You can find all the details you are wondering about the 16th Arbella International Photography Contest below.
No. Participation in the Arbella 16th International Photography Contest is free of charge. No fee is requested from participants for application, photo upload, or the evaluation process.
The contest is open to the individual participation of everyone aged 18 and over. Team or group applications are not accepted.
To participate in the contest, an online application must be made via www.arbellaphotocontest.com. Participants complete the application process by filling out the application form and uploading their photos to the system.
The contest is organized in two main categories: "Beauty of Imperfection" and "Open". There is also the "Future Viewfinder" special award program for participants aged 18-24.
No. "Future Viewfinder" is not a separate application category. Participants aged 18-24 are automatically included in this evaluation pool when they apply to the "Beauty of Imperfection" or "Open" categories.
Participants can apply with a maximum of 5 photos for each category. If more than one photo is sent, the photos must not repeat each other and must differ in content.
No. The same photo cannot be used in more than one category. Different photos must be submitted for each category.
Yes. The fact that the photos have been previously exhibited or published outside the contest organization does not constitute an obstacle to participation.
Yes. Only photos taken on or after January 1, 2021, can participate in the contest. Applications that do not comply with this date range or provide misleading information about the shooting date may be canceled.
Submissions are only accepted in JPG or JPEG format. The short side of the photo must be a minimum of 2,000 pixels, the file size should not be less than 1 MB, and it should not exceed 30 MB. EXIF data must not be deleted from the file.
Yes. Basic adjustments such as color, contrast, white balance, exposure, sharpness, and sensor dust cleaning can be made to a reasonable extent. Limited interventions that do not disturb the reality of the photo are allowed.
Photoshop or similar software can be used to a reasonable extent for basic photo editing. However, adding objects to the frame later, deleting existing objects, merging multiple photos, making collages, applying artificial bokeh, or interventions that will disturb the reality of the photo are not accepted.
No. Images created from scratch with Midjourney, DALL-E, Stable Diffusion, and similar AI tools are not accepted. In addition, adding objects that do not exist in the photo or changing existing elements with tools such as Photoshop Generative Fill is prohibited.
No. The use of AI-based enlargement or sharpening tools such as Adobe Super Resolution, Topaz Photo AI, and similar is prohibited.
No. There should be no distinguishing information such as name, signature, logo, date, marks, drawings, or similar on the photos sent to the contest.
Yes. After completing your application through the application system, you can make changes to your photos until the final photo upload date. However, adding, deleting, changing photos, or changing categories cannot be done after the application period ends.
In case of a technical problem during uploading, you can contact info@arbellaphotocontest.com. The problem experienced should be stated as clearly as possible so that it can be examined.
The copyrights of the photos sent to the contest belong to the author. However, photos that receive awards, honorable mentions, or are deemed worthy of exhibition may be used by Durum Gıda Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş. and its business partners within the scope of promotion, communication, and archiving of the contest, provided that the author's name is stated.
No. Photos sent to the contest cannot be sold or transferred to third parties for commercial purposes. The right of use is limited to the promotion, visibility, archive, exhibition, catalog, and related communication works of the contest.
The works participating in the contest are evaluated by the Selection Committee with participant information hidden. Jury members first make a preliminary selection independently, then the candidate works are evaluated in a common pool to determine the photos entitled to receive awards and exhibition.
Applications will start on May 11, 2026, and the final photo upload date will be September 6, 2026, at 23:59. The jury evaluation will be held on September 12, 2026, and the results will be announced on September 25, 2026. The award ceremony and exhibition opening will be announced separately.
The contest results are announced on the official website. In addition, participants who win awards and exhibitions are notified via e-mail and/or telephone.
The Grand Prize of the contest is 2,500 USD. There are first, second, third place, and "Future Viewfinder" awards for participants aged 18-24 in the main and open categories. A maximum of 26 photos will be announced as exhibitions for the main and open categories.
For questions about the contest, an e-mail can be sent to info@arbellaphotocontest.com. The project coordinator is Buket Özbay. The contact phone is +90 324 241 11 11.
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