Some of the most incredible bird photography of 2026 has just been revealed, and trust us, these feathered beauties are ready to steal the show! From breathtaking birds in flight to intimate portraits and fascinating moments in the wild, the 2026 BirdLife Australia Photography Awards celebrate the extraordinary beauty, character, and diversity of Australia’s native birds.
What makes this competition so special? It’s about much more than capturing a picture-perfect moment. Every photograph tells a story about the natural world, reminding us why these incredible creatures deserve our attention and protection. With more than 120 years of work dedicated to bird conservation, BirdLife Australia continues to make a difference, and entry fees help support its conservation efforts across the country.
This year’s competition features an exciting lineup of categories, including Bird Portrait, Bird Behavior, Birds in Flight, Birds in the Landscape, Backyard Birds, Human Impact, Youth, Portfolio, and the special theme Australian Finches. Each category offers a fresh perspective on birds’ lives, from their playful personalities to the challenges they face in a changing environment.
Ready for a closer look? Scroll down to discover 25 outstanding photographs from the 2026 awards and meet the talented photographers behind them. Huge congratulations to all the winners and finalists for sharing their remarkable vision with the world!
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#1. BirdLife Australia Photographer of the Year: Kings Down Under by Lachlan Hall
"A group of King Penguins glide by beneath the surface, the lush green slopes of Macquarie Island visible in the background. On land, where we usually get to see penguins, they are awkward and clumsy and so I wanted to capture the Kings of Macquarie where nature has designed them to be – flying through the ocean, swift and graceful. I captured this image by holding my camera (in an underwater housing) over the side of a small inflatable boat."
#2. Backyard Birds – Winner: Gang Tackle By Mark Doro
"A female Gang Gang Cockatoo playing with a park tap trying to get more water flowing. Cockatoos are very smart birds that also like to play and explore. This photo encapsulates why many people are drawn to Cockatoos, showing off their adaptation to urban life as well as their cheeky and inquisitive nature."
#3. Bird Behaviour – Winner: It Takes Two To Tango By Elmar Akhmetov
"While Superb Lyrebirds are famous for their mating displays which can be observed in winter months throughout the wet forests of Southeastern Australia, the actual copulation was captured only a handful of times and to my knowledge majority of those captures were done on video. I feel that I was very lucky to document this very special scene in photographs and wanted to share the experience with a wider audience."
#4. Bird Portrait – Winner: The Crown By Rachelle Mackintosh
"I live alongside the Royal National Park, and also alongside a large, rowdy flock of Sulphur-crested Cockatoos. As our house is made of wood, I try to keep them away (because they eat it!), but occasionally one or two polite young fellas will perch on a railing to relax, preen and watch the world go by – and if they’re well-mannered, I’m happy to have them."
#5. Birds In Flight – Winner: In Full Bloom By Cheng Kang
"Before sunrise, a flock of corellas rested silently on the bare trees along the riverbank. In an instant, the stillness was broken as they burst into flight, creating a dramatic display of movement and sound. I quickly adjusted my camera settings and used a slower shutter speed to capture the fleeting motion – like a gentle breeze moving through spring flowers."
#6. Human Impact – Winner: The Sugar Thief By Kylie Facey
"After a nature walk around O’Reilly’s with my camera, I was sitting at the café when a Crimson Rosella landed on a nearby table. To my surprise, It grabbed a sugar packet, tore it open, and started emptying it while making direct eye contact with me. The moment was both funny and unsettling."
#7. Special Theme – Winner: Australian Finches: Bold By Stephen Garth
"While wandering back to my car after photographing some waders, I took this opportunistic shot of a male Zebra Finch. I like the image because the bird and perch are in sharp focus and the background colour is complementary."
#8. Youth – Winner: Master Of Disguise By Micah Boyce
"I love this shot of a Tawny Frogmouth because firstly, they’re such cool and unique birds with a funky personality. I also love how the perch it’s sitting on almost frames the bird and has an interesting spiral shape. And I love how the shot shows the habitat around the bird, reminding me what it was like in the area."
#9. Portfolio – Winner: Coastal Warriors by Samara Achermann
"The Fairy Tern is a seasonal visitor to a beach close to my home. I spent many hours over the last two summers observing this species from a distance, always laying low and making sure I am outside the nesting zone fences that are put up to protect them. The more time I spend with them, the more they continue to fascinate me."
#10. Portfolio – Runner-up: Life of a King by Sabrina Velasco
"These images explore the intricacies of life for King Penguins on Macquarie Island. Taken across multiple years while visiting the island as an expedition guide, I aimed to capture the diversity of behaviours, individual personalities and perspectives that exist within the colony."
#11. Bird Portrait – Runner-Up: Impasse By Reeni Martinez
"Two Australian Black Swans in some sort of graceful song and dance of disagreement. It seemed like a gentle warning to not approach too close to their partner and cygnets nearby. I’m not sure what was said between them, but a peaceful resolution was the result and the visitor retreated. I took this on the final (late) afternoon of a bird photography workshop."
#12. Bird Behaviour – Runner-Up: Crumbed Sausage By Mark Lethlean
"As part of my volunteer work for BirdLife Australia I have monitored this Caspian Tern colony over several years. Often they nest in a very exposed area on a sand spit and the nests and chicks are destroyed by a weather events in conjunction with tidal surges. After such an event this is what I found in the area of the colony. This mature chick was hiding and totally camouflaged by a covering of sand. To be clear this is not a nest as Caspian Tern chicks are semi precocial, being active and mobile after hatching but still being fed by their parents."
#13. Birds In Flight – Runner-Up: Now, Where Is The Smorgasbord Section? By Maria Coleman
"I had been watching a group of Ruddy Turnstones feeding on in the wash area of the rock platform. Occasionally a large swell would wash over the area they were feeding at and cause them to take flight. This bird had taken flight and was now gliding back looking for a safer place to feed."
#14. Backyard Birds – Highly Commended: Who Is Watching Who By Sharron Marks
"Attracted by cobwebs on an old shed window, these two curious Pardolotes stopped to investigate — and seemed just as interested in what was happening inside. Photographed through the weathered glass from within the shed, their cheeky expressions create a cute reversal: the birds appear to be watching the people inside, while I was watching them."
#15. Bird Portrait – Highly Commended: Eighteen Visits By Toyobur Suvo
"I had known this Peregrine Falcon fo a long time. I used to observe it regularly, always staying beneath the cliffs, just out of sight. There was a small opening at the top where I could look down. I kept returning, again and again, waiting for the moment when the falcon would finally land there and I could capture my dream shot."
#16. Human Impact – Highly Commended: Bin Turkey By Emma Perry
"While camping in Queensland, I noticed an opportunistic Brush Turkey foraging for food in the rubbish bin."
#17. Youth – Highly Commended: Bonding By Arlo Wallace
"A Royal Penguin pair share a quiet moment of connection through mutual preening. This gentle behaviour is the penguin equivalent of a kiss, a display of affection and bonding between partners. Their tender interaction offers a glimpse of the social bonds that these remarkable birds have."
#18. Backyard Birds – Commended: Crow Through The Blind By Lizette Gamble
"I was sitting on the lounge in my friend’s high rise apartment and the bird landed on the balcony railing. I don’t think he would have been so close to me if the blind hadn’t been pulled down."
#19. Bird Behaviour – Commended: Cormorant Refuses To Give Up Catch To Pelican Mafia By Greg Wyncoll
"I have often seen Cormorants and Pelicans "fishing together". I’d always thought there was something cooperative about it. Recently I saw that it was a bit darker than that. The pelicans were shadowing the cormorants, ready to pounce the moment a cormorant came up with a fish, grabbing the cormorant by the throat in an attempt to stop it swallowing the fish and having to instead cough it up into the waiting mouth of the pelican."
#20. Bird Behaviour – Commended: Is That For Me? By Sharon Jones
"Endangered fairy terns return each summer to breed on a popular Mandurah beach, surviving in an unlikely location between a carpark and a rock groyne. Amidst the ruckus of the busy colony, fairy tern chicks can identify their parents by their calls although that doesn’t stop them from begging food from any adult that flies by with a tasty morsel."
#21. Birds In Flight – Commended: An Ethereal Tern By Michael Snedic
"A Sooty Tern glides past me on a stunningly-beautiful afternoon. I had spent many hours, over the space of a week, photographing these graceful birds flying around me as I sat on the sand. On this particular afternoon, the lighting was sublime. The colour of the ocean glistened aqua in colour, while the sand was a gorgeous peach-gold colour."
#22. Birds In Flight – Commended: Mid Flight Glisten By Louie Owen
"There was a colony of Fairy Terns on the beach but I wasn’t sure what to expect by way of photos so I decided to wait and observe their behaviour first. I noticed the birds were flying near a rock groyne, dipping in and then emerging, twisting and turning in the golden late afternoon light."
#23. Birds In The Landscape – Commended: The Day Begins By Jane Mcmenamin
"Minutes before sunrise, at the edge of the Brisbane River, I came across this peaceful scene. I was drawn to the slow, almost meditative movements of this lone pelican as it preened itself. The accidental geometry of the repeating triangle shapes and the way the light filtered through the trees brought this image together for me."
#24. Human Impact – Commended: Gi Joe Does The Trick By Mark Lethlean
"I watched this male Great Bowerbird for hours fastidiously arranging the sticks and artifacts around his bower. In addition to splaying his purple crest, he fancied this green plastic leg from a GI Joe doll. And what do you know? Through she came to complete the courtship."
#25. Youth – Commended: Evening Squabble By Zachary French
"During a glorious walk around the beach, I was taking some photos of the sun setting. There is a family of Silver Gulls that typically come in for the night at that time, but still squabble and steal food for hours. One of the adult Gulls perched on a fence post, only for it to be taken and hogged by another. After a few minutes of arguing, the Gull that stole the spot remained on it, seeming victorious. Little did it know that another one was lining itself up to divebomb them."
Frequently Asked Questions:
What are the 2026 BirdLife Australia Photography Awards?
The 2026 BirdLife Australia Photography Awards celebrate outstanding photographs of Australia’s native birds. The competition showcases talented photographers capturing bird portraits, behavior, flight, habitats, and conservation issues while helping raise awareness about protecting Australia’s remarkable birdlife.
Who organizes the BirdLife Australia Photography Awards?
BirdLife Australia organizes the photography awards as part of its broader commitment to bird conservation. The organization has worked to protect Australia’s birds for more than 120 years, supporting conservation initiatives, research, education, and habitat protection.
What categories are featured in the 2026 competition?
The 2026 competition includes Bird Portrait, Bird Behavior, Birds in Flight, Birds in the Landscape, Backyard Birds, Human Impact, Youth, Portfolio, and Australian Finches. These categories celebrate different aspects of birdlife, photography, natural habitats, and conservation challenges.
How do the photography awards support bird conservation?
Entry fees from the BirdLife Australia Photography Awards help support the organization’s bird conservation work across Australia. The competition also raises awareness of native birds, their habitats, and environmental challenges, encouraging people to appreciate and protect the country’s diverse birdlife.
Where can I see the outstanding bird photographs from 2026?
You can explore the featured collection of 25 outstanding photographs from the 2026 BirdLife Australia Photography Awards in this article. Discover remarkable bird portraits, wildlife behavior, dramatic flight scenes, and the talented photographers who captured these memorable moments.
