About this competition
As the most prestigious competition of its kind, the Birdwatch Artist of the Year award attracts work each year from illustrators and artists around the world. Held in association with the Society of Wildlife Artists and Swarovski Optik, entry is open to all, and there are fantastic prizes worth more than £2,000 up for grabs.

Launched in 1996, the Birdwatch Artist of the Year has established itself firmly as the UK’s premier competition for bird art. In 2005 the award joined forces for the first time with the Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA), extending its scope still further.

About this competition
Digital photography has boomed in recent years, and this new competition, organised by Birdwatch in association with Kowa, is designed to showcase the outstanding results now being achieved in this medium by both professionals and amateurs alike. We are particularly keen to receive entries from digiscopers as well as from those using telephoto lenses with digital SLR cameras.

Kowa has developed a reputation for optical excellence over many years, and its superb telescopes and binoculars are firm favourites with birders around the world. It is fitting, then, that the winners will each receive valuable Kowa prizes.

Join in with the Birdwatch Big Day and to help raise vital conservation funds for Europe’s most endangered passerine.  

This year’s new-look event is a must for everyone who cares about birds. It’s also great fun! All you need to do is get together with friends (ideally a team of four) and see how many species you can identify in your county in a single day in May. Make sure everyone in your team is sponsored by as many people as possible (if you can get a company to sponsor you as well, even better).

Full details about how to take part can be found in this downloadable PDF.