Frequently Asked Questions​

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. HOW DO I ENTER THE IAPB PHOTO COMP?
You can enter the photo competition via our online submission form.

2. WHEN WILL THE 2023 PHOTO COMPETITION OPEN?
The World Sight Day Photo Competition typically opens in July of each. Follow IAPB social media channels or join our newsletter for the latest information on opening dates, judge announcements, prizes and closing dates.

3. WHAT ARE THIS YEAR’S PRIZES?
Our grand prizes include a US$1,000 cash prize for the winner of the professional competition stream and US$750 for the winner of the amateur competition stream.

4. CAN I SUBMIT A PHOTO IF I AM NOT A PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER?
We have two competition streams available to participants. If you make money and earn an income from your photography, please enter the professional stream. If you take images for enjoyment purposes only, then we invite you to enter the amateur stream.

5. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER AND AN AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER?
For the purpose of our competition, a PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER is a photographer who earns an income from taking images.
An AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER is someone who does not earn an income from taking images and takes images for enjoyment purposes only.
We trust that you know which category best represents you and submit your entry accordingly.

6. WHAT IF I ACCIDENTALLY SUBMIT MY IMAGE TO THE WRONG COMPETITION STREAM?
If you are aware that, for example, you have accidentally entered your amateur image into the professional competition stream, or the other way around, please let us know. We will make sure your image is judged in the correct competition stream. You can contact us at [email protected]

7. WHAT ARE THE JUDGES LOOKING FOR IN A WINNING PHOTOGRAPH?
Judges are looking for a combination of creativity, skill and representation of the category. You can find out more about our judging process here.

8. HOW MANY PHOTOS CAN I SUBMIT TO THE COMPETITION?
We LOVE seeing your work! We invite you to submit as many different images as you like. Please review our competition categories and review our image submission guidelines.

9. CAN I SUBMIT THE SAME PHOTO TO MORE THAN ONE CATEGORY?
You can ONLY submit an image into one category. If you accidentally submit the same image to multiple categories, we will judge the image on the first category it was submitted under.

10. CAN I SUBMIT MULTIPLE PHOTOS TO EACH CATEGORY?
Yes! We encourage you to submit as many different images as you like to each category. Please review our competition categories and review our image submission guidelines.

11. CAN I SUBMIT MULTIPLE IMAGES TO THE SAME CATEGORY?
Yes! We invite you to submit as many different images as you like to the same category. Please review our competition categories and review our image submission guidelines.

12. MY PHOTO WASN’T TAKEN IN THIS CALENDAR YEAR, CAN I STILL SUBMIT IT?
If you haven’t submitted the image in previous competitions, then you are welcome to submit it this year. Please review our competition categories and we encourage you to review our image submission guidelines.

13. WHY DO I HAVE TO PROVIDE ALT TEXT TO MY SUBMISSION(S)?
Not everyone will be able to see your image(s). Alt text is an important way to ensure your submission is more accessible to people who are vision impaired or blind. By describing your image in alt text you are helping everyone experience it. An example of alt text is as follows:

Picture: Jacob smiling as he cycles on a dirt path.

OR

Picture: Emily happily reading a book of braille.

Here are some tips for writing alt text:
– Be specific and succinct.
– Describe information, not aesthetics.
– Do not start with “A photo of” or “an image of” people with screen readers will be aware that they have reached an image, using this language wastes valuable space for descriptive words.

14. WHY DO I NEED TO ADD PHOTO TAGS TO MY SUBMISSION(S)?
Photo tags are an important way for us to identify and file your photo. We ask that you choose the tags that most apply to your image. For example, a picture of a female, healthcare worker at a hospital on World Sight Day could be given the following tags: Health staff, Female, Hospital, Vision Screening, World Sight Day.

15. I AM HAVING A PROBLEM UPLOADING MY IMAGE.
We are sorry to hear you are having technical difficulties. We ask that you check your internet connection. If that hasn’t solved the problem, please check that the file size and file type comply with our submission requirements. Photo formats accepted are:
– JPEG
– PNG
– GIF (non-animated).

All other formats will be converted to JPEG. RAW photos are not supported at this time. Each photo can be up to 200 MB.
If the problem persists, please contact us at [email protected]

16. WHEN WILL I SEE MY SUBMISSION ON IAPB’S SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS?
It is not our policy to share all submissions on IAPB’s social media channels.
However, we will share a compilation of our favourite submissions from the week in our ‘Editors Pics’ and ‘Photo of the Week.’ You may find your submission(s) in those posts, make sure you follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Good luck!