Wildlife Photographer of the Year

What you will actually pay

Entry costs, explained.

£35 for up to 25 adult photographs; free for ages 18–26, qualifying residents and under-18s.

Check residence against the organiser’s actual country list. The waiver is not a general discount for every overseas entrant, and the fee arrangements described here belong to edition 62. [1]

Choose a category for the picture’s purpose

The single-image briefs range from animal behaviour and portraits to plants, urban wildlife, wetlands and ocean stories. A compelling image need not involve a rare mammal: place, pattern and human impact have dedicated routes. The Photojournalist Story category assesses a narrative, while the two portfolio routes look for a coherent personal approach. Each sequence contains six to ten photographs and uses part of the overall 25-image allowance; Rising Star is for ages 18–26 and the Portfolio Award for ages 27 and above. [5]

Kathy Moran chairs the published 62nd-edition jury, alongside photographers and specialists including Laurent Ballesta, Jasper Doest and museum entomologist Blanca Huertas. Moran’s invitation stresses patient observation, honest captions and animal welfare. Our advice is to edit for a specific idea, rather than fill every available upload slot with technically competent variations. [6]

Public recognition with a documented track record

The museum traces the award to Animals magazine and its own involvement to 1984. Touring began in 1986 and the first winning-image book appeared in 1991. Those are tangible exhibition and publication mechanisms. They explain why selection can matter beyond receiving a digital badge; they do not promise that every entrant will find an audience or a client. [7]

ABC News published an extensive 2025 winners gallery, identifying Wim van den Heever’s brown-hyena photograph as the overall winner from more than 60,000 submissions. This independently demonstrates mainstream attention to selected work. The scale also puts the £35 decision in perspective: strong pictures can miss selection, and paying to enter should remain an affordable artistic choice. [8]

A £10,000 overall award, separate from category payments

The adult overall winner’s listed cash prize is £10,000. Ordinary adult category winners receive £1,250; the Portfolio and Photojournalist Story awards each carry £2,500, Rising Star £1,500, and Impact £750. These are distinct awards, not a single fund available to every winner. Category winners are offered a London ceremony trip and book publication; highly commended photographers receive a certificate, ceremony invitation and book inclusion. The organiser retains substitution rights, including alternatives of equivalent publicity value. [3]

The youth prize page lists £1,500 and a two-day masterclass for the overall young winner, £500 for category winners and £150 for runners-up. It also refers to a February 2024 magazine issue, so that particular publication benefit cannot sensibly be promised for edition 62. We would treat the page’s specific non-cash details cautiously until updated. [10]

Ethics and image dates can rule out otherwise strong work

The formal young rules require photographs made after October 2020, with the same five-year condition stated on the adult entry page. Youth categories are ten and under, 11–14 and 15–17, measured at closing. Captive subjects are generally excluded, with an explicit exception for reporting an issue concerning third-party treatment of animals. The caption must explain that circumstance. Normal zoo portraits are therefore a different proposition from documentary evidence of captivity. [9][1]

Artificial intelligence cannot supply image content. Removing backscatter, bubbles or scene elements is also prohibited, while specified basic adjustments and carefully constrained stacking are allowed. Check the complete rules before editing for submission: a visually convincing result can still fail the authenticity requirement. [4]

Copyright retained, with a defined exhibition licence

Entrants keep copyright. Initial reproduction supports judging and public voting. Awarded photographs receive a five-year licence from award notification for exhibitions and competition publicity, including specified sponsors and touring partners. Existing archive and promotional copies may remain afterwards, but further purposes require permission. The rules specify book reproduction fees: £75 for an individual image, with separate cover and collection rates. Other merchandise opportunities require a further licence. Credit is required, subject to an exception for accidental omissions. We consider this a comparatively well-defined bargain, while recognising that substantial promotional use is unpaid. [2]

The young rules follow the same five-year structure and account for a parent or guardian authorising the licence. This is a real publication agreement; young entrants and their guardians should read it together rather than treat a free entry as having no commitments. [9]

The reviewed deadline has passed

Edition 62 closed at 11:30 GMT on the morning of 4 December 2025. No later call is confirmed by this review. The entry page specifies JPEGs, Adobe RGB (1998), 1,920 pixels on the longest side and no watermark. Preserve your originals and prepare informative captions without identifying the photographer, since judging is anonymous. [1]

A portfolio is not simply a collection of individual favourites. Before a future call, examine the published briefs and decide whether the edit tells one story or demonstrates a coherent aesthetic. Then recheck that edition’s fees, dates and ethical rules; an old bookmarked upload link is not evidence that entries have reopened. [5]