THE INTERNATIONAL
PHOTO CONTESTS DIRECTORY 2026

• Profoto • Deadline: January 15th, 2026 • Category: Lights Like the Perfect Rembrandt • Prize: $2,000 in Profoto Gear + Exposure • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Few lighting styles carry the weight of history and artistry quite like Rembrandt lighting. Instantly identifiable by its delicate triangle of light beneath the eye, this technique transforms a portrait into something both dramatic and intimate. It is a style that speaks in contrasts—bold yet restraine

• Black Box Gallery • Deadline: January 9th, 2026 • Theme: Open • Prize: Exhibition in Portland (USA) + Sales • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Black Box Gallery proudly announces an open-themed juried group photography exhibition that embraces the full spectrum of contemporary photographic expression. This call invites photographers to submit their most successful and meaningful images—work that reflects their personal approach to photography and their dedication

• Siena Photo Awards • Deadline: January 9th, 2026 • Category: Several Categories • Prize: €1,500 + Exhibition + 2-Night Stay in Italy • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The Siena Awards is an autonomous initiative conceived with the vision of establishing Siena and its surrounding territory as a distinguished global hub for photography. Functioning as a major curator of high-level cultural events, the project seeks to attract and engage leading international phot

• New York Center for Photographic Arts • Deadline: February 8th, 2026 • Theme: Water • Prize: $4,000 Prize Pool + Online Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE H₂O — the simplest of scientific notations, yet one that defines life on Earth. We encounter water daily, often without pause to appreciate its mystery and versatility. It flows through our landscapes as rivers, lakes, and oceans, and through our daily lives in countless subtle ways — from the morni

• Eurordis • Deadline: January 30th, 2026 • Category: Documentary Photography • Prize: GoPro HERO13 Black + Certificate • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The EURORDIS Photo Award serves as an international platform inviting individuals to visually communicate the lived experience of rare diseases. Each photograph provides a meaningful contribution to public awareness by revealing the realities faced by the rare disease community and sharing these narratives with

• Decagon Gallery • Deadline: January 31st, 2026 • Theme: Human Body: The Art of Seeing Ourselves • Prize: $1,000 Prize Pool + Online Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Human Body: The Art of Seeing Ourselves is an invitation to rediscover the familiar. This exhibition encourages photographers to go beyond the external—to see the human form as more than an object of beauty or anatomy. Instead, it becomes a canvas of lived experience, a testament to the

• Boomer Gallery London • Deadline: January 7th, 2026 • Theme: Dreams and Nightmares • Prize: Exhibition in London + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Some are guided by dreams, drifting into a radiant, otherworldly current of inspiration. In this suspended state, imagination takes flight, constructing surreal terrains where anything seems possible. Their creativity is fueled by wonder—by the pull of the mystical and the unreachable—propelling them toward

• Bob Books • Deadline: January 31st, 2026 • Category: Sport Photography • Prize: Bob Books Voucher + Exposure • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE The beginning of a new year brings a renewed sense of energy, motivation, and forward motion, making it the perfect time to celebrate the power of sport. That’s why we’ve selected ‘Sports’ as the theme for our January Photo of the Month competition . From the intensity of competition to the quiet focus before the whistl

• Allora Gallery • Deadline: March 1st, 2026 • Category: Architectural & Street Photography • Prize: Solo Exhibition + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Allora Gallery invites photographers from across the globe to participate in our international photography competition, “Stone & Stories.” This open call welcomes both architectural and street photography, encouraging artists to explore the built environment and the human presence that animates it. Citie

• Olympus • Deadline: January 19th, 2026 • Category: Urban and Street Photography • Prize: OM-3 Camera + Lens Kit + Exposure • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE At OM SYSTEM note, we believe that cameras are more than just tools—they are a way to create meaningful connections and share perspectives. Together with photography enthusiasts from around the world, we strive to tell compelling visual stories that capture extraordinary moments and add color and inspiratio

• Photo Artfolio • Deadline: January 5th, 2026 • Theme: The Poetry of Light and Shadow • Prize: $1,000 + Online Exhibition + Exposure • Entry Fees: Free Entry Option • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE An image extends far beyond the boundaries of color. It lives in the whispers of tone, the grit of texture, the shifting mood, and the dramatic contrasts shaped by the eternal dance of light and shadow. Black and white photography amplifies these qualities, revealing a world stripped t

• PhotoPlace Gallery • Deadline: January 5th, 2026 • Theme: Cut. Paste. Transform. • Prize: Exhibition in Vermont (USA) + Sales • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Photo-collage continues to thrive today as a versatile and resonant artistic form, uniquely suited to our image-saturated world. Informed by contemporary concerns such as sustainability, nostalgia, archival exploration, digital manipulation, and community engagement, collage has become a vital bridge betw

• Rotterdam Photo • Deadline: January 5th, 2026 • Theme: Echoes of Silence, War in the Artist's Soul • Prize: Exhibition in Rotterdam Photo Fest • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE What becomes of an artist shaped not by witnessing war, but by inheriting its emotional weight? What echoes remain in the minds of those who live, escape, or only hear the rumble from afar? “Echoes of Silence” delves into this psychological terrain, presenting photographers who turn away

• New York Center for Photographic Arts • Deadline: January 4th, 2026 • Theme: Urban, Suburban, Rural • Prize: $4,000 Prize Pool + Online Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Urban, suburban, and rural spaces represent three very different ways of seeing the world—and living within it. These locations not only shape our lifestyles but also influence how we perceive and capture images of our surroundings. Each carries its own identity, its own set of visual

• Profoto • Deadline: January 15th, 2026 • Category: Lights Like the Perfect Rembrandt • Prize: $2,000 in Profoto Gear + Exposure • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLICK HERE Few lighting techniques in photography are as instantly recognizable or enduring as Rembrandt lighting. Defined by the small, illuminated triangle that appears beneath one eye, this style is a masterclass in balance—where light and shadow work together to create mood, dimension, and emotional depth. Ro

• All About Photo • Deadline: January 20th, 2026 • Theme: Open • Prize: Online Solo Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities Maximize Your Exposure: Enter the Solo Exhibition Competition for a Month-Long Online Showcase At All About Photo, we are dedicated to discovering and celebrating outstanding photography—work that inspires, challenges perspectives, and creates meaningful connections. The Solo Exhibition Competition offers

• SEE:ZEEN Magazine • Deadline: January 20th, 2026 • Category: Contemporary Photography • Prize: Publication + Exposure • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities Anyone, from anywhere in the world, is welcome to submit. see-zeen is an open platform that embraces every form of photographic expression—there are no limits on theme, style, or genre. Whether your work is portrait or landscape, documentary or fashion, conceptual or abstract, it

• Fondazione Le Stanze della Fotografia • Deadline: February 1st, 2026 • Theme: Horst. P. Horst. The Geometry of Grace • Prize: Exhibitions in Venice and Milan (Italy) • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities Are you between 18 and 30 years old and driven by a passion for photography? This is your chance to take part in an exciting open call launched by the Le Stanze della Fotografia Foundation , created to spotlight young creative voice

• Decode Gallery • Deadline: January 2nd, 2026 • Theme: Red • Prize: Exhibition in Tucson + Sales + Exposure • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities Decode Gallery is thrilled to present our next theme, a celebration of the color RED —a hue that breathes intensity into every surface it touches. Red is the color of emotion in its purest state, capable of capturing love, longing, courage, and fury within a single stroke. It draws us in with

• MIA Photo Fair BNP Paribas 2026 • Deadline: January 23rd, 2026 • Category: Food and Sustainability • Prize: €5,000 + Exhibition • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities Celebrating food as nourishment for the intellect, culture, and the human spirit Curated by Claudio Composti The MIA Photo Fair, together with BNP Paribas, proudly presents the fifth edition of the IRINOX SAVE THE FOOD Award . This initiative continues in partnership with

• Black Box Gallery • Deadline: January 9th, 2026 • Theme: Open • Prize: Exhibition in Portland (USA) + Sales • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities Black Box Gallery is excited to open submissions for an open-themed, juried group photography show designed to showcase the incredible range of today’s photographic creativity. We invite photographers to share their favorite shots—images that reflect their unique perspective, artistic voice,

• Chennai International Photo Biennale • Deadline: December 31st, 202 • Theme: Open • Prize: Exhibition in Chennai (India) + Promotion • Entry Fees: Free • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities What All Submitting Photographers and Artists Receive Every artist who enters the Open Call gains the valuable opportunity to have their work reviewed by an internationally diverse panel of experts. This jury includes respected curators, directors of cultural instit

• Shoot The Frame • Deadline: December 31st, 2025 • Category: Portrait Photography • Prize: $2,000 + ViewSonic Monitor + Exhibitions • Entry Fees: Yes • REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities 13 years of Shoot The Frame. Launched in 2012, Shoot The Frame evolved into a global suite of photography contests celebrating exceptional portrait, landscape and wildlife photography. In 2025, we’re pausing the monthly contests and launching the inaugural Shoot The Fr

Submission Details and Themes Deadline: December 31st, 2025 Theme: B&W (Light, Shadow, Tone and Texture) Prize: $1,000 Prize Pool + Online Exhibition Entry Fees: Yes REGISTRATION: CLOSED. Click HERE for more Opportunities The Essence of Black and White Photography Black and white photography strips away the surface to reveal the essence of visual storytelling. Without color, an image is distilled into its foundational components. Light and shadow define structure. L