Top 16 Birds & Blooms Contest Photos of 2025

Published on Jan. 23, 2026

Birds & Blooms readers entered bird, bloom, butterfly, and hummingbird photos in the 2025 Photo Contest. See the images chosen as semifinalists.

We received thousands of amazing entries in the 2025 Birds & Blooms Annual Photo Contest, and our team picked four exceptional images from each category: birds, blooms, hummingbirds and butterflies. Read on to see all the amazing images and then visit this link to discover the grand prize winner.

1 / 16

12 Linda Scher Bbdj26 — Courtesy Linda Scher

Nashville Warbler

Linda Scher, Minneapolis, Minnesota

2 / 16

12 Ryan Ford Bbdj26 — Courtesy Ryan Ford

Northern Cardinal

Ryan Ford, Holmdel, New Jersey

3 / 16

12 Malcolm Stephens Bbdj26 — Courtesy Malcolm Stephens

Painted Bunting

Malcolm Stephens, Texarkana, Texas

4 / 16

12 Teri Smith Bbdj26 (1) — Courtesy Teri Smith

Barred Owls

Teri Smith, Cleveland, Ohio

5 / 16

12 Christopher Barry Bbdj26 — Courtesy Christopher Barry

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

Christopher Barry, Jackson, New Jersey

6 / 16

12 Larra Hopkins Bbdj26 — Courtesy Larra Hopkins

Long-tailed Skipper

Larra Hopkins, Port Orange, Florida

7 / 16

12 Ashley Campbell Bbdj26 — Courtesy Ashley Campbell

Queens

Ashley Campbell, Canyon, Texas

8 / 16

12 Janice Selfridge Bbdj26 — Courtesy Janice Selfridge

Giant Swallowtail

Janice Selfridge, Verona, Wisconsin

9 / 16

12 Petra Stevenson Bbdj26 — Courtesy Petra Stevenson

California Poppy

Petra Stevenson, Arroyo Grande, California

10 / 16

12 Kathy Diamontopoulos Bbdj26 — Courtesy Kathy Diamontopoulos

Sunflower

Kathy Diamontopoulos, Haverhill, Massachusetts

11 / 16

12 Rick Hess Bbdj26 — Courtesy Rick Hess

Dandelion

Rick Hess, Boiling Springs, Pennsylvania

12 / 16

12 Kelley Kamay Bbdj26 — Courtesy Kelley Kamay

Asters

Kelley Kamay, Wethersfield, Connecticut

13 / 16

12 Miguel Gil Bbdj26 — Courtesy Miguel Gil

Costa’s Hummingbird

Miguel Gil, Aurora, New York

14 / 16

12 Stacy Gessler Bbdj26 — Courtesy Stacy Gessler

Black-Chinned Hummingbird

Stacy Gessler, Moscow, Idaho

15 / 16

Olympus Digital Camera — Courtesy Christine Gill

Rufous Hummingbird

Christine Gill, Trout Run, Pennsylvania

16 / 16

12 Julia Willmann Bbdj26 — Courtesy Julia Willmann

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Julia Willmann, Troy, Missouri

Author

Lori Vanover

Lori Vanover is the senior digital editor for Birds & Blooms. She has a bachelor of science degree in agricultural and environmental communications from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Lori is certified as a Wisconsin Extension Master Gardener and is also a member of the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology. In her spare time she enjo...