Photography contests (NSMC 27-35)

NSMC 27 to 35: Photography contests

See full breakdowns and requirements for each contest below.

General requirements and policies

  • All photography contests are for individuals only. One student per school may enter each contest.
  • These are online contests, which means that after the student registers, they will need to submit a photo or photos, adhering to the prompt/theme and instructions, through the online contest system before the listed deadline. Do not bring physical or digital images to the convention or mail them in.
  • Students competing in any photography contest are required to attend the in-person critique session during the convention, from 4-6 p.m. Friday. Attendance is mandatory to maintain award eligibility.
  • Late entries will not be accepted under any circumstances, so please plan ahead and submit online entries early to avoid potential delays due to things like internet issues, power outages, illness or emergencies.
  • The day NSMC registration opens, photography contest prompts/themes will be made available here. Contestants should closely adhere to all instructions. Be careful not to use prompts, themes or materials from past conventions.
  • Note the number of photos required for the specific contest entry. If a contest requires three photos and the student does not upload three photos by the deadline, the entry will be disqualified.
  • All images must have been published in the scholastic media during this academic year (in print or online) or planned for publication during this academic year — except those in Contest 27: Themed Photo and Contest 33: Portfolio.
  • No image may have been entered in a previous JEA NSMC — except those in Contest 33: Portfolio.
  • Do not submit images in which the content has been significantly digitally altered. Do not submit images created using artificial intelligence tools.
  • Photo illustrations are acceptable as part of a portfolio in Contest 33: Portfolio.
  • Images submitted into the contest may be cropped from how they appeared or will appear in the publication.
  • Photos may be color (RGB) or black-and-white (grayscale) or a combination of color and black-and-white.

Technical requirements

  • For complete and detailed instructions on how to prepare your online photo entry, click here.
  • Photos must be no more than 5000 pixels in the long direction and saved as RGB (or grayscale), JPEG files. (For example: In Adobe Photoshop, adjust the photo’s size under Image > Image Size.) The system will reject any images that do not fit these requirements.
  • Captions must be included in the Description field. Photographer’s name must be included in the Author field. (For example: In Adobe Photoshop, go to File > File Info.)
  • Photographers should use the Save As … function, not Export. Exported images exported do not contain the required metadata and will be rejected by the contest system.
  • For contests with multiple photo submissions, entrants should upload images one at a time in the exact order judges should view them.

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27: THEMED PHOTO (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

*Photos for this category do not need to have been published in scholastic media nor considered for publication.

Submit ONE  image related to a theme that will be released via social media, email distribution lists and online at jea.org when the NSMC contest registration opens. Photos taken before the theme is released may not be used in this contest, and the metadata embedded in the image will be used should a question arise regarding when an image was taken.

The photograph must be taken by the entrant. A full caption should be included with a brief discussion about how the photo relates to the theme.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Imaginative subject matter; technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. Quality of the caption may also be considered.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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28: SPORTS ACTION PHOTOGRAPHY (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

You will submit THREE sports action photos.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Imaginative subject matter; technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; story told in each photograph; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. Judges also will look for a variety of sports-related images, not three similar images. Quality of the caption may also be considered.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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29: SPORTS FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

Submit THREE images related to sports. The images should not be sports action photos.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Imaginative subject matter; technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; story told in each photograph; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. Judges will also look for a variety of images, not three similar images. Quality of the caption may also be considered.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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30: FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

Submit THREE feature images, typically found moments or slices of life — not sports. Pictorial images — images that show graphic and aesthetic qualities of a person or group with strong emphasis on composition — may also be entered here.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Imaginative subject matter, technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; story told in each photograph; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. Judges also will look for a variety of images, not three similar images. This can include any aspect of student life. Quality of caption may also be considered.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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31: GENERAL OR SPOT NEWS PHOTOGRAPHY (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

Submit ONE news image — not sports. Includes coverage of events for which no planning was possible. Examples include, but are not limited to, accidents, fires and natural disasters. Also includes coverage of planned events when advanced notice was possible. Examples include, but are not limited to, speakers on campus, news conferences, mock exercises and campaigns.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Imaginative subject matter, technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; story told in photograph; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. Quality of caption may also be considered.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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32: PHOTO STORY (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

Submit THREE, FOUR OR FIVE photographs related to a common theme and visually tell a story. Upload the photos one at a time in the exact order the judges should view them. Include the order number of each image in the Description field with the caption: “Photo 1 — <caption>,” for example.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Imaginative subject matter; technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; story told in each photograph as well as in the package of images; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. Upload each image separately. Quality of caption for each individual image also may be considered.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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33: PORTFOLIO (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

*Photos for this category do not need to have been published in scholastic media nor considered for publication.
**A student may enter the portfolio contest only once during their high school career.

This is a contest for expert high school photographers. It is designed to help photographers, generally graduating seniors, prepare for scholarship applications, internship applications or job interviews by giving them the opportunity to prepare a portfolio and to have it critiqued by a professional. Students should submit a MINIMUM OF FIVE images and a MAXIMUM OF EIGHT images that reflect their abilities as a photojournalist. Upload photos one at a time in the exact order the judges should view them. Include the order number of each image in the Description field with the caption: “Photo 1 — <caption>,” for example. Captions for images in this competition may be a simple title but may also be full journalistic captions.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Strong, clear voice within a variety of assignments; creativity; technical quality; photo composition; visual impact; simplicity; effective cropping; and lighting. Quality of the caption may also be considered as will presentation of the entire portfolio.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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34: PORTRAIT PHOTO (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

Submit ONE portrait, either a formal portrait or an environmental portrait.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR: Imaginative subject matter; technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. The caption, although required, should include the name of the individual in the photograph with some identifying characteristics such as grade, major, sport or activity as well as some additional information about the person, perhaps a quote from the person. Students should not enter mugshots, sometimes called head shots, but may enter portraits taken in a studio.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries

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35: FIRST-YEAR PHOTO (ONLINE SUBMISSION)

*Only students in their first year of any journalism, photojournalism or media class (or in their first year on a media staff if the campus does not offer such classes) are eligible for this competition.

Submit ONE photo of any subject matter. A full caption should be included.

WHAT THE JUDGES WILL LOOK FOR:  Imaginative subject matter; technical quality and excellence; photo composition; visual impact; simplicity; cropping; and lighting. Quality of the caption may also be considered.

HELPFUL LINK: Preparing online photo entries