THE INTERNATIONAL
PHOTO CONTESTS DIRECTORY 2026

• TPOTY • Deadline: October 12th, 2026 • Category: People, Wildlife, Underwater, Street, B&W, Landscape, Adventure, Color... • Prize: Total Prizes £50K + £10K Cash + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The Travel Photographer of the Year Awards (TPOTY) is a truly global photography competition created by photographers, for photographers. It celebrates the incredible diversity of travel photography and welcomes photographers from every corner of the world. W

• BCNDH / Mas Retina • Deadline: October 9th, 2026 • Theme: Human Rights and Global Justice • Prize: €3,000 + 3x€400 + Exhibition in Spain • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The ten projects selected by the jury will have the opportunity to be presented to the public during the festival through an exhibition in the streets of Barcelona. This outdoor exhibition will allow the selected works to become part of the city’s cultural landscape and to reach both festival vi

• Dusk Gallery • Deadline: September 24th, 2026 • Theme: Open • Prize: Exhibition in Santa Fe (USA) + Sales • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Dusk Gallery invites photographers to submit their work for an upcoming curated group exhibition celebrating the art of photographic storytelling through series. We are searching for three distinct photographic voices whose work demonstrates originality, consistency, and a strong sense of artistic direction. Rather than focus

• All About Photo • Deadline: September 22nd, 2026 • Theme: Open • Prize: Solo Online Exhibition + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The Solo Exhibition competition is looking for remarkable photography and distinctive artistic voices. The organisers aim to showcase work that can move, inspire and surprise—photographs that awaken the imagination, invite viewers to think differently or resonate through their honesty, beauty and emotional impact. Selected ph

• HONOR

• BBA Prizes & Gallery • Deadline: September 28th, 2027 • Theme: Contemporary Photography • Prize: €300 + Production + Exhibition in Berlin • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE One image.The award is centred around a single photograph rather than an extensive portfolio or complete series. A large body of work is not required to participate, allowing one strong image to serve as the central artistic statement. Open internationally.The BBA One Shot Award welcomes photog

• NANPA + ASMP • Deadline: September 22nd, 2026 • Theme: Nature Photography • Prize: $750 + VIP Package + PetaPixel Feature • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Showcase is NANPA’s annual juried nature photography competition, offering active NANPA and ASMP Members the opportunity to have their work recognised and shared with a wider audience. Every photograph entered into the competition is evaluated, with 250 images selected to receive recognition. The competition c

• Memorial Maria Luisa • Deadline: December 1st, 2026 • Category: Nature / Adventure Photo & Video • Prize: €4,000 + Exhibition + Accommodation • Entry Fees: Yes (Free under 19yo) • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Some places are meant to be contemplated. Others are meant to be experienced, felt, and remembered. And then there are those rare moments when a landscape, a gesture, a fleeting encounter, or a beam of light comes together perfectly — and a camera has the power to preserve

• Arrival Gallery • Deadline: October 10th, 2026 • Category: Contemporary Photography • Prize: Exhibition in Amsterdam + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Arrival Gallery is accepting applications for its upcoming exhibition programme in Amsterdam, inviting artists from around the world to showcase their work in a dynamic contemporary gallery setting. The open call welcomes submissions from painters, photographers, sculptors, illustrators, textile artists,

• Vital Impacts • Deadline: November 30th, 2026 • Theme: Environmental Photography • Prize: $20,000 Grant + Mentorship + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Vital Impacts is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to using the power of journalism and visual storytelling to amplify the work of communities and individuals protecting people, wildlife, and ecosystems around the world. Through photography, reporting, mentorship, and financial support, the or

• PhotoPlace Gallery • Deadline: October 5th, 2026 • Theme: The Human Experience • Prize: Exhibition in Vermont (USA) + Sales • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE PhotoPlace Gallery invites photographers from around the world to submit their work to The Human Experience, a juried exhibition dedicated to exploring the richness, complexity, and extraordinary diversity of human life. This exhibition seeks to bring together photographs that reflect the many ways we experi

• Decagon Gallery • Deadline: October 10th, 2026 • Theme: The Shape of a Life • Prize: $1,000 Prize Pool + Online Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The story of a life is rarely told through its greatest accomplishments alone. More often, it is revealed through everyday moments, familiar places, lasting relationships, personal rituals, treasured belongings, and experiences that may seem ordinary at first but later become deeply meaningful. Photography ha

• Decode Gallery • Deadline: September 18th, 2026 • Category: Self-Portrait Photography • Prize: Exhibition in Tucson + Sales + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE We invite photographers to take part in our Self Portrait Photography Call, celebrating the personal stories, emotions, and creative visions that can emerge when the photographer becomes the subject. A self portrait is an opportunity to pause and look inward. It can be a reflection of identity, a

• Pispa • Deadline: November 30th, 2026 • Category: Street Photography • Prize: $3,000 + Exhibition + Publication • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The Paris International Street Photo Awards (PISPA) 2026 is an international photography competition dedicated to recognizing and celebrating exceptional work in the field of street photography. The competition invites photographers from around the world to submit either individual photographs or cohesive photo series t

• Castelfiorentino For the Arts • Deadline: October 15th, 2026 • Theme: Contemporary Photography • Prize: €3,000 + Exhibition in Italy + Publication • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE "Raccont'arti" is an international open call, free of charge, dedicated to photographers and visual artists whose practices engage with the expanding possibilities of contemporary photography. More than a competition, the initiative serves as a platform for mapping current artistic re

• BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)

• Decagon Gallery • Deadline: November 17th, 2026 • Theme: Self • Prize: $1,000 Prize Pool + Online Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Some photographs are created to show us something about the world around us. Others turn the camera inward, becoming a way to search, question, and discover something about the person behind the lens. SELF is an exhibition dedicated to the second kind: photographs born from introspection, vulnerability, and the often compl

• All About Photo • Deadline: September 29th, 2026 • Theme: Street Photography • Prize: $1,000 + Online Exhibition + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The streets are constantly changing. People pass one another without knowing that their movements, expressions and gestures may become part of a story lasting only a few seconds. Light shifts across buildings, crowds appear and disappear, and unexpected moments emerge without warning. Street photography is a

• New York Center for Photographic Arts • Deadline: October 18th, 2026 • Category: Monochrome Photography • Prize: $4,000 Prize Pool + Online Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE KODAK. ILFORD. FUJI. For many photographers, these names evoke an entire era of image-making—rolls of film carefully loaded into cameras, exposures thoughtfully considered, negatives developed by hand, and prints brought to life beneath the glow of a darkroom safelight. Shooting, d

• Musa Award • Deadline: November 21st, 2026 • Theme: Reclaiming • Prize: €200 + Production & Exhibitions in Italy • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The Musa Award is an international photography award dedicated to supporting and promoting the creation of photographic portfolios. Open exclusively to female photographers, the award welcomes participants at every stage of their careers, with no distinction between amateur and professional photographers. Submissions a