The 2024 World Press Photo Contest works with 6 worldwide regions – Africa, Asia, Europe, North and Central America, South America, and Southeast Asia and Oceania. Entries will be judged in the region in which they have been taken, for example a single photograph taken in Canada would be entered into North and Central America in the Singles category. Find out more about the regions
here.
Each region has four format-based categories: Singles, Stories, Long-Term Projects and Open Format.
These categories welcome entries that witness or document news moments, events and/or aftermaths, as well as social, political and environmental issues or solutions.
These format-based categories encompass all thematic categories from previous contests – such as general news, spot news, contemporary issues, environment, nature, sports, portraits – therefore entries on a wide range of themes may be submitted to the appropriate format-based category.
Singles
- Single frame photographs.
- All singles must have been shot in 2023.
- All singles will be eligible for the World Press Photo of the Year.
Stories
- Stories can contain between 4 and 10 single frame photographs.
- All photographs entered into the stories category must have been shot in 2022 or 2023. At least four photographs in a story must have been shot in 2023.
- All stories will be eligible for the World Press Story of the Year.
Long-Term Projects
- Projects on a single theme containing between 24-30 single frame photographs.
- An entry must contain photographs from at least three different years, and a minimum of six photographs must have been shot in 2023.
- All projects will be eligible for the World Press Photo Long-Term Project Award.
Open Format
The Open Format category welcomes visual journalism that incorporates lens-based still photography as the central part of the work. We encourage entries that feature innovative techniques, non-traditional modes of presentation, and new approaches to storytelling. Projects in this category can utilize other media (including but not limited to web-based platforms, animation, video, or sound) and/or employ techniques such as multiple exposure, montage, collage or alternative processes in ways that transform (news and documentary) still imagery. Any entries that involve video with a running time beyond 15 minutes cannot be considered.
- The main visual content of the project must be lens-based still photography.
- Entries in this category must have been produced or first published in 2023.
- If the project is long-term, at least three photographs must have been shot in 2023.
- Entrants must indicate the type of project and include a description of what processes and methods were used in the production of the project, as well as providing information about the intention behind the project and chosen approach.
- All projects that include text elements must have English-language text available. In the case of video, entries must have English-language audio or include English subtitles.
- Entries of web-based projects must include the URL to the project itself as well as a screener of 1 minute.
- All photographs entered into the Open Format category must be made with a camera. No synthetic or artificially-generated images are allowed, and no use of artificially generative fill is allowed. Any use of generative AI will automatically disqualify the entry from the contest.
- Entries in this category must be available via the contest platform Picter. Video files, including screeners, must be uploaded directly into Picter. The jury will only consider the content of entries as presented to them via Picter.
- All projects will be eligible for the World Press Photo Open Format Award.
Find out more about uploading requirements for Open Format here and rules regarding the use of AI tools here.
Are you looking for more specific information? Visit one of the following pages to find out more about:
Image credits: Lee-Ann Olwage, Bob & Diane Fund; Hannah Reyes Morales for The New York Times; Anush Babajanyan, VII Photo/National Geographic Society for Der Spiegel; Johanna Alarcón, Magnum Foundation/Panos Pictures.
