MOSCOW - On the birthday of Rossiya Segodnya photojournalist Andrei Stenin, who was killed in southeastern Ukraine, the Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest for young photographers opened its 2018 entry period. Participants aged 18 to 33 can now submit their entries at stenincontest.com. The submission period closes on February 28, 2018. The Andrei Stenin contest is the only competition in Russia that discovers new names in international photo journalism and develops quality standards for documentary photography. The contest is aimed at supporting young photojournalists and helping them make a breakthrough in their careers.

Next year, contestants will again compete in four categories - Top News, Sport, My Planet, and Portrait. A Hero of Our Time. However this time around, photographers can submit up to three entries in each category, giving them a greater opportunity to demonstrate their professional skills.

The 2018 prize money is almost double that of the previous year; first, second and third place winners will be awarded 100,000 rubles, 75,000 rubles and 50,000 rubles, respectively. The Grand Prix winner will receive 700,000 rubles. The opportunity for young photojournalists to showcase their work at Russian and international exhibition venues during the winners’ international tour, now an integral part of the contest, is no less important to participants than the monetary award.

“For many young photographers, the Andrei Stenin contest has driven their career forward. They got a chance to receive feedback and see where they stand in the photography community. We invite young professionals from all over the world to participate and we wish them good luck,” Oksana Oleinik, supervisor of the Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contest and head of the Photo Projects Desk at RossiyaSegodnya, said.

In 2017, the Andrei Stenin International Press Photo Contestwas supported by major Russian and international media outlets, news agencies as well as the photo community. Partners in several categories included the Shanghai United Media Group (SUMG), the Al Mayadeen TV pan-Arabic news holding and the International Red Cross Committee, one of the world’s largest humanitarian organizations.

The contest’s general information partners include: the news website Vesti.Ru, the Russian state Rossiya-Kultura TV channel, news website KP.ru, news website ZhurDom and the Russian Photo website. International media partners include Sputnik News Agency and Radio, Askanews news agency, Independent Media holding, Notimex news agency, RT TV channel and news site, The Royal Photographic Society, Shanghai United Media Group (SUMG), news agency ANA, TeleSUR international informative multiplatform, China Daily web-site, Frontline magazine. Industry media partners include the Academy of Photography, GeoPhoto agency, Photo-study.ru educational portal, the Union of Journalists of Moscow, the Union of Art Photographers of Russia, Young Journalists information portal and the festivals Fotoistanbul, KOLGA TBILISI PHOTO, PhotoVisa.

Rossiya Segodnya Press Service