Michigan Audubon is excited to announce that submissions are now open for our 2026 Photography Awards — and new this year, we’ve added a video category! This is your opportunity to showcase the beauty, behavior, and diversity of Michigan’s birds through your creative lens. From breathtaking moments at your favorite birding hotspot to a quiet visitor at your backyard feeder, every perspective helps tell the story of the birds that share our state.

Your images and videos do more than showcase your talent — they inspire appreciation, spark curiosity, and deepen connections to the natural world. Whether you’re an experienced photographer or simply love documenting wildlife, we invite you to share your perspective and celebrate Michigan’s remarkable birdlife with us. We can’t wait to see the stories you’ve captured.

Eligibility and Prizes

Photographs:
One grand prize winner and three honorable mentions will be selected and announced on July 1, 2026.

• Grand Prize: $250 Visa gift card, plus publication in the Jack Pine Warbler, on the Michigan Audubon website, and on our social media channels
• Honorable Mentions: Recognition across Michigan Audubon’s platforms

Each participant may submit up to three photos via our online submission form. Be sure to review the full contest rules before submitting your entries. Submissions will be accepted until May 31, 2026.

Videos:
One grand-prize winner and one honorable-mention winner will be selected and announced on July 1, 2026.

• Grand Prize: $250 Visa gift card, plus promotion on the Michigan Audubon website and social media channels.
• Honorable Mention: Recognition across Michigan Audubon’s platforms.

Each participant may submit up to one video via our online submission form. Be sure to review the full contest rules before submitting your entries. Submissions will be accepted until May 31, 2026.

Michigan Audubon requests that all photographers follow ethical practices when photographing birds and other wildlife. For more information, please review Audubon’s Guide to Ethical Bird Photography.

Rules

Entrants must be a current Michigan Audubon member at the time of submitting their photos or videos. Join here!

Entries must be photos or videos taken in the state of Michigan. If it is determined that a photograph or video was taken outside of the state, it will be disqualified.

Photographs:

Photos must be submitted as high-resolution digital prints in .jpg format and should be capable of being enlarged while retaining printable quality. The preferred resolution is 300 DPI.

Photos must not be digitally signed or watermarked.

All photos must be accompanied by a caption, location, date, and photographer’s name. Please name your file using the following format: bird species_title optional_date-taken_photographer name.jpg (Sandhill Crane_1.1.2026_firstname lastname.jpg)

Limited alterations of photographs are allowed, including:

• removal of dust spots and reduction of image noise
• minor adjustments to color, white balance, tone, lighting levels and curves, shadows and highlights, saturation, contrast, and sharpness
• moderate dodging and burning.

Any photo featuring a person must have been submitted with their permission. Any subjects under 18 must have written permission from a guardian for publishing purposes.

Videos must:

• be no larger than 50 megabytes
• be a minimum of 1920 by 1080 px
• be an .MP4 file (preferred) or .MOV file
• have a frame rate of 24 fps or higher
• be 45 seconds or less
• restrict sound to original sound only – no music or narration
• not be digitally signed or watermarked
• not include people

All videos must be accompanied by a caption, location, date, and videographer’s name. Please name your file using the following format: bird species_title optional_date-taken_videographer name.MP4 (Sandhill Crane_1.1.2026_firstname lastname.MP4)

All entrants irrevocably grant Michigan Audubon a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual license to use their submitted photographs or videos in any manner related to the contest and Michigan Audubon, including all associated use, reproduction, distribution, sublicense, derivative works, and commercial and non-commercial exploitation rights in any and all media now known or hereafter invented, including, but not limited to the Jack Pine Warbler magazine, blogs, slideshows, brochures, newsletters, articles, reports, calendars, publications, social media posts, physical and digital galleries, and exhibition of submissions.

Our goal is to credit all photography and video work that is featured.

Please contact Galena Wortman, [email protected], if you have any questions or concerns.