WILDLIFE photographers can get in the frame for top prizes following the launch of the 2016 North East Wildlife Photography Competition.

The three North-East Wildlife Trusts (Tees Valley, Durham and Northumberland), the Natural History Society of Northumbria (NHSN), and Great North Museum: Hancock and Alan Hewitt Photography joining forces for the fourth year in a row.

Nestlé Fawdon is the main sponsor and prizes being offered include £250, binoculars, photography workshops, wildlife watching trips and photography equipment.

As well as a chance to win a fantastic prize the entries also help to showcase the wonderful wildlife that can be found in the North-East.

There are six competition categories to enter: wildlife portraits, wildlife in action, wildlife in the landscape, nature up close, mobile nature and young person’s, with prizes for each category winner and runners-up.

Entry is free and is open to everyone, but photographs must have been taken in the North-East.

Winning photos will be exhibited in the Great North Museum: Hancock and on tour around the region. It is a great opportunity to show the best of the region’s wildlife.

To enter, and for more information, visit www.northeastwildlifephoto.co.uk

You can also follow the competition via Facebook and twitter.

Jeremy Garside, Tees Valley Wildlife Trust’s Chief Executive said: “Last year, people of all ages and abilities entered in excess of 1600 photos of this region’s amazing wildlife leaving everybody involved in the competition absolutely speechless.

“Our region has some wonderful hidden wildlife gems which never fail to amaze me, so, if you have a few hours to spare, why not head outdoors and take a photo and enter it. It’s as simple as that.”

The competition closing date is midnight, Sunday, May 15 2016. Winners announced at the Great North Museum: Hancock Awards Ceremony on Thursday, July 14 2016.