№ 03 · The journal
Filed under raw-verification. All entries →
16 of the 22 verified photo contests open now or later this season ban AI-generated images; 12 ask, or may ask, for RAW or original files. Contest by contest.
Cropping a distraction out of a contest photo is allowed. Cloning it out can get you disqualified — even when the result looks identical. That's the line most photographers never read until it costs them a prize. Here is exactly where fourteen major competitions draw it in 2026: what editing each one permits, what gets you removed (sometimes after you've already won), and how the strict contests inspect your RAW file to catch it. The same edited frame can be a winner at one contest and a disqualification at another.