Submissions are currently open for the World Press Photo Contest 2024 to professional photographers worldwide. This annual World Press Photo Contest honors and celebrates the greatest photojournalism and documentary photography from the previous year, as chosen by an international independent jury.

Entery is completely free, and awards include up to €6,000 in cash and inclusion in the yearly traveling show, among many more events. The organizer welcomes a wide range of stories and photographers from worldwide to enter the contest.

Key Details

Entries Deadline: 11 January 2024 (13:00 CET, Amsterdam time)

Regional Winners Announcement: 3 April 2024

Global Winners Announcement: 18 April 2024

Flagship Exhibition Opens in Amsterdam: 19 April 2024

Organizer: World Press Photo Foundation

Award Categories

The 2024 World Press Photo Contest is divided into 6 parts for the whole world – Africa, Asia, Europe, North and Central America, South America, and Southeast Asia and Oceania. Photographs are judged based on the region they were taken in. For example, a photo taken in Canada would be entered in the North and Central America category.

Each region has four different categories: Singles, Stories, Long-Term Projects, and Open Format. These categories welcome photographs that show or tell about news moments, events, aftermaths, and also social, political, or environmental issues or solutions.

These category types cover all sorts of themes from past contests – like general news, spot news, contemporary issues, environment, nature, sports, and portraits. So, you can submit pictures on a wide range of topics in the right category.

The competition rewards the best photos and visual stories in the following four categories:

Singles:

• These are single-frame photos
• All singles must have been taken in 2023
• All singles can win the World Press Photo of the Year

Stories:

• These are sets of 4 to 10 single-frame photos
• All photos in the stories category must be taken in 2022 or 2023
• At least four photos in a story must be from 2023
• All stories can win the World Press Story of the Year

Long-Term Projects:

• These are projects focusing on one theme with 24-30 single-frame photos
• An entry must include photos from at least three different years, and at least six photos must be taken in 2023
• All projects can win the World Press Photo Long-Term Project Award

Open Format Category:

• Welcomes visual journalism with still photography as the central element.
• Encourages innovative techniques and non-traditional storytelling approaches.
• Allows the use of other media like web platforms, animation, video, or sound.
• Permits techniques such as multiple exposure, montage, collage, or alternative processes.
• Transformation of still imagery in (news and documentary) contexts is encouraged.
• Video entries exceeding 15 minutes in running time cannot be considered.

Benefits of the World Press Photo Contest

For the 2024 World Press Photo Contest, winners will be chosen through a two-step process. Regional juries, composed of five professionals from or working in the region, will initially curate a selection of entries. Subsequently, a global jury, consisting of the six regional jury chairs and the global jury chair, will award the winners on both the regional and global levels. The winners willl receive the awards as follows:

Regional winners

Eligibilities and Criteria

All applicants and submission should meet the following critiera:

• The World Press Photo contest is for professional photographers in journalism or documentary photography.
• Every participant must show a document with a valid date confirming their current professional status, the examplese include any of the followings:

1. press card
2. at least 1 proof of publication (for example a tearsheet) from 2022 or 2023)
3. journalism union membership card
4. membership document from a recognized photographic association
5. a recent letter of reference (must be from 2022 or 2023) from a photo agency, photo editor, media organization or publication
6. if you cannot provide proof that meets the above criteria, you may register with alternative  documents .

• Team entries allowed; proof of professional status required for each member.
• Photographer(s) must be the author(s) of the submitted photos.
• Copyright holder(s) or authorized representatives must submit the photographs.
• Entries must align with specified categories and meet technical requirements.
• Published or unpublished photographs are acceptable
• Restricted event photos are not permitted.
• Accurate English captions required; provide original if translated.
• Each entry needs relevant information like motivation, project type, and funding.
• Adherence to World Press Photo code of ethics is mandatory.
• Entries only accepted through the official platform Picter.
• Deadline for Picter registration and submissions: January 11, 2024, 13:00 CET.
• World Press Photo staff, board members, advisors, and jury ineligible to participate.

Note: For category vice criteria please visit the entry rules here.

Judging Criteria

The 2024 World Press Photo Contest judging takes place into six weeks in January and February, employing regional and global juries in both online and offline sessions:

Regional juries

Regional juries, consisting of five professionals from each region, assess entries based on their regional expertise. The Africa jury convenes offline in Johannesburg at Market Photo Workshop, while all other regions conduct online deliberations.

Global Jury

The global jury, led by the global jury chair and regional jury chairs, selects 24 regional winners and four global winners, including World Press Photo of the Year. Additionally, they may grant Honorable Mentions for entries deserving special recognition, limited to one per region from Singles or Stories categories.

Assisted by a secretary, responsible for procedural matters, the global jury is supported by a coordinator, facilitating communication between the jury and the World Press Photo Foundation. Foundation staff manage logistical aspects but don’t participate in judging decisions.

Judging Round

The contest involves six voting rounds, comprising the first to fifth rounds and the finals. Detailed information about the voting system and process for each round is outlined in the Judging Procedures Handbook, provided to each juror, and will be published soon.

Judging Process

The judging process is guided by criteria set by World Press Photo to ensure accurate and visually compelling photojournalism aligning with the organization’s mission. While the jury is independent, the criteria include the followings:

• visual quality
• storytelling
• representation
• emphasizing diversity

The organization acknowledges the diverse expertise of the jury and grants them the freedom to define award-worthy entries within these criteria.

How to Enter the World Press Photo Contest?

Participants can enter the contest by submitting their photographs online. Before submiting your entry, please follow these steps:

1. Start by making your Picter account here.
2. Sign up for the 2024 World Press Photo Contest using Picter.
3. While your registration is under review, you can start uploading your work and include captions, metadata, and other details.
4. Ensure you submit your entries by the deadline on January 11, 2024, at 13:00 CET.
5. Before submitting make sure you have read the Code of Ethics and Entry Rules. Then, create a Personal Picture account and proceed with submission.

 

Submit Now

 

For more information about contest, entry rules, submission categories and more detials, please go to World Press Photo Contest.

 

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