Soaring Winners of the 2022 Bird Photographer of the Year Competition

From snow-covered mountains to tropical forests, the winners of the 2022 Bird Photographer of the Year competition capture the diversity of birds and their landscapes. Out of the 20,000 submissions, only one was chosen as the Overall Winner and awarded the £5,000 (about $5,796 USD) grand prize: Erlend Haarberg's photo, Rock Ptarmigan Flight. The Norwegian photographer snapped a perfectly timed shot of a rock ptarmigan Lagopus muta bird soaring over a dramatic wintry landscape in Tysfjord, Norway.

“High above the tree-line, the wind, snow, and cold maintain the iron grip of winter for months on end,” Haarberg says about his photo. “This is where Rock Ptarmigan thrive, small white feather-balls in an endless white landscape. On this particular winter day, I was on my way to a mountain top by Tysfjorden to photograph landscapes. I had almost reached the summit when I spotted some ptarmigan tracks crisscrossing between the rocks, where the wind had uncovered some sparse vegetation. From behind a rock, a small head appeared, and seconds later it took to the wing with the mountains and fjord landscape in the background, setting the scene perfectly.”

In addition to the Overall Winner, photographers competed in eight different categories: Best Portrait, Birds in the Environment, Attention to Detail, Bird Behavior, Birds in Flight, Black and White, Urban Birds, and Creative Imagery. There were also awards given to Young Photographers aged 14–17, 9–13, and under 8. “Once again our talented photographers have cast a light on the incredible diversity of bird life that we share our planet with,” Will Nicholls, director of Bird Photographer of the Year, says. “But it is a stark reminder of what we stand to lose if we don't continue to look after the natural world and fight for its protection from the many threats that exist today.” This year the BPOTY competition donated more than £5,000 (about $5,796 USD) to its partner charity Birds on the Brink, which helps bird conservation projects around the world.