The 18th annual BirdGuides Photo of the Year competition is here – and we're thrilled to be able to announce this year's shortlist, as well as give you the chance to vote for your favourite.
The 52 Photo of the Week winners of 2023 have been whittled down to a shortlist of 10 through plenty of debate and deliberation by the BirdGuides and Birdwatch team. Each of us came up with our own shortlist of 10, complete with a points score, before these were combined to produce the final result. No fewer than 22 of the 52 images made the collective shortlist, and no two team member's lists were the same, demonstrating how photography is such a subjective art and how individual tastes differ.
Now that the shortlist is finalised, it's up to you to choose your favourite from the selection below and cast your vote. You can see the shortlisted images below.
Once again, we've been left feeling humbled by the amazing quality and diversity of contributors' uploads throughout the year, as a look through the Photo of the Week gallery will show. Our thanks go to all our BirdGuides contributors, for it is you that make the website such a great place to spend time!
Please note that voting will close at midnight on Sunday 28 January, with the winner announced in the March issue of Birdwatch. You can only vote once!
BirdGuides Photo of the Year 2023: the shortlist
Yellow-throated Toucan and Tropical Kingbird by Jonathan Scragg
Pied Kingfisher by Al Henderson
Jack Snipe by Rebecca Nason
Black Tern by Paul Slade
European Shag by Tom Hines
Black Woodpecker by Mark Woodhead
Eurasian Bittern by Tim Melling
Common Quail by Chris Griffin
Ruff and Northern Lapwing by Dennis Morrison
Eurasian Teal by Carl Bovis
Vote now!