Categories
BWPA celebrates British natural history through a variety of categories. There will be a winner in each category of the adult competition, from which the Overall Winner is chosen.
We also have the RSPB Young British Wildlife Photographer of the Year award, where those under the age of 18 can enter up to 10 images for free.
Animal behaviour
Entries can show any aspect of wildlife behaviour or an action. This could be unusual, interesting, amusing or remarkable behaviour, or depict something familiar in a new light. Show the judges something they don’t know or haven’t seen before, or invite them to look again at what they thought they already knew.
Animal portraits
The judges will be looking for an image that captures the character or spirit of the subject in an imaginative way; and expect to get a sense of the animal’s “personality” from the photograph. All species will be considered.
Botanical Britain
This category includes botanical subjects photographed in Britain, including: trees, plants, flowers, fungi and algae. Capture the essence, beauty and diversity of the botanical world, whether close-up, macro or as part of a wider scene.
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Black & white
Any images of British wildlife and landscapes are eligible. This includes all animals, plant life, underwater creatures and landscape subjects. The judges will be looking for creativity and innovation in the use of the medium.
British seasons
For this category the judges are looking for a stunning portfolio of four images. The portfolio needs to portray British wildlife at its very best in each of the four seasons; Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, or a portfolio of four from just one season. Each image needs to capture the essence of the season together with a wildlife subject from any British location. The portfolio must work together as a set, themes are also encouraged. Each portfolio can either be four seasons or a single season.
Coast & marine
This includes the coast of the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands, the Isles of Scilly and the hundreds of other islands around our shores bounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the English Channel and the North Sea.
This does not include areas in the territory of Ireland.
Habitat
The judges will be looking for an imaginative and original image that powerfully portrays the importance of the environment and ecosystems that sustain the wildlife within them. This can include animals, plants, and the relationships between them; for example a butterfly feeding on wild flowers or a barn owl hunting over rough grassland.
Hidden Britain
Reveal the secret universe that is life on a small scale – a life that is all around us but rarely seen. This category is for invertebrate animal species only.
Urban wildlife
Wherever we live, wildlife can be found alongside us in our towns and cities, parks, gardens and backyards. The judges are looking for an original image that shows wild animals or plants within an urban environment.
Wild woods
The judges will be looking for a winning image that celebrates the beauty and importance or sheer splendour of our British woods. Photographs must be clearly taken of or within woodland. Entries could be portraits of woodland wildlife, wooded landscapes, intricate details of plants, or show the relationships between species and forests.
Documentary series
This category can be a sequence of up to six images of any British wildlife, habitat or landscape conservation issue.
The judges will be looking for innovation in story-telling, within a series of up to six images.
Wildlife in HD video
This category will look for talented cinematographers producing short films of up to 3 minutes in length. The focus should be primarily on cinematography, and display an understanding of how to create a strong sequence. You could document an animal’s day, a behaviour sequence, the struggle to raise young, or something else.
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RSPB Young BWPA
The title of RSPB Young British Wildlife Photographer of the Year is awarded to one of the winners of the three categories:
11 and under
12-14 years
15-17 years
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