We're up to challenge number seven of Emerge, Silhouetto. It's another of our personal favourites and it seems we're not alone! Our challengers created some incredible silhouettes for this challenge and we had a hard time narrowing the submissions down to our top ten!

Silhouettes eliminate textural detail and black out facial expressions, relying instead on the pose and body language of the dog to tell the story.

The simplicity of a silhouette helps the subject stand out as the feature of the image, but the lack of detail in the shadows also creates a sense of mystery, leaving the finer details to the viewer's imagination and allowing them to create their own story.

Here are the top 10, in no particular order.

Charlotte & Craig 🐶 📸 ✨

We provide video feedback on all images submitted for the challenge, and from there, we select our Top 20 and Top 10. Without further ado, here are the Top 10 images for this challenge!

Camilla Johannessen | Hundefoto.nu

This silhouette allows the viewer to study the points in this dog's stride and get lost in the action, then the eye wanders back to the start and you start to enjoy the splashes and space between the dogs.

Kristy Wallis | Borderfame Photography

The dog has been very well posed in this image. Elevating the front legs makes a more interesting shape and allows the head to be visible when turning back to look over his shoulder.

Krystal Annetts

What a great image! The wet fur clumping into thicker strands around and under the dog creates a very graphic silhouette. The reflection really adds to the image and the sun just touching the horizon is fabulous.

Nikki Jennifer | Nikki Jennifer Photography

A fabulously canine image! The bark/howl is captured beautifully here and seeing the shape of all four legs defined with little bits of light between them is excellent.

Ranmali Dinwoodie | The Snoot Pet Photography

This is so cinematic and almost haunting. Despite the dog being small in the frame and the visual interest of the tree, the dog is the main area of interest and the viewer's eye always lands with them.

Shelly Cavallaro | Wherever the Nose Goes

This silhouette has a lovely outline and it's so sharp, giving an extra level of interest in the dog's beard! The composition works nicely and the transition along the visual horizon from sharp rock to soft trees also adds a nice interest.

Sherry Glassman | Sherry Glassman

What a dynamic silhouette. There's so much detail in the outline of this dog, the tiny space between them and the ball, the flicks of sand, the shapes. The sky has so much texture to explore too.

Valerie Howes | Wild + Ruff

Lovely crisp, clean lines and a well-defined shape make this a successful silhouette. The sky looks fantastic too.

Vera Faupel | @everythingpawssible

The trot of this dog has been captured so well in this silhouette. The outline is clear and sharp and the light middle and dark top of the image add mood, while holding the viewer's eye on the subject.

Yvonne Van Lieshout | de Brons fotografie

What a lovely moment of interaction between these two. The profile of the person's face allows for the emotional connection to become evident in silhouette form. The light is gorgeous and the way it hits the dog's front legs is perfect, allowing separation from the background.

Emerge is the intermediate 6-month interactive challenge-based dog photography course in our Unleashed Challenges series, focusing on helping you to expand your shooting shot list and learn valuable new skills.

Emerge is open to students who have previously completed the first course in the series, Embark.

Want to be the first to hear when Embark opens for enrolment each year? Register your interest here.