"Narrowing down the choices in this contest ended up being more of a challenge than I thought it would be. There were a number of amazing images submitted and it was a very tough decision. In the end, though, there was one particular image I kept coming back to and Sem by Yonglei took the prize. This photo is eye-catching for a reason and it really has to do with some basic photography principles effectively implemented. If you want an example of the perfect use of the rule of thirds this is it with the dog's face weighted to the left third of the frame which draws your eye to it and gives the atmosphere and tone of the background a chance to breathe. I was also struck by the way the foreground was used to help frame the subject. This also helps draw attention to the dog and makes the composition really interesting. I’m equally impressed with the tone-on-tone approach here with the leaves, fur, eyes and background all being in the same color family - not to mention the patience required by Yonglei (and the do) to place and arrange the leaves. I know how challenging that can be to get just right! Finally, I just love the lens and focal-length choices here They really set the dog off nicely in middle ground and give a lovely fall-off between him or her and the foreground and background. " - Mark Rogers

"Skillfully composed action shot with dog captured midstride, good eye contact framed perfectly by the background trees with the snow path leading the eye" - Mark Rogers

"A wonderfully weird, abstract image that just screams DOG! Aside from the cool shapes and distortion from the water the combination of awesome colors with the rich blue sky against the green from the trees and the hot pink focal point of the dog’s tongue just make this a special photograph." - Mark Rogers