The annual Audubon Bird Photography Awards contest is open for entries in 8 categories, and if you take videos of birds, there is a Video category for your best production too. You have until noon EST next Wednesday, March 4th to enter your photos or videos, so be sure to get your entries in pronto! Having alerted readers to this prestigious photo competition in the January 28 issue of The Birding Wire, it's getting down to the wire. Judges will score photographs and videos on their technical quality, originality, and artistic merit (1/3 each). Significant cash prizes will be awarded to the winners in 7 categories.
Prizes include a Grand Prize for the 'best photograph' among all entries, along with the Youth category (ages 13 thru 17), Video category, Birds Without Borders category, a Female Bird category, a Birds in Landscapes category, a Conservation category, and a Plants for Birds category. Prizes range from $5,000 to $1,500 in US cash; but the Youth prize is a Trip to Hog Island Audubon Camp for Teens (up to 1 week). The Grand Prize of $5,000 also includes a remarkable trip – an Expedition Cruise with HX Expeditions for the winner and a guest!
For more information about the 2026 Audubon Photography Awards, sponsored by the National Audubon Society, please refer to Audubon Photography Awards | Audubon
You can enjoy viewing and learning about the variety of bird photographs submitted by referring to the "The Top 100" photos from last year's competition, which will also give you an idea of the quality of photographs being entered and what photos caught the judges' eyes at The 2025 Audubon Photography Awards: The Top 100 | Audubon. This selection of 100 bird photos also shows how international birding and bird photography has become especially popular – the birds depicted are quite remarkable!