Sony World Photography Awards 2014 Judges revealed alongside last call for entries
With just over one month remaining for photographers to enter the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards, the World Photography Organisation (WPO) is proud to announce the Honorary Judging Committee for this years competition and to reveal an exclusive selection of submissions to the 2014 awards.The 2014 Honorary Judging Committee will be chaired by William Hunt, a New York-based photography consultant, who will once again also host the annual awards gala on 30 April 2014. The full panel comprises of photography professionals from the World Photographic Academy including: Ruth Eichhorn, Director of Photography, Geo Magazine (Germany); Johanna Neurath, Design Director for Thames & Hudson publishing (UK); Isbaella Icoz, Curator (Turkey); Guy Harrington, Director, Soho Management (UK); Matthew Pillsbury, Photographer (US); Harry Hardie, Panos Pictures/ HERE Press (UK); Suzy Koo, Creative Media Manager, Burberry (UK); Poorna Bell, Lifestyle Editor, Huffington Post and Simon Barnett, Director of Photography, CNN Digital.
Entries to the Open and Youth competitions of the 2014 Sony World Photography Awards will close on 6 January, followed by the deadline for the Professional competition on 9 January. All entries are free via worldphoto.org.
Now in its seventh year, the awards are one of the leading photography competitions in the world and it gives international exposure, recognition and opportunity to both its winning and shortlisted photographers.
Norwegian photographer Andrea Gjestvang, winner of the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year title, comments: Winning the L'Iris d'Or was a great recognition and it made my work reach out to a worldwide audience not only to editors, collectors and potential collaborators in the business but, most importantly, the everyday readers who were moved and engaged by the images. It opened up new opportunities for me, and was a huge motivation to continue following the stories that I believe in.
In the 2014 awards professional photographers will compete for the coveted title of L'Iris d'Or/Sony World Photography Awards Professional Photographer of the Year, plus a $25,000 (USD) cash prize. Judges will also award the 15 winners for each of the Professional categories for their series of work.
Amateur and enthusiast photographers will contend the Open Photographer of the Year 2014 title, plus a $5,000 (USD) cash prize. The judges will also select the best single winning shot for each of the ten Open categories. In addition, three photographers under 20 years old will be chosen as winners of the Youth competition.
Singaporean amateur photographers who submit entries for any of the ten Open categories will also be automatically considered for the Singapore National Award, which aims to uncover and honour the top three best images shot by Singaporean photographers.
All category winners across the awards, including the winners of Singapore National Award, will receive the latest digital imaging equipment from Sony. Furthermore, the winning and finalist photographers will receive an exhibition of their work at Somerset House, London, from 1-18 May 2014, will be published in the 2014 edition of the Sony World Photography Awards book and will also be featured across the WPO website.
The shortlists for the 2014 awards will be announced on 4 February, followed by the winners of the Open categories on 18 March. The overall and Professional categories winners will be revealed at the Sony World Photography Awards gala ceremony held in London on 30 April.
The key dates for the 2014 awards are:
6 December 2013 Student Focus competition closes
6 January 2014 Open and Youth competition close
9 January 2014 Professional competition closes
4 February 2014 shortlist for Professional, Open and Youth competitions revealed
18 February 2014 Student Focus shortlist announced
18 March 2014 Open and Youth winners revealed
31 March 2014 Outstanding Contribution to Photography recipient announced
30 April 2014 LIris dOr/Photographer of the Year plus Professional category winners and Open, Youth and Student Focus Photographers of the Year revealed at gala awards ceremony held in London
1 May to end-May 2014 2014 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition at Somerset House, London
Further details about the Sony World Photography Awards, Singapore National Award and the World Photography Organisation can be found at worldphoto.org.
