Rob Smith’s photo of a drought-stricken sheep farm called Feeding the Lambs was selected from more than 2500 entries to take out the bronze medal.

The competition was judged by independent Australian Institute of Photography members in Sydney.

The 53-year-old said he felt the image encompassed the

competition’s theme, Essence of Australia, well.

“I took the photo at a mate’s farm in Milthorpe, near Bathurst, in severe drought conditions in 2007,” Mr Smith said.

“My friend, Peter, a scientist with the Department of Agriculture at Orange, comes home from work and hand feeds the sheep on his small farm.

“The sheep come from all parts of the paddock to eat the stockfeed pellets he spills on the ground from a hessian bag.”

Peter Fleming and Mr Smith studied zoology together at

university.

The Country Energy corporate photographer and Wowfactorpix founder used a slow shutter speed for his entry, “to blur the movement of the sheep, preserving the sense of urgency with which they compete for the food”.

The competition was run by www.photoartgallery.com where the winning images can be viewed.