Walkley Awards for Excellence in Photojournalism

Entries are closed

2024 Walkley Award finalists were announced on 10 October. View hero images from all the photography finalists and the 2024 Nikon Prize-winners here.

Winners of the 69th Walkley Awards were announced in November 2024. Nick Moir, The Sydney Morning Herald, was named 2024 Nikon-Walkley Press Photographer of the Year.

View hero images from all the photography finalists and the 2024 Nikon Prize-winners here.

The Walkley Awards for Excellence in Photojournalism recognise the work of photographers across a range of genres, from news and sport to portraiture and photographic essays. Some of their images are the work of a split second. Others take months of research and trust-building. Photographers interact with their subjects with perhaps more intimacy than storytellers in any other medium; they can move you with a single frame.

• Eligibility for the Walkley Awards is based on independent acts of journalism, free from any commercial or corporate interests. 
• Whether you’re a longtime entrant or a newbie, make sure you review the category descriptions, terms and conditions, and FAQs before you enter

In selecting three finalists in each category, each year the Walkley judges look for newsworthiness, impact, creativity and technical skill. The winners are named at the Walkley Awards Gala Dinner each year and an exhibition of the winners’ and finalists’ images tours Australia.

Only photos taken between 1 Sept, 2023 to 19 Aug, 2024 are eligible for entry (the exception is if the photo was shot for purpose with the publication date already confirmed). Each entry must contain at least one published picture.

You may only enter once in each photography category.

The cost of entering the photographic categories, including GST, is $200. For photographers, only one fee is payable, regardless of the number of categories entered. Through its support of the Walkley Awards, MEAA covers the entry cost for its financial members as a benefit of membership. Entry to Walkley All Media categories will require an entry fee per category for non-members of $200.

Important information for photographers entering the Walkley Awards

• Photographers are also invited to enter their work in relevant All Media categories in the Walkley Awards.
• Photographers are eligible to enter photographic work in All Media categories as an individual entrant or as part of a group or team entry.
• A photographer may only enter once in each photography category.
• Photographers should ensure they have read the full Walkley Terms and Conditions before entering.
• Eligibility for the Walkley Awards is based on independent acts of journalism, free from any commercial or corporate interests. All entries must be factually based.
• Only photos taken between 1 Sept, 2023 to 19 Aug, 2024 are eligible for entry. Each entry must contain at least one published picture. 

Entry fee

For non-MEAA members, the entry fee is $200 (inc GST). For photographers, only one fee is payable, regardless of the number of categories entered. Once you have paid for your first entry please use the code PHOTOPAID to enter the other categories free of charge. This will be checked after entries closed and people will be invoiced if an initial payment has not been paid.

Submission guidelines

Material specifications for photographers

• Images must be uploaded in .jpg/.jpeg format.
• Images should be in their native pixel dimensions.
• Each image should be saved in the .jpg/.jpeg format at the highest quality setting, while keeping the size under 10MB.
• An embedded ICC profile is required. Adobe RGB or sRGB is recommended for colour images, Gamma 2.2 for black and white. No CMYK.
• All required image information, such as the creation date, place and country as well as the caption/description, must be provided. It can be included in the metadata of the image files or entered on the entry website after uploading the images.
• The content of an image MUST NOT be altered. Only retouching that conforms to currently accepted standards in the industry is allowed. No cloning, montaging or digital manipulation other than cropping, ‘digital spotting’, burning and dodging is permitted. The jury is the ultimate arbiter of these standards.
• Entrants must not intentionally contribute to, or alter, the scene they picture by re-enacting or staging events.
• Entrants must ensure captions are accurate and provide a supporting statement that is open and transparent about the entire process through which their pictures were taken and published.
• Participants who are long-listed by the first round judges may be contacted and required to provide file/s as recorded by the camera for all images in order to proceed to the final stages of the contest. These file/s will be requested and examined confidentially during the judging period. A failure to provide these files, will lead to the elimination of the entry that will not proceed into the final rounds and will not become eligible for a Walkley Award.
• Entrants may not enter the same photograph in more than one photographic category except the Portrait category which is a Nikon Prize. Entrants in this category are eligible to submit their entry again in another appropriate Photography category.
• In the Nikon-Walkley Press Photographer of the Year Award, where the body of the year’s work may include shots included in other entries.

Contact us

If you have any questions about the Walkley Awards, please contact Margie Smithurst, margie.smithurst@walkleys.com

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