Australasia's Top Emerging Photographers 2026 open for entries
For over 17 years, Capture magazine has been on a mission to help discover Australasia's very best emerging talent. Our 18th annual photo competition, Australasia's Top Emerging Photographers 2026 is dedicated to highlighting the raw talent and creative potential of early-career artists across Australia and New Zealand.
We classify emerging as amateurs, and photographers with less than four years' professional photography experience.
The competition includes seven portfolio categories: Animals, Art, Black & White, Documentary, Landscape, People and Travel. Photographers are required to submit a series of three images (five in the case of the Documentary category) to create a cohesive portfolio.
There are also two single image categories – Shot on Film category, where images are only accepted if 'shot on film' (we'll ask for an image of the negative or transparency film for finalists). And of course there is the popular and aptly named Single Shot category.
This year, winners and runners-up will share in a prize pool worth over $27,000, including $9,000 cash, Fujifilm's amazing large-format GFX100S II and four prize packs from Western Digital valued at $1,500 each.
Entries close 22 March 2026, but if you enter before January 18 2026, you save up to $10 per entry with the Early Bird entry rate.
PRICING AND DEADLINES
EARLY BIRD
$29 per entry (1 September to Sunday 18 January 2026)
STANDARD PRICING
$35 per entry (19 January to Sunday 22 February 2026)
LAST MINUTE PRICING
$39 per entry (23 February to Sunday 22 March 2026)
Note: For the portfolio categories, the entry fee includes all images in that particular portfolio.
Entries close: 11.59pm AEDT Sunday 22 March 2026
The categories are:
- PORTRAIT (3 images)
- LANDSCAPE (3 images)
- ANIMAL (3 images)
- ART (3 images)
- BLACK & WHITE (3 images)
- DOCUMENTARY (5 images)
- TRAVEL (3 images)
- SINGLE SHOT (1 image)
- SHOT ON FILM (1 image)
In the portfolio categories, entrants should aim to submit images that relate to each other on some level, whether it be narratively, aesthetically or thematically.
You can find tips from our judges on how to improve your chances in the competition here.
You can enter images created on or after 1 June 2023 – with the exception of Shot on Film category. There is no time limit on when the images had been captured in the Shot on Film category (E.g. You could enter an image shot on film from the 1960's, 1970's etc) Competition organisers reserve the right to request original negatives, slides or prints to confirm the authenticity of images in the Shot on Film category.
Overall, you cannot enter images that have previously been entered in Australasia’s Top Emerging Photographers.
Winners, runners-up, and top-ranked portfolios will be revealed in a special Winter 2026 edition of Capture magazine (available in mid-June 2026). A simultaneous announcement will be made at www.capturemag.com.au. Also in June, Winners, Runners-up, Top 10, Top 20, Top 30 (larger categories), Highly Commended, and Commended photographers will be notified via e-mail of their placing in the competition, and will also receive an award badge that they can publish online and on social media.
You can visit Australasia’s Top Emerging Photographers homepage here.
