BPOTY - the best of South Africa
Year-on-year Bird Photographer of the Year is receiving more entries from more photographers, evidence that it has gained a lot of traction within a short space of time. With competition entrants coming from 63 countries in 2019, BPOTY is continuing to extend its global reach.
Over the four years of the competition, photographers from South Africa have shown they are a force to be reckoned with, entering some fabulous images. We thought we would share and celebrate some of the best from this part of the world in our latest blog.
William Steel won our Best Portrait Bronze Award in 2019 with this poignant image of a Cattle Egret. ©William Steel
Edmund Aylmer was awarded a Commendation from the judges for this image of Red-billed Oxpeckers entered into the Bird Behaviour category in our 2018 competition. ©Edmund Aylmer.
Richard Flack received a Commendation in the Birds in Flight category in 2019 for this image of a Verreaux’s Eagle ©Richard Flack
A Commendation in the Bird Behaviour category was Chantelle Melzer’s reward for this image of Grey-crowned Cranes from the 2018 competition. ©Chantelle Melzer
Clint Ralph received a Commendation from the judges in 2018 with this dynamic image of White-backed Vultures. ©Clint Ralph.
William Steel found further success in 2019 winning a Commendation from the judges for this image of a Helmeted Guineafowl from the Bird Behaviour category. ©William Steel
The BPOTY judging team can’t wait to see what surprises the 2020 competition will bring. ‘The judges love the feeling of eager anticipation of what awaits them every year as they open up the online judging portal once entries have closed.’ Explains BPOTY director and competition organiser Rob Read.
The competition entry period for 2020 runs until the end of November 2019 so there is still lots of time to organise your entry. With over £20,000 worth of prizes on offer, including a £5,000 cash prize to the overall winner, there are plenty of reasons to have a go at what is quickly becoming one of the world’s most prestigious wildlife photography competitions.