The Winners of the Orkney Nature Festival Photography Competition 2026 have been announced. This is the first year of the competition and it is hoped that its success will be able to be continued in future years. 

 Over 200 entries to the competition were received, which have been narrowed down through a judging process to reach a winning image for each category, as well as a runner up.

The judges of the Competition this year were Rachel Bigsby (award-winning wildlife photographer), Tom Hadley (Chairperson of Orkney Nature Festival), Kirsten Shearer (local Orcadian photographer) and Heather Woodbridge (Leader of Orkney Islands Council). 

The prize for each category has been generously sponsored by a local business; Alison Moore, Highland Park, NorthLink, Ola Gorie, The Orcadian Bookshop and The Orkney Distillery.

Henry Memmott, the Digital Coordinator at the Orkney Nature Festival, and organiser of the competition, said:

“The standard of photographs which were entered into the competition has been wonderful to see, and they do an excellent job of showing the variety of natural places and species which are found in Orkney.

“The winning images are stunning, and a true testament to both the skill of the photographers, and the beauty of this incredible collection of islands.” 

The winning images, and runners up, for each category are as follows: 

Winner – Natural Landscapes of Orkney: ‘Hoy Hills’ by Kirsti Jones

Runner Up – Natural Landscapes of Orkney: ‘Sunlit Spray’ by Mark Simms

Winner – Terrestrial Animals of Orkney: ‘Black Guillemot flying past with a Butterfish’ by David at the Hall of Einar

Runner Up – Terrestrial Animals of Orkney: ‘Merlin surveying it’s territory’ by William Hodgson

Winner – Marine Animals of Orkney: ‘Surfing’ by David Askew 

Runner Up – Marine Animals of Orkney: ‘A Moment to Dry’ by Dawn Underhill

Winner – Plants of Orkney: ‘Bog Cotton’ by Alan Cooper

Runner Up – Plants of Orkney: ‘Treasure vault’ by Nataliia Kuzmina

Winner – Under 18 Natural Landscapes of Orkney: ‘Rounding the Red Head’ by Aiden Schinkel 

Runner Up – Under 18 Natural Landscapes of Orkney: ‘The Bu’ by Eliana Diamond 

Winner – Under 18 Species of Orkney: ‘Daisy’ by Emma Barnes

Runner Up – Under 18 Species of Orkney: ‘Connect Four’ by Aiden Schinkel 

The complete set of winning images can be viewed online at: https://orkneynaturefestival.co.uk/photography-competition-results-2026/