BACKGROUND

Even in the age of fakenews, the press photograph remains the most trusted source of news, and the press photographer, the most threatened professional. In recent years, Bangladeshi photographers have been celebrated across the globe, yet there is no formal recognition of their collective talent or the valuation of their contribution to the nation. The Bangladesh Press Photo Award celebrates the brave men and women who are the frontline warriors in gathering news. To celebrate the achievements of these courageous individuals, Drik initiated the Bangladesh Press Photo Contest in 2022 featuring photographs from 2021. Selected by a panel of top professionals, it highlights the quality of their work by identifying the best photojournalism and documentary photography produced over the last year. And since then the contest has been held annually.

Every year the photographers have submitted single images for the following categories every year -

Public Interest Journalism: What is of interest to the public is not necessarily public interest journalism. Media reporting is often driven by profit, prioritizing sensational or titillating news as clickbait to attract eyeballs and advertisers. We are looking for stories that enrich the public discourse and provide a range of perspectives that contest ideas and inform citizens. This could include the development sector, civil society members, and individual actions that impact people's general well-being.

Politics: The set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups or other forms of power relations between individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. It especially applies to (but is not limited to) issues of governance, factors that guide or influence government, or deal with winning and holding control over government. In short, it relates to the complex relations of power between people in society. It extends to competition between interest groups or individuals for power and leadership.

Arts, Culture & Sports: Art, in its broadest sense, is the expression of creativity or imagination. Sports involves the application of mental and physical exertion and skill in a competitive environment. Culture relates to the ideas, customs, and social behaviour of a particular people or society. Photographs in this category will embrace the full spectrum of human endeavour related to social interactions and manifestations of human intellectual and physical achievements recognised and valued collectively.

Any photographer can submit in all categories, a maximum of 5 photos per category.

AWARDS:

GRAND PRIZE - PHOTO OF THE YEAR

(Tk 1,00,000, crest, certificate and a copy of yearbook)

WINNER - PUBLIC INTEREST JOURNALISM CATEGORY

(Tk 50,000, crest, certificate and a copy of yearbook)

WINNER - POLITICS CATEGORY

(Tk 50,000, crest, certificate and a copy of yearbook)

WINNER - ARTS, CULTURE & SPORTS CATEGORY

(Tk 50,000, crest, certificate and a copy of yearbook)

BPPC 2023 introduced a Community Grant Programme titled 'Photojournalism in the Margins' for photographers from the Bangladeshi Indigenous community of Chittagong Hill Tracts and the Rohingya community residing in Bangladesh. To encourage and support the participation of marginalised groups in photojournalism, indigenous and Rohingya photographers were invited to submit their images. 

For this year's contest details, log on to https://drik.awardsplatform.com/