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Best Photos Of The Bird Photographer Of The Year 2022 Awards (35 Pics)
Interview
I believe most of you will agree that birds are fascinating. I mean, they can fly! And not only that. Have you ever seen the Vogelkop superb bird-of-paradise's dance, observed a flock of flamingos gracefully standing on one leg, or witnessed an eagle hunt? If that is not enchanting, I don't know what is.
For all the winged creature lovers out there, we present to you the winners of The Bird Photographer of the Year, 2022! This global photographic competition is entirely dedicated to avian photography and is open to a wide range of photographers, "a hardened pro, a keen amateur with the latest kit, or simply a hobbyist with a cameraphone or small compact camera."
This year, the jury of leading experts had a hard task to select the most incredible photos celebrating bird life from around the world out of over 20,000 submissions. Scroll down to meet the winners!
If you're interested in seeing the best images of previous competitions, you can find them by clicking here, here, here, here and here.
More info: birdpoty.com | Instagram | Facebook | twitter.com
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
9-13 Years: "Droplets" By Parham Pourahmad (Gold)
Upstaged75 3 years ago (edited)
Especially when the title indicates a kid took the picture. That's talent!
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Established in 2016, Bird Photographer of the Year was founded to promote birds and conservation through images. They are partnered with the charity Birds on the Brink, to whom they provide vital funding. This funding supports grass-roots conservation projects for birds around the world. Birdpoty images, books, and exhibitions all have a conservation thread woven carefully through the images, showcasing important messages to the viewing public.
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#2
Bird Behaviour: "Face-Off" By Kathy Wade (Highly Commended)
#3
Attention To Detail: "Beads Of Diamonds" By Sue Dougherty (Bronze)
Bored Panda got in touch with an assistant manager at Birdpoty and nature photographer, Audrey Granger, to get to know more about this year's competition. She revealed that they have seen a great range of creativity from photographers, with exciting variations in lens choices, styles, and subjects. "This makes for a broad and varied exhibition."
The 2022 competition's judges included Mark Carwardine, Sergey Gorshkov, Li Ying Lou, David Lindo, Melissa Groo, Erin Ranney, Andrew Cleave, Paul Sterry, Myles Archibald, Will Nicholls, Majed Al Za’abi, Denise Ippolito, Tin Man Lee, Alejandro Prieto, Rathika Ramasamy, Jamie McPherson, and Hans Ngoteya. The full list of judges for the 2023 competition can be found here.
#4
Urban Birds: "Gonzo" By Laszlo Potozky (Silver)
Miss Frankfurter 3 years ago
I don’t know why, but this one makes me a little sad that this is where Gonzo lives. But, he is adorable.
#5
Creative Imagery: "Smokescreen" By Kathryn Cooper (Highly Commended)
Michele Walker 3 years ago
Does anyone else have flashbacks to "The Birds" by Alfred Hitchcock???
According to Audrey, the judges looked for technical excellence, images that have interesting compositional elements, and images that remain true to what the photographer saw when taking their photos. They were also looking for unique images that tell a strong story, or show birds in a new and perhaps unseen way.
#6
Black And White: "Between Two Worlds" By Henley Spiers (Gold)
Steve Teich 3 years ago
I will have everything offered on the menu. Thanks.
Load More Replies... #7
14-17 Years: "Sunset" By Thamboon Uyyanonvara (Bronze)
Anna Repp 3 years ago
Is it a plover or a sanderling? I'm having a hard time telling the two apart...
Load More Replies...The overall Winner of the Bird Photographer of the Year 2022 is "Rock Ptarmigan Flight" taken by Erlend Haarberg. His image also won Gold Award in the Birds in the Environment category. Haarberg wins the top prize of £5,000 and the prestigious title.
#8
9-13 Years: "Shadows" By Andrés Luis Domínguez Blanco (Silver)
#10
Birds In The Environment: "Meeting The Giant" By Tomasz Szpila (Highly Commended)
Jordi Sharpe 3 years ago
Ostriches and emu are biiiiig. I've met emu and they are intimidating.
Load More Replies... #11
14-17 Years: "Pied Avocet Chick" By Tamás Koncz-Bisztricz (Silver)
#12
Bird Behaviour: "Waxwing Silhouette" By Simon D'entremont (Bronze)
#13
Best Portrait: "Colourful Meal" By Ponlawat Thaipinnarong (Highly Commended)
Steve Teich 3 years ago
Shockingly beautiful photo. It takes more than a good camera to produce a work this stunning.
Steve Teich 3 years ago
What an absolutely fabulous photo. You need more than just a camera to get that pic.
#14
Birds In Flight: "Starling At Night" By Mark Williams (Silver)
Danielle Wigger 3 years ago
I have a baby starling as a pet, I raised her from a chick (It is legal to own a starling in the us because they are considered pests) and they get a really bad reputation for pooping on things, but in reality they are really sweet :)
Unknown 3 years ago
It's not that their pests, it's that they are highly invasive, this is a much better environment for them than their native environment, so they decimate our wild native populations of birds.
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Ronda News Channel 3 years ago
Wonderful picture. It isn't easy to shoot at high speed shutter and in low light
#15
Urban Birds: "In The Shadow Of Indusry" By Brian Matthews (Highly Commended)
Steve Teich 3 years ago
The resilience of nature. It gives me hope things will go on after we wipe ourselves off Earth
Load More Replies... #16
Best Portrait: "The Doting Couple" By Richard Flack (Bronze)
Kookamunga 3 years ago
Purple-crested Turacos from South Africa. Males and females have the same plumage.
#17
Overall Winner And Bird Photographer Of The Year 2022: "Rock Ptarmigan" By Erlend Haarberg
#18
Black And White: "King Penguin Portrait" By Rafael Armada (Highly Commended)
#19
Best Portrait: "For The Love Of Birds" By Thomas Wester (Highly Commended)
#20
Creative Imagery: "Van Gogh's Storks" By Petro Katerynych (Gold)
#21
Bird Behaviour: "Which One Is First?" By David Pattyn (Highly Commended)
Kookamunga 3 years ago
OK, I had to look this up because those babies are awesome. These are Great Crested Grebes, were almost extinct in the UK (because feathered hats), but they are making a comeback. And the chicks are rock stars! Great-Cres...feb0f4.jpg 
Nope 3 years ago
That's so sad, I see them some times when I go to school and they are beautiful. Reading that people kill them for hats just breaks my heart. :( I live in the Netherlands and here we call them a fuut
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#22
Birds In Flight: "Attack!" By Damian Kwasek (Highly Commended)
#23
Birds In The Environment: "Beacon In The Swamp" By Raymond Hennessy (Highly Commended)
the engineer 🇺🇦 3 years ago
oooh! prethonitary warbler! (apologies if i spelled that wrong. birds can have very complex names and can be very hard to pronounce or spell.)
#24
Birds In Flight: "Schalow's Turaco" By Aaron Baggenstos (Bronze)
Marlowe Fitzpatrik 3 years ago
The turaco-family are the only birds with *true* green pigment. Usually, what we perceive as green is some shade of yellow, paired with the Struktur of the feathers that breaks the light in certain ways. The red pigment is unique, too - other birds have their red from carotinoid pigments. Not these here, though.
In too many fandoms 3 years ago
-and kidnap him so that I have a bird pet super colorful but then realize that they are probably on the verge of going extinct so I let them go
Load More Replies... #25
Best Portrait: "Colourful Meal" By Ponlawat Thaipinnarong (Highly Commended)
#26
8 Years And Under: "Hoot Are You?" By Arjun Jenigiri (Gold)
Aran Lindvail 3 years ago
"8 years and under" no one would let me even near an expensive camera. Wow, those kids are amazing!
#27
Attention To Detail: "Sleeping Beauty" By Andy Pollard (Gold)
#28
Bird Behaviour: "Tidying Up" By Lucca Rodriguez Amorim (Highly Commended)
Christine Will 3 years ago
I believe that this is a male bird, collecting & using blue objects, to build his nest, attract females, dance, and find a mate.
Yves Huyghe 3 years ago
If it were only that simple for us humans. I would still fail on the dancing part tho.
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Miss Frankfurter 3 years ago (edited)
Tidying up. The bottle caps. He’s using our garbage to build his nest and attract females.. Humans are👎
Steve Teich 3 years ago
Oh, snap. I thought these were flower petals at first. I hate us.
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this is a bowerbird. They make pretty nests and dance in front of them to attract females. The parallel to humans is something a cynic might laugh at.
Leanne Hailes 3 years ago
So sad. The "pretty blue" items are plastic covers & plastic straws all for plastic bottles 😕
Upstaged75 3 years ago
He goes around and collects blue items in order to decorate his nest and attract females.
Load More Replies... #29
Urban Birds: "The Owlet And The Dump" By Kerry Wu (Bronze)
Rannveig Ess 3 years ago
Trash heaps, dumps and even regular garbage dumpsters are full of rats and mice. This is like sitting at McDonald's waiting for the fries to show up. Like Sea Gulls, owls have adapted very well to human's trash and are opportunistic in knowing an easy meal is around.
Steve Teich 3 years ago
You are absolutely correct, Ess. And what a sad fact it is.
Load More Replies... #30
Birds In Flight: "Into The Sunset" By Patrick Coughlin (Highly Commended)
#32
Black And White: "The Guardian Of Mordor" By Paweł Smolik (Silver)
#33
Black And White: "White Tern In Black" By David Stowe (Highly Commended)
#34
Bird Behaviour: "Fight" By Erlend Haarberg (Highly Commended)
Katrina Anderson 3 years ago
Wow! How was this taken?… Oh, I just realized that’s ice??? At first it looked like these birds were way up in the sky…
Steve Teich 3 years ago
Regardless, how long did the artist freeze their asss off to get that image? Wow.
Load More Replies... #35
Creative Imagery: "Sandhill Crane Flight Air Show" By Wei Lion (Bronze)
Upstaged75 3 years ago
It's in the "Creative Imagery" category. It's not supposed to be real.
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Rob Chapman 3 years ago (edited)
And in the background, "Dreams" by Van Halen, plays triumphantly.
Katrina Anderson 3 years ago
Yeah, just like the one with the van gogh sky, and the birds. They are all very creative. So cool!
Aunt Riarch 3 years ago
The category is "creative imagery" which sounds like they do but only in this one category
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#40
9-13 Years: "Hop, Skip And Jump" By Achintya Murthy (Bronze)
#43
Bird Behaviour: "Hummingbird Hideaway" By Liron Gertsman (Highly Commended)
#45
14-17 Years: "Facing The Storm" By Levi Fitze (Gold)
#47
Birds In Flight: "Silo Mural" By Raoul Slater (Gold)
#48
Urban Birds: "Over The City" By Ammar Alsayed Ahmed (Gold)
#50
Bird Behaviour: "Full Contact" By Gabor Baross (Highly Commended)
#53
Urban Birds: "Orange Eyes" By Simone Baumeister (Highly Commended)
#55
Best Portrait: "Wart Head" By Leander Khil (Highly Commended)
#57
Best Portrait: "Strut Performer" By Ly Dang (Gold)
#65
Attention To Detail: "Crazy" By Isabella Chowra (Silver)
#66
Creative Imagery: "Fishy Business" By Janine Lee (Silver)
Upstaged75 3 years ago
It's the Creative Imagery category. It's not supposed to be real.
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Miss Frankfurter 3 years ago
All of these are stunning. I didn’t leave comments because I’d run out of things to say. The photos by the young people are beyond amazing. Incredible talent I hope they get to foster.
Éowyn The Detransitioner 3 years ago
All of these photos are such good quality, I wish I could capture images as good as these with a smartphone! 😂 Also, I LOVED Black And White: "Between Two Worlds" By Henley Spiers, that is STUNNING!
Miss Frankfurter 3 years ago
All of these are stunning. I didn’t leave comments because I’d run out of things to say. The photos by the young people are beyond amazing. Incredible talent I hope they get to foster.
Éowyn The Detransitioner 3 years ago
All of these photos are such good quality, I wish I could capture images as good as these with a smartphone! 😂 Also, I LOVED Black And White: "Between Two Worlds" By Henley Spiers, that is STUNNING!
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