It's time again for my 6th annual "Open Rendering Season" Contest. Prizes range from Songbird ReMix sets to bird related merchandise from Ken's online stores (such as Coffee Mugs, Tee-shirts, Tote Bags etc). The main requirement is that you use a Songbird ReMix bird somewhere in the image (click here for a list of acceptable products). For a complete set of rules and how to enter click here.

All entries must submitted by March 1st, 2012, 11:59pm PST. Any entries submitted after that date will not be considered. Award winners will be announced March 15th.

The Judges....

Marcus England

Marcus is an ornithologist and Vice President of Bloom Biological. Marcus has worked with US Military bases in managing the endangered bird species on their bases such as the California Gnatcatcher and perils faced by California condors released into the wild at Tejon Ranch.

He conducted biological fieldwork and acted as teaching assistant for avian ecology and tropical ecology courses during the summers of 1995 and 1996 at La Suerta Biological Station, Costa Rica.

He was Head ornithologist from 1998-2000 at Lamanai Field Research Center in Orange Walk, Belize. Research included line transects, point counts and constant effort mist netting. This work fundamentally changed our understanding of bird distributions in north-central Belize. Conducted additional fieldwork during this period at Las Cuevas Biological Station in the Chiquibul National Forest. Also assisted on a large-scale US Environmental Protection Agency funded study on toxic contaminants in endangered Morelet’s crocodiles. He has also studied birds in Guatemala, Trinidad & Tobago, Brazil, Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.

Bob Gino

Bob Gino is owner of the Orlando Art Gallery in Los Angeles. The Orlando was one of the oldest and respected operating galleries in the Southern California area running for over 55 years. Popular Southern California artists such as Susan Clover, Don Lagerberg, Ken Gilliland and others called the Orlando their home. It finally closed it's doors 2011 due to the recession.

Garry George

Garry is the Policy & Chapter Outreach Chairman for Audubon California. Garry has been a long-time birder and member of the Board of Audubon California. Currently, he is involved in helping California and businesses chose bird-safe renewable energy sources and helping move forward the "Audubon at Home" program which encourages gardeners to plant native species and create bird-safe gardens.

Stewart McSherry

Stewart is the Chief Executive Officer of Greenworks (aka X-Frog) which creates high quality 3D plant models. He also was the Artist in Residence at ZKM Media Institute Karlsruhe, Germany and at ART + COM.

Kristen Black

Kristen Black is a recording artist and PhD in Organic Chemistry. She currently teaches chemistry at CalPoly by day and night transforms into a rock musician playing up and down the Central California coast. Her music is available on ITunes, and at Amazon and CD Baby. To sample some of her music, look at the base of this page.

This contest is my thank-you to all of you who've supported my bird-related products over the years. Let the rendering begin!