Photography Contest

Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads Photo Contest 2024

Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads Photo Contest 2024

Deadline |

CLOSED

Theme |

Reveal the Silk Roads

Territory |

Worldwide

Eligibility |

Two age categories: 14-17 year olds, and 18-25 year olds

Entry Fees |

FREE

Prizes |

Exhibition

Host |

UNESCO
The annual Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads International Photo Contest offers an exciting opportunity for young people from all over the world to capture their understanding of the shared heritage of the Silk Roads through the lens of their camera. As the visual arts, and in particular photography, are so often used by today’s youth as a powerful tool for communication and self-expression, images have the potential to play a significant role in raising awareness of the key issues facing our contemporary world and help promote peace and understanding. The photo contest provides an opportunity for young people to connect with one another in a digital space and share their creativity and vision for our future.

The Youth Eyes on the Silk Roads Photo Contest is an opportunity for young people who live or have travelled within these regions to share their perceptions and further their understanding of the common cultural heritage and pluralistic identities emerging from the interactions and exchanges taking place along the Silk Roads. The contest encourages the use of photography to extend these cultural interactions and encounters in the contemporary world, to foster mutual understanding and promote peace amongst the diverse populations encompassed by the Silk Roads.

The contest is divided into two age categories: 14-17 year olds, and 18-25 year olds. For the 4th edition of the contest this year participants are invited to submit their photographs that best encapsulate the shared heritage of the Silk Roads through the two themes of ‘Faith and Spiritualities’, and ‘Living Together’. The Selection Committee members will then examine these submissions and select the winners from each of the age categories. Examples of some of the very best photographs from the previous contests can be found here.

The contest will culminate with an award ceremony, with three winners selected from each age category. First place winners will receive a professional camera. Second place winners will receive a semi-professional camera, and the prize for third place will be a standard-model digital camera. Subject to Covid-19 restrictions, winners will receive an all-expenses paid trip to the award ceremony, with those under 17 years of age accompanied by one family member, courtesy of UNESCO.

Prizes
In each age category, three photographs will be awarded by the international members of the Selection Committee. It is composed of six international personalities who are recognized for their artistic work and designated by the UNESCO. Subsequently, the Selection Committee is composed of five members with a chairman, as well as a representative of the UNESCO Director-General.

AWARDS:
- 1st Award: A professional digital single-lens reflex camera equipped with 18-55mm lens
- 2nd Award: Semi-professional digital camera
- 3rd Award: Digital camera

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AAP Magazine #48/Portrait

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Best Photography Contests in 2023

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 2023 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 04/22/25
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ENDS 04/28/25
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ENDS 04/30/25
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ENDS 04/30/25
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ENDS 04/30/25
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ENDS 04/30/25
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ENDS 05/03/25
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ENDS 05/08/25
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ENDS 05/12/25
This prize, with a production budget of €25,000, is open to any new photographer or artist using photography, submitting a previously unpublished dummy book.
ENDS 05/13/25
Our 48th printed issue of AAP Magazine will feature the best projects showcasing the theme "Portrait".
ENDS 05/16/25
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ENDS 05/18/25
MonoVisions Photography Awards are an international open call for photographers using black and white medium to express their visual language.
ENDS 05/18/25
The Global Peace Photo Award recognizes and promotes photographers from all over the world whose pictures capture human efforts towards a peaceful world and the quest for beauty and goodness in our lives.
ENDS 05/31/25
POWER will be the main theme of the season. The Grand Prize of USD $200,000 will be awarded to one winner from any category this season, not limited to the main theme.
ENDS 05/31/25
The international photography contest URBAN Photo Awards is here: registrations will open on March 28th and this 16th edition will be the largest and most important ever.
ENDS 06/01/25
This year’s PhotoVogue Global Open Call celebrates the limitless ways women see and are seen—embracing photography and film as powerful tools to reclaim, redefine, and expand visual storytelling
ENDS 06/02/25
BUDAPEST INTERNATIONAL FOTO AWARDS is an international platform for photographers from all levels and genres to share their best images with the creative community in Hungary and Eastern Europe.
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Jon Lee Anderson, president of the jury of the 32nd edition
ENDS 08/05/25
The 2025 Global Contest promotes climate justice. We believe climate change is a human rights issue, so we are looking for images that show people impacted by the escalating climate crisis.