5 time winner's Photo
About the
Foundation: World Press Photo is committed to supporting and
advancing high standards in photojournalism and documentary photography
worldwide. They strive to generate wide public interest in and appreciation for
the work of photographers and for the free exchange of information.
Their activities include organizing an annual
contest, exhibitions, the stimulation of photojournalism through educational
programs, and creating greater visibility for press photography through a
variety of publications.
They believe in the power of visual journalism to
inspire and shape people.
World Press Photo is run as an independent,
non-profit organization with its office in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, where
World Press Photo was founded in 1955.
World Press Photo receives support from the Dutch
Postcode Lottery and is sponsored worldwide by Canon.
World Press Photo holds the official accreditation
for good practices from the Central Bureau on Fundraising (CBF).
About the contest
For over 55 years the World Press Photo contest has
encouraged the highest standards in photojournalism.
The contest creates a bridge linking the
professionals with the general public. As the announcement of the winner’s
makes headlines around the world, so the inspirational role of
photojournalism is highlighted to an audience of hundreds of millions.
All the prize-winning photographs are assembled
into an exhibition that travels to 45 countries over the course of a year, and
published in our yearbook. Over two million people go to a hundred different
venues to see the images, and our yearbook is published in seven languages and
distributed worldwide.
The contest is judged by leading experts in visual
journalism who represent various aspects of the profession. The composition of
the jury is changed from year to year, they operate independently, and a
secretary who has no vote safeguards our fair and balanced judging procedure.
Their archive of winning images is not only a
record of more than half a century of human history, but a showcase of
successive styles in photojournalism.
Contest timeline
Details about the photo and multimedia contests, as
well as names of the contest judges, are announced in October/November. The
contests open to entries in December. The photo contest judging begins at the
end of January and the winners are announced in the second week of February.
The multimedia contest judging and the announcement of winners take place in
March. The annual Awards Days, a celebration of the prize winners, takes place
in Amsterdam at the end of April or beginning of May.
Photo contest
The photo contest is open to professional
photographers and photojournalists, and entry coordinators. Registration for
access to our entry site begins in December. Entries to the photo contest may
only be submitted online via the entry site, which is open from December
through January each year. Single pictures as well as photo stories/portfolios
are accepted in nine categories. Information about the entry rules and category
details will be available around September.
Multimedia contest
The multimedia contest is open to work submitted by
photographers, publications, and multimedia producers. Registration for access
to our entry site begins in December. Information about the entry rules and
category details will be available in September.
History
of World Press Photo
The photo was of a motor-cross competitor taking a
tumble from his motorcycle. The date 1955, the award, the first ever World
Press Photo of the Year.
Almost every year since has seen a contest and a
winning image. Some of the photos have become iconic - a naked girl running
after a napalm attack in Vietnam; a Buddhist monk who has set himself alight; a
sole demonstrator standing in front of tanks on Tiananmen Square. Others have
set trends, established styles of press photography that can be seen re-emerging
in years to come.
From National to International
That 1955 award came after members of the Dutch
photojournalists' union had the idea of creating an international competition
to complement a national one, the Zilveren Camera. They hoped to benefit from
exposure to the work of international colleagues. So, from the beginning, the
various elements that form the World Press Photo compound were in evidence -
not only the contest, exhibition and award, but also its educative and
communicative roles.
The first contest catalyzed discussion in local
newspapers about the nature of press photography; later images sparked even
more furious debate. Political controversy also made an early appearance. Then
as now, World Press Photo set great store by maintaining its independence.
Throughout the Cold War, both Russians and Americans sat on the jury - their
votes usually balancing each other out.
Rapid Growth
The year 1960 saw the establishment of the
foundation which forms the basis of today's organization. The popularity of the
contest and consequent exhibition grew steadily throughout the 1970s. By the
1980s, the exhibition was traveling even farther afield. The contest was
gaining considerable prestige and numbers of entrants had rocketed. World Press
Photo entered a new phase. The decision was made to professionalize the
organization, employ hired staff, and establish an office that would provide a
firm base for the international scope of the contest and exhibition. A strong
financial structure was needed for this, and the first corporate sponsors came
on board in 1987.
Expanding Activities
Increasing contact between photojournalists around
the world - many of whom had limited access to new creative and technological
developments - sparked a demand for local training initiatives. World Press
Photo established itself not only as a platform for photojournalism, but also
as a catalyst for education of photographers. The impulse behind the first
contest in 1955 - that of putting local Dutch photojournalists more in touch
with the work of international colleagues - re-emerged to give rise to
workshops and seminars.
In 1990, the first such seminar was held in
Budapest, and they are now a regular feature of World Press Photo's activities.
Four years later, the first Joop Swart Masterclass for talented young
photographers was held in Amsterdam, setting the tone for what has become an
annual benchmark of excellence within the profession.
Into the Future
The first years of a new century have seen not only
World Press Photo's 50th anniversary, but further restructuring of the
organization as it adapts to a changing world. World Press Photo now finds
itself in the position where it not only runs the world's most prestigious
international contest of photojournalism, but also administers the world's
widest-ranging annual photo exhibition, and offers a breadth of related
activities that is unmatched.
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