The competition closes on 30 April 2025, and the 'every 5th entry free' offer closes 23 April 2025
No AI-generated images are allowed. Photographs must have been taken after 1 January 2020.
Any questions? Check out our FAQ page!
There are many ways to obtain an aerial perspective! We've all been to the top of a tall building or looked down from a mountain top, but when we talk about aerial photography, most people will think of planes, helicopters and drones. Like all aspects of photography, there are many different ways of doing things.
Similarly, some photographers love to capture the natural world from the air and represent it as closely as they can to what they saw. Others like to create fabricated aerials from the imagination of their mind, with the majority of us sitting somewhere in the middle, using post-production to refine our captures.
At the International Aerial Photographer of the Year awards, we believe there are many ways photographers can create inspiring, exciting and diverse aerial photographs. It's not up to us to tell you how to be a photographer. In fact, we want to be surprised and astonished by some real locations and creative fabrications together. That's why we will put together a collection which proudly presents the best 101 aerial photographs. Within those winning images will be something for everyone that represents all styles, genres and approaches to aerial photography.
We have no categories and really the only rule is that you can't use AI to generate content. We want to see what you have personally captured or created.
Like our sister International Landscape Photographer of the Year award, the main aim is for you to have one or more of your entries accepted into the Top 101 aerial photographs of the year. This gives you a place in our exclusive book which is published online and can be purchased as a 'real' hard-cover paper publication as well.
There is a total of US$10,000 in cash prizes and printed copies of the book for the major prize winners (see the rules for full details).
Your job is to impress our judges! To enter, just size your best photos to 3000-4000 pixels on the longest side, save them as a JPEG/JPG and upload them to our site. The entry fee is US$22 per image, and if you enter by 23 April 2025, every fifth entry is free. Final entries are accepted until 30 April 2025.
When the competition closes, our judges will use calibrated monitors to judge each photograph, giving it a score out of 100. Judges can open each and every entry and view it pixel for pixel on their monitor if required - and this is invariably done before they give their higher scores. Technique and craft are just as important as creativity for the top awards.
Once the first round of judging is completed, the top scoring 101 photos are selected and checked to ensure they comply with the rules (not taken before 1 January 2020 for example) and that there are not two or more photographs by the same photographer that are very similar (we are looking for variety). There is also a limit on the number of photographs a single entrant can have in the Top 101 - no more than four, just to share the experience around. We then move into the next round of judging, as outlined in our rules, to determine the Photographer of the Year (1st, 2nd, 3rd), the Photograph of the Year (1st, 2nd, 3rd) and four special subject awards. This can take two or even three rounds of scoring and comment before the judges come up with their final result.
We hope you enjoy getting your aerial entries ready and the best of luck!
Peter Eastway and David Evans
International Aerial Photographer of the Year Awards
To enter, click on the 'Enter/Login' menu button at the top right of the page.
