Born in London and raised in Ireland, Alan Murphy grew up with a love of birds and nature. His parents bought him a field guide and a pair of binoculars when he was just 5, and over the years his hobby grew into a passion. He moved to the United States in 1984 and, overwhelmed by the number of North American bird species, borrowed a camera and started taking snapshots of the birds in order to speed up his learning. He discovered that he loved the technical challenges of the camera and the challenge of getting closer to the birds. “Most of all,” he says, “I found photographing birds to be the most intimate bird watching there is.”

 

 

Today, Alan has photographed nearly 700 North American bird species and is a globally respected photographer whose work has appeared in field guides, on calendars, and in magazines, including National Geographic, Birding, National Wildlife, Birds & Blooms, Living Bird, Ranger Rick, and many others. One of his images of a Eastern Meadowlark can be found on a conservation license plate issued by the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles. He is equally passionate about teaching bird photography to others: For more than 20 years he has led hundreds of sold-out, multi-day workshops in North America and abroad, teaching participants about bird behavior, ethical attraction methods, natural setups, and camera craft. He also has produced a series of instructional videos and e-books, and given numerous talks at festivals, conferences, and camera clubs.

 

 

He has won a number of awards for his work, most recently in Bird Photographer of the Year, an international competition. He is known for his creative use of perches with clean, uncluttered backgrounds and quality natural lighting. Over the years this has become Alan’s signature: gorgeous perches paired with beautiful birds, showcasing their natural environment with simple elegance. More recently, he has added another element to his portfolio, creating painstakingly detailed charcoal drawings of birds and other animals.

 

 

Alan and his wife, Kim, live in Colorado. They like to travel domestically and abroad, enjoy nature, and spend time with their rescue dogs.