Michelle Hartnett, Raven in the rain (ANIMAL & NATURE 2025)

I photographed this rain soaked Raven at the Ballina Head Lookout, in Northern NSW, on a wild, and stormy day. Hardly ideal conditions for bird photography, but he looked so dramatic against the stormy sky & sea, perched above one of the padlocks that couples often attach to the wire fencing as symbols of their unbreakable love. He was certainly proving unbreakable as he hung on to the fencing in all that wind and rain! I was able to capture these images in between rain squalls, steadying my camera on my car's open window. I loved the movement & detail, including the tiny flecks of sand, in his rain soaked feathers & his determination to stay perched, despite the elements.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.