TPOTY 2011 Opens for Entries

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Travel Photographer of the Year 2011 opens for entries

It’s time to pick up your camera and pack your travel bag - the 2011 international Travel Photographer of the Year awards (TPOTY) are open for entry and photographers worldwide are invited to take part.

Last year’s TPOTY awards drew entries from some 75 countries, the widest spread in the competition’s history. 2011 looks set to be TPOTY’s strongest year yet, with a range of new categories, an exciting new sponsor line-up and a new ‘home’ in London at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG).

The winners of the 2011 TPOTY awards will receive some fantastic rewards. The prize package will be announced in June and, in addition, the winners will see their work displayed at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) in a major exhibition next summer in the lead-up to the 2012 London Olympics; a fantastic opportunity for any photographer. The 2011 winning images will also be showcased in the TPOTY book, Journey Four.

TPOTY 2011 has four Portfolio categories, two single-image categories, a New Talent award and the Young Travel Photographer of the Year award. The overall winner of the awards – the Travel Photographer of the Year 2011 – will be the photographer who submits the best entries in two of the four portfolio categories.

Portfolio categories and sponsors

Oman Air, the national carrier of the Sultanate of Oman, and the Oman Ministry of Tourism have joined forces to support the ‘Natural Elements’ portfolio category, for images depicting one or more of the following: earth, air, fire and water. Adobe, Genesis Digital Imaging and Lexar are also supporting ‘Natural Elements’, and the other portfolio categories.

Explore is backing ‘Cultures & Traditions’. This asks entrants to document the different and/or changing cultures they encounter on their travels, and provides the perfect opportunity for photographers to capture the fascinating aspects of human life they observe. Tselana Travel is supporting ‘Exotic’. Entrants can show the ‘aspirational’ side of travel as depicted in glossy brochures and travels ads. Or they may choose to submit images of what they find exotic or alluring when they travel.

‘Spirit of Adventure’ is supported by Cutty Sark blended Scotch whisky. This particular category has been introduced to celebrate the London Olympics, with which the 2012 TPOTY exhibition at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) will coincide. Entrants’ images must echo the spirit of adventure that drives us to test our strength, endurance and tenacity. It might be the quest to reach the top of a mountain, or to explore the depths of an ocean, or it might be a smaller – but equally pulse-quickening – adventure.

New Talent, Single-Image and Young TPOTY awards

The theme of the 2011 New Talent category is ‘Diary of a Destination’. Supported by Tribes Travel, along with Plastic Sandwich, Adobe, Lexar and Young Photographers’ Alliance, this category requires entrants to tell a story in six images – an essential skill for any would-be professional photographer.

Capturing a situation in a single image is another key skill, and entrants in the One Shot category - ‘Wild Moments’ – which is supported by Adobe, Lexar and Plastic Sandwich, are tasked with showing the judges those wild moments they experience while travelling. This could be anything from an incredible wildlife shot to an abandoned moment of sheer exuberance.

The beginners’ single image category, First Shot, supported by Adobe, Lexar and Photo Iconic, allows those new to photography and using fairly basic cameras (or mobile phone cameras) to take part. This year’s theme - ‘Work, Rest, Play’ – gets them to turn their focus to the people they meet or observe on their journeys.

The theme of this year’s Young Travel Photographer of the Year award is ‘Green’. Entrants in the two different age groups - 14 and under, and 15-18 - must show the judges what ‘green’ means to them. It could be nature, it could be the environment – it could simply be something that is the colour green.  This category is supported by Adobe, Lexar and Photo Iconic, and Young TPOTY entrants will also compete for the Young Photographers Alliance Emerging Talent award.

How to enter

The awards will be judged by an international panel of imaging experts including travel and photography magazine editors, image buyers and renowned photographers, and are open to amateur and professional photographers from all countries. Images can be submitted as prints or uploaded online. Entries for the 2011 TPOTY awards close on October 9th 2011. Entry fees start at £10 but Young TPOTY is free to enter.  Full details of how to enter can be found onhttp://www.tpoty.com.

TPOTY at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)

TPOTY 2011 was launched at the opening of the inaugural Travel Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Society. This beautiful exhibition, featuring the winners of TPOTY 2010 together with archive images from the Society’s Collections, is free to enter and runs until June 10th. It’s the perfect place to get inspiration for the 2011 TPOTY contest. And in the autumn, TPOTY and the Society will hold three days of photography and travel workshops and talks – a must for travellers and photographers alike, particularly those considering entering TPOTY 2011!

TPOTY founder Chris Coe said, “To be launching the 2011 awards at the start of a magnificent exhibition of last year’s winning images is really exciting, as it shows this year’s entrants what they have to look forward to if they are successful. Our partnership with the Society has brought an important new dimension to the awards, and our new and existing sponsors will offer fantastic prizes to reward the winners of the 2011 competition.”

For more information on Travel Photographer of the Year, the exhibition at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) and this autumn’s photography and travel events at the Society, please visithttp://www.tpoty.com.

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Photo: Dr. Larry Louie, Travel Photographer of the Year 2010

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