Photographer of the Year 2023 – RULES

RULES

Who can enter?

Photographer of the Year entrants must be 18 years and older.
Photos that have at any time before the finalisation of this competition won other photographic competition/s (including subject-category winners) will not be considered.
Entrants that are previous winners of this competition may enter in subsequent years.
Employees of Africa Geographic and our sponsors may not enter.

How do I enter?

Photographer of the Year entries may be submitted by email (photocomp@africageographic.com) or via our online entry form.
Entries submitted via either method should not exceed 2MB in size (per photo) and multiple entries are permitted.
Entries must be submitted in JPG or PNG format.
We may request RAW files and higher resolution photos, and refusal will result in that photo being disqualified and any awarded prizes forfeited. ALL winners (winner, runners up and highly commended) must provide raw files of their winning submissions before our winners are announced.
Do not add borders or copyright watermarks – we will add a copyright symbol and your name.
Entries should be a faithful representation of the original scene. Post-production adjustments should be used appropriately and not to deceive the viewer or misrepresent reality. No composite or AI-generated images will be permitted.
Please provide EITHER your Facebook OR Instagram username/handle (@username) if you would like us to tag you if/when we share your photo.
Please label each of your photographs in the following order: Your Full name-subject/species-Location. For example: John Smith-mountain gorilla-Bwindi. If the photo is of a person please include the person’s name in the label, if those details are available.
Please provide a brief description/caption for your photographs.

Subject matter

Photographer of the Year entrant photos must be taken on the African continent or associated islands. Only entries that are of African wildlife, landscapes, safari experiences and/or culture will be accepted.
Entries depicting wildlife should be of wild animals – no photos of captive wildlife (including farm animals, petting facilities, household pets, and zoo animals) will be considered. Photos of rescue/rehabilitation animals may be considered at the sole discretion of the organiser.
Entries depicting humans: Please note that you should always obtain permission from your subjects to take photos of them. This may involve negotiating a fee. Do not take any photos of minors (under the age of 18) without permission from a parent or guardian. By submitting your photos to us you confirm that the necessary permissions were obtained. Authenticity is key for cultural photography submissions. Images of people must provide an accurate and sincere representation of the subject’s reality. These photographs should be a truthful depiction of a natural moment, and be respectful of the culture depicted.

Ownership

All Photographer of the Year entries must be the original work of the participant, who has not relinquished relevant rights to a third party. The participant also confirms that they did not contravene any relevant laws and regulations while capturing the photographs and paid all relevant fees and permits and that no such matters impact their claim of ownership and rights. By submitting the entry, the participant confirms that this is so.

Sponsors and third-party use

Photographer of the Year entrants grant Africa Geographic and the competition sponsors non-exclusive permission to publish their submitted photos on their websites and social media channels, in association with the Photographer of the Year competition, without compensation of any kind to the participant.
Entrants grant Africa Geographic a non-exclusive, irrevocable licence to reproduce, publish and communicate to the public by any means and exhibit their awarded entries in all forms of media throughout the world, including event activations, concerning Photographer of the Year.
The organisers regret that they cannot accept liability for the misuse of photos by third parties and/or failure of any third party to credit photos.
Photographer of the Year is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Instagram or Facebook.

Agreement of participation

Photographer of the Year entrants confirm that they have agreed to the rules of the competition. Any entry found not to comply with the rules may be disqualified at any stage of the competition, and any awarded prizes will be forfeited.
Entrants grant Africa Geographic the right to add their contact details to the Africa Geographic newsletter subscriber and app database, from which they are free to unsubscribe at any time.
Entrants agree that they will participate in related publicity and agree to the use of their name and likeness for advertising, promotion and publicity of Photographer of the Year – without compensation.

Judging and prizes

The Photographer of the Year judges’ decisions are final and binding.
Successful entrants will be notified in strict confidence during May 2023. It is a condition of entry that the entrant does not disclose the details of any shortlisted or winning entries to any third party until the announcement has been made public. Winners will be contacted in the manner/via the channel used to submit their photos.
The prizes are non-transferable. The organisers reserve the right to substitute the listed prizes with an alternative of equal value (but the entrant shall not have any right to demand this). The prizes must be claimed within the dates specified, or they will be forfeited.

Closing date

Photographer of the Year entries must be received by midnight CAT on Saturday, 30 April 2023, or such date as Africa Geographic may advise on its social media pages.