Hasselblad Masters 2016, the biennial competition to find 10 of the most elite photographers, each representing a different genre, is now open.
Dubbed as one of the “Most Prestigious Competition Awards in the industry,” the competition runs until May 31st and allows photographers to submit three images in one or more of the 10 genres listed. Photographers must have been working professionals for at least three years, and can submit images in large, medium, or DSLR format, as long as the images have at least 16MP resolution. Photos can also be shot on film, though these submissions are required to be digital. The one exception to the working professional rule is for the Project//21 category, which allows for the submission from those who have not yet reached the established, professional status. Entry to the competition is free.
Hasselblad says that they “look forward to supporting all photographers with our new competition platform [Project//21].” Without further ado, here are the categories for this year’s Hasselblad Masters:
- Art
- Landscape/Nature
- Wedding
- Portrait
- Fashion/Beauty
- Products
- Architecture
- Wildlife
- Project//21
- Street/Urban
Changes To Judging Process
There are a few changes this year to the judging process: firstly, each image in the set of three submitted will be judged individually, as opposed to previous years when the photographer was judged on the basis of all three images. Hasselblad believes this will improve the selection possibility of each entrant. Secondly, a new category, Street/Urban, has been added this year. Hasselblad is looking for “not only gritty street photography but the life of the city itself and the people who live in it.”
Hasselblad Masters contestants are judged based on “their photographic ability; creativity; compositional skills; conceptual strength and technique – and are acknowledged to have made a compelling contribution to the art of photography.” Three juries judge the entrants of Hasselblad Masters: a Masters Jury, which is comprised of 24 individuals who are editors, previous Masters winners, and accomplished photographers; a public vote; and an internal Hasselblad jury. The Masters Jury will be revealed later this year. These three juries will make a shortlist of entires and ultimately nominate the final winners in each category.
In the words of Perry Oosting, Hasselblad CEO, “we believe the new Masters Awards 2016 programme is the most compelling ever for the world’s most accomplished photographers. For this edition we have new categories and each of the ten winners will not only gain a Hasselblad Master accolade and global exposure but also a new high-end Hasselblad medium format camera.”
TO SUBMIT
Entries are submitted via www.hasselblad.com. Winners will be announced in January 2016.
For full details on competition, download Masters 2016 Rules & Regulations.
(Images courtesy Hasselblad and copyright by their authors)
