Photography Contest
2026 CPA Members’ Juried Exhibition
Deadline |
CLOSEDTheme |
OpenTerritory |
WorldwideEligibility |
CPA MemberEntry Fees |
$35Prizes |
ExhibitionThe Center for Photographic Art (CPA) is excited to announce the 2026 Members’ Juried Exhibition!
This year, we are offering $2,400 in awards and prizes.
New or current CPA members working in all still photographic media are welcome to enter.
There is no theme; any subject matter is eligible.
Juror:
Dr. Rebecca Senf is Chief Curator at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
She holds a B.A. in Art History from the University of Arizona, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Boston University.
In 2012, her book Reconstructing the View: The Grand Canyon Photographs of Mark Klett and Byron Wolfe was published by University of California Press.
In 2017, her book To Be Thirteen, showcasing the work of Betsy Schneider, was published by Radius Press and the Phoenix Art Museum.
She has curated fifty exhibitions, including Richard Avedon: Relationships, shown in Milan, Palermo, and Rotterdam, and has contributed essays, interviews, and chapters to over a dozen publications.
In 2021, the Center for Creative Photography received a major Henry Luce Foundation grant based on her proposal to produce a book and exhibition celebrating Chicano photographer Louis Carlos Bernal.
An Ansel Adams scholar, she released Making a Photographer in 2020, co-published by the CCP and Yale University Press, now in its second printing.
Jurying, Awards, and Exhibition
Forty-five images selected by the juror will be exhibited in the historic CPA gallery in Carmel, California, and featured in an online gallery on the CPA website.
Up to an additional forty-five images will be selected for the online gallery.
All selected gallery and online images will be published in the 2026 Members’ Juried Exhibition catalog, available for purchase during the exhibition and on the CPA website.
Awards:
Best of Show: $1,000
Second Place: $500
Third Place: $250
Five Merit Awards: $50 each
Jack Wasserbach Award for Black & White Photography (courtesy of the Image Makers of Monterey County): $250
People’s Choice Award: $150
This year, we are offering $2,400 in awards and prizes.
New or current CPA members working in all still photographic media are welcome to enter.
There is no theme; any subject matter is eligible.
Juror:
Dr. Rebecca Senf is Chief Curator at the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
She holds a B.A. in Art History from the University of Arizona, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Boston University.
In 2012, her book Reconstructing the View: The Grand Canyon Photographs of Mark Klett and Byron Wolfe was published by University of California Press.
In 2017, her book To Be Thirteen, showcasing the work of Betsy Schneider, was published by Radius Press and the Phoenix Art Museum.
She has curated fifty exhibitions, including Richard Avedon: Relationships, shown in Milan, Palermo, and Rotterdam, and has contributed essays, interviews, and chapters to over a dozen publications.
In 2021, the Center for Creative Photography received a major Henry Luce Foundation grant based on her proposal to produce a book and exhibition celebrating Chicano photographer Louis Carlos Bernal.
An Ansel Adams scholar, she released Making a Photographer in 2020, co-published by the CCP and Yale University Press, now in its second printing.
Jurying, Awards, and Exhibition
Forty-five images selected by the juror will be exhibited in the historic CPA gallery in Carmel, California, and featured in an online gallery on the CPA website.
Up to an additional forty-five images will be selected for the online gallery.
All selected gallery and online images will be published in the 2026 Members’ Juried Exhibition catalog, available for purchase during the exhibition and on the CPA website.
Awards:
Best of Show: $1,000
Second Place: $500
Third Place: $250
Five Merit Awards: $50 each
Jack Wasserbach Award for Black & White Photography (courtesy of the Image Makers of Monterey County): $250
People’s Choice Award: $150
Featured Photo Contest
AAP Magazine #62 / TRAVELS
Our 62nd printed issue of AAP Magazine will feature the best projects showcasing the theme: Travels. Reflect on your past or current adventures, expand our horizons from the four corners of the globe!
© Indranil Sengupta
Best Photography Contests in 2025
Each year, there are hundreds of photography competitions all over the world, so we've decided to select for you the best of the best! Our selection of the best photo contests in 2025 is thoroughly curated to help you, whether you are a professional photographer or an amateur, to help find your next creative breakthrough. These all-star competitions offer the greatest opportunities for international exposure and/or incredible financial benefits. Some of them are closing soon, so get your photo submissions in!
ENDS 10/13/26
For 2026, the amount of the W. Eugene Smith Student Grant is $5,000. The grant provides two students with the opportunity to complete a photographic essay.
ENDS 10/13/26
For 2026, the amount of the W. Eugene Smith Grant is $30,000, and two additional $10,000 Finalist Grants will be awarded.
ENDS 10/14/26
This year we're excited to exhibit our Emerging Talent winners in Paris alongside Paris Photo, the world's largest international art fair dedicated to photography!
ENDS 10/14/26
From crossing paths with a black cat to honoring ancestors at vibrant altars, humans have always used stories, rituals, and visual symbols to make sense of fate, luck, and the unseen.
ENDS 10/15/26
A total of $8,000 in grants will be awarded to three outstanding artists
ENDS 10/15/26
€10,000 in cash plus an exhibition at PhMuseum Lab, screenings at PhotoVogue Festival, and more
ENDS 10/16/26
We are looking for your travel photographs, near and far, to the edge of the earth and to the places perhaps known only to you.
ENDS 10/31/26
If you're a passionate amateur or professional photographer, we invite you to share your photographic project with us.
ENDS 11/01/26
The best photographs will be presented in an exhibition in the Principality of Monaco, then touring in various locations around the world, as well as in a high-quality photography book.
ENDS 11/05/26
To help photographers improve their chances, we have launched a portfolio and contest submission review service.
ENDS 11/05/26
The acclaimed and renonwned photography grant contest from Gomma. The ninth year in the making. High international exposure and funding.
ENDS 11/17/26
Exhibition: 34 photographers exhibited in Barcelona, Spain, from November 5 to December 11, 2026, at Centre Cívic Pati Llimona
ENDS 11/22/26
The criteria for selection by a jury of professional in the photographic field are a height creative level, originality and a coherent personal vision.
ENDS 11/30/26
Selected photobooks will be featured in Der Greif’s Articles section, including a dedicated editorial feature highlighting the project, its context, and the maker(s).
ENDS 12/01/26
Empowering photographers and storytellers to tell powerful, long-term stories about the people and communities protecting our planet and wildlife.
ENDS 12/08/26
The Rencontres d’Arles is pleased to announce the launch of the 2026 Discovery Award. Jury award of €15,000 and public award of €5,000
ENDS 01/02/27
Turn your unique perspective on architecture into an award-winning visual narrative in the Luis Ferreira Alves Photography Competition.
ENDS 01/05/27
Dedicated to young photographers under 19 years-old - first prize is top Sony digital imaging equipment plus benefit from global exposure
ENDS 01/05/27
Rewarding the best single images! Enter for free and you could win $5,000, top Sony digital imaging equipment plus more!
ENDS 01/12/27
Rewarding the best photo series worldwide! Enter for free and you could win $25,000, a range of Sony digital imaging equipment plus more!
ENDS 02/07/27
Competition dedicated to telling food stories through photography
ENDS 03/31/27
Entries are open worldwide to photographers using an iPhone or iPad. Photos should not be published previously anywhere. The posts on personal accounts (Facebook, Instagram etc.) are eligible.
ENDS 03/31/27
Exhibition at the Pure Street Photography Awards Exhibition in India
ENDS 11/26/27
Provides a platform for photography students worldwide - first prize is top Sony digital imaging equipment plus benefit from global exposure