Milvus Photocontest - International Nature Photography Competition

With a long standing tradition, Milvus Photocontest is the most important nature photography competition in Romania, exhibiting extraordinary photographers and images during its 14 annual editions. It is open for worldwide amateur and professional photographers.

We, the Milvus Group and Forona, the Romanian Nature Photographers Association, are convinced that the visual power of the breathtaking natural photos is an amazing tool to bring people closer to the values of nature and will help us in our quest to conserve it. We believe that nature photography can raise awareness and can make everybody understand the important role that nature has in our life.

Categories


A. Nature

Any photos depicting wild plants or fungi, including close-ups and macros, as well as landscapes or nature details can be submitted for this section. Animals may appear into the frame as long as they are integrated into their natural habitat. No man made elements can be present in the pictures as an important element of the composition.

Nature

B. Wild animals

Any photos depicting wild animals, taken in the wild, including portraits, close-ups or macro, as well as scenes exhibiting their natural behavior or habitat can be submitted for this section.

Wild animals

C. Romanian Nature

This category is open exclusively for images with the same subjects as included in previous categories but taken in Romania, by Romanian resident photographers regardless of their nationality. In this category we will accept both animal and landscape pictures.

Romanian nature

D. Junior

This category is dedicated exclusively to photographers who have not turned 16 by March 21, 2024. You can enter images of plants, mushrooms, animals or landscapes, black and white or color. Photographers who enter this category cannot enter any of the other categories.

Junior Category

Fees


Entering the contest is conditioned by the payment of a non-refundable participation fee. For categories A or B the participation fee is 10 €; registration in both categories costs 15 €. Participation in category C is 5 € (25 lei). Registration in category D is free.

Guidelines


For more detailed information, please check the competition rules and the ethic code, available in English, Romanian and Hungarian, respectively the FAQ area.
Competition rules:
RO HU EN
Ethical code:
RO HU EN

Meet the judges


Dan Dinu

dandinu.net

Dorin Bofan

dorinbofan.com

Kerekes István

kerekesistvan.com

Daniel Mîrlea

danielmirlea.com

Zoltán Gergely-Nagy

zoltan-nagy.com

Competition calendar


Photo submission interval:
January 20 - March 20, 2024
Raw files request:
April 08 - 19, 2024
Public vote:
April 29 - May 12, 2024
Announcing the winners:
May 2024
The awards ceremony and exhibit opening:
June, 08 2024

Prizes


Grand prize: The Grand winner will be awarded the Milvus Trophy and 750 Euros and a guided wildlife trip in Fagaras Mountains for 2 persons worth of 1,240 Euros offered by Conservation Carpathia
The Grand Prize can be awarded to a single image.
Prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in each of categories A, B and C will be awarded with:
  • First place: Certificate of Merit and 300 Euro.
  • Second place: Certificate of Merit and 200 Euro.
  • Third place: Certificate of Merit and a “Vâlcea Naturală” photographic album by Daniel Mîrlea
Junior prize: Certificate of merit and photography books pack (“Wild Romania” by Dan Dinu and “Terra Silva” by Dorin Bofan)
Public award (by Facebook votes): Certificate of Merit and a gift-package offered by Milvus Group.

Frequently Asked Questions

After you have read the competition rules, if you can not find the answer to your question please don't hesitate to contact us by using the contact form.


The contest is open for all photographers, regardless of their nationality, except for category C opened only for Romanian residents. However, the members of Forona management, Milvus Group’s employees, members of the jury, sponsors employees and their level I relatives are not allowed to register.
Please check your Spam or Junk Mail folder. Make sure to add our email to your Trusted Emails or Contacts or Allowed Sender List, to make sure you get all emails from Milvus Photocontest.
Upload your images at Submit your photos section, complete your personal data and select your payment method.
You can pay your entry fee using PayPal, a credit card or by bank transfer.
We only accept digital submissions via our website. It's the fastest and most convenient way for you, for us, and for Nature.
You may enter up to 5 images per each category, up to 10 images in the international A and B categories. Photographers from Romania could submit an additional 5 images in the C category.
Yes, you may enter the same image into as many categories as you want.
Both published and unpublished works are accepted.
Yes, images that have been awarded in other competitions or have been submitted to other competitions currently underway are eligible.
No, images that have won prizes in previous editions of our contest cannot be submitted.
Images should be in JPG (sRGB) format, with a maximum 1920 pixels on the long edge; it must also be no larger than 3 MB. EXIF data must not be removed. Each image need to have an English title.
Such images can be entered in the competition only if they are fitting into specified size and format and a higher resolution version can be submitted for print.
Yes, you can submit images that were converted to black and white.
If an image passes the pre-selection phase, we will want to see its original file (RAW) as taken by camera and a high resolution image in TIFF format suitable for printing for exhibitions and marketing materials.
There are no restrictions on the date of a picture.
Images should be taken in nature and/or with wild subjects. Nothing man made, nor cultivated plants, nor pets or captive animals, is admitted as subject. However, such elements may appear in the frame if they constitute the natural medium of the subject.
Digitally manipulated images are accepted, although within reason and taste. Certain corrections of images are allowed, such as levels, curves, color balance, hue/saturation, brightness and contrast. The correction of certain technical errors is also possible, such as the removal of distortions or dust on the lens, etc. However, the photos should remain as realistic and natural as possible, with limited digital alterations. Check the competition rules for more guidance on this subject.
You will not be able to submit the entry form until all required items have been filled out. If you overlook a required field, a message will be displayed. Please follow the on-screen instructions to complete the form.
Please follow the instructions on the entry form. If you are unable to resolve the problem after reading them, send an inquiry using the contact form.
No. The entry fees are non-refundable.
No. Once you have selected to submit your images into a specified category, you will not be able to change any of them.
No, after the payment has been made, your entries cannot be edited.
All entrants understand that any image submitted to the competition may be used by Milvus Group and Forona, for the sole purpose of promoting the competition and the photographers themselves.
The Organizer will contact the winners via e-mail on their registered email addresses. We also plan to announce the winner's names and images on the Organizer’s and Milvus Photocontest website and social media pages.
All the entry fees are specified in the competition rules and above at the Category area.
Yes, we respect the integrity of the photographers and therefore judging is anonymous. Judges will not know the names of any of the entrants.
If you are the lucky winner of the Grand Prize, first of all, congratulation! We will get in contact and will see which date suit you best after June, 15 2023.

Organizers


Forona
Romanian Nature Photographers Association
Milvus Group
Bird and Nature Protection Association

Partners


Media Partners


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