YBC T-shirt Art Contest

Hey, kids! Would you like your artwork to appear on the annual Youth Birding Competition T-shirt? How about winning an Amazon gift card for free art supplies? Then plan on taking part in the Youth Birding Competition's T-shirt Art Contest!

The 2024 YBC t-shirt art winners have been announced. View their winning entries.

Barn owl by Aleena Huang, 13, a seventh grader at SKA Academy of Art and Design in Duluth. Credit: Aleena Huang. — 2024 Middle School Division Winner and Overall Winner Aleena Huang

Rules for 2025

All you need to do is draw or paint a native Georgia bird on paper or canvas. Then complete the Airtable entry form and upload a JPG photo of your artwork (from a camera or smartphone) by January 31, 2025.

Prizes

Grand Prize Winner receives a $100 Amazon gift card, and his/her artwork appears on the 2025 Youth Birding Competition T-Shirt. Three other winners will each receive a $60 Amazon gift card.

A winner will be selected from each of the following age categories:

Primary (Pre-K–2nd Grade)
Elementary (3rd–5th Grade)
Middle School (6th–8th Grade)
High School (9th–12th Grade)

The Grand Prize Winner will be determined from those four age category winners. The runner-up in each age division will receive a $40 Amazon gift card! A surprise award also will be given to the best artwork by a birding participant.

A drawing of a Green Heron perched on a log sticking out above the water. It is leaning forward, holding its fresh catch of a small fish in its beak. — 2023 Best Artwork By a YBC Birder: Green Heron by Abigail Moeller

Other Contest Rules

The Youth Birding T-Shirt Art Contest is open to Georgia residents in PreK through 12th grade. Although participation in the 2025 Youth Birding Competition (YBC) in April 2025 is encouraged, it is not required in order to submit artwork. Only one entry per person is allowed, and the submission must be the child’s original artwork. Tracings and computer-generated artwork are not allowed.

Tips for Winning

Make sure the bird species you draw or paint is native to Georgia and not previously featured on a Youth Birding Competition T-shirt.

If you’re not sure if a species is native to Georgia, consult a field guide to birds of the Eastern U.S. The species description and range map will tell you if the bird naturally occurs in Georgia or if it is introduced or exotic. Native resident and migratory birds qualify. Artwork of domesticated birds as well as naturalized exotic species (like house sparrows, pigeons and starlings) will be disqualified. Also, exclude species that have previously appeared on a YBC T-shirt.

Species to exclude: American kestrel, Anna’s hummingbird, barn owl, barred owl, blue grosbeak, blue jay, blue-gray gnatcatcher, Carolina chickadee, golden eagle, great blue heron, great horned owl, loggerhead shrike, osprey, peregrine falcon, red-breasted nuthatch, yellow-breasted chat, and yellow-rumped warbler.

Follow the contest rules regarding artwork type

Artwork must be flat (no 3D submissions) and created on paper or canvas. When photographing the artwork, please keep it straight and fill the camera frame as much as possible.

Pay attention to the bird’s features. Draw or paint them accurately.

If the judges can’t tell what bird species is in your artwork, the picture won’t work well on a T-shirt. Body proportions, beak shape & field marks are important (especially for older art contest participants).

To show up well on a T-shirt, the bird needs to be the main focus of your artwork.

Simple backgrounds (especially appropriate habitats) are a plus, but your bird must stand out well. Put some thought into composition, context and contrasting colors.

Deep contrasting colors scan best for a T-shirt.

Keep in mind that the winning artwork will be used on a T-shirt for both boys and girls. Fill in your colors well so that the bird can be seen well from a distance. If you use colored pencils (which often appear faint), press down hard or go over your lines several times for richer colors.