This year’s Bird Photographer of the Year competition attracted more than 33,000 entries from across the globe, which ultimately delivered a 2025 winners’ list that captures the beauty, drama and diversity of winged wildlife at its best.
A breathtaking image of a magnificent frigatebird against a total solar eclipse earned Canadian photographer Liron Gertsman the top prize and £3,500 (US$4,300). Taken off the coast of Mazatlán, Mexico, the shot took Gertsman more than a year’s preparation, and the final result – snapped from a boat – was captured during an eclipse’s “diamond ring” phase, a moment that lasts just seconds. Fortunately for him, the high-stakes mission paid off.
Liron Gertsman/Bird Photographer of the Year
“This photograph is a striking reminder of what human creativity can achieve,” said competition director Will Nicholls, who praised Gertsman’s shot for combining technical mastery and artistic vision, at a time when AI-generated imagery is flooding the landscape and undermining what makes photo contests so personal and special.
Tomasz Michalski/Bird Photographer of the Year
Meanwhile, the Young Bird Photographer of the Year prize was awarded to 16-year-old Tomasz Michalski from Poland, for his striking silhouette of a black vulture.
Alex Pansier/Bird Photographer of the Year
Photographer Alex Pansier (Netherlands) captured this carrion crow (Corvus corone) near a highway, the bird perched on a field of solar panels. The shot makes a striking statement about green energy infrastructure and wildlife. Renewable energy, while essential for sustainability, often takes up space that would otherwise serve nature.
Franco Banfi/Bird Photographer of the Year
The annual competition also raised thousands of dollars for the conservation charity Birds on the Brink, which funds grassroots projects worldwide. You can view the complete collection of outstanding finalists and winners in our gallery.
If you’re feeling inspired, you can now enter the 2026 competition at birdpoty.com.
Source: Bird Photographer of the Year
