Opportunities

COMPETITION: Sony World Photography Awards 2026

Closes: 06/01/2026 1:00 pm

We’ve seen such a wonderful response to our partnership with Sony World Photography Awards  over the past few years, that we’ve teamed up once again to bring an exclusive opportunity to Shutter Hub members for the 2026 Awards.

The Sony World Photography Awards elevate the careers of photographers to the next level. Since the beginning, the Awards have championed inclusivity and access by being free to enter. Acting as an insight into photography today in all its diversity, the Awards spotlights photographers telling the stories of our time.

Competition entrants can enter 3 images for free, and Shutter Hub community members can claim a free bundle to enter up to 20 additional images to the Open or Youth Competitions of the 2026 Awards.

The Open Competition, including the Open Photographer of the Year Award, is open to all submitting images taken in 2025, and prizes include up to $5,000, top Sony Digital Imaging equipment, plus inclusion in the London exhibition and book.

The Professional Competition including the Photographer of the Year Award, rewards exceptional series of work with an original approach to narrative across 10 distinct categories. It is open to anyone submitting a series of 5 to 10 images (per category) and prizes include up to $25,000, a solo show, a range of Sony Digital Imaging equipment, a professional career-development day, and more.

The Youth Competition is open to photographers aged 19 and under. Photographers can win top Sony Digital Imaging equipment, inclusion in the London exhibition and the annual book, plus the title of Youth Photographer of the Year.

Entries for the Open and Youth competitions close 06 January 2026 at 1pm GMT, entries for the Professional competition closes 13 January 2026 at 1pm GMT. Shutter Hub community members can claim their free 20-image bundle for the Open or Youth competitions on the Apply tab at the top of this page.

Join the Shutter Hub community by subscribing to our mailing list for all our photography news and opportunities, direct to your inbox.  Got any questions? Email us here.

To redeem your free bundle of 20 images, follow the steps below:

1. Create an account on the WPO website (or log in if you already have an account): https://users.worldphoto.org/user

2. Click on the Image Bundles tab

3. Select the 20 image bundle

4. Add the promo code SHFREE20 in the ‘Enter promo code here’ tab and click ‘Apply code’

5. Click Continue to PayPal and the allocation of images will appear in the account (should show as £0.00)

Please note, the code can only be used from now until 6 January 2026, 1pm (GMT).