I'm not a huge fan of the Maritime Museum as a venue for this exhibition, but I still make my annual pilgrimage to it. Some interesting images still make it through - WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR.

This year wasn't without controversy, with one winner being disqualified after it turned out that he had used a taxidermist's product in his image - Wildlife photographer of the year entry winner disqualified after judges realise it was of a stuffed anteater.

This year's installment of Wildlife Photographer of the Year at the Australian Museum has been and gone (once again this is a much delayed post - time seems to be getting away from me lately) - I thought this year's set of images was pretty good, although after 20+ years of attending I'm finding it hard to find a lot of novelty these days.

I made my annual pilgrimage to the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition over the weekend - as usual there were some amazing images.

The BBC has a report on this year's "Wildlife Photographer of the Year" exhibition - Leaping wolf snatches photo prize

A picture of a hunting wolf has won the prestigious Veolia Environment Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009 award.

Jose Luis Rodriguez captured the imaginations of the judges with a photograph that he had planned for years, and even sketched out on a piece of paper. "I wanted to capture a photo in which you would see a wolf in an act of hunting - or predation - but without blood," he told BBC News. "I didn't want a cruel image."

With a great deal of patience and careful observation of the wolves' movements, he succeeded in taking the award-winning photograph. Mr Rodriguez used a custom-built infrared trap to snap the the wolf as it leapt into the air.

The BBC reports that it is Wildlife Photographer of the Year time once again - Snow leopard wins top photo prize. More at The Telegraph.

A picture of an elusive snow leopard on a night-time prowl has won the prestigious Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2008 award.

Steve Winter's image was captured during a 13-month quest to snap the perfect photo of the endangered species in its hostile habitat high in the mountains of Central Asia. Speaking about his winning snap, Mr Winter said: "I was thrilled to have finally captured the shot I had dreamed of - a wild snow leopard in its true element."

The competition, now in its 44th year, is run by BBC Wildlife magazine and London's Natural History Museum. The panel of judges spent months shifting through more than 32,350 entries before deciding on the winners.

"Everything comes together in this striking picture," said judge Mark Carwardine on Mr Winter's image. "The drama of the snow, the mystery of the darkness, the posture of the rarely photographed snow leopard and the intriguing composition."