Photo contest hub: which competitions are open and how to enter
Photo contest windows this season are concrete. LensCulture's Black & White Photography Awards are open now, the Natural History Museum opens Wildlife Photographer of the Year on 19 October 2026, and the Sony World Photography Awards Single Image competition closes on 5 January 2027. Entry runs through each organiser's own form, under its published rules.
By BuyVotesForContest editorial desk ยท Updated
What a photography competition covers
Photo contests divide by subject first. Nature photography sits beside wildlife photography, travel, sport, black and white, and insect macro work, and each subject runs on its own calendar. The World Sports Photography Awards 2027, run by World Sports Photography Awards Ltd, accept entries until 23 November 2026. The Royal Entomological Society's Insect Week Photography Competition takes up to three insect photos through its online form and announces results in 2027.
Rules come second, and they do more work than the theme. Nature Canada's rules allow only citizens or permanent residents of Canada, and only photographs of Canadian content, meaning taken in Canada. A photography competition UK readers enter, or one based in India or Australia, will carry its own residency lines in the same place. Read them before the photo, not after.
Subjects repeat across the field. Category pages split into landscape photography, food photography, dog and pet portraits, and wedding moments, each with its own rules. The category decides what counts.
- Entry is online: an organiser's own form, an application panel, or a social post carrying the organiser's hashtag.
- The rules define the eligible photo: format, minimum resolution, original work, and the information submitted with it.
- Residency narrows some fields: Canada, the UK, India and Australia each carry competitions with their own entry conditions.
- Timing varies by subject: nature and wildlife windows cluster in summer, travel contests run toward christmas deadlines.
Open photography competitions right now
A photography contest is either open, about to open, or already closed, and the organiser's own page is the only clock that counts. Several are open or about to open on organiser pages this season.
- LensCulture's Black & White Photography Awards are open for entries.
- The Natural History Museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year opens for entries at 11.30am GMT on Monday 19 October 2026.
- The World Photography Organisation's Single Image competition closes on 5 January 2027 at 16.00 GMT.
- Backroads takes travel submissions until 31 December 2026.
- The World Sports Photography Awards 2027 close for entries on 23 November 2026.
- The Royal Entomological Society takes three insect photos per entrant for its 2026 competition, with results announced in 2027.
Who may enter, and where
The National Wildlife Photo Contest accepts photographers worldwide who are at least 13 years old. Entrants aged 13 to 17 must enter only the Youth category, and they must obtain parental or guardian consent before entering. The consent line sits in the rules, not in the entry form's small print.
Borders work the same way. Nature Canada's contest requires entrants to be citizens or permanent residents of Canada, and it requires photographs of Canadian content, taken in Canada. A photography competition aimed at the UK, at India or at Australia will carry its own residency clause in the same place. Read the eligibility paragraph before preparing the photographs.
- Residency: Nature Canada requires entrants to be citizens or permanent residents of Canada.
- Consent: the parent or guardian signs for photographers under 18.
- Borders: regional contests decide their own catchment, and the rules paragraph is the only place that names it.
Travel photo contests run on the trip
Travel contests tie eligibility to a journey. O.A.T.'s traveler photo contest accepts only photos taken by the entrant on an O.A.T. trip, and its subject list covers scenery, cultural attractions, local people, and special moments with fellow travelers, anything that evokes the spirit of discovery.
Backroads runs on the same logic. Submissions for the 2026 contest are due by 31 December 2026, each guest submits a maximum of 25 photos per trip, photos from more than one trip are allowed, and from any past trip, and every photo must be in JPEG format. Travel photography of this kind belongs to the operator's guests first.
- O.A.T. entries must show the organiser's own trips.
- Backroads accepts photos from more than one trip, and from any past trip.
- Backroads guests submit at most 25 photos per trip.
Photo contests on social media
Some organisers collect entries on social platforms instead of a form. Nature Canada requires social media submissions to carry #NCPhotoContest26 for the entry to be eligible. The mechanic is simple: post the photograph, add the hashtag, and the organiser's public gallery becomes the entry record.
Platform rules still apply. Where the organiser demands an entry form, a social post alone does not enter anything, and an entry that skips the named route is a common reason photographs are disqualified. The rules state which route counts.
- The hashtag is the organiser's collection mechanism.
- The platform's own terms sit beside the contest rules and both bind.
Voting and judging decide the winner
The word contest does not tell you how the winner is chosen. Some competitions judge the images; others count votes from the public. The rules name the method, and the method decides the result.
A public voting photo contest counts the votes its readers cast, and its rules say how those counts are read. Judged competitions, such as wildlife photography competitions, describe the panel instead. Photo contest voting rewards reading the published method early, because a vote-driven entry lives or dies on how counts are tallied, not on the raw number.
- Vote-driven contests count and the counting method is the rule to read.
- Judged contests describe the panel and its criteria in the rules.
- The organiser's published method decides, whatever the vote total says.
Entry mechanics: forms, formats and metadata
The National Wildlife Photo Contest requires complete information with every photo: subjects, dates, locations and any digital adjustments made to the image. Photos must be at least 1,600 pixels wide, and mailed or shipped entries will not be accepted. The final date for submitting photos is 22 March 2026 at 11:59 pm North American Eastern Daylight Time.
Every contest runs on its own form. The Chromatic Awards 2026 require entries through the online application panel, and Stars and Stripes' Share Your Paradise Photo Contest accepts entries only through its SurveyMonkey link, by 11:59 PM JST on 4 October 2026. The entry form is the collection point, and the rules decide what the form accepts.
The same is true when you launch or run a photo contest: the gallery of entries, the vote counting and the rules page are the whole machine, and the software behind them matters less than the published criteria. A photography competition lives on its rules page.
- Photos entered in the National Wildlife Photo Contest must be at least 1,600 pixels wide.
- Mailed or shipped entries will not be accepted there.
- Each submission needs its subjects, dates, locations and any digital adjustments recorded.
- Nature Canada's social media entries must carry #NCPhotoContest26 to be eligible.
How to enter a photography competition
The steps below run in the order the rules impose. Skip one and the entry fails at the gate the organiser built for it.
Youth categories and fair play
Youth divisions exist so younger photographers compete against their peers. The National Wildlife Photo Contest holds entrants aged 13 to 17 to its Youth category alone, with parental or guardian consent on record. The category is not a suggestion; the rules move entries that ignore it.
Platform rules are the second gate. Format minimums, resolution floors, metadata demands and named submission routes exist because organisers check them. An entry that misses the stated route or the stated format is disqualified, and the disqualification is the organiser's right under its own terms.
Honest limits of any photo contest
No photo contest guarantees a win. The organiser decides the criteria, the judges or the counting method, and the published rules decide everything the entry form enforces. Where the rules are silent, the organiser's answer is the only one that exists.
Gaps stay gaps. The published rules do not state how ties are broken, what happens when a social media entry is deleted, or how a vote-driven contest audits its counts. Each competition defines its own scope, and a reader who needs more asks the organiser directly.
- No photo contest guarantees a win, a shortlist or a prize.
- No rules answer every question: ties, deleted posts and edge cases stay unaddressed.
- The organiser decides the criteria, the judges and the winner; the entry form enforces them.
| Competition and organiser | Entry window | Entry route |
|---|---|---|
| LensCulture Black & White Photography Awards | Open now | Online entry |
| Wildlife Photographer of the Year, Natural History Museum | Opens 19 October 2026 at 11.30am GMT | Organiser's own entry system |
| Single Image competition, World Photography Organisation | Closes 5 January 2027 at 16.00 GMT | Online entry |
| Backroads photo contest | Due by 31 December 2026 | Guest submissions, up to 25 photos per trip, JPEG |
| World Sports Photography Awards 2027 | Closes 23 November 2026 | Online entry |
| Nature Photo Contest, Nature Canada | 19 May 2026 to 16 August 2026 | Online form, or social post with #NCPhotoContest26 |
Step by step
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Match the photograph to the subject
Every competition names its subject. Nature Canada wants photographs of Canadian content, taken in Canada, and O.A.T. wants photographs taken on its own trips. A photograph outside the subject does not compete, whatever its quality.
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Read the eligibility paragraph
Residency, age and consent lines sit in the rules. Nature Canada requires citizens or permanent residents of Canada, and the National Wildlife Photo Contest sets its floor at 13 years old. Find these lines before preparing anything.
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Note the closing date and time zone
Deadlines carry clocks. The Single Image competition closes at 16.00 GMT on 5 January 2027, and the National Wildlife Photo Contest closes at 11:59 pm Eastern Daylight Time on 22 March 2026. Convert the time zone before you plan the submission.
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Prepare the file
Format and size rules are hard checks. Backroads requires JPEG, and the National Wildlife Photo Contest requires photos at least 1,600 pixels wide. Export once, against the stated minimum, and keep the original.
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Submit through the named route
Use the organiser's own form or panel. Chromatic Awards entries go through the online application panel, and mailed or shipped entries are refused by the National Wildlife Photo Contest. The named route is the only route.
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Complete the metadata
Give the details the rules list. The National Wildlife Photo Contest requires subjects, dates, locations and any digital adjustments made to the image with every photo. Incomplete information is its own reason for refusal.
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Add the hashtag on social media
Where the organiser collects entries socially, the hashtag is the entry. Nature Canada requires #NCPhotoContest26 in the caption of any social media submission. Post without it and the entry is not eligible.
Questions
Can you enter the photo contest in Life is Strange?
The Blackwell Academy photography assignment sits inside Life is Strange, and it is part of the game's own story. Nothing about it is a photography competition that runs outside the game. Real competitions named on this page accept entries through their organisers' published forms, with rules about original work and consent that a fictional contest never states.
Is there any photography contest?
Yes. Photography contests run all year. The Natural History Museum opens Wildlife Photographer of the Year for entries on 19 October 2026, the World Photography Organisation closes its Single Image competition on 5 January 2027, and LensCulture's Black & White Photography Awards are open now.
Where can I enter my baby into a photo contest?
Baby photo contests sit outside this page's rules. The National Wildlife Photo Contest accepts photographers from age 13, and entrants aged 13 to 17 enter its Youth category only, with parental or guardian consent. A baby picture is not an eligible entry there, so look for a baby contest that publishes its own organiser, rules and consent terms.
Can someone else submit a photo of my baby?
Baby contests decide this in their own terms, and the terms name who may submit and who must consent. The National Wildlife Photo Contest requires Youth entrants to obtain parental or guardian consent, which puts the signature with the parent. On a baby contest the same clause structure applies, so read the submitter line before anyone uploads a child's picture.
Where is the entry form for each competition?
On the organiser's own site. The Chromatic Awards 2026 require entries through the online application panel, and Stars and Stripes routes its Share Your Paradise contest through a SurveyMonkey link that closes on 4 October 2026 at 11:59 PM JST. A posted or shipped entry is refused by the National Wildlife Photo Contest outright.
Who signs for a young photographer?
A parent or guardian. In the National Wildlife Photo Contest, entrants aged 13 to 17 must enter only the Youth category and must obtain parental or guardian consent before their photos count. The consent rule sits in the published terms, next to the category list.
Sources
- worldphoto.org. worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/single-image.
- nhm.ac.uk. nhm.ac.uk/press-office/press-releases/wildlife-photographer-of-the-year-reveals-sneak-peek-of-exceptio.html.
- lensculture.com. lensculture.com.
- naturecanada.ca. naturecanada.ca/enjoy-nature/nature-photo-contest/.
- nwf.org. nwf.org/National-Wildlife-Photo-Contest-Rules.
This page is a reference, not an entry service. It names no prize money, quotes no price and never lists an entry fee. It does not submit photos, chase results or speak for any organiser. A photo contest that cannot name its operator and publish its own rules is not one to enter.
A contest vote sits under two rulebooks, the platform's and the organiser's. On CuteBaby, voters get ten free daily votes that expire at midnight, and an account needs a South African mobile number. Organisers then enforce their own terms: Darley may disqualify and replace a potential winner who does not follow its rules, and the Queen's Commonwealth Writing Competition disqualifies over-length entries automatically. An order for contest votes changes none of that.
Contest voting has a rhythm of its own. The Arizona State Fair includes live audience voting on every qualifying night, and the Ernie Ball contest measures online activity throughout its contest period. A count that builds across the window, from separate voters, matches that rhythm. None of this is a method for passing an organiser's checks, and an organiser can still disqualify an entry it doubts.
In the United States, the FTC says a real sweepstakes is free and decided by chance, and that a skills contest can ask you to pay to play. Canada's Competition Bureau says a purchase requirement should be prominently disclosed. Those rules govern entry to a sweepstakes or promotion, and whether paying for votes in a contest is lawful where you live is a question for a lawyer. No order is taken for a sweepstakes or other chance draw, for a political ballot, or for a contest whose rules bar outside votes.
The part of an order that never reaches the contest's own count is refunded once the organiser's voting has closed. America's Favorite Pet calls its dates approximate and lets its operator extend deadlines, so that moment is the organiser's to set. A result, a disqualification and a voided vote are never refunded. At IODC, public votes and engagement do not by themselves decide the winners, and no refund changes how a contest weighs them.