COMPETITIONS
OPEN FOR ENTRIES
The award is made up of 12 monthly competitions – each judged by an industry leader with a wealth of experience and expertise.
CLOSING SOON
HUMANS
Judge: Amy Toensing
Deadline: 31 October 2024
THE BRIEF:
8.1 billion people on Earth and counting. Each of us is a unique combination of genetics and experience, and yet our similarities are greater than our differences. Across vast geographies and wide cultural boundaries our humanity unites us.
From individuals to crowds. Formal portraits or snapshots of strangers. Social, national, personal and sexual identity. Faces and bodies, hearts and minds. This month, show us the humans of the world. Portraiture, studio, candid, conceptual, travel, street, composite, environmental. All genres welcome, with images new or from your archives.
HUMANS INSPIRATIONAL GALLERY
IMAGES (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT) © BENJAMIN WILSON, LAUREN DAMASKINOS, HARRY WILLIAMS, ANGELA STRASSHEIM, NICOLA VIGILANTI, EVELYN IVY, AZIM KHAN RONNIE, CHRISTOPH SOEDER.
IMAGES (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT) © BENJAMIN WILSON, LAUREN DAMASKINOS, AZIM KHAN RONNIE, ANGELA STRASSHEIM, NICOLA VIGILANTI, EVELYN IVY, HARRY WILLIAMS, CHRISTOPH SOEDER.
COMPETITION JUDGED BY AMY TOENSING
Amy Toensing is an American photojournalist, National Geographic Explorer and FUJIFILM Creator whose work tells intimate stories of the lives of ordinary people around the world. As a regular contributor to National Geographic magazine for over two decades, she has captured fascinating stories on topics such as cave-dwelling tribes in Papa New Guinea, land rights for women in India and Uganda, treasure hunting in Namibia, food insecurity in the United States, and droughts in New South Wales – with an image from the latter chosen by National Geographic as one of its 50 best photos of all time.
Her work has been exhibited throughout the world and recognized with numerous awards, including two solo exhibits at Visa Pour L’image, Festival of the Photograph in France, and she dedicates much of her time to teaching photography to people in underserved communities, including Burmese refugees in Baltimore, young photojournalist in Islamabad, Pakistan and Syrian refugee children in Jordan.
IMAGES © AMY TOENSING
BLACK & WHITE
Judge: Hengki Koentjoro
Deadline: 30 November 2024
THE BRIEF:
“I see more in black and white – I like the abstraction of it.” – Mary Ellen Mark
Color photography may dominate in today’s world, but there remains a special place for black and white. Purity, simplicity, profundity… It is said that constraints fuel creativity, and stripping away color can bring focus to contrast, texture, shape and form. The best black and white photography allows us to see more sharply and feel more deeply.
From the great masters to you – the history of black and white photography is long, but it continues to be written. New or from your archives, of any style and genre, and taken with any camera. This month we want to see images where black and white makes them magical.
BLACK & WHITE INSPIRATIONAL GALLERY
OPEN CALL INSPIRATIONAL IMAGES (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT) © MARKETA ZVELEBIL, JAMES MUNK, PETER FRANCK, BROOKE BOUSQUET, ARGUS PAUL ESTABROOK, BONGANI TSHABALALA, MAISHA QURAISHI, TANJA WILLEKENS.
OPEN CALL INSPIRATIONAL IMAGES (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT) © MARKETA ZVELEBIL, JAMES MUNK, MAISHA QURAISHI, BROOKE BOUSQUET, ARGUS PAUL ESTABROOK, BONGANI TSHABALALA, PETER FRANCK, TANJA WILLEKENS.
COMPETITION JUDGED BY HENGKI KOENTJORO
Hengki Koentjoro is an Indonesian fine art photographer whose work explores “the spectral domain that lies amidst the shades of black and white”. His tranquil, minimalist landscapes are borne from a meticulous approach in which he searches for the spiritual in the physical. In his recent series, In the Garden of Summits and Air, he captures the mountains of Java in expansive and dramatic compositions, that are spacious, dreamlike and endlessly beautiful.
He has won countless awards from institutions such as PX3, Black and White Magazine, IPA and Hasselblad, the latter for which he has been an ambassador for several years. He is represented by galleries in Japan, the US, the Netherlands and Germany,
IMAGES © HENGKI KOENTJORO
URBAN LIFE
Judge: Angela Connor
Deadline: 31 December 2024
THE BRIEF:
“A city is more than a place in space. It is a drama in time.” – Patrick Geddes
More than half of us now live in cities – surviving and thriving in a complex, manmade space. Show us urban life and the revelations of the modern world, from New York to Nairobi, São Paulo to Shanghai…
We’re interested in urban explorations and the insights they can uncover: architecture and cityscapes, urban decay, street encounters, suburban stories… New or from your archives, of any style and genre, and taken with any camera.
URBAN LIFE INSPIRATIONAL GALLERY
IMAGES (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT) © MARGAUX BLACK, JOEL SAMES, LENG UNG, ROB PAYNE, SINE ZHENG, RYAN KOST, FRANCOIS AUBRET, DAN FENSTERMACHER.
IMAGES (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT) © MARGAUX BLACK, JOEL SAMES, RYAN KOST, ROB PAYNE, DAN FENSTERMACHER, FRANCOIS AUBRET, LENG UNG, SINE ZHENG.
COMPETITION JUDGED BY ANGELA CONNOR
Angela Connor is Senior Curator at the Museum of Australian Photography in Melbourne, where she delivers an ambitious exhibition programme and selects from an extensive archived collection focused on Australian image making.
She has a Master of Fine Arts, and has worked in the industry for the last fifteen years, as both manager of a contemporary art gallery and as a studio manager for renowned painter and sculptor Robert Owen, before curating shows for some of Australia’s most celebrated photographers at MAPh. From 2019-2022, she has been on the board of the Kyneton Contemporary Art Triennial, commissioning artists to make context sensitive work that explores place and community. This rich experience and her passion for the art world give her a valuable perspective for photographers both experienced and emerging.
IMAGES © ANGELA CONNOR / MAPh
PRIZES &
BENEFITS
Win cash prizes, global exposure and professional feedback
|
Monthly |
Monthly |
Other |
All |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,000 monthly cash prize | ||||
| Your image exhibited in three global exhibitions | ||||
| Your image in the Life Framer Photobook | ||||
| Online exposure | ||||
| Personal feedback | ||||
| Submission to The Collection | ||||
| Submission to #lifeframerstories |
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UPCOMING COMPETITIONS
HUMANS – October 2024
BLACK & WHITE – November 2024
URBAN LIFE – December 2024
WINNERS EXHIBITIONS
FOUR SEASONS – January 2025
ANIMAL KINGDOM – February 2025
COLORS – March 2025
BLACK & WHITE – April 2025
YOUTH – May 2025
PLANET EARTH – June 2025
OPEN CALL – July 2025
COLORS – August 2025
PORTRAITS – September 2025
