2021 Audubon Photography Awards Winners Enchant with Birdlife Imagery
The leading North American bird photography competition broadens winners with the first year of prizes for female birds and bird videos.
NEW YORK – Today, the National Audubon Society named the winning photographs and videos of the 2021 Audubon Photography Awards, with eight prizes across five divisions. In the twelfth year, winning entries and honorable mentions emerged from 2,416 entrants from all 50 states, Washington D.C. and 10 Canadian provinces and territories.
For the first time, the competition awarded the Female Bird Prize and Video Prize. The Female Bird Prize was introduced to draw attention to female birds, which are often overlooked and underappreciated in both bird photography and conservation. The new Video category aims to illuminate unique and fascinating ways birds behave and interact with their environments. Previously featured prizes, such as the Plants for Birds Prize and Fisher Prize, were also awarded in this year’s contest.
Winning photos and videos will be featured in the Summer 2021 issue of Audubon magazine. Top photos and honorable mentions will also be showcased in a virtual Audubon Photography Awards exhibit. The 2021 Audubon Photography Awards team worked in collaboration with the photographers to ensure that the intent and essence of each photo was incorporated into vibrant alternative text in order to make the awards accessible to the largest audience possible.
As these photos and videos enchant people with the beauty of birds, two-thirds of North American birds are threatened by extinction from climate change according to Audubon’s 2019 climate science report, 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.
At last, the winners of the 2021 Audubon Photography Awards:
Grand Prize
Greater Roadrunner. Photo: Carolina Fraser/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Grand Prize
Professional Award Winner
Northern Cardinal. Photo: Steve Jessmore/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Professional Award Winner
Amateur Award Winner
Sandhill Crane. Photo: Robin Ulery/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Amateur Award Winner
Youth Award Winner
Purple Sandpiper. Photo: Arav Karighattam/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Youth Award Winner
Plants for Birds Award Winner
Red-winged Blackbird and lily pad. Photo: Shirley Donald/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Plants For Birds Award Winner
Video Award Winner
Red-tailed Hawk. Photo: Bill Bryant/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Video Award Winner
Female Bird Prize
Northern Harrier. Photo: Elizabeth Yicheng Shen/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Female Bird Prize
Fisher Prize
Anna’s Hummingbird. Photo: Patrick Coughlin/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Fisher Prize
Professional Honorable Mention
Red-tailed Hawk. Photo: Steve Jessmore/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Professional Honorable Mention
Amateur Honorable Mention
Peregrine Falcon. Photo: Tom Ingram/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Amateur Honorable Mention
Youth Honorable Mention
Canada Goose. Photo: Josiah Launstein/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Youth Honorable Mention
Plants for Birds Honorable Mention
Anna’s Hummingbird and cattail. Photo: Karen Boyer Guyton/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Plants For Birds Honorable Mention
Video Honorable Mention
Great Gray Owl. Video: Brent Cizek/Audubon Photography Awards/2021 Video Honorable Mention
- Grand Prize: $5,000 USD
- Professional Prize: $2,500 USD
- Amateur Prize: $2,500 USD
- Plants for Birds Prize: $2,500 USD
- Video Prize: $2,500 USD
- Female Bird Prize: $1,000 USD
- Fisher Prize: $1,000 USD
- Youth Prize: Six days at Audubon's Hog Island Audubon Camp during the 2022 season.
- Mike Fernandez, video producer, National Audubon Society
- Sean Graesser, biologist, conservation photographer, and founding member and creative director of Wild Bird Research Group
- Sabine Meyer, photography director, National Audubon Society
- Kathy Moran, deputy director of photography, National Geographic Partners
- Allen Murabayashi, co-founder, PhotoShelter
- John Rowden, senior director of bird-friendly communities, National Audubon Society
- Tara Tanaka, bird photographer, videographer, and Swarovski’s Digiscoper of the Year (2011 and 2012)
- Founders of the Galbatross Project:
- Brooke Bateman, senior scientist, National Audubon Society
- Stephanie Beilke, conservation scientist, Audubon Great Lakes
- Martha Harbison, senior network content editor, National Audubon Society
- Purbita Saha, member, Bergen County Audubon Society, and former Audubon magazine editor
- Joanna Wu, avian biologist, National Audubon Society
Judging Criteria & Official Rules:
- Technical quality
- Originality
- Artistic merit
- All photographers must follow Audubon’s Guide to Ethical Bird Photography.
To learn more about Audubon’s Plants for Birds program and Native Plants Database, please visit: https://www.audubon.org/native-plants.
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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. Learn more at www.audubon.org and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @audubonsociety.
Media Contact: Chandler Lennon, chandler.lennon@audubon.org, 804.832.0832