Human Impact Awards 2026

Wex Photo Video Human Impact Awards 2026 invites photographers across the United Kingdom to explore how people shape, affect, and respond to the world around them. Entries take the form of a coherent series of 5–10 photographs rather than individual images, with subjects potentially spanning community, identity, environment, culture, technology, care, resilience, activism, and everyday life. The submission deadline is January 31, 2027.

The competition, organized by Wex Photo Video in partnership with Sony, has separate Professional and Student awards. Professional prizes are £5,000, £3,000, and £1,000, while winners of the Phil Smith Student Award receive Sony camera and lens combinations. Entry is free (which makes this one of the free photography contests listed on Deartline), photographs may be made with any camera system or smartphone, and previous professional experience is not required.

Within Deartline’s list of photography competitions, the Human Impact Awards adds a UK-based opportunity specifically designed around complete photographic stories.

Prizes

The Human Impact Awards offer separate prize structures for the Professional and Phil Smith Student categories.

Professional Award:

• 1st Prize: £5,000.
• 2nd Prize: £3,000.
• 3rd Prize: £1,000.

Phil Smith Student Award:

• 1st Prize: Sony A7 V + Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM II.
• 2nd Prize: Sony A7 IV + Sony FE 24-70mm F2.8 GM.
• 3rd Prize: Sony A6700 + Sony E 16-55mm F2.8 G.

Winners are also invited to an awards ceremony at BFI Riverfront in London, attended by judges, industry guests, Sony representatives, and the Wex Photo Video team. Winning projects may be featured through Wex editorial and promotional channels.

Categories or Themes

There are two entry categories:

• Professional Award: Open to non-student photographers of all experience levels, including professionals, freelancers, emerging photographers, independent practitioners, and hobbyists.
• Phil Smith Student Award: Open to photographers currently enrolled on a recognized UK school, college, or university course. Entrants do not need to be studying photography specifically.

Both categories respond to the same Human Impact brief. Possible subjects include community and belonging, identity and representation, environment and climate, urban change, protest and activism, culture and tradition, technology, inequality, resilience, and everyday human connection.

The submitted photographs should operate as a unified visual story rather than as unrelated individual images.

Dates and Entry Fees

Entries to the Wex Photo Video Human Impact Awards 2026 close at 11:59 p.m. on January 31, 2027.

Entry fee:

• Free.

The competition is open to UK residents aged 18 or over. As one of Deartline’s free photography competitions, no purchase or entry payment is required.

How to Enter

Entries are submitted through Picter and must contain between five and ten JPEG photographs, a project title, a short project description, the chosen category, and the entrant’s contact details.

Photographs must have been taken within the previous five years and may be created using any camera or smartphone. Student entrants must also provide their course and institution details together with a valid school or university email address and personal contact email.

Why Enter Wex Photo Video Human Impact Awards 2026?

The series-based format gives photographers space to develop an idea across several images rather than relying on a single photograph. The theme is deliberately broad, but the requirement for a coherent body of work encourages entrants to think about sequence, narrative, and how individual images contribute to a wider story.

The two-category structure also creates distinct opportunities for students and other photographers. Professional entrants compete for a combined £9,000 in cash prizes, while the student awards provide complete Sony camera and lens packages.

Among the best photo contests covered by Deartline, the Human Impact Awards is particularly suited to photographers working with documentary, social, environmental, cultural, or community-based narratives who want to present their work as a connected series.

Rules and Copyright

We reviewed the official rules of the Wex Photo Video Human Impact Awards 2026 to summarize the key participation requirements, copyright terms and image usage conditions. Before entering, we recommend checking the complete rules published by the organizer.

Rules

• Entrants must be UK residents aged 18 or over.
• Each submission must contain between five and ten JPEG images responding to the Human Impact brief.
• Photographs must have been taken within the past five years.
• Images taken with cameras and smartphones are accepted.
• AI-generated imagery, stock photography, copied images, and photographs created by another person are not permitted.
• Nudity is not accepted.
• Wex may request high-resolution or RAW files with metadata to verify authorship and authenticity.
• Entrants are responsible for obtaining any necessary permissions from people appearing in their photographs.

Copyright and Image Usage

Photographers retain full copyright in their submitted images. By entering, they grant Wex Photo Video a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to reproduce, publish, and display the photographs for purposes connected with administering and promoting the Human Impact Awards.

This may include use on the Wex website, social media, email communications, press coverage, printed promotional materials, coverage of the competition and its winners, and competition-related physical exhibition. Photographers are credited where reasonably practicable.

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For more information and to participate in the contest, visit: the official website.