Arts Award Photography Competition

Competition brief

Please read this brief to understand the types of content we would like, and also the technical specifications for all photographs entered.

Content

• Photos of children and young people activity engaged in arts activities are preferred, although images of young people presenting completed artwork are also acceptable (e.g. holding up a finished painting).
• Photos may feature individual young people or people in groups (providing all current restrictions are adhered to).
• We are particularly interested in photographs of advisers working with young people, although we appreciate that this may not be possible at the current time.
• We prefer photographs that feel authentic, and do not look too staged.
• Photographs that represent the current diversity of the population within the UK are especially encouraged.
• For the students option, self-portraits are permitted (for self-portraits, don't forget to submit a photo permission form signed by yourself, if aged 16 or over, or your parent/carer if you are under 16).
• Photos of groups working together via video conferencing will be accepted providing that the image is of an overall good quality. 
• We find landscape images generally more versatile (although there are no restrictions on submitting portrait images).
• When using photographs in our communications materials, we often overlay the Arts Award logo on one of the corners of an image, so uncluttered backgrounds are generally preferred.
  
  

Image style
Take a look at our blog post to get a sense of Arts Award’s regular style of photography and see examples of photos currently in use.

Existing images
Existing images that adhere to the brief above may be submitted to the competition, providing that Trinity’s photo permission forms are completed for every recognisable person in the photo (and all other terms & conditions are followed).

Technical specifications
Photographs should be submitted in Jpeg format, as a high resolution image, ideally without compression, file size between 2-5 MB.

Please ensure that you include your name in the file name (and also the name of your centre for advisers). This will enable you and your centre to be mentioned, where possible.

Permission forms

Photo permission forms

When you enter the competition, you will need to submit completed, signed permission forms for everyone visible in your photo(s). There are two versions; one for under 16s (to be signed by their parents) and one for ages 16 and over. The form should correspond with the age of the person pictured in the photo, not the age of the person entering the competition (unless you are submitting a self-portrait when your own age will determine which form you should complete).

Under 16s photo permission form (to be signed by parents)

Age 16 and over photo permission form

If you would like to submit a photo of a group of people, we recommend that all the completed permission forms are batch scanned or merged if using a Smartphone, so that only one file needs to be uploaded to the entry survey.

 

Supporting document

You will also need to submit a supporting document for each photograph you enter that identifies the person/people visible in the photo.

You will need to use their name to do this, so we can check that a signed permission form has been submitted for each person. You will also need to give us an idea of where each person is situated in the photo (to do this if more than one person is visible, we recommend you sketch a rough outline of each person as they are positioned in the photo and label the sketch with their names).

See our example of a supporting document below:

 

Parental consent to enter

If you are aged 18 or under, you will need to ask your parent or carer to give their permission to enter competition. Download the form here.

You will also need to provide your parent's email address when you submit your photos.

Terms and conditions

Please read the competition terms and conditions before submitting your photos.

Then when you are ready, submit your entries via the correct online form. 

The 2021 competition has now closed. Keep up to date with future opportunities via Arts Award's blog and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.