Speaking Engagements

Paul Bannick speaking

Photo by Danny Ngan

Paul Bannick speaking

Paul Bannick speaking

Photo by Rich Lawrence

Paul is an accomplished public speaker in addition to being a professional photographer and conservationist.  This unique skillset combination has made Paul a sought after keynote speaker for events all over North America.  From National Audubon’s first national convention in more than a decade, to birding festivals across the United States, from scientific conferences to non-profit fundraisers, Paul’s keynote presentations have met with exceedingly positive reviews. His programs combine breathtaking photos, compelling videos, evocative audio, the latest science and first-person stories from the field delivered with passion and an interactive style that keeps the toughest audiences engaged.  Paul’s emphasis on natural history, surprising inter-relationships, habitat and conservation help ensure that his programs are as informative as they are spellbinding.  He is equally effective and experienced with large groups of more than 2,000 to smaller intimate groups. The breadth and depth of his image library allow him to conduct a wide range of unique and ever-evolving programs so that many people return for multiple presentations. Paul can deliver any of the many existing programs, or he can create custom presentations on natural history themes, particularly those dealing with birds and habitat. Some of Paul’s most popular programs include:

Owl: A Year In The Lives of North American Owls

Join Paul Bannick for a program featuring video, sound, stories from the field and several dozen new images from his award-winning and best-selling bird book: Owl: A Year in the Lives of North American Owls. Paul uses intimate yet dramatic images to follow owls through the course of one year and in their distinct habitats. Audiences will witness the four seasons on territory, as each stage in an owl’s life is chronicled through rare images: courtship, mating, and nesting in spring; fledging and feeding of young in summer; dispersal and gaining independence in fall; and, finally, winter’s migrations and competitions for food. His program shows how owls use the unique resources available to them in each habitat to face those challenges. All 19 species found in Canada and the United States are featured in photos, video and narrative throughout the book, with a special focus on the Northern Pygmy-Owl, Great Gray Owl, Burrowing Owl, and Snowy Owl. Owl is a stunning follow-up to Bannick’s bestselling title, The Owl and the Woodpecker, giving bird lovers yet another gorgeous photographic tribute, engaging natural history, and a compelling call to preserve the habitats that sustain these most iconic of birds. Nearly ten years of working in some of the most remote parts of the continent, at the darkest hours of the day, tracking owls as they move through their lives has rewarded Paul with striking images that he uses in his book and presentations. His program can broadly focus on North America or they can be customized for states, geographic regions or habitats such as the Arctic Tundra, Boreal Forests, Western Mountains  Dry Forests,  Temperate Forests, Mountain Meadows, Oak Habitats, Deserts, Shrub-steppe, Grasslands, and Eastern Forests.
  • Examples include:
  • Owl: A Year in the Lives of North American Owls
  • Owl: A Year in the Lives of California Owls
  • Owl: A Year in the Lives of owls of the Shrub-steppe
  • Snowy Owl: A Year in the Life of the Arctic Ghost

Snowy Owl: A Visual Natural History

Join award winning author and photographer Paul Bannick on an intimate visual exploration of the life history of the Snowy Owl, based upon his 2020 book, Snowy Owl: A Visual Natural History”.  Through dozens of never-before-published images of the “Arctic Owl”, Paul will help us understand how they survive, breed and live alongside other wildlife on the Arctic tundra and in wintering areas further south. He will also look at how they compare to other North American Owls and what we can do to help them thrive. Paul’s startling photographs illustrate behaviors, such as courtship displays, that are heretofore only available as illustrations elsewhere. These images are complemented by decades of first-hand experience with these birds during all seasons of the year and reflect the latest science.

Great Gray Owl: A Visual Natural History

Join award winning author and photographer Paul Bannick on an intimate visual exploration of the life history of the Great Gray Owl based upon his 2020 book, Great Gray Owl: A Visual Natural History”.  Through dozens of never-before-published images of the “Ghost of the Northern Forest”, Paul will help us understand how they survive, breed and live alongside other wildlife in the Boreal forests and Western Mountains of North America. He will also look at how they compare to other North American Owls and what we can do to help them thrive. Paul’s startling photographs illustrate behaviors, normally hidden stages in life-history, that are elsewhere only shown through drawings. These images are complemented by decades of first-hand experience with these birds during all seasons of the year and reflect the latest science.

The Great Gray and The Snowy Owl: Comparative Natural History

Join award winning author and photographer Paul Bannick on an intimate visual exploration of the life histories of the Snowy Owl and the Great Gray Owl based upon his two books, “Snowy Owl: A Visual Natural History” and “Great Gray Owl: A Visual Natural History”.  Through dozens of never-before-published images of the “Arctic Owl” and “The Great Gray Ghost”, Paul will help us understand how what these two species have in common and how they differ. Comparisons will involve everything from size, weight and build to habitat, prey species and life cycles.

The Owl and The Woodpecker

Paul’s presentations on owls and woodpeckers take audiences on a visual and auditory exploration of habitats of North America through the owls and woodpeckers that most define and enrich these places. This photographic field report celebrates the ways the lives of these two iconic birds are intertwined with one another, and their role as keystone and indicator species for their environment. Audiences are immersed in the sights and sounds of forest, grassland, arctic, and desert, and in the entertaining and informative details of Paul’s narrative. The hidden life of these birds is obvious for those who know how to find it. Paul knows how to find it, and how to bring it to life for his audiences through photos, sound, and story. Paul has developed a new program titled “The Owl and The Woodpecker Revisited” which uses entirely new photos, information and stories gleaned from the several years since Owl and Woodpecker’s release, while following the same themes.
  • Examples include:
  • The Owl and the Woodpecker Revisited
  • Owls and Woodpeckers of North America
  • Owls and Woodpeckers of The Pacific Northwest
  • Owls and Woodpeckers of The West
  • Owls and Woodpeckers of Any North American Region, State, or Habitat

Woodpeckers of North America

Drawing upon 15 years of studying and photographing woodpeckers, Paul presents various multimedia woodpecker presentations and workshops that can be based upon species, families, geography or habitat.
  • Examples include:
  • The Owl and the Woodpecker Revisited
  • Woodpeckers of North America
  • Woodpeckers of the Intermountain West
Contact Paul for availability and rates