The Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest, now in its 12th season, is accepting entries for 2026.
This is an annual contest aimed at supporting young photojournalists aged 18 to 33 in their pursuit of professional excellence. While the mission remains unchanged — give young photographers a strong start, this year the organizers introduce a brand new category — Energy of Life — open to photojournalists aged 34 and above. The organizers now look forward to projects from both seasoned masters and emerging authors – together, they form the diverse, vivid, and sometimes contradictory picture of contemporary photojournalism.
The prize fund for the 2026 competition is 125,000 rubles for first place, 100,000 rubles for second place, and 75,000 rubles for third place in each category. The recipient of the competition’s top honor, the Grand Prix, will receive 700,000 rubles.
The competition features six categories:
- Top News
- Sports
- My Planet
- Portrait. A Hero of Our Time
- Top View
- Energy of Life — New for 2026
Entries in Top News, My Planet, and Portrait. A Hero of Our Time may be submitted as either single images or photo series. The Sports and Top View categories accept single images only.
The awards ceremony for the 12th Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest is traditionally scheduled to take place in Moscow between September and November 2026.
The Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest, organized by the Rossiya Segodnya Media Group under the auspices of the Russian Federation Commission for UNESCO, is dedicated to supporting young photographers and raising public awareness of the challenges facing contemporary photojournalism.
Please visit the official website for further information.
No Entry Fee!
It's free to enter.