2026 Audubon Photography Awards Winners Announced

The National Audubon Society has announced the winners of the 2026 Audubon Photography Awards, now in its seventeenth year. Judges once again awarded prizes to photographers from the United States, Canada, Chile, and Colombia – continuing the expansion that began last year and reinforcing what anyone who watches birds already knows: they don’t care about borders, and neither should we.

Grand Prize Winners of the 2026 Audubon Photography Awards

The Grand Prize for U.S. and Canada goes to Jacqueline Burke for her photograph of a Roseate Spoonbill. If you’ve ever seen a spoonbill in person, you know there’s nothing quite like that absurd, perfect pink. It’s ridiculous, stunning, and kinda adorable in equal measure, and that’s the whole appeal.

The Grand Prize for Chile and Colombia goes to Francisco Castro Escobar for his image of a Lesser Horned Owl. The Lesser Horned Owl is one of those species that carries a certain gravity – patient, piercing, and not particularly interested in being observed. The fact that Francisco managed to capture it in a way worth celebrating says a lot about both the photographer and the bird.

Both Grand Prize winners receive $5,000 and, new this year, a voyage to Antarctica with HX Expeditions, Audubon’s exclusive cruise partner. Birding, conservation, and one of the most remote places on earth. Not a bad deal.

The 2026 Category Winners

The full list of winners spans categories designed to capture different dimensions of bird life – from intimate portraits to sweeping landscapes to the conservation challenges birds face across the hemisphere.

Here are this year’s categories and their winners:

Prizes for U.S. and Canada Residents

• Grand Prize: Jacqueline Burke, Roseate Spoonbill
• Youth Prize: Ian Shultz, Rock Pigeon
• Video Prize: Piper VanOrd, Great Blue Heron
• Female Bird Prize: Gail Bisson, Common Merganser
• Plants for Birds Prize: Mike Henry, Gila Woodpecker and saguaro cactus
• Birds Without Borders Prize: Nick Parayko, Tennessee Warbler
• Birds in Landscapes Prize: Liron Gertsman, White-tailed Tropicbird
• Conservation Prize: Josh Galicki, Northern Gannets

Prizes for Chile and Colombia Residents

• Youth Prize: Juan David Camacho Márquez
• Video Prize: Nicolás Muñoz García
• Birds Without Borders Prize: Rodrigo González Pairoa
• Conservation Prize: Santiago Pérez Rincón
• Plants for Birds Prize, Colombia: Santiago Giraldo
• Birds in Landscapes Prize, Colombia: Faber Mosquera Álvarez
• Birds in Landscapes Prize, Chile: Timothy Dhalleine
• Coastal Birds Prize, Chile: Gonzalo Bertolotto Quintana

What Comes Next

Winners and honorable mentions are published on Audubon’s website, and the winning images will appear in the Fall 2026 print issue of Audubon magazine. The annual Top 100 photos will be announced on September 23, 2026, with additional selections featured in digital galleries throughout the year.

If the 2026 winners have you thinking about entering, the 2027 Audubon Photography Awards open for entries on January 13, 2027. Visit Audubon’s website for details on the Chile and Colombia, and U.S. and Canada contests. And now, enjoy the remaining beautiful photos from this year’s competition… Perhaps while you listen to this song.

U.S. and Canada Category Winners

Chile and Colombia Category Winners

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