Bird Photographer of the Year 2021 Winners
With over 22,000 images entered into the competition this year, Bird Photographer of the Year is pleased to present our winners. Celebrating bird life from around the world, these images comprise some of the most incredible bird photos in the world taken by talented photographers.
‘Blocked’ by Alejandro Prieto. Overall Winner and Bird Photographer of the Year 2021.
Taking the title of Bird Photographer of the Year, our Overall Winner is ‘Blocked’ by Alejandro Prieto. It features a roadrunner at a new section of the border wall between Mexico and the USA. Prieto wins the top prize of £5,000 and the prestigious title. His image also won Gold Award in the Birds in the Environment category.
The image tells an important story of habitat fragmentation, and how structures such as the border wall can prevent wildlife from migrating and moving into other areas. The wall dominates the image, with the roadrunner seemingly powerless and small in the frame.
Young Bird Photographer of the Year
‘Morning Lek’ by Levi Fitze. Young Bird Photographer of the Year 2021.
Our Young Bird Photographer of the Year is 17-year-old Levi Fitze with his image ‘Morning Lek’. Fitze wins £300 in vouchers for camera equipment.
Collection 6 is available now
Each year, we produce a high quality “coffee-table” book featuring the best images from the competition. This year is no different, with almost 300 images featured in this hardback collection.
The book features all the awarded and commended images, and is a great place to draw inspiration from for your next shoot.
Order your copy from the Bird POTY website.
Best Portfolio - Winner
Sponsored by Olympus
Our congratulations go to Kevin Morgans from the United Kingdom, who wins the Best Portfolio award this year. Morgans’ photographs demonstrate and incredible ability to work with light, using the Atlantic puffin as his subject.
Our thanks to Swarovski Optik, f-stop Gear, and Zenfolio for sponsoring the prizes for our main competition categories.
Best Portrait
An image that best captures the character of the subject bird and its distinctive features. We look for images that include lots of detail, captured in a classic pose or showing the animal’s features.
Gold - Felipe Foncueva, Spain
Silver - Maofeng Shen, China
Bronze - Jonas Classon, Sweden
Birds in the Environment
This category focuses on photos that best demonstrate the relationship between a bird and its habitat.
Gold - Alejandro Prieto, Mexico
Silver - Joshua Galicki, USA
Bronze - Barbara Fleming, USA
Attention to Detail
This category looks at the smaller details of a bird. This could be a close-up headshot, or a macro image of feather details. The judges look for an image that shares the more intimate details of a bird that we don’t get to appreciate from a wider view.
Gold - Rafael Armada, Spain
Silver - Raymond Hennessy, USA
Bronze - Kerry Wu, USA
Bird Behaviour
This category celebrates images that best depict a behaviour of a bird. This might be the lekking display of a black grouse, the courtship of a great crested grebe, or a singing robin.
Gold - Mousam Ray, India
Silver - Massimiliano Apollo, Italy
Bronze - Julie Halliday, Falkland Islands
Birds in Flight
Celebrating avian mastery of the sky, this category focuses on birds in flight.
Gold - Tzahi Finkelstein, Israel
Silver - Nicolas Reusens, Spain
Bronze - Hannes Lochner, South Africa
Black and White
B&W can introduce simplicity and drama into images. This category celebrates the effective use of the monochromatic style.
Gold - Renato Granieri, UK
Silver - James Rogerson, UK
Bronze - Nathalie Chanteau, France
Urban Birds
In an increasingly urban world, many birds are forced to live on the doorsteps of humans. This category explores the world of urban bird photography.
Gold - Terry Whittaker, UK
Silver - William Steel, South Africa
Bronze - Paolo Crocetta, Italy
Creative Imagery
This category encourages creativity in all its forms. Both in-camera techniques (such as multiple exposures) and post production techniques are permitted. Any digital manipulation is permitted, as long as the foundation of the final piece is an original photo. Composites, cloning, and any other effects are allowed.
Gold - Ruediger Schulz, Germany
Silver - Kathryn Cooper, UK
Bronze - Ruth Hughes, UK
Conservation Award
This category looks at images that tell a story of conservation efforts or the struggle of a particular species.
Winner - Carla Rhodes, USA
‘Beautiful Scavengers: Saving Endangered Greater Adjutants’
Towering at 1.5m tall and with a wingspan of 2.5m, Greater Adjutants are the most endangered species of stork on the planet. Today, there are fewer than 1,200 of these beautiful scavengers left in existence, with the global stronghold of 950 residing in Assam, India. This photographic documentary charts the work of biologist Purnima Devi Barman, who has dedicated her life to leading an inspiring and innovative conservation movement to save Greater Adjutants. Founder of the so-called Hargila Army, a local all-female grassroots volunteer conservation effort, Purnima and her team protect nesting trees, save injured birds and educate the Assamese community about the importance of these rare scavengers.
14-17 years
This category celebrates the photography of those aged between 14 and 17 years old.
Gold - Levi Fitze, Switzerland
Silver - Daniel Martínez, Spain
Bronze - Daniel Zhang, UK
9-13 years
Celebrating the photography of those aged between 9 and 13 years old.
Gold - Andrés L. Domínguez Blanco, Spain
Silver - Thomas Easterbrook, UK
Bronze - Ian Henderson, Ecuador
8 and under
Celebrating the photography of those aged 8 years old or younger.
Gold - Deeksha Sambath, India
Silver - Filip Niziolek, Poland
Bronze - Flynn Thaitanunde-Lobb, UK
Highly Commended
Celebrating the highly commended photographs from all categories.
Collection 6 is available now
Each year, we produce a high quality “coffee-table” book featuring the best images from the competition. This year is no different, with almost 300 images featured in this hardback collection.
The book features all the awarded and commended images, and is a great place to draw inspiration from for your next shoot.
Order your copy from the Bird POTY website.