Thirty-two year-old Norwegian photographer Andrea Gjestvang has been announced as the L’Iris d’Or/Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year. The judges voted unanimously for Gjestvang’s powerful series of portraits of children and youths who survived the July 2011 massacre on the island of Utøya, outside Oslo. The L’Iris d’Or winning series of work, "One Day in History," will be displayed as part of the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition at Somerset House from 26 April – 12 May, alongside the works of the other winners.

This contest has now closed. The lucky winners are:

Mike Gimblett has won a Sony NEX-3N compact system camera and a place at the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards Workshops

Olexander Demchenko, chris mockel, Nick Berry, Trygve Lydersen, Ilian Stamenov, Florin Cristea, Tom Bekiaris, GJ de Koning, and Napoleon Stratogiannakis have each won a place at the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards Workshops.

With the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards taking place this month we’ve teamed up with headline sponsors Sony to give 10 lucky readers the chance to win a place at a series of workshops taking place at Somerset House, London from 26th April – 28th April 2013.

One winner will also receive a NEX-3N compact system camera to test out their new skills. Featuring the same image sensor that you’d expect from a DSLR camera, the NEX allows you to take professional standard pictures, even if you’re an amateur, providing the best results and picture quality on the market. With a selection of 15 e-mount lenses available you’ll discover the ideal lens to bring your vision to life.

The workshops will cover a variety of topics suitable for camera enthusiasts from beginners to budding professionals and will coincide with the opening of the Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition on 26th April. 

There are three separate workshops covering a range of topics. From showing beginners how to improve picture quality, providing an understanding of commercial photography and turning a hobby into a career, or looking at the developments in full-frame photograph over time, there will be something for any photography enthusiast.

Speakers will include Michael Wayne Plant who specialises in work around identities and social landscape and Magdi Fernandes who works across fashion, music and sports. All attendees will be entered into a prize draw each day for one lucky winner to receive an NEX.

With Sony’s ongoing development of its camera portfolio, from point and shoot Cyber-shot cameras to entry-level interchangeable lens NEX and Digital SLT Alpha models, Sony is serious about photography and proud to sponsor the World Photography Awards.

For further information about the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards Workshops or to book your place on one of the sessions, visit http://worldphoto.org/worldphotolondon/sony-workshops

This contest has now closed. The lucky winners are:

Beth Leek, ADEINNE TONNER, Eric William Sandiego, Roger Phillips, kerry day, Inga Andersen, Mark Gould, Julie Picton, L Francois regis Harvengt and KRZYSIA BIALESKA have each won a pair of tickets to the Sony World Photography Awards’ exhibition.

With the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards taking place next month we’ve teamed up with headline sponsors Sony to give 10 lucky readers the chance to win a pair of tickets to the awards’ exhibition, which will take place at Somerset House, London from 26th April – 12th May 2013.

Curated by Candlestar Director Michael Benson, this year’s exhibition offers a snapshot of the world in 2012 as seen by the winning and shortlisted photographers of the Sony World Photography Awards.  It will reveal the very best international contemporary photography across 25 categories, including fashion, travel, wildlife, landscape, portraiture and current affairs.

With this year’s awards receiving a staggering 122,000 entries from 170 countries, its evident just how popular photography continues to be, around the world.

Sony is committed to providing a camera solution for everyone and every budget, empowering people to take professional quality pictures, whether an amateur or an expert.

With Sony’s ongoing development of its camera portfolio, from point and shoot Cyber-shot cameras to entry-level interchangeable lens NEX and Digital SLT Alpha models, Sony aims to make photography more accessible to all and educate people in the art of taking pictures.

For further information about the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition at Somerset House visit http://www.worldphoto.org/2013exhibition

The first Children's Eyes On Earth International Youth Photography Festival & Exhibition will be held in Baku, Azerbaijan from 12-14 May 2103. This event, which aims to raise awareness of environmental issues through the eyes of young people and their photographs, will be a chance to view the best 100 images from the inaugural Children’s Eyes On Earth International Youth Photography Contest, which took place last summer. With the themes “I Love Nature” and “I Fear Pollution”, the Contest drew thousands of entries from young people in over 90 countries around the world.

CyberLink is reminding interested photographers that the deadline for its "Goodbye Plain Shots" photo challenge is 7 May 2013. Intended to be a fun contest that will “bring out the creative side of photography enthusiasts worldwide,” the “Goodbye Plain Shots” photo challenge invites photo enthusiasts to submit a photo for others to edit, edit a photo submitted by another contestant, or simply “Like” their favourite edited photos. The company is providing a free trial download of its award-winning PhotoDirector 4 software for contest participants to use as a part of the contest. Do note that photos edited using other software will be excluded from the contest. Up for grabs are the latest professional grade dSLR and compact system cameras and the full version of CyberLink’s PhotoDirector 4 software. For more details or to enter the competition, visit the website below.

The 2013 international Travel Photographer of the Year (TPOTY) awards are now open for entries. The overall winner of TPOTY will receive the Cutty Sark Award; £5,000 plus a complete set of Cutty Sark’s award-winning range of blended whiskies - Cutty Sark Blend, Storm, Prohibition, 12 years old, 18 years old and the highly collectable Limited Edition Tam o’Shanter. In addition, they’ll receive a true one-off - a bespoke, personalised Cutty Sark surfboard. The Young Travel Photographer of the Year 2013 wins the new Fujifilm X20 plus £250 and a personalised Plastic Sandwich leather portfolio book or iFolio. Entries close on October 1st, with full details at the website below.

Peak Design has set up a so-called Pro Team comprising a number of top-notch professional photographers including some of the most recognizable names in mountaineering, surfing, snow sports, motorsports, wedding and portrait photography. In addition to using Peak Design’s Capture, Leash (pictured) and Cuff products in the field, these professionals will be aiding Peak Design in future product development through their feedback and testing of prototypes. “We want folks from all backgrounds of photography – from beginners and hobbyists all the way up to pros – to know that our products are designed to hold up to any environment and any kind of physical activity,” says Peter Dering, Peak Design founder and head engineer. “We couldn’t be more excited to have this incredible group of photographers on our team, ensuring that we continue to make even better gear.” To mark the “birth” of its Pro Team, Peak Design has launched a giveaway offering members of the public a chance to win high-resolution poster-size prints of original photos taken by the Peak Design Pro Team, as well as the company’s latest products.

The Society of International Travel and Tourism Photographers (SITTP) has announced the winners of its street photography competition. The successful competition had entries from all corners of the globe from India to Australia, highlighting some of the best street photographers work. The winner is Agnieszka Furtak, with Alveraz Ricardez coming in at second place and Julie Wall being third.

The theme for this month’s Life Framer photo contest, judged by Olivia Bee, is “An instant.” A hugely talented, self-trained photographer, Olivia is a contributor to the New York Times, Zeit, Le Monde and Time Magazine. Open to all amateur and professional photographers aged 18 or older, the Life Framer competition is a platform designed to source creative work and showcase outstanding photography. The monthly winner will receive a cash prize of $400 and the honour of having their winning image printed, framed and displayed in an end-of-year exhibition held in a gallery space in central London. Entrants to the competition retain full copyright of their photographs. For more information and to enter online visit the website below.

Tamron USA has launched its third My Photo Exhibit annual photo contest. Offered exclusively to Tamron USA lens users, the My Photo Exhibit competition gives one lucky winner the opportunity to win one of seven Tamron lenses (among them the Tamron 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD, pictured). Entrants will create a 3D virtual exhibit showcasing 8-14 of their best images in a travel theme on Tamron’s unique photo sharing exhibit site, MyPhotoExhibits.com. The deadline for submissions is 30 September 2013.

The International Garden Photographer of the Year (IGPOTY) 2013 competition 7 is now underway. Each year, the organisers run three ‘Photo project’ seasonal contests alongside the main competition - focussed on photography ideas, techniques and creativity in connection with garden and plant images. These ‘Photo project’ categories have earlier deadlines than the main competiton. The first of the categories is’ Monochrome’ - it’s all about black and white photography but can include any single-colour photograph. The deadline for this contest is 30 April 2013.

The Kraszna-Krausz Foundation has unveiled the shortlisted entries for its annual photo book awards. Established in 1985, the KKF Book Awards are the UK’s leading prizes for books published in the fields of photography and the moving image and the two winners share a £10,000 prize.  “The judges have shortlisted books ranging from heavy tomes to small paperbacks, each with outstanding pictorial and literary content and exceptional production,” the foundation said in a statement. The shortlisted books include Everything Was Moving: Photography from the 60s and 70s by Kate Bush, Billy Monk by Billy Monk and War / Photography: Images of Armed Conflict and Its Aftermath by Anne Wilkes Tucker, Will Michels and Natalie Zest. The Best Moving Image Book Award winner will be chose from the following entries: 39 Steps to the Genius of Hitchcock by James Bell, First Films of the Holocaust: Soviet Cinema and the Genocide of the Jews, 1938-46 by Jeremy Hicks and Hollywood Costume by Deborah Nadoolman Landis. The Kraszna-Krausz Foundation was established in 1985 by Andor Kraszna-Krausz (pictured), the Hungarian founder of the influential publishing house Focal Press.

The World Photography Organisation (WPO) has announced the winners of the Open, Youth and 3D categories in the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards. Judged on a single image taken by an amateur photographer, the winning Open category photographers were selected from nearly 55,000 entries. The winners include Martina Biccheri, Gilbert Yu, Hoang Hiep Nguyen, Elmar Akhmetov, Krasimir Matarov, Yeow Kwang Yeo, Hisatomi Tadahiko, Mac Kwan, Matías Gálvez and Manny Fajutag. Open to photographers aged 19 and under, the Youth competition looks to uncover the next-generation of photography talent. The category winners include Alecsandra Dragoi, Xu Wei Shou and Berta Vicente. The winner of the 3D category is Matjaž Tan?i?.

The Red Bull Illume Image Quest, billed as the world’s greatest photography contest for action and adventure sports, is open for entries. Photographers can submit images to 10 categories: lifestyle, playground, energy, spirit, close up, wings, sequence, new creativity, experimental and illumination. Submissions are accepted through 30th April.

CyberLink today announced the “Goodbye Plain Shots” Photo Challenge. Intended to be a fun contest that will “bring out the creative side of photography enthusiasts worldwide,” the “Goodbye Plain Shots” photo challenge invites photo enthusiasts to submit a photo for others to edit, edit a photo submitted by another contestant, or simply “Like” their favourite edited photos. The company is providing a free trial download of its award-winning PhotoDirector 4 software for contest participants to use as a part of the contest. Do note that photos edited using other software will be excluded from the contest. Up for grabs are the latest professional grade dSLR and compact system cameras and the full version of CyberLink’s PhotoDirector 4 software. The “Goodbye Plain Shots” Photo Challenge will run from March 7, 2013 to May 17, 2013.

The Association of Photographers (AOP) has just announced this year’s Awards programme. “The Photographers Awards will be a more focused format, with a range of categories in single and series but with no distinction between commissioned and non-commissioned,” Awards Manager Charlie Thomas said. “One exciting addition for this year is a special 30th Anniversary Lifetime Achievement Award, voted for by the AOP membership.” The submission period will open at 10am, Monday 2 April and closes on 6pm, Friday 10 May (Photographers’ Awards) and 6pm, Friday 31 May (Open Awards). During the first two weeks, there will be an Early Bird discount on entry prices.  After 6pm Friday 12 April, the regular prices will apply for non-members, however there will be a continual discount for AOP members.

500px and Wave have launched a new photo contest. Wave is a smart online application for invoicing, accounting and payroll that helps small businesses (such as photography studios). The winner of this week’s photo contest will receive a $500 gift card and exposure on Wave’s social media channels. The theme is “Storefronts” and photographers have until Sunday 17th March to submit their work. Note that you need to have a 500px profile in order to enter the competition.

Epson has announced a continuation of its “Finish Strong” advertising campaign with a new photography contest. “Photographers have an uncanny ability to pre-visualize amazing photographs,” said Richard Day, group product manager, Professional Imaging, Epson America, Inc. “This contest provides the chance for anyone to see their concept of a Finish Strong ad come to life.” The winner will receive either an opportunity to attend an actual photo shoot with world-renowned photographer Joe McNally or a $5,000 cash prize. More information, including the submission form and previous “Finish Strong” print advertisements, can be found at the website below.

The finalists for the 3D category of the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards have been announced. Selected by judges from the World Photography Organisation (WPO), the three finalists are Michele Abramo Puricelli, Matjaž Tan?i? and Nick Saglimbeni.

HP is holding an exclusive Ellie Goulding gig as part of its collaboration with Universal Music Group, and they have teamed up with Talenthouse to find the official gig photographer for the night. Interested photographers have until 7th March to submit an artistic and energetic shot taken at a festival, party or any environment where people and friends are connecting with music. The judging panel are looking for artistic and powerful shots that show them you have what it takes to capture the energy of the show. The winning photographer will be chosen by Ellie and HP and will also receive £1,000, an HP Envy notebook and promotion of their photography across Ellie’s and HP’s official online channels. For further details on how to enter, visit the website below.