one by Richard Patient with a Cattle and a Little associating with a cow, as we often see them in other parts of the world which sums up how they are becoming a normal part of our avifauna. The Mallard covered with foam also by Richard Patient made me laugh... those odd foamy bits of water always intrigue me. But the Dunlin at Dernford Reservoir by Steve Cooper shows a winter Dunlin in nice strong light. This is well composed, and in excellent autumn light making it my choice for Photo of the Month for October.
November
Our Chair, Vince Lea, has selected the November Photo of the Month.
Several pin-sharp flight photos of difficult species such as Matthew Binns's Stonechat, always a restless and darting little subject, Neil Bramwell's Great Grey Shrike and Colin Brown's fierce-eyed Sparrowhawk were strong contenders. However, my final choice was split between two perched birds. Nick Monk's Kingfisher surrounded by ivy had a wonderful atmosphere, with a great highlight in the eye and looked very seasonal, but was perhaps not perfectly sharp due to the low light conditions. Neil Bramwell's Short-eared Owl was slightly marred by the obscuring twigs of its hawthorn perch, but the raised right leg and the clear view of the perched left showed an element of this species which we rarely see when they are quartering the grasslands or perched on the ground; those enormous feet and needle-sharp talons. Along with a fabulous expression on its face this makes Neil's Short-eared Owl my Photo of the Month.
December
Water Rail © George Walthew, Kings Dyke NR, 21 Dec 2021
Duncan McNiven has made the latest selection:
Of the eleven photos I was provided with to judge, three immediately stood out to me. Richard Mitchell’s photo of a Common Sandpiper with its feet in the turbulent water of the rocky Grafham Water shoreline is a delightful study of a wader in typical habitat, albeit at a slightly unfamiliar time of year for this species in Cambridgeshire. Ian Dale’s lovely portrait of a male Blackbird perched on a branch against a neutral background so perfectly captured the satin-like quality of its plumage that I could have been fooled into thinking it was a studio portrait if not for the fact that I know it was taken in Fowlmere village. However, my vote for Picture of the Month was swayed by the capture of some atypically bold and unusual behaviour by a normally shy, retiring species. Water Rails are well known for the catholic nature of their prey items, which can include even small birds on occasion. This opportunism is beautifully captured by George Walthew’s photo of a Water Rail expertly clinging on to a hanging feeder by two of its claws at Kings Dyke Nature Reserve, helping itself to the seeds and grains intended to help the local finches through the winter.