See Audubon Photography Awards' 2020 Winners

Joanna Lentini, Double-crested Cormorant.

The eleventh year of the contest honored images that evoke the ingenuity, resilience, and beauty of birds small and large, terrestrial and aquatic across four divisions: Professional, Amateur, Youth and Plants for Birds. The winning photos will be featured in future issues of Audubon and Nature’s Best Photography magazines.

Sue Dougherty, Magnificent Frigatebird.

The 2020 contest includes the second year of winning photographs for the Plants for Birds Prize and the Fisher Prize. The Plants for Birds Prize highlights the essential role of native plants and the natural habitat and food sources they provide for birds. The Fisher Prize, named after former creative director of Audubon Kevin Fisher, is awarded to the photo that exemplifies a blend of originality and technical expertise.

Gail Bisson, Bare-throated Tiger-Heron.

As many enjoy the allure and beauty of birds, two-thirds of North American birds are threatened by extinction from climate change according to Audubon’s latest climate science report, Survival by Degrees: 389 Bird Species on the Brink, including species featured in the winning and forthcoming Top 100 collections. Learn more about how climate change will affect the birds in your backyard and communities by entering your zip code into Audubon‘s interactive Birds and Climate Visualizer.

Vayun Tiwari, Northern Jacana.

2020 Contest Prizes:

• Grand Prize: $5,000
• Professional Prize: $2,500
• Amateur Prize: $2,500
• Plants for Birds Prize: $2,500
• Fisher Prize: $1,000
• Youth Prize: Six days at the Hog Island Audubon Camp in Maine to become a better birder or bird photographer during the 2021 season (transportation included)

Travis Bonovsky, American Goldfinch on a cup plant.

Meet the 2020 Contest Judges:

• Steve Freligh, publisher, Nature’s Best Photography
• Melissa Groo, wildlife photographer and winner of the 2015 contest’s Grand Prize
• Sabine Meyer, photography director, National Audubon Society
• Allen Murabayashi, chairman and co-founder, PhotoShelter
• John Rowden, senior director of bird-friendly communities, National Audubon Society
• Jason Ward, bird expert and host of "Birds of North America"

Marlee Fuller-Morris, American Dipper.

Judging Criteria & Official Rules:

• Technical quality
• Originality
• Artistic merit.
• All photographers must follow Audubon’s Guide to Ethical Bird Photography.

Gene Putney, Greater Sage-Grouse.

About Audubon
National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. Audubon works throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. State programs, nature centers, chapters, and partners give Audubon an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire, and unite diverse communities in conservation action. A nonprofit conservation organization since 1905, Audubon believes in a world in which people and wildlife thrive.

Bibek Ghosh, Anna’s Hummingbird.

Christopher Smith, Greater Roadrunner.

Natalie Robertson, Tennessee Warbler on an eastern prickly gooseberry.