Awards
Bird Photographer of the Year 2019 THEWINNERS BPOTY is now in its fourth year, attracting more than 13,500 images from 63 countries with prizes including an Olympus camera system and £5000 in cash Y ear four of the Bird Photographer of the Year (BPOTY) competition proved to be a real will become a useful resource for photographers, birders, naturalists and wildlife enthusiasts, centred on the competition itself. The
of conservationists. For 2019, in addition to raising money for Birdfair through the Inspirational Encounters Award, BPOTY is supporting Hookpod, an innovative solution that has the potential to eliminate the unnecessary deaths of albatrosses and other seabirds killed as a result of longline fishing. Paul Sterry, founding director of BPOTY, comments, “BPOTY is delighted to have raised funds to help support such worthwhile causes. For 2020 and future years, we will be establishing a BPOTY Conservation Fund, through which we will assist other conservation projects such as Hookpod, where modest donations can have a real and lasting impact on our bird populations.”
milestone,” comments director and competition organiser Rob Read. “There were more than double the number of entrants, images and countries represented compared to our first year. The competition has real global reach as demonstrated by the number of different nations represented by the winners.” BPOTY is set to become even bigger, and the BPOTY team has been working hard on the forthcoming 2020 competition, which is open for entries until 30 November 2019. Rob continues, “We now have a new website, which
core principles of promoting bird photography and the photographers themselves, while helping conservation through raising money and awareness, remain the bedrock of BPOTY. The new website will help us achieve these aims, using some of the world’s best bird imagery to inspire people to care.” Money raised through previous years’ donations have been used by the British Trust for Ornithology to support its Bird Camp programme run in association with the Cameron Bespolka Trust, aimed at encouraging the next generation
BEST PORTFOLIO 2019WINNER: ThomasHinsche
BIRD PHOTOGRAPHER OFTHE YEAR 2019 WINNER: CaronSteele
Thomas won the BPOTY Best Portfolio Award for 2019 with a set of six images, and receives an Olympus OM-D E-M1 Mark II and M.Zuiko Digital ED 300mm f/4 IS PRO lens, with a combined value of £3500.
26 Photography News | Issue 70
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