We are delighted to announce our annual APOY photography competition is back! Amateur Photographer of the Year 2025 is now open for entries. We invite amateur* photographers from all over the world to enter the competition. Young Amateur Photographer of the Year is also open and free to enter for photographers aged 21 and under.
We have 10 rounds of the competition, and the third is now open. The theme is CLOSE-UP & DETAILS. Photographers can choose to enter all rounds or pick and choose which suits them. Regardless of how many you enter, you will be in with a chance to win prizes, and points that go towards the final leaderboard. A shortlisted entry can give you 10 points! So, it’s all to play for.
For 2025 we welcome Camera Centre UK back as our headline sponsor of Amateur Photographer of the Year, and they are joined by DxO, BOB Books, The School of Photography and Viewsonic. Over $35,000 / £26,000 worth of prizes are being provided!
*‘Amateur’ in this context means photography is your hobby, and not your primary source of income.
Amateur Photographer of the Year 2025, Round Three – Close-up & Details now open!
The second round, People & Portraits is now open for entries! Submit your best photos by 21st July 2025.
Macro and close-up photography requires both technical and creative ability, while providing an insight into a world that is often impossible to appreciate with the naked eye. Patience is crucial – and ethics, if you are photographing a living creature. If you choose to photograph plants or flowers, we want to see pristine examples (unless their flaws are intrinsic to the composition), and if you photograph animals or insects, take the time to understand their behaviour, so you don’t cause them distress. But we also want to see abstract landscapes and impressionistic still-lifes in this category. Anything goes, as long as it’s taken in close-up or shows a detail of your chosen subject.
Your guest judge: Tracy Calder
Your guest judge for Round Three is Tracy Calder. Tracy has more than 20 years of experience in the photo magazine industry. In 2018 she co-founded CUPOTY – an international competition celebrating close-up, macro and micro photography (www.cupoty.com). She has written several photo books, and her work has appeared in numerous consumer titles. Instagram: @cupoty, @tracy_calder_photo
Need some guidance on your entries? Check out these guides:
- Best macro lenses for mirrorless and DSLRs
- Top tips for close-up flower photography with a macro lens
- How to take great macro photos on a smartphone
- Focus stacking: achieve pin sharp macro shots of delicate subjects
- How to get pin-sharp close-up and macro shots
- How to get great autumn macro shots
- Macro photography lighting tips
APOY 2025 Prize details – over $35,000 / £26,000 in prizes!
Amateur Photographer of the Year round winners:
The winner of each round of APOY receives a voucher for £500 to spend at Camera Centre UK**, plus free DxO PhotoLab and FilmPack licences worth £340, and a £50 voucher for Bob Books, and an annual subscription to The School of Photography worth £120.
The two runners-up in each round will receive a free DxO Nik Collection licence worth £146 and a £25 voucher for Bob Books.
The top ten entries will be published in Amateur Photographer Magazine and on our website.
Amateur Photographer of the Year Grand Prize winner:
The overall winner after ten rounds wins a £1,000 voucher to spend at Camera Centre UK** and a £100 voucher for Bob Books.
Young APOY 2025
Young Amateur Photographer of the Year round winners:
The winner of each round of Young APOY receives free DxO software (DxO PhotoLab 8 and DxO FilmPack 7) worth £340, an annual subscription to The School of Photography worth £120, and a £50 voucher for Bob Books.
The two runners-up in each round will receive a free DxO Nik Collection licence worth £146 and a £25 voucher for Bob Books.
Young Amateur Photographer of the Year grand prize winner:
At the end of the 10 rounds, the photographer with the most combined points will be crowned the Young Amateur Photographer of the Year 2025 and will take home a £500 voucher to spend at Camera Centre UK** and a £100 voucher for Bob Books.
Camera Club winners
The winning club will receive £2,600 of ViewSonic prizing, comprising a 4k ViewSonic projector worth £1,600, and a ViewSonic monitor worth £1,000 to the club member who contributed the most points to their club’s final points tally.
Learn more about our sponsors and prizes here.
**All prizes in 2025, including the vouchers for Camera Centre UK, are available to every winner, wherever in the world they may be based. Please note that any winners of Camera Centre vouchers who live outside the UK will be liable for their country’s import duties and costs.
How to enter
Visit https://www.photocrowd.com/photo-competitions/photography-awards/apoy-2025/
APOY 2025: You can enter up to 5 images in each of the 10 rounds. 1 free entry per round can be obtained via a unique code published in Amateur Photographer magazine (from 6th May issue) during the period in which that round is open. Without the code, you’ll be able to enter a maximum of 4 images per round.
If you are a member of a camera club, tell us your UK camera club when you fill out our simple agreement form before you enter your first image.
The cost is based on the number of images you want to enter. Entries are bought in advance and can then be used at any time before midnight on 2nd February 2025. The following entry bundles are available for the main APOY 2025 competition, and entries can be used across any of the 10 rounds:
- 1 image – £8
- 4 images – £24 (£6 per image)
- 12 images – £48 (£4 per image)
- 40 images – £100 (£2.50 per image) – this image bundle will reduce in size and cost as the rounds progress, to reflect the maximum number of images that can still be submitted at the time of purchase
The 10 rounds are open to ‘amateur’ photographers of all ages and nationalities.
Entering Young Amateur Photographer of the Year – it’s free!
Now a well-established part of APOY, the Young Photographer of the Year competition encourages our up-and-coming snappers. Entrants should be 21 years old or younger by the competition’s final closing date of 2 February 2026. All the categories are the same as for the main contest – simply select the Young APOY option on Photocrowd when you upload your images. Entry is free.
Eligible photographers can enter up to 4 free images per round.
Any entrant under 18 on the date when they enter must gain the permission of a parent or guardian to enter the competition. People under the age of 13 are not permitted to register on the Photocrowd platform.
For more information on entering and to see terms and conditions see here.
Amateur Photographer of the Year 2025 Key Dates:
| Theme | Round Open | Round Close |
| Close-up and Details | 24 June 2025 | 21 July 2025 |
| Landscapes | 22 July 2025 | 18 August 2025 |
| Celebrating Colour | 19 August 2025 | 15 September 2025 |
| Night and Low Light | 16 September 2025 | 13 October 2025 |
| Animal Kingdom | 14 October 2025 | 10 November 2025 |
| Movement | 11 November 2025 | 08 December 2025 |
| Urban Life | 09 December 2025 | 05 January 2026 |
| Open | 06 January 2026 | 02 February 2026 |
The Judges
All images submitted to APOY 2024 will be reviewed by our panel of photography experts from Amateur Photographer magazine, joined by some special guest judges for individual rounds.
The main judging panel includes AP’s Nigel Atherton, Geoff Harris and Jessica Miller. Alongside APOY Project Manager Ailsa McWhinnie, photographer and writer Peter Dench, Rod Wheelans from the PAGB, Tyler George from Camera Centre UK and, photographer and curator Dominique Nok.
