The Soul Searcher challenge was all about capturing emotion, expression and eye contact from a high angle. Often referred to as the 'puppy dog eyes' shot, they're the kind of images that really tug on our heartstrings or put smiles on our faces.

As with every other challenge, we had an incredible set of images submitted and choosing the top 10 was so tough.

But here, in no particular order, are our top 10 Soul Searchers.

Congratulations to all the photographers for capturing these gorgeous images.

- Craig & Charlotte 📸 🐶 ✨

Nicole Moyer | Sweet Ellie Photography

This has a beautiful soft colour palette, great connection and tells a great story. Who could resist going for a walk with that face looking up at you!

Andrea Fleury | Dogtography

This dog has a great expression. The choice to shoot with a slightly wider angle adds a little bit of character and the colour of the background works perfectly.

Sarah Jones | Mucky Pup Photography

This is a great perspective and a unique take on a self-portrait! Beautiful sharp eyes and great catchlights and the simple background is great.

Ina Jalil | Ina J Photography

The diagonal angle of the dog in the composition is excellent and having only two contrasting colours really draws your eye right to the dog.

Cindy Mayes

Filling the frame solely with the dogs face is a very bold choice and it works wonderfully. All other is to look at is the expression and those eyes, which fits the challenge brief really well.

Blue Amrich | Beyond The Fence

Great expression, beautiful even light on the dogs face and shot from a nice high angel to get that puppy dog eyes look.

Jacqui Jensen-Roy | Soul Puppy Photography

The expression of this dog is absolutely priceless! The face is evenly lit and the focus is pin-sharp on the eyes making it a perfect image for this challenge.

Nicole Hrustyk | Pawtraits By Nicole

This is really soulful and really fits the brief. The eyes piercing from the darkness and the symmetry make this a very captivating image.

Suzy McCracken | Suzy McCracken Photography

This is a beautifully simple Soul Search image. The addition of the yellow flowers is a great compliment to the colours in the dog's fur.

Michelle Crandall | Pets in Focus

This has lovely tonality through it, great angles and big beautiful eyes looking up at you!

The Unleashed Challenges - Embark Round is made up of 12 challenges over 6 months.

More than just a challenge, they are an invaluable educational resource that will help you build up a go-to list of shots to help create variety in your work. Designed for anyone to be able to complete whether you just want to photograph your own dog or you are a professional pet photographer.

If you'd like to know more head over here to register your interest and we'll send you all the details when enrollment next opens in October 2021.