NL · Moderate entry · 2026
· verified
Nature Photographer of the Year 2026
Nature Talks naturephotographeroftheyear.com ↗
Closed
Worth entering? $3.3K top prize against 35 EUR per entry. The jury read and the rights terms below are what decide it — not the prize math. Jury read ↓ · Rights & disqualifiers ↓
Submit-Safe · before you pay the entry fee
Read the fine print
Read the fine print first — Nature Photographer of the Year 2026 has 3 hard disqualifiers and demanding rights terms.
What this contest takes
Standard terms — you keep copyright and full control; the licence is limited to promoting the contest.
- Non-exclusive use for Nature Talks promotion, NPOTY book, and travelling exhibition catalogues.
- Duration: Perpetual non-commercial promotional use.
- You keep your copyright
- Credited when used
What disqualifies you
No AI rendering, no composites, no stacked scenes — the image must be true to the moment captured.
- Copyright ownership Entrant must hold full copyright on every submitted image. “You must be the sole copyright holder.”
- Ai generation AI-generated or computer-rendered photographs are not accepted. “AI-generated or computer-rendered photos are not allowed.”
Closed
From 35 EUR per image
Upload spec:
Files: JPGMin 2400px long edgeUnder 16 MBsRGB colour profileCaption requiredNo watermarks
Check your photo against these exact rules — free →
No account · reads the editing line, the AI clause and the file spec · rules human-verified
The full editorial read continues with past-winner pattern, fee-to-prize value, rights translated, and three comparable competitions. Studio reads the rest.
Categories
Birds
Single
Wild birds in natural habitat — behaviour, flight, species-specific portraits.
Mammals
Single
Wild mammals — behaviour, social context, ecological setting.
Landscapes
Single
Natural landscapes — scenes where the land or geological process is the subject.
Other Animals
Single
Reptiles, amphibians, fish, invertebrates — species outside the birds/mammals categories.
Plants and Fungi
Single
Wild flora and fungi — species-specific, ecologically grounded.
Underwater
Single
Fresh or saltwater subjects below the surface — natural behaviour, ecological setting.
Black and White
Single
Monochrome treatment of a natural subject where the absence of colour serves the image.
Man and Nature
Single
The relationship between human activity and the natural environment — documentary register.
Nature Art
Single
Conceptual or abstract natural-subject work — pattern, texture, motion as the read.
Youth (under 18)
Single
Open only to photographers under 18 — any natural subject.
Fred Hazelhoff Portfolio Award
Portfolio · up to 6 photos (min 6)
Six images forming a coherent nature-photography body of work — single thesis across the set.
F Format requirements 1 spec
npoty_standard
- File types: jpg
- Min long edge: 2400px
- Min size: 1.0 MB
- Max size: 16.0 MB
- Color profile: sRGB
- No watermarks
- Caption required (max 400 chars)
E Eligibility 2 rules
-
Entrant must hold full copyright on every submitted image.
hard
“You must be the sole copyright holder.”
-
AI-generated or computer-rendered photographs are not accepted.
hard
“AI-generated or computer-rendered photos are not allowed.”
Jury context
Dutch nature-photography jury including Nature Talks editors, biological scientists, and documentary wildlife photographers. Values ecological accuracy, restrained processing, and frames rooted in extended field time rather than opportunistic captures.
Priorities: ecological specificity documentary integrity moment composition technical execution
Tone: species specific field time natural behaviour geological process decisive moment
Avoid: captive subject baited wildlife over processed composite opportunistic
Past winners — text notes
Winners typically document a single species or location across multiple seasons. The Fred Hazelhoff portfolio rewards a sustained thesis — six frames from the same project, not six unrelated greatest hits.
These are text-only curatorial observations, never images of past winners.
Prizes
€25,000 total prize pool. Overall Nature Photographer of the Year €3,000. Category winners €500 each. Fred Hazelhoff Portfolio Award €1,000. Exhibition tour and book inclusion for top entries.
Exhibition Publication
R Rights & licensing what you grant the organizer
- What you grant
- Non-exclusive use for Nature Talks promotion, NPOTY book, and travelling exhibition catalogues.
- Duration
- Perpetual non-commercial promotional use.
- Exclusivity
- none
- Attribution
- Required
- Copyright retained by photographer
- Yes
Free bonus on signup: the 2026 Photo Contest Yearbook PDF — 22 contests classified, deadlines, fees, AI policies decoded.
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Before you enter — quick answers
- Is Nature Photographer of the Year 2026 free to enter?
- Nature Photographer of the Year 2026 is not free: 35 EUR. Check the organizer's page for per-category pricing.
- Are AI-generated images allowed in Nature Photographer of the Year 2026?
- No. Nature Photographer of the Year 2026 requires biological and factual fidelity: AI rendering or generated content is not allowed, and the scene must be true to what was photographed.
- When is the Nature Photographer of the Year 2026 deadline?
- Nature Photographer of the Year 2026 closes on Jun 08, 2026.
- How do I know if my photo is eligible for Nature Photographer of the Year 2026?
- Read your photograph against Nature Photographer of the Year 2026's published rules — the editing line, the AI clause, and the file requirements — free and without an account with WinPhoto's eligibility check. It tells you whether your image is eligible before you pay the entry fee.