With an astonishing prize fund of $1,000,000, the Hamdan International Photography Awards are now open for submissions. The theme for this year’s HIPA competition is Power – with the Grand Prize recipient awarded a monetary prize of US$200,000 for the finest image on the subject.
Now entering its 14th year, this free-to-join competition is recognized as the most lucrative photography contest globally, owing to the doubling of last year’s cash prize pool, elevating the total prize value to an extraordinary US$1 million.
Established in 2011 under the patronage of Dubai’s crown prince, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid bin Mohammed al Maktoum, the HIPA awards welcome any photographer, whether professional or amateur, from any part of the world aged 18 and older.
In addition to the main Power theme, individual awards will be given for the best drone footage and the most compelling storytelling portfolio of still images. Additional awards for sports photography and both color and monochrome images will also be presented.
Entries for the competition must be submitted by May 31, 2025. For complete details and to participate in the competition, check the HIPA 2025 website.
Past HIPA grand prize recipients
2024: Chinese photographer Liping Cao secured the grand prize under the theme of Sustainability. Titled ‘Quiet Power,’ the photo depicts a wind farm along the shores of Lake George, New South Wales, surrounded by dramatic clouds and presents a striking contrast between nature’s power and renewable energy. (Image credit: Liping Cao)
2023: Massimo Giorgetta from Italy took home the grand prize with his portrayal of ‘a magical 5cm Jellyfish Tunicate that is filled and covered by other marine creatures; like a miniature diverse ecosystem’. (Image credit: Massimo Giorgetta)
2022: British artist Henley Spiers triumphed with a striking underwater capture of a gannet (Image credit: Henley Spiers / HIPA)
2020: Grand Prize Winner awarded Australian photographer Jasmine Carey $120,000 for her moving underwater capture of a mother humpback whale and its calf . (Image credit: Jasmine Carey)
2019: Malaysian photographer Edwin Ong Wee Kee claimed the 2019 Grand Prize for his work revolving around the theme of Hope. (Image credit: Edwin Ong Wee Kee)
2018: HIPA 2018 Grand Prize Winner Mohamed Alrageb was awarded the $120,000 Grand Prize for a powerful shot capturing a fellow photojournalist running with an injured child following a car bomb in Aleppo, camera still in hand. (Image credit: Mohamed Alrageb)
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