Calling all photographers and bird lovers!  We’re celebrating Bird Month at California Botanic Garden with a Bird Photography Contest. From February 1-28, 2025 we invite photographers of all ages to share their images of the varied and active bird life in the Garden for a chance to win some small bird-themed prizes.

In addition to submitting your photos for the contest using the instructions below, be sure to share your photos on Instagram and Facebook using #BirdsOfCalBG and tag us (@californiabotanicgarden) so we can share your photos on our social media accounts.

Details:

Each photographer may submit one photograph for consideration in one or both of two categories: Hummingbirds and All Other Birds.* Submit photos between February 1-28, 2025 by e-mailing them to photocontest@calbg.org.  (You may also provide a link for download). E-mail subject should read: Bird Month Photo Contest 2025. E-mail body should include the following info:

1. First and Last Name
2. Phone number
3. E-mail address
4. Bird Species (identified to the best of your knowledge)
5. Date photo was taken in the Garden (must be in February 2025)

*Hummingbirds are incredibly photogenic, but we'd also like to encourage photographers to capture the wonderful diversity of bird life in the Garden. We also encourage photos of birds interacting with the plant life in the Garden.

Contest Rules:

• There will be two contest winners in each category.
• Photos must be taken at California Botanic Garden during the month of February 2025. 
• Photos must be no larger than 35 MB, be close to 3,000 pixels wide (for horizontal photographs), or 3,000 pixels tall (for vertical photographs) with at least 150 dpi, and saved in jpeg format.
• Some normal processing of the original file is acceptable.
• Examples of ineligible photographs include frame stacking, stitched panoramic, photos that have been heavily manipulated, photos with borders, signatures, or watermarks.
• CalBG advocates for ethical bird photography.  Please do not disturb or harm birds, including approaching nests or chicks, no flash photography, and no baiting of birds. 
• Winners will be chosen in the first week of March by a panel of judges and announced no later than March 10, 2025. 
• By entering this contest, photographers agree that they are the sole and exclusive author and owner of the photograph, and that they grant California Botanic Garden non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free permission to use the submitted photograph in any manner, including all associated uses, reproduction, and distribution.  
  

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Photo above: Spotted Towhee by Wilson Yao (winner, 2024 Bird Month Photo Contest)