We are honored to announce that the POY Latam 2019, the most important photography competition in Latin America, will be judged in May in the city of Quito under the auspices of the Paradocs Foundation, Ecuadorian Photographers and Pictures of the Year (POY).

POY https://www.poy.org/ was created in 1944 by the University of Missouri School of Journalism, the oldest and one of the most respected journalism schools in the world. Each year thousands of photographers enter the POY contest with visual stories that document the news, political trends and other themes that capture our interest. POY celebrates the work of visual journalists and editors and defines global quality standards. Thanks to the support of the POY, it was possible to create, in 2011, a chapter of the contest for Ibero-America that became POY Latam.

Key dates
Contest entrants will submit their work to the POY Latam contest through the internet at https://www.picter.com/poylatam2019. The servers will open on March 25, 2019 and will close on April 29 at 11:59 p.m. Quito / Bogota / Lima time. The contest will be judged during the week of May 6-10 in Quito. This is the jury for 2019.

To present your work
– You must be a citizen of a country in Ibero-America (it means all of Latin America, plus Spain, Portugal and the Caribbean) or legal resident in a country of Ibero-America for at least one year.
– Read carefully the categories and rules below.
– We have decided to use the Picter platform, used by other large competitions, to receive your entries. Unfortunately, Picter only works in English. If you need an explanation in Spanish, please review this document.
– Create an account at https://www.picter.com/ if you have not already done so. You will receive an email with a confirmation link. You can return as many times as necessary to upload your material.
– Include all of the information requested by Picter.

Registration
Participation in POY Latam is completely free, but each registration only allows the submission of up to 10 entries.
Definition of 10 “entries”
An entry consists of:
– an image presented in an “individual” category
– an essay in a “series” category
– a link presented in the “multimedia” category
– a portfolio presented in the “Photographer of the Year” category
– an essay or series presented in a special category
– a book presented in the “Best Photography Book” category

Categories
All entries submitted to the contest must have been made within the last 24 months, except in the “Nuestra Mirada” category which has no time limit. Series must contain a maximum of 10 photos. It is essential that you enter the required information in Picter, the platform that we use to send the images.

01 Everyday life (individual) – A natural image, not posed, that reflects the human experience, culture or celebrates life. Respect for the dignity of the subject(s) is essential.
02 Everyday Life (series) – Up to ten non-posed images that reflect the human experience, culture or celebrate life. Respect for the dignity of the subject(s) is essential.
03 News (individual) – A photograph of a news event or a current social issue.
04 News (series) – A series of up to ten photographs of a news event or current social issue.
05 Portrait (individual) – A photograph of one or more people that reveals the essence or personality of the subject(s).
06 Portrait (series) – A series of up to ten portraits of people or groups of people that reveal the essence or personality of the subject(s).
07 Sports (individual) – A photograph that captures a peak moment in an individual or team sport or that promotes appreciation for sport or celebrates the role that sport plays in the lives of professional athletes, amateurs or in the public at large.
08 Sports (series) – A series of up to ten images that captures a peak moment in an individual or team sport or that promotes appreciation for sport or celebrates the role that sport plays in the lives of professional athletes, amateurs or in the public at large.
09 Young people express themselves (series) – A series of up to ten photos that documents the different ways that young people express their culture(s), their desires, their dreams and also their frustrations and a myriad of other emotions. Young people are looking for alternatives – music, urban art, militancy, protest, spirituality – to a society that does not fully understand or integrate them.
10 Migratory movements (series) A story or essay of up to ten photos documenting the impact of human migrations between countries or regions. It can be a story about the drama of displaced people or refugees but can also be an essay about some positive aspect of migration.
11 The strength of women (series) An essay of up to ten images documenting the situation of women in Ibero-America in an era of #niunamas and #metoo. This category is open only to women photographers. It includes a wide range of topics such as equality, violence, expectation of beauty, the new roles of women, the celebration of the feminine, politics, spirituality, feminism, leadership and others.
12 The Uribe & Schwarzkopf prize on The future of cities (series) A series of up to ten images that deals with the processes of urbanization in Ibero-America and the challenges faced by people of all social classes living in cities. This category includes urban issues such as public space, growth, development of rural areas, public transport as well as social issues such as security, inclusion, extreme wealth and poverty, the situation of children and the elderly or the challenges that threaten the middle class.
13 The “Nuestra Mirada Award (series) – This special category of up to ten images rewards documentary or artistic works that reflect on who we are and where we come from. This category is the only one in which the photos may have been taken at any time and also the only one that accepts real or digital manipulations provided they are conceptually justified. Creativity, concept, aesthetics and artistic or documentary value will have special importance. It is forbidden to submit essays that have already been submitted in previous editions of POY Latam.
14 Carolina Hidalgo Vivar Award for the Environment (series) – This special category awards a photo essay of up to ten photos that expands our understanding and/or appreciation for nature. A wide range of subjects will be considered, for example, the human devastation of nature, the consequences of mining or industry, the multiple ways in which humans relate to their environments, the exaltation of the nature’s beauty or the documentation of its destructive power. This essay honors the memory of Carolina Hidalgo Vivar, a young landscape architect who deeply loved nature.
15 The Ibero-American Photographer of the Year (portfolio) – This special category is open to all photographers. Present a maximum of forty (40) photographs. A portfolio must be diverse and must include at least four individual photographs and two photo essays. The individual photos within this portfolio should not be repeated in the essays. Organize the portfolio with the individual photos first, followed by the essays. Insert a black image (.jpg) at the beginning of the essays and between each essay to separate them. No text should be included in these separators. Photographers should present individual photos and essays in other categories so that judges become familiar with the work. POY Latam will not take pictures from one category to include it in another. If you want to participate in other categories, you need to submit duplicate files. This portfolio must include work published or created in the last twenty-four months.
16 Multimedia (short video) .- a visual narrative of less than 5 minutes in video.
17 Multimedia (medium-length video) .- a visual narrative from 5 to 20 minutes in video.
18 Multimedia (web) – An interactive site or web page that offers a powerful visual narrative, and that uses video, photography, design and/or infographics in a journalistic context.
19 The best photography book (book) – The books submitted to the contest must contain documentary photography and must have been published during the 24 months prior to the close of the contest. The images can be the work of one or several photographers. After registering, send a copy of the book as soon as possible to:

Pablo Corral Vega

Director del POY Latam

San Javier N26-81 y Orellana

EC170523, Quito, Ecuador

Whatsapp o Celular +5939 8728 8705

The books become the property of POY Latam.

Winners
The winners will be announced on Saturday, May 11, 2019. The winners will be contacted after the results are announced publicly.
Groups and independent photographers
– The photographs must be made by a person or by a collective, and they must carry only the name of the photographer or the group in the credit.
– Each photographer or group must complete an enrollment form.
– The entries will not be changed to a different category by the judges.
Individual photos and series
– A single image within each .jpg file — multiple photos will not be accepted within the same .jpg file except in the Nuestra Mirada category.
– A photo can be presented only once in an individual category.
– A photo presented in an individual category can also appear in a series category.
– A series can only be presented once.
– All series or essays consist of a group of 5 to 10 photos.

Captions and information
Captions may be indispensable at the time of judging. Write the captions carefully. Enter all of the necessary information into Picter. You must include your name, the correct date and the place where the photo was taken. The captions can be written in Spanish, Portuguese or English.
Type of file
– The images should only be presented as files .jpg
– The .jpg image must be recorded in “maximum quality”, or with a compression greater than 9. — The minimum size is 3,000 pixels high or wide but we suggest you send the photos in original size.
– Do not enlarge your files.
– All images must be recorded in 8 bits, in Adobe RGB color space (preferred) or sRGB.

Multimedia category
You can add multiple entries in your registration form. Simply put the URL of the multimedia you want to present in the appropriate field. Make sure that the link you are sending us works, if the site is disabled, it will not be judged.
Do not submit a Vimeo video protected by a password. Do not try to upload .mov, mp4, m4v or .swf files. If a link is modified after the closing date, it can be disqualified.
Awards
The Iberoamerican Photographer of the Year will receive $1,000 to be paid directly by POY (U.S.).
All other winners will receive Award Certificates sent digitally.

Spirit of the contest
The mission of Pictures of the Year Latam (POY Latam) is to recognize excellence in documentary photography and visual journalism in Ibero-America in the areas of photography, multimedia and books. POY Latam is a window to the realities that have affected us during the last two years. The images should reflect the news and issues that concern society, always respecting the integrity of the scene and the real circumstances. Images that are posed or created by the photographer do not honor the essence of documentary photography. Only in the portrait categories are posed and /or created photos allowed. The Nuestra Mirada category allows digitally constructed or manipulated photos provided that such manipulation has a conceptual justification.

Quick answers
– All series must have 5 to 10 photos.
– The photos do not need to have been published to participate in the contest.
– Anyone can participate, however the majority of participants are professional photographers.
– The photographs must have been taken between January 1, 2017 and April 28, 2019, but there is a special category – Nuestra Mirada – that is not subject to this time limit.
– The photographs must include captions in the digital file. This information can also be incorporated through Picter
– Retrospectives, collections, personal websites or portfolios are not eligible in any category
– Each photographer or group must complete an individual registration form.
– The deadline to upload your work is April 28, 2019 at 11:59 p.m. (Quito or Bogotá time).

The Contest
The five photo judges will meet in Quito and will review each and every one of the photographs sent to the contest. This process will be broadcast live. The decision of the juries is unappealable.

Rules for digital processing, the use of mobile applications and the documentary nature of images
– POY Latam accepts two types of images: color and black and white. In the case of color images, the goal is to replicate what the human eye sees. Routine correction of tone, white balance and exposure are acceptable. Photos that have been manipulated in an exaggerated manner can be disqualified by the jury.
– The alteration of content, frames, backgrounds, texts, handwritten notes or other artistic effects are prohibited except in the category, Nuestra Mirada.
– Diptychs or triptychs are not allowed, except in the category, Nuestra Mirada.
– The edges of the film are acceptable only if the image was originally taken on negative film, slide or polaroid, and if that edge is part of the nature of the medium used.

Copyright
Although the copyrights of the submitted works are those of the respective participants, those participants grant POY Latam irrevocable and perpetual authorization to reproduce the submitted work in any of its publications, web pages or exhibitions while giving credit to the photographer/visual journalist in each and every case.

The participants guarantee that the submitted work is original to the artist and, as such, said artist is the sole and exclusive owner and owner of the copyright of the submitted work and that the party presenting the work has the right to present it for possible exposure and grants all required permits. Participants agree not to submit works that (1) infringe copyright, intellectual property, industrial property, personal or moral rights of third parties as well as any other nature, including but not limited to, copyright, trademark, professional secrecy, privacy, publicity or confidentiality obligations; and (2) in no case violate applicable state, federal, provincial or local laws.