IFWTWA Photo Contest

Judging Criteria

Adherence to Official Rules
Appropriateness to Theme
Originality & Creativity
Visual Design
Overall Artistic Impression
Composition
Clarity and Quality of Submission
Color, Lighting, Exposure and Focus

Rules

These rules are in place to protect your rights as well as those of the International Food Wine Travel Writers Association (IFWTWA). They constitute the entire agreement. By entering the IFWTWA Photo Contest, you agree that you have read and accepted all of the rules outlined on this page. If you have any concerns or questions, please contact us at admin@ifwtwa.org.

By submitting an entry to the IFWTWA Photo Contest, you certify that you created your entry (entries) within the last two years (NO EARLIER THAN JANUARY 1, 2023), that you own all copyrights in said entries and that it does not include trademarks, contract rights, or any other intellectual property rights of any other person or entity.
You hereby grant IFWTWA a non-exclusive, royalty-free license for each entry; IFWTWA may use said entry in all media described above in perpetuity. Embed your name, copyrights, and caption information in the photo’s metadata.
You acknowledge your responsibility for protecting your entry against misuse by third parties. IFWTWA assumes no responsibility and is not liable for any misuse of your work by third parties.
The member entry fee is $25 for submission of the first image and $15 for additional entries. To receive the member discount, the member must be in good standing at entry and through the awards and be logged into the member’s IFWTWA account.
The non-member entry fee is $30 for submission of the first image and $20 for additional entries.
Photographs must be in digital format and without a watermark. Only online entries are eligible. No print or film submissions will be accepted.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Entries in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Category may contain artistic elements from various mediums, such as paintings, drawings, and photographs. Entrant may use stock photography and pictures captured by the maker or from other artist(s) with written consent to use those sources. Pay special attention to avoid copyright, trademark infringement, or any other applicable law.
The entrant must do all the work to produce the entry, such as processing, manipulation, artwork, or rendering. The project must be self-directed and not made under the supervision of an instructor.
The AI element(s) must appear beside the entry on the front. See sample below. If you create and submit images from prompts, each prompt must be listed in a sidebar on the image as in the sample below.
All other IFWTWA Photography Contest 2025 Submission Guidelines & Rules apply for AI submissions.

Entry Period

The IFWTWA Photo Contest begins at 12:00 am on Sunday, February 23, 2025, and ends at 11:59 pm on Sunday, March 16, 2025, Pacific Standard Time. Entries before or after this entry period will not be eligible.
Winners will be announced in Q2 2025.

How to Enter

Please submit all images on the ifwtwa.org contest site.
Please provide the following information in the ENTRY form:
- Category (in all CAPS)
- Title of the photo – max 10 words
Filename Example: CATEGORY, underscore, Title (max 10 words), underscore, your first and last name (e.g., WINE AND SPIRITS_Wine Casks at Winery_John Smith)
- Your first and last name
- Your email
- Caption – What we see and where you took the photo (max 20 words)
- Device Used (e.g., Smartphone, Nikon b500, Canon EOS)
- Description of image – max 150 words (how you captured it, what made it special for you)
- Accepted file types: jpg. Maximum file size: 128MB; long edge 1200 pixels
- Include metadata: Date captured, camera use.
The following submissions are ineligible:
- Photos that violate or infringe upon another person’s rights, including but not limited to copyright and photographs of persons without the necessary consent required by law in your jurisdiction. NOTE: You are responsible for obtaining a legally enforceable waiver (model or property release) from any photographed subject.
- Images that contain sexually explicit, nude, obscene, violent, or other objectionable or inappropriate subject matter.
- Images that the entrant did not take.
- Images that involve putting any person or animal in danger.
IFWTWA shall determine entry eligibility in its sole and absolute discretion.

NOTE: Please follow the file naming conventions as outlined in this document. Don’t risk losing points or being disqualified for failing to submit as requested.

Entries

IFWTWA Members: $25 first entry, $15 each additional entry
Non-members: $30 first entry, $20 each additional entry
NOTE: IFWTWA members must be logged into the IFWTWA website to receive their member discount.

Proceeds from the contest go towards contest prizes and IFWTWA operations.

Awards

Best in Show – $100
1st Place in each Category – $50
2nd Place
3rd Place
Honorable Mention

FWT Magazine article featuring the winning images.