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Ready to have your unique photographic vision considered by a grant known for championing unconventional and character-driven work? The Gomma Photography Grant 2026, now in its 13th edition, is officially open for entries, inviting photographers from different backgrounds to submit their most compelling personal projects. The grant continues to focus on photographers with a distinctive voice, with cash prizes and opportunities for international promotion. The final deadline for submissions is November 5, 2026.
The Gomma Photography Grant 2026 is dedicated to contemporary photography across a wide range of approaches. The competition offers a €1,000 cash prize for the First Prize winner, with cash awards also for Second, Third and the special Gomma New Flavour recipient. The jury looks for personal, character-driven work, and the grant is open across photographic genres and analogue and digital processes. Entry fees are tiered across three deadlines, starting at €19. For photographers searching for the best photography challenges that place individual vision ahead of a fixed subject, the Gomma Grant offers a portfolio-based format with several levels of recognition. It remains especially relevant to photographers working on long-form documentary photography projects.
Organized by Gomma Publishing Ltd, the grant has been running since 2014, while Gomma’s publishing activity dates back to 2004. Its stated focus remains on bold, unusual and striking photography rather than work shaped primarily by current trends. Submissions are judged on the strength of the work rather than the photographer’s CV, reputation or professional network.
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Contest Prizes
The Gomma Grant 2026 offers a range of cash prizes and exposure opportunities designed to recognize photographers with distinctive and compelling bodies of work. The prize structure includes several separate awards and remains a significant cash prizes opportunity:
- First Prize Winner:
- A €1,000 cash prize.
- A potential publishing deal with Gomma Publishing Ltd and its network, adding a possible publication opportunity.
- International exposure through Gomma’s network and media partners.
- Proposition to international galleries and curators.
- A personalized feature on Gomma’s Facebook and Instagram channels.
- Second Prize Winner:
- A €200 cash prize.
- International exposure and a personalized social media feature.
- Proposition to galleries and curators.
- Third Prize Winner:
- A €100 cash prize.
- International exposure and a personalized social media feature.
- Proposition to galleries and curators.
- Gomma New Flavour Award:
- A €300 cash prize.
- A potential publishing deal with Gomma Publishing Ltd and its network.
- International exposure and a personalized social media feature.
- Proposition to galleries and curators.
- Best Documentary Award & Best Black and White Award:
- These non-cash awards provide additional recognition, international exposure and propositions to galleries and curators.
- Honorable Mention Winners:
- Receive international exposure through Gomma’s network, personalized social promotion and propositions to galleries and curators.
Related Photo Contests
Categories
The Gomma Photography Grant 2026 operates with an Open Theme. There are no subject-based entry categories, giving photographers freedom to submit a cohesive body of work across documentary, portraiture, landscape, conceptual, fine art, photojournalism, colour, analogue, digital and other photographic approaches.
While the theme is open, the grant does confer two special non-cash awards for excellence in specific genres: the Best Documentary Award and the Best Black and White Award.
The key requirement for submissions is a cohesive body of work consisting of 8 to 24 images. Projects may be unfinished, ongoing or completed, making the grant particularly relevant to photographers looking at portfolio photography awards rather than single-image competitions.
Dates and Entry Fees
The Gomma Photography Grant 2026 retains a tiered deadline and fee structure:
Key Dates:
| Event | Date |
| Early Bird Deadline | September 25, 2026 |
| Second Deadline | October 15, 2026 |
| Final Deadline | November 5, 2026 |
| Winners Announcement | Spring 2027 |
Entry Fees:
- Early Bird Deadline (until September 25, 2026): €19 for one project of 8 to 24 images.
- Second Deadline (until October 15, 2026): €25 for one project of 8 to 24 images.
- Final Deadline (until November 5, 2026): €35 for one project of 8 to 24 images.
The submission platform states that its deadline timezone is Hawaii Standard Time, UTC−10. Multiple entries are permitted as long as they represent different bodies of work.
How to Enter
To enter, submit the project through the official Gomma Grant Submittable platform. Each submission must contain between 8 and 24 images together with a short project description. An artist statement and short biography or résumé are optional. The 2026 edition also allows photographers to add titles and captions to individual images.
Files must be JPGs in sRGB or RGB at 72 dpi, with a minimum of 1,500 pixels on the longest side. Images should follow the naming convention Name-Surname-imageNumber.jpg. Joint submissions by two photographers are accepted, and ongoing projects can be entered regardless of when the work began.
About the Jury
The names of the 2026 jury members are not currently published. Gomma states that its grant jury includes established photography professionals alongside emerging personalities from the industry. The organization also emphasizes that submissions are considered for the strength of the work rather than the photographer’s CV, reputation, previous accolades or professional network.
A detailed scoring system and an anonymous judging procedure are not published for the current edition. The final results are scheduled for spring 2027.
Why Enter?
The Gomma Grant remains focused on cohesive photographic projects rather than isolated images. A submission can contain up to 24 photographs, giving photographers room to present an authored body of work with its own visual language, narrative or atmosphere. The cash prizes, including €1,000 for First Prize and €300 for Gomma New Flavour, sit alongside potential publishing opportunities and introductions to galleries and curators.
Gomma has also built its identity around work that sits outside obvious trends, with past recognition spanning documentary, portraiture, conceptual photography, black and white work and other approaches. For photographers looking to participate in photography challenges that evaluate a developed project rather than a single photograph, the portfolio format is one of the grant’s defining features.
Rules and Copyright
We reviewed the official rules of the Gomma Photography Grant 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
Submissions must consist of a cohesive body of work containing between 8 and 24 images. Multiple entries are accepted when they represent different projects, and joint submissions from two photographers are permitted. There is no restriction on when an ongoing project was started.
Submitted photographs must be original and the entrant must be the author and copyright owner. Fully AI-generated images are not accepted. The published FAQ does not provide a separate rule covering limited AI-assisted editing.
Entry fees are non-refundable. Editing a submission is possible under the conditions established by the submission platform; for the first deadline, changes are allowed until September 26, 2026.
Copyright and Image Usage
Photographers retain full copyright in every submitted photograph, and Gomma Publishing Ltd does not claim ownership of that copyright.
The published usage terms allow winning and runner-up images to be used solely in connection with the current competition, future Gomma contests and related promotion. This includes presentation on the Gomma Grant website, affiliated web pages and social media, as well as promotion of the competitions and participating photographers.
The license is non-exclusive and irrevocable for two years following the announcement of the winner. Once those two years have passed, the images may be retained and used by Gomma Publishing Ltd for archival purposes only. No broader commercial use or sublicensing rights are stated.
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For more information and to participate in the contest, visit: the official website.
