Sony World Photography Awards 2026 just launched! The 19th edition is now open for entries from all around the world.
Have you been working on an exciting new project? Or perhaps you’re focusing on striking single shots instead? Are you a photography student wanting to take the next step in your career, or maybe an aspiring creator 19 years-old and under, eager to share your talent with the world?
The Sony World Photography Awards are completely free to enter and open to photographers worldwide shooting on any device. Top prizes include $25,000, a solo display at the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition in London and globally, top Sony digital imaging equipment, inclusion in the book, worldwide recognition through press and media coverage – plus more!
Whatever your experience in capturing the world around you, the Sony World Photography Awards has a competition that’s right for you and your work.
The Sony World Photography Awards is World Photography Organisation’s principal programme. Established in 2007, it is one of the world’s biggest and most prestigious photography competitions; celebrating the work of leading and emerging practitioners and attracting tens of thousands of visitors annually to its exhibitions worldwide.
The objective of the Sony World Photography Awards is to establish a platform for the continuous development of photographic culture. The Awards do this by recognising great contributions to photography in the past through the Outstanding Contribution to Photography prize as well as finding new talents of the future and providing them with the opportunity to be promoted and exhibited around the world. Sony is committed to photographic culture by extending their relationship with individual winners beyond the Awards to develop the individuals’ careers.
World Photography Organisation is the photography strand of Creo, responsible for delivering initiatives and programming across three sectors: photography, film and contemporary art.
To learn all about the Sony World Photography Awards 2026, reveal deadlines and the details of all the competitions and available programmes, please visit the official website.
Important Deadlines
- 28 November 2025 13:00 (GMT) – Student competition closes
- 6 January 2026 13:00 (GMT) – Youth competition closes
- 6 January 2026 13:00 (GMT) – Open competition (including National & Regional Awards, Latin America National Awards and Alpha Female Award) closes
- 13 January 2026 13:00 (GMT) – Professional competition (including Latin America Professional Award) closes
