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The Greatest Photos of the World 2027 brings photographers into a six-week international exhibition centered on the theme “Living Together: How We Share Our Planet.” Eight categories cover subjects ranging from travel and portraiture to wildlife, sports, documentary photography and street life, with selected work exhibited in Zierikzee, the Netherlands, from July 15 to August 26, 2027.
The competition also includes cash prizes and special category awards, review by a published international selection committee, inclusion in the official festival program and potential opportunities for selected photographs to travel to other European cities. The submission deadline is May 1, 2027, with entry starting at €10 for a single image. For photographers browsing Deartline for their next photo competition, the broad theme provides several ways to approach ideas around people, nature, communities and the environments they share.
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Prizes
Selected photographers in The Greatest Photos of the World 2027 become part of the official exhibition at Nieuwe Kerk in Zierikzee, where the show runs for six weeks during summer 2027.
Benefits and awards include:
- Exhibition: selected work will be shown as part of The Greatest Photos of the World exhibition in the Netherlands.
- Cash prizes: monetary awards are included in the 2027 competition.
- Category awards: special awards are planned across the competition categories.
- Festival program: selected photography may be published in the official program.
- Media visibility: the competition announces exposure through partner media including LensCulture, Dodho Magazine and All About Photo.
- Further exhibitions: selected work may have opportunities to appear in other European cities.
Related Photo Contests
Categories or Themes
The eight categories are connected by The Greatest Photos of the World 2027 theme, “Living Together: How We Share Our Planet.” The brief looks at coexistence between people, animals and nature, but remains open enough for documentary, poetic, humorous and visually driven interpretations.
- Journeys & Adventures: exploration, discovery and travel photography that reveals places and new perspectives.
- Faces & Souls: portrait photography focused on character, emotion and everyday human experience.
- Nature’s Beauty: landscapes, flora and broader nature photography exploring the beauty and fragility of the natural world.
- Wildlife in Harmony: wildlife photography showing animals in relation to their environments.
- Underwater Wonders: underwater photography from oceans, rivers, lakes and aquatic ecosystems.
- Motion & Emotion: sports photography built around movement, energy, competition and emotion.
- Stories That Matter: documentary photography and photojournalism addressing cultural, political or environmental realities.
- Streets of the World: spontaneous and observational street photography from cities and communities around the world.
Dates and Entry Fees
| Key Date | Event |
|---|---|
| May 1, 2027 | Submission deadline at 23:59 CET |
| Late May 2027 | Selected photographers notified by email |
| July 15, 2027 | Exhibition opens at Nieuwe Kerk, Zierikzee |
| August 26, 2027 | Exhibition closes |
Entry Fees:
- 1 image: €10.
- 3 images: €20.
- Storytelling series, up to 10 images: €35.
How to Enter
Submissions are made through the official online application form. Entrants provide their contact details, a short third-person biography of up to 200 words, the project title and year of creation, and a project description or artist statement of up to 400 words.
Applicants then select one of the three submission options and upload their work before completing the registration fee payment. Late submissions are not considered.
About the Jury
The Greatest Photos of the World 2027 uses a three-round selection process. During each round, members of the selection committee review the entries individually and choose photographs in each category to continue to the next stage. Creativity, photographic quality and the effectiveness of the image in expressing the competition theme are among the published judging criteria.
The 2027 selection committee includes:
- Andrew Parkinson, a wildlife photographer whose work has appeared in National Geographic and BBC Wildlife Magazine, among other publications.
- Mike Korostelev, an award-winning wildlife photographer particularly known for underwater work.
- Marcel Kollen, photographer, cultural entrepreneur and founder and director of Rotterdam Photo.
Why Enter The Greatest Photos of the World 2027?
One of the more interesting aspects of The Greatest Photos of the World 2027 is what happens after the judging. Selected photographs move from an online submission into a six-week public exhibition in the Netherlands, where they form part of a wider photography event that also presents work by photographers associated with National Geographic and World Press Photo. The possibility of further exhibitions in other European cities gives selected work another potential route beyond the initial show.
The structure is also unusually flexible for an exhibition-focused call. Eight categories allow photographers working in very different genres to find an appropriate entry point, while the shared “Living Together” theme gives the final selection a common narrative. For photographers comparing opportunities through Deartline’s best photo contests, the combination of a physical exhibition, published jury, three-round selection process and €10 single-image entry provides a clear set of factors on which to assess the competition.
Rules and Copyright
We reviewed the official rules of The Greatest Photos of the World 2027 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
Entries should respond to one of the eight categories and to the broader “Living Together” theme. Single images, three-image submissions and storytelling series of up to 10 photographs are available as entry formats.
The organizer uses three rounds of judging, with entries assessed for creativity, photographic quality and their ability to communicate the competition theme. Selected photographers are due to receive notification by late May 2027.
The published 2027 information does not currently state a specific policy regarding AI-generated or AI-assisted images.
Copyright and Image Usage
Photographers retain full copyright in their work.
Photographers whose work is selected grant a non-exclusive license allowing their photographs to be used for promotional purposes related to The Greatest Photos of the World exhibition. The published terms do not specify how long that permission lasts or provide details about sublicensing or third-party usage rights.
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For more information and to participate in the contest, visit: the official website.
