Street
Photography
Awards 2015
FREE SUBMISSION REVIEW | FESTIVAL PROJECTIONS | INDUSTRY RECOGNITION | GLOBAL EXPOSURE

Our first ever Street Photography Awards invite you to show us the way you see your world. Whether in your own urban environment, or as you travel the globe exploring other cultures and lands, LensCulture seeks to discover today's finest photographers capturing the best spontaneous moments. It is through these moments that we get a real sense of the world we live in.

Our international jury will select top winners in series and single image entries, plus 25 finalists. Winners receive $15,000 in cash awards, global recognition, and exposure to our audience of over 1.4 million. You’re invited to SHOW US YOUR STREETS.

Closed for new entries. Winners will be announced in mid-October.
If you already started a submission, click here to finish it.
The final deadline to complete all entries is Thursday, September 3rd at 11:59 PST.
Street Portraits Urban Culture Street Fashion Road Trip Street Art Travel Architecture

LensCulture Street Photography Showcase

Here are some of the most popular Street Photography features published in LensCulture.

For the past 11 years LensCulture has been publishing street photography from both established and emerging photographers. We’ve showcased a wide range of approaches that capture the endless parade of life around the world.

Over the years, styles and subject matter have expanded and evolved — celebrating diverse global street cultures and street fashion, documenting activism and funky architecture, finding unique and new quirky points of view. LensCulture got its start from Street Photography, and we’ve been covering it ever since. So these awards really feel like our homecoming. With over 25 million views of our Street Photography editorial features over the years, it is an absolute joy to finally roll out our very first Street Photography Awards competition.

— Jim Casper, Editor in Chief

Street Photography Awards 2015 Jury

  • Caroline Hunter
    Picture Editor
    Guardian Weekend Magazine
    London, UK
    www.theguardian.com
    more about Caroline
    Caroline Hunter is a picture editor for the Guardian Weekend Magazine.
    She has twenty years experience of commissioning photography for features that range from celebrity to news and documentary. She produces and edits photo-shoots, and on a daily basis she reviews a wide selection of photographers' submissions from around the world.
    Previous to the Guardian, Caroline worked for Time Out London magazine and The Saturday Telegraph magazine. She is a regular portfolio reviewer at international photo-festivals and has judged a number of photography competitions. Caroline also writes about photography, and lives and works in London.
  • Whitney Johnson
    Deputy Director of Photography
    National Geographic
    Washington DC, USA
    www.nationalgeographic.com
    more about Whitney
    Whitney Johnson is the Deputy Director of Photography at National Geographic. Previously, she was the Director of Photography at The New Yorker, where she championed photojournalism and transitioned photography at the magazine into the digital space by establishing the Photo Booth blog, launching the Instagram feed, and serving as the executive producer on several short films. Her work has been widely recognized: two ASME awards for portfolios on the United States military and world leaders; SPD Awards of Excellence; and a Peabody, in collaboration with Human Rights Watch and Platon, for a project on Russia's Civil Society.
    She has taught at Columbia University School of Journalism, New York University, and the International Center of Photography. She is on the board of the W. Eugene Smith Fund and Eddie Adams Workshop, the Photojournalism Advisory Council for the Alexia Foundation, and the Advisory Committee of the Magnum Foundation's Emergency Fund.
  • Jacob Aue Sobol
    Photographer
    Magnum
    Copenhagen, Denmark
    auesobol.dk
    more about Jacob
    Jacob Aue Sobol is a member of Magnum Photos. He was born in Denmark, and studied at the European Film College and the Danish School of Documentary and Art Photography.
    He has completed several award-winning projects and authored critically acclaimed photobooks. His book “Sabine”, a personal perspective on life in Greenland was published in 2004 and the work was nominated for the 2005 Deutsche Börse Photography Prize. A project from Guatemala won First Prize Award, Daily Life Stories, World Press Photo 2006. His book “I, Tokyo” was awarded the Leica European Publishers Award in 2008 and was published in seven countries. A new book "B" (about Bangkok) will be launched at Paris Photo 2015.
    Jacob is currently working on the ongoing project Arrivals and Departures - a journey by land from his childhood home in Brøndby to the east coasts of Russia and China.
    With more than 40 solo exhibitions over the past 10 years, Jacob's work has been shown extensively around the world. Exhibitions include San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai, Milwaukee Art Museum, Michigan Museum of Modern Art, Three Shadow Gallery, Beijing. Rencontre D'Arles, Polka Gallerie (Paris), Yossi Milo Gallery (New York) and Museet for Fotokunst in Denmark.
  • Ihiro Hayami
    Organizer
    Tokyo International Photography Festival
    Tokyo, Japan
    tip.or.jp
    more about Ihiro
    Ihiro Hayami (b. 1982, Osaka Japan) is the director of Tokyo Institute of Photography, and the organizer of Tokyo International Photography Festival. He’s the former chief editor of Japanese Photography Magazine, “PHaT PHOTO”(2012-2014). From 2008-2012, he worked as the one of the directors at RING CUBE gallery in Ginza, Tokyo. His selected curatorial exhibitions include, “10x10 American Photobooks” (2013), Alejandro Chaskielberg’s “High Tide” (2012), and Alex Prager’s “WEEK-END” (2010).
    He is also known as lecturer. He teaches RISING SUN Master class with Marc Prust (artistic director, Photo Reporter) at Tokyo Institute of Photography, and gives lectures at universities and photography schools such as Tokyo Polytechnic University, Nihon University College of Art, and Nippon Photography Institute on invitational basis.
  • Enrico Stefanelli
    Artistic Director
    Photolux Festival
    Lucca, Italy
    www.photoluxfestival.it/en/
    more about Enrico
    Enrico Stefanelli is the founder and artistic director of Photolux Festival, the biennial of photography in Lucca, Italy. He has curated several exhibitions including: Tim Hetherington, Jan Saudek, Horst P. Horst, VII Agency, Nobuyoshy Araki, Boris Mikhailov and David Douglas Duncan. Since 2010, he is the Italian curator of the European Photo Exhibition Award. Enrico is a photographer and journalist and teaches photography in workshops. He has written articles and contributions on photography for several catalogs, books and magazines. He participates in portfolio reviews around the world, serves on international photography juries, and is a member of the nominating committee for the Joop Swart Masterclass at World Press Photo.
  • Jim Casper
    Editor-in-Chief & Publisher
    LensCulture
    Amsterdam, Netherlands
    www.lensculture.com
    more about Jim
    Jim Casper is the editor-in-chief and publisher of LensCulture, one of the leading online destinations to discover contemporary photography from around the world. As an active member in the contemporary photography world, Casper organizes annual international photography events, travels around the world to meet with photographers and review their portfolios, curates art exhibitions, writes about photography and culture, lectures, conducts workshops, serves as an international juror and nominator for key awards, and is an advisor to arts and education organizations. He serves on the board of directors at SPE, the Society for Photographic Education, the world’s largest association of photography educators.

Competition gallery

GLOBAL RECOGNITION & AWARDS

© Altug Karakoc
— JURY SELECTED — LENSCULTURE
Winners Finalists Editors' Picks*
$15,000 in Cash Awards
Worldwide Festival Projections
Street Photography Awards Printed Annual
Massive Online Promotion
LensCulture Online Review Session
Visibility with LensCulture Insiders
Immediate Exposure on LensCulture
LensCulture Portfolio Account

All Winners, Finalists (plus hundreds of the top-rated photographers) will gain access to a free, invitation-only portfolio account on LensCulture! This is an invaluable platform to showcase your work to our 1.4 million+ global audience as well as to our network of LensCulture Insiders. LensCulture’s editors will also be able to discover your latest work and potentially feature it in articles, Editors’ Picks and social media.

*Editors' Picks: Editor Picks: LensCulture's editors will select photographers during the competition for immediate exposure to our global audience (before the judging begins). Over 100 of the highest-rated entries will gain visibility with LensCulture Insiders and receive an invitation-only LensCulture Portfolio account, which serve as a great platform to reach our audience of over 1.4 million worldwide.

AWARDS & BENEFITS

$15,000 in Cash Awards

Series Award:
1st Place: $5000
2nd Place: $3000
3rd Place: $1500

Single Image Award:
1st Place: $3000
2nd Place: $1500
3rd Place: $1000


Projections at International Photo Festivals

Work from the Top 31 photographers will be presented at photo festivals worldwide throughout the year. We are actively partnering with international photo festivals to showcase our competitions' winners & finalists. Our growing list of festivals includes: FORMAT International Photography Festival, Bangkok Photo Festival, Copenhagen Photo Festival, Belfast Photo Festival, Athens Photo Festival, Circulation(s) Photo Festival, Tokyo International Photography Festival, Arles France Voices Off Festival, Photolux Festival in Italy — with many more
to come!


Visibility with
LensCulture Insiders

Work from the Top 31 photographers plus hundreds of the other top-rated photographers from this competition will be shared with LensCulture Insiders, our network of influential names in the photography industry. We have significantly expanded our Insiders network to over 500 photo editors, curators, gallerists, and publishers. We believe this kind of exposure is critical for both emerging and established photographers to gain valuable jobs, opportunities, and global exposure in print and
online media.

Aaron Schuman, Director/Editor, SeeSaw Magazine, UK

Ada Takahashi, Director, Robert Koch Gallery, USA

Afton Almaraz, Senior Picture Editor, Getty Images, USA

Aida Muluneh, Founder and General Manager, Desta for Africa Creative Consulting PLC, Ethiopia

Alan Taylor, Senior Editor, The Atlantic, USA

Alessandra Capodacqua, Instructor, Photographer and Independent Curator, NYU, Italy

Alessia Glaviano, Senior Photo Editor, Vogue Italia and L'Uomo Vogue, Italy

Alex Webb, Photographer, Magnum

Alexa Becker, Acquisitions Editor, Kehrer Verlag Publishers, Germany

Alona Pardo, Curator, Barbican Art Gallery, UK

Amy Feitelberg, Photo Art Director, Square, USA

Amy Pereira, Photography Director, Curator and Consultant, USA

Amy Wolff, Photo Director, Hearst Digital Media, USA

Andy Greenacre, Director of Photography, Telegraph Magazine, UK

Ángel Luis González Fernández, Founder and CEO, PhotoIreland Foundation, Ireland

Anna Dickson, Visual Lead, Image Search, Google, USA

Anna Goldwater Alexander, Director of Photography, WIRED, USA

Anna Gripp, Editor-in-Chief, Photonews, Germany

Anna Walker Skillman, Owner/Director, Jackson Fine Arts, USA

Anne Bourgeois-Vignon, Executive Creative Director, Culture Trip, UK

Anne Farrar, Director of Photography, National Geographic Traveler, USA

Anne McNeill, Director, Impressions Gallery, UK

Anne Morin, Director, diChroma Photography, Spain

Anne Wilkes-Tucker, Curator, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, USA

Antony Dickson, Features Photo Editor, South China Morning Post, Hong Kong

Arianna Rinaldo, Artistic Director, Cortona On The Move, Spain

Ariel Shanberg, Executive Director, Delaware Valley Arts Alliance, USA

Azu Nwagbogu, Director, African Artists' Foundation, Nigeria

Barbara Čeferin, Owner, Galerija Fotografija, Slovenia

Barbara Tannenbaum, Curator of Photography, The Cleveland Museum of Art, USA

Bernadette Tuazon, Director of Photography, CNN Digital, USA

Bevin Bering Dubrowski, Curator, Photography Specialist, BBD Photography, USA

Bisi Silva, Founder and Director, Centre for Contemporary Art, Nigeria

Bonnie Rubenstein, Artistic Director, CONTACT Photography Festival, Canada

Brett Roegiers, Photo Editor, CNN.com, USA

Brian Paul Clamp, Owner/Director, ClampArt Gallery, USA

Brian Storm, Founder & Executive Producer, MediaStorm, USA

Bronwen Latimer, Senior Photo Editor, The Washington Post, USA

Bruno Ceschel, Director, Self Publish, Be Happy, UK

Carlos Carvalho, Director, FestFoto de Porto Allegre, Brazil

Caroline Hunter, Picture Editor, Guardian Weekend Magazine, UK

Caroline Wall, Director, Robert Mann Gallery, USA

Catherine Edelman, Owner, Catherine Edelman Gallery, USA

Celia Davies, Curator, Arts Council England, UK

Celina Lunsford, Artistic Director & Chief Curator, Fotografie Forum Frankfurt, Germany

Charles Guice, Founder/Director, Charles Guice Contemporary, USA

Charlotte Cotton, Curator & Writer, USA

Charlotte van Lingen, Head of Presentation, Museum Het Valkhof, Netherlands

Chelsea Matiash, Senior Editor, Digiital Storytelling, The New York Times, USA

Chris Littlewood, Independent Curator, Christopher Littlewood, UK

Chris Pichler, Founder & Publisher, Nazraeli Press, USA

Christopher McCall, Director, Pier 24 Photography, USA

Christopher Rauschenberg, Founding Member, Blue Sky Photographers' Collective and Gallery, USA

Christy Havranek, Photo Director, Huffington Post, USA

Clare Grafik, Head of Exhibitions, The Photographer's Gallery, UK

Claude Bussac, Director, PHotoEspaña International Festival, Spain

Corey Keller, Curator, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, USA

Corinne Tapia, Director, Sous Les Etoiles Gallery, USA

Cristina De Middel, Artist, Juana de Aizpuru, UK

Daphé Anglès, Journalist, The New York Times Paris, France

Daphne Palmer, Director, Fraenkel Gallery

Darius Himes, International Head of Photographs, Christie's, USA

Darren Ching, Owner, Klompching Gallery, USA

David Alan Harvey, Photographer, Magnum Photos, USA

David Campbell, Director, Programs, World Press Photo, Netherlands

David Chickey, Publisher, Radius Books, USA

David Drake, Director, Ffotogallery, UK

David Hurn, Photographer, Magnum Photos, UK

Deborah Klochko, Director, Museum of Photographic Arts, USA

Debra Klomp, Ching Owner/Director, Klompching Gallery, USA

Denise Wolff, Senior Editor, Aperture, USA

Dewi Lewis, Owner, Dewi Lewis Publishing, UK

Dimitri Beck, Director of Photography, Polka Magazine, France

Dina Mitrani, Gallery Owner, Dina Mitrani Gallery, USA

Donna Cohen, Photo Director, Bloomberg LP, USA

Dr. Shahidul Alam, Director, Chobi Mela Festival of Photography, Bangladesh

Ed Carey, Director, Gallery 291, USA

Eder Chiodetto, Independent Photography Curator, Brazil

Elena Boille, Deputy Editor-in-Chief and Photo Editor, Internazionale, Italy

Elena Firsova, Managing Editor, Foto&Video Magazine Moscow Russian Federation

Elie Domit, Director, East Wing Gallery, Qatar

Elinor Carucci, Photographer, USA

Elisa Medde, Editor, FOAM Magazine, Netherlands

Elissa Curtis, Deputy Photo Director, The Wall Street Journal, USA

Elizabeth Avedon, Independent Curator, Photo Editor, USA

Els Barents, Photo Historian, Writer & Researcher, Els Barents, Netherlands

Emilia van Lynden, Art Consultant, Emilia Van Lynden Art Consultancy, Netherlands

Emma Bowkett, Director of Photography, FT Weekend Magazine, UK

Enrico Bossan, Project Head, Galerrie delle prigioni, Italy

Enrico Stefanelli, Founder, President and Artistic Director, Photolux Festival, Italy

Erik Vroons, Chief Editor, GUP Magazine, Netherlands

Evan Pricco, Editor-in-Chief and Web Editor, Juxtapoz Magazine, USA

Evgeny Berezner, Deputy General Director, ROSIZO State Museum & Exhibition Center, Russia

Felicia Anastasia, Founder & Creative Director, Anastasia Photo Gallery, USA

Fiona Rogers, Chief Operating Officer, Magnum Photos, UK

Fiona Shields, Head of Photography, The Guardian, UK

Francesca Morisini, Photo Editor at Condé Nast Italia

Francis Hodgson, Professor of Photography, University of Brighton, UK

Francoise Callier, Program Coordinator, Angkor Photo Festival, France

Fred Ritchin, Dean of the School, International Center of Photography, USA

Frits Gierstberg, Curator, Nederlands Fotomuseum, Netherlands

Gaia Tripoli, Photo Editor, The New York Times, UK

Gail Marowitz, Creative Director, The Visual Strategist, USA

Genevieve Fussell, Senior Photo Editor, The New Yorker, USA

Gilles Steinmann, Photo Editor, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, Switzerland

Giulia Ticozzi, Photo Editor, La Repubblica, Italy

Greg Hobson, Curator of Photographs, National Media Museum, UK

Gunther Dietrich, Director, Photo Edition Gallery, Germany

Hamidah Glasgow, Executive Director/Curator, The Center for Fine Art Photography, USA

Hannah Watson, Director, TJ Boulting Gallery and Trolley Books, UK

Hideko Kataoka, Director of Photography, Newsweek, Japan

Ian Shive, CEO & Founder, Tandem Stills + Motion, USA

Iata Cannabrava, Photographer & Festival Organizer, Estudio Madalena, Brazil

Ihiro Hayami, Director, Tokyo Institute of Photography, Japan

Ishida Tetsuro, Curator, Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Japan

Jacob Aue Sobol, Photographer, Magnum Photos, Denmark

James Estrin, Photographer/Lens Blog Editor, The New York Times, USA

Jean-Jacques Viau, Digital Marketing Manager, Leica Camera, Germany

Jeff Gates, Lead Producer, Smithsonian American Art Museum, USA

Jeff Moorfoot, Editor, BETA Developments in Photography, Australia

Jennifer Blessing, Senior Curator of Photography, Guggenheim, USA

Jennifer Murray, Executive Director, Filter Photo, USA

Jennifer Pastore, Executive Photography Director, WSJ Magazine, USA

Jenny Smets, Director of Photography, Vrij Nederland, Netherlands

Jessica Lim, Director, Angkor Photo Festival & Workshops, Cambodia

Jessie Wender, Photo Editor, The New York Times, USA

Joanna Milter, Director of Photography, THE NEW YORKER

Joanne Junga Yang, Director, Y&G Art, South Korea

Johan Sjöström, Curator of Exhibitions, Gothenburg Museum of Art, Sweden

John Duncan, Editor, Source Photographic Review, UK

Jolene Hanson, Director, The G2 Gallery, USA

Jon Jones, Head of Photography, Tortoise Media, UK

Jorge de la Torriente, Owner / Photographer, De La Gallery, USA

Juli Lowe, Director, Catherine Edelman Gallery, USA

Julien Jourdes, Co-Founder and COO, Blink.la, USA

Kacy Burdette, Photo Editor, Adweek, USA

Karen Davis, Director/Co-owner, Davis Orton Gallery,USA

Karen McQuaid, Curator, The Photographers' Gallery, UK

Karol Hordziej, Artistic Director, Krakow Photomonth, Poland

Kathy Moran, Senior Editor, National Geographic Magazine, USA

Kathy Ryan, Director of Photography, The New York Times Magazine, USA

Kaycee Olsen, Art Consultant & Fine Art Appraiser, Kevin Barry Fine Art, USA

Kenneth Dickerman, Photo Editor, The Washington Post, USA

Kottie Gaydos, Curator & Editor in Chief, Detroit Center for Contemporary Photography, USA

Kristen Gresh, Curator of Photographs, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, USA

Lars Boering, Managing Director, World Press Photo, Netherlands

Laura Moya, Director, Photolucida, USA

Laura Pressley, Executive Director, CENTER, USA

Lauren Ford, Commissioning Director and Producer, Dazed Magazine, UK

Lekgetho Makola, Director, Market Photo Workshop, South Africa

Lesley Martin, Creative Director, Aperture Foundation, USA

Linda Benedict-Jones, Executive Director, Silver Eye Center for Photography, USA

Lisa J. Sutcliffe, Curator of Photography and Media Arts, Milwaukee Art Museum, USA

Louise Clements, Artistic Director, Derby QUAD Limited and FORMAT International Photography Festival, UK

Luc Rabaey, Owner, 44 Gallery, Belgium

Lucy Bell, Director, Lucy Bell Fine Art, UK

Lucy Conticello, Director of Photography, M Magazine, Le Monde, France

Maarten Schilt, Publisher & Gallerist, Schilt Publishing & Gallery, Netherlands

Magdalena Herrera, Director of Photography, GEO France, France

Manila Camarini, Photo Editor, D La Repubblica, Italy

Manuel Rivera-Ortiz, President & Founder, Manuel Rivera-Ortiz Foundation for Documentary Photography & Film, USA

Marc Prüst, Artistic Director, Photography Consultant and Curator, Netherlands

Marcel Feil, Artistic Deputy Director, FOAM, Netherlands

Marcia Allert, Director of Photography, The Dallas Morning News, USA

Margaret Kelly, Director, Exhibition and Art Fairs, Pace/Macgill Gallery, USA

Margy Dudley, Owner, Open Shutter Gallery, USA

Marion Hislen, Déléguée à la photographie, Ministere de la Culture, France

Mark Murrmann, Photo Editor, Mother Jones, USA

Martin Parr, Photographer, Magnum Photos, UK

Mary Virginia Swanson, Photography Marketing Advisor, Educator, Author, USA

MaryAnn Camilleri, Founder, The Magenta Foundation, Canada

MaryAnne Golon, Director of Photography, The Washington Post, USA

Matthew Craig, Co-Founder and CEO, Blink, USA

Matthew Tucker, Broadcast Journalist/Picture Producer, BBC News Online, UK

Maya Byskov, Project Manager, Centrifuge, Germany

Mazie Harris, Assistant Curator, Getty Museum, USA

Meaghan Looram, Director of Photography, The New York Times, USA

Melissa Ryan, Deputy Director of Photography, Nature Conservancy Magazine, USA

Mia Diehl, Photography Director, Fortune Magazine, USA

Michael Dooney, Director, Jarvis Dooney Galerry, Germany

Michael Famighetti, Editor, Aperture Magazine, USA

Michael Foley, Owner, Foley Gallery, USA

Michael Hoppen, Owner, Michael Hoppen Gallery, UK

Michael Mack, Founder, MACK Books, UK

Michael Weir, Director/Founder, Belfast Photo Festival, UK

Michelle Dunn Marsh, Chief Strategist, Photographic Center Northwest, USA

Miyako Yoshinaga, Director, Mikayo Yoshinga Gallery, USA

Molly Roberts, Senior Photography Editor, National Geographic Magazine, USA

Monica Allende, Artistic Director, GetxoPhoto & Landskrona Foto Festival, UK

Moritz Neumüller, Academic Director of Photography, IED Madrid, Spain

Moshe Rosenzveig, Founder and Director, Head On Photo Festival, Australia

Muhammed Muheisen, Pulitzer Prize-winning Photojournalist, Netherlands

Mutsuko Ota, Editorial Director, IMA magazine, Japan

Nadav Kander, Award-Winning Photographer, UK

Nakamori Yasufumi, Assistant Curator, Museum of Fine Arts Houston, USA

Natalie Matutschovsky, Photography Art Director, Apple, USA

Natasha Egan, Executive Director, Museum of Contemporary Photography at Columbia College, USA

Newsha Tavakolian, Photographer, Magnum Photos, Iran

Nicolas Jimenez, Director of Photography, Le Monde, France

Oliva Maria Rubio, Directora Artística de La Fábrica, PhotoEspaña

Olivier Laurent, Photography Editor, The Washington Post, USA

Patricia Lanza, Art Consultant & Creative Director, USA

Paul di Felice, Senior Lecturer in Visual Arts, University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Paula Tognarelli, Executive Director, Griffin Museum of Photography, USA

Pavel Banka, Editor in Chief, Fotograf Magazine, Czech Republic

Paweł Szypulski, Curator, Krakow Month of Photography, Poland

Peggy Sue Amison, Artistic Director, East Wing Gallery, Qatar

Phillip Prodger, Senior Research Scholar, Yale Center For British Art, USA

Raffaela Lepanto, Photo Editor/University of the Arts London, UK

Rebecca Morse, Curator, Wallis Annenberg Photography Department, LACMA, USA

Regina Maria Anzenberger, Founder, Anzenberger Gallery, Austria

Régina Monfort, Photo Editor, FotoEvidence, USA

Richard A. Brooks, Deputy Photo Director, Asia Pacific, Agence France-Presse (AFP), Hong Kong

Richard Renaldi, Photographer, Richard Renaldi Photography, USA

Roger Archibald, Photo Editor, Society of Environmental Journalists, USA

Ron Haviv, Visual Journalist, Filmmaker, Co-Founder, The VII Foundation, USA

Roxanne Behr, Visuals Director, GQ Magazine, USA

Roy Kahmann, Founder & Owner, Kahmann Gallery | GUP Magazine, Netherlands

Rui Prata, Director, Museu da Imagem, Portugal

Ruth Offen, Director/Curator, WaterWorks Gallery, USA

Sacha Lecca, Deputy Photo Editor, Rolling Stone Magazine, USA

Sadie Quarrier, Senior Photo Editor, National Geographic Magazine, USA

Sam Barzilay, Creative Director, United Photo Industries and Photoville, USA

Sarah Leen, Director of Photography, National Geographic Magazine, USA

Sean Corcoran, Curator of Prints and Photographs, Museum of the City of New York, USA

Sean O'Hagan, Critic and Writer, The Guardian and The Observer, UK

Selva Barni, Founder & Editor, Fantom Editions, Italy

Serge Belet, Senior Exhibitions Manager, National Gallery of Canada, Canada

Shoair Mavlian, Director & Curator, PHOTOWORKS, UK

Silvia Mangialardi, Artistic Director, Encuentros Abiertos, Argentina

Simon Bainbridge, Editorial Director, British Journal of Photography, UK

Siobhán Bohnacker, Senior Photo Editor, The New Yorker, USA

Stacey Baker, Associate Photo Editor, The New York Times Magazine, USA

Stephen Mayes, Executive Director, Tim Hetherington Trust, USA

Stephen Perloff, Editor, The Photo Review, USA

Steven Evans, Executive Director, FotoFest International, USA

Sujong Song, Independent Photography Professional, South Korea

Susan Spiritus, Owner, Susan Spiritus Gallery, USA

Susan White, Photography Director, WeWork, USA

Susan Zadeh, Founder/Photography Director, Eyemazing Editions, Netherlands

Taj Forer, Cofounder, Fabl and Daylight Books, USA

Thomas Seelig, Director, Folkwang Museum, Switzerland

Todd Hido, Artist and Photographer, USA

Todd James, Senior Photo Editor, National Geographic Society, USA

Todd Tubutis, Director, Art Museum of West Virginia University, USA

Tomoka Aya, Owner/Director, The Third EyeGallery Aya, Tokyo, Japan

Ute Noll, Photo Director, Du Kulturmagazin, Germany

Volker Lensch, Photo Editor, Stern Magazine, Germany

Whitney Johnson, VP Visual Experiences, National Geographic, USA

Wim Melis, Curator, Noorderlicht Photography, Netherlands

Xavier Canonne, Director, Musée de la Photographie, Belgium

Xavier Soule, CEO, Agence VU & Gallery VU, France

Yasunori Hoki, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief, Super Labo Publishing, Japan

Yuko Yamaji, Curator, Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts, Japan

Yumi Goto, Curator, Editor, Publisher, Founder, Reminders Project, Japan

Yuting Duan, Festival Founder and Director, Lianzhou Foto, China


LensCulture
Street Photography Awards 2015
Printed Annual

A catalogue with the work of all Winners and Finalists will be mailed to LensCulture Insiders, our network of influential photography professionals. Winners and Finalists will also receive copies.

Winners & Finalists will be given full-page spreads.
Photos © François Van Bastelaer

Immediate Exposure in the LensCulture Competition Gallery & Social Media

Just by entering your work, you have an opportunity for immediate exposure through our Competition Gallery and social media. Our editors review incoming work daily so we recommend — don't wait until the deadline!


Massive Online Promotion

Work from the Top 31 photographers will be shared across our monthly global audience of over 1.4 million on LensCulture, our email list, mobile platforms, and multiple social media channels. We have found this to be a very effective strategy for getting photographers exposure that leads to career-boosting opportunities — see our
Success Stories.

Promotions include a Feature article on LensCulture, Facebook, & Flipboard.
Photo © Jody Miller

Live, Online Review Session With Jury Member

The Top 50 photographers will have the opportunity to participate in a live, online review of their work with a photography expert on our new review platform, LensCulture Sessions. You will get valuable feedback, expert advice and will learn how to get more exposure for your work.


Connections to Jobs
through the Blink Network
of Photographers

Blink.la is an invite only network of photographers that enables companies like The New York Times and ABC News to discover, contact, and hire for freelance photo jobs. We've partnered with them to get every top rated entrant access to photo editors and hiring managers from over 700 of the world's finest media companies, through a Blink account.

Ongoing Exposure with a LensCulture Portfolio Account

All Winners, Finalists (plus hundreds of the top-rated photographers) will gain access to a free, invitation-only portfolio account on LensCulture! This is an invaluable platform to showcase your work to our 1.4 million+ global audience as well as to our network of LensCulture Insiders. LensCulture’s editors will also be able to discover your latest work and potentially feature it in articles, Editors’ Picks and social media.

Free Submission Review With Series Entry!

Enter a series in Street Photography Awards 2015 and get a free submission review! We believe that every photographer who enters deserves thoughtful feedback on their work. That's why we've recruited over a dozen top photo editors, portfolio reviewers, curators, and other industry professionals to give you constructive feedback on your photography plus recommendations for improving your practice.

We've been delighted with the feedback we've received so far:

“WOW!!! Your feedback and guidance are extremely helpful and I truly appreciate the time you took out of your day to examine my work, write down your thoughts and provide such critical feedback. For me, your personal review was the most valuable part of entering the competition; more than any monetary prize. I cannot thank you enough.”

— JP Terlizzi

“That was so incredibly helpful and insightful. I couldn't be more thankful for the thoughtful advice and really appreciate the time that was taken to review my work. It literally just fueled my fire to keep shooting the series. A HUGE THANK YOU!!”

— Shannon Rose

“I was greatly encouraged by this review and it pushed me to keep going with this series. My work might not always be a big success, but it's a bit like sports — I should keep training my "creative muscle."”

— Kumi Oguro

“Thank you very much for taking the time to review my work and provide such excellent insight and information to help me further it from here.”

— Erin Mahoney

“LensCulture is a wonderful platform for photographers and getting the review of my submission was worth the price of entry in itself!”

— Allison Stewart

“Many thanks for your thoughtful and informative review with excellent suggestions and references. You have a keen eye.”

— Mildred Alpern

“I just would like to thank you for the wonderful review and all the interesting suggestions you gave me to inspire my work. I strongly think these type of reviews, even if they need to be brief and concise, can effectively help and encourage especially a not-too-confident photographer to keep on working and improving. To me this review meant a big 'DO NOT GIVE UP AND WORK' and I believe that's very valuable!”

— Chiara Medici

“I'm really pleased with my review; it brought to my attention details I hadn't noticed about my work, and it was really constructive. I also liked how I was recommended a couple of books to read which makes the review even more constructive. Also the reviewer's attitude is really nice, it made me feel really good about the review and my work.”

— Jorge Diaz de la Vega Castillo

“Thank you very much for the Review and your very kind and motivating words.”

— Susanne Baumgartner

“Everything has been really helpful: your positive comments, your advice, the part that you think needs an improvement,… and all the additional recommendations, that I’ll take into consideration.”

— Conchi Martinez

“Just writing to say thanks very much for the portfolio review, it's really encouraging.”

— Roland Ramanan

“I am a self-taught photographer and over the last decade of making pictures this is truly the most helpful feedback and direction for my photography I have ever received. Most helpful of all were the suggestions for further study/research which have already sent me off in new directions (3d mapping software) that I might not have come across if the review hadn't turned me on to it.”

— JH Hardcastle

“Thank you very much for your lovely and constructive review!! I could tell that the person who reviewed my submission really took the time to look at my work before giving his opinion. It wasn't some pre-written review that could fit for any project which would have been really disappointing... I really appreciate it. Plus, a big thanks for the artists suggestions at the end. I will have a look at their work with pleasure!”

— Caroline-Ann Shea

“I was so pleased that the review of my submission was thoughtful and personalized. Thanks so much for the time you took with the review. I appreciated the suggestions.”

— Jeannie Hutchins

“Thank you very much for my submission review. I found it to be very interesting and helpful. I will most definitely take it into account in progressing the project and in future submissions.”

— Suze Eyles

Learn More and View Actual Submission Reviews »

“There is a creative fraction of a second when you are taking a picture. Your eye must see a composition or an expression that life itself offers you, and you must know with intuition when to click the camera. The Moment! Once you miss it, it is gone forever.”
— Henri Cartier-Bresson

SHOW US YOUR STREETS

© Ekin Kucuk

Every day now, millions of people upload and share spontaneous urban moments captured on film, cameras, smartphones, and tablets. We're on a mission to find the photographers who are able to capture those extra special images that show us something new. No matter what your style, medium or technology is, this is your call to show us how you see your world. Please see our FAQ for more details.

We respect artist’s rights

All photographers retain full copyrights for their own work. Period.
Winners and Finalists grant LensCulture limited, restricted use of winning photos only to promote the photographers themselves and in connection with marketing the Awards competition itself.
Details can be found in the Competition rules

CAREER CHANGING EXPOSURE

© Rohan Ghosh

We believe that competitions are one of the best ways to boost your career in photography.
Hear how the lives of these photographers were impacted by winning a LensCulture competition.

Kirsty Mitchell
London, United Kingdom

Visual Storytelling 2014 winner Kirsty Mitchell shares "Wonderland," the stunning fictional narrative she just completed. See what happened after her LensCulture win was announced: it's a beautiful story on every level.

Ellie Davies
London, UK

Ellie Davies transforms the woodland spaces around her home into a wondrous studio, through which we can become re-acquainted with nature, trees, even the stars. Learn more about her unique work and how her career took off.

Elena Chernyshova
Moscow, Russia

In this video, hear Elena’s thoughts about her long-form documentary project, Days of Night, Nights of Day, and what happened when the story went viral, reaching over 738K people in just a week. It’s a unique story that grips people from the start.

Success Stories

  • Jorge de la Torriente
    United States
  • Ali Mobasser
    United Kingdom
  • Kerry Mansfield
    United States
  • Sarah Choi
    Hong Kong
  • Daesung Lee
    South Korea
  • Tina Schula
    United States
  • Tsutomu Yamagata
    Japan
  • Maroesjka Lavigne
    Belgium
  • Dayna Bartoli
    Norway
  • Richard Tuschman
    United States
  • Carlotta Cardana
    United Kingdom
  • Michael Marten
    United Kingdom
  • Yijun Liao
    United States
  • Jessica Hines
    United States
  • Anne Berry
    United States
  • Candace Gaudiani
    United States
  • Daniele Pintore
    United Kingdom
  • Fabrice Fouillet
    France
  • Ellie Davies
    United Kingdom
  • Claire Felicie
    Netherlands
  • Daisuke Takakura
    Japan
  • Andrejs Strokins
    Latvia
  • Acacia Johnson
    United States
  • Nina Roeder
    Germany
  • Hebe Robinson
    Norway
  • Douglas Ljungkvist
    United States
  • Michelle Sank
    United Kingdom
  • Andrea Stone
    United States
  • Tara Bogart
    United States
  • Louisa Marie Summer
    United States

Printing of the LensCulture Emerging Talent Awards 2015 Annual generously provided by Edition One Books.
www.editiononebooks.com

Street
Photography
Awards 2015
© Siegfried Hansen