Yorkshire Wildlife Trust has been inundated with entries for its photography competition. STEPHEN LEWIS reports.

WE think you’ll agree that all five of the wildlife photographs on these pages today are brilliant. But which is the best?

Well, that’s for you to say.

The Yorkshire Wildlife Trust has been inundated with entries for its Wildlife Photography Competition.

Earlier this week, a panel of judges – including award-winning wildlife photographer Steve Race of Yorkshire Coast Nature – spent a day sifting through more than 600 entries to choose five finalists in each of four categories.

Now, members of the public have until Friday next week to vote for their favourite photo in each category.

The photos shown today are the five finalists in the wildlife category. In our photos section, however, you can see the finalists in the other three categories, too.

These are:

• Yorkshire’s Wild Places

• Wildlife Watch (a special category for the under-15s)

• Smartphone, for images taken on a mobile phone.

Joanna Richards, the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s communications officer, said the standard of entries had been incredibly high, with a real mix of subjects.

“We have been delighted with the great variety and quality of the photos submitted by local people,” she said.

“It was incredibly difficult to make a decision as to which should go forward with so many amazing images to choose from.”

After a full day of judging, Steve said: “To look through all the images that had been submitted reminded me of the amazing depth of wildlife we have throughout our county. The standard was excellent across all categories and it was a delight to see the quality of photography coming from the young wildlife photographers.”

Now it is up to members of the public to vote for their favourite photo in each category – and that includes you.

You can also see the shortlisted photos on the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s website at
www.ywt.org.uk/pc15-finalists – where you will be able to vote for your favourite.

Each category winner will receive a place on a wildlife safari or photography workshop with Yorkshire Coast Nature, while those in second place will win a subscription to a photography magazine. All finalists will also receive a printed copy of their photography courtesy of Ark Display in Leeds, a supporter of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust.

“All that remains to say is good luck to those finalists – and to everyone else, please get voting”, said Joanna.