The final submission deadline of the DK Travel PhotoBritain competition is getting closer and closer, so enter your photos while you can. The competition spans 4 categories; Iconic, Heritage, Wild, or My Britain and it encourages UK photographers to submit photos that showcase what Britain has to offer. Submissions close on 31st May.

Website: DK Eyewitness Travel PhotoBritain

Canon USA is encouraging Americans to visit their national parks and photograph their beauty with its fourth annual Canon Photography In The Parks Photo Contest. The contest is open to any legal US resident that falls into one of two age categories, 13-17 of age (Teen) or 18 or older (Adult) as of 15 May 2009. The organisers invite photography enthusiasts, from May 15th to September 30th, 2009, to enter by submitting their “Inspirational Nature Images,” the theme for this year’s contest. Photos taken at any park or monument in America can be entered through the Canon Digital Learning Center Web site at: www.usa.canon.com/parks. As part of Canon’s Parks Programme, a team of photographers will be touring four National Parks from June through August. At each park, the Canon team will host free photography workshops and provide Canon’s top-of-the-line camera equipment for participants to use at no charge.Winning photographers from the Photography in the Parks Photo Contest will receive a package of Canon photographic equipment. The Grand Prize winner will also receive a trip to a National Park.

Kodak have just announced a global competition for videographers - a challenge to film their own Kodak ad. Aspiring videographers can compete to have their video broadcast on Kodak’s advertising display in Times Square, New York, meet Spike Lee at the Cannes Lions 2009 Advertising Festival and be on the set of his next production. Creative advice will be given via Twitter: www.twitter.com/MOFILMugc. In addition to high-profile exposure, the competition offers over $100,000 worth of prizes, including $1500 worth of Kodak digital imaging products. To participate, register at www.mofilm.com and refer to the Kodak brand brief for guidelines.

The Master Photographers Association is reminding photographers that the first deadline for submissions to the 2009 Kodak Wedding & Portrait Awards is 31 May. The Awards are open to ALL professional photographers and are supported by Photologic. This popular consumer award is a joint initiative between Kodak and the MPA. The subject of each of the winning photographs receives £1,000 and a Kodak digital camera, and the winning photographers will be presented with a trophy and certificate to display in their studios. Publicity is a big part of the Kodak Awards package; the winning photographers will receive free publicity to help them promote their businesses in their local area.

The National Park Foundation and Olympus have announced the launch of the 2009 Share the Experience Photo Contest, a special competition that encourages nature lovers, amateur photographers, and kids of all ages to take pictures of a national park. The 2009 Share the Experience Photo Contest will run from May 4, 2009 through December 31, 2009 and showcases the more than 500 million acres of Federal Lands, drawing entries from all across the United States. All 2009 entrants will have the opportunity to win one of six prize packages, including trips to national parks. The Grand Prize winner will earn the international honour of having his/her winning image grace the cover of the 2011 “Federal Recreation Lands Pass,” an Olympus E-3 DSLR camera kit, plus a five-day, four-night trip for four to the Federal Recreation Area of their choice.

Wiley Photography Challenge is a series of themed photography contests that are accepting entires from today through 31 July. The three themed rounds will include: “Travel” (May 2009), “Bliss” (June), and “Celebrations” (July). Winners will be awarded cash and other prizes, including a $500 Grand Prize, Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 software, SmugMug Pro membership, Wiley books and more. The challenge is open to US and UK residents who are at least 13 years old at the time of entry.

Website: Wiley Photo Challenge

Sony Ericsson has announced an “international smile hunt”, in which participants are asked “to capture as many smiles as possible on their mobile camera phone”. Forty-four countries are taking part and only a select few from each country will be chosen as official Smile Hunters. They will get to go to the most prestigious events, exclusive parties, meet new people and travel to exciting places as a Sony Ericsson VIP – for free. Anyone who thinks they could be a Sony Ericsson Smile Hunter must first apply online at www.sonyericsson.com/smilehunter. If you find yourself among the lucky few, you will receive a ‘Smile Hunting Kit’ including a new Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot™ C510 or C905 Plus camera phone with Smile Shutter technology, gig tickets, VIP passes to exclusive events, trips for you and your friends, festival tickets and entrance to exclusive club nights.

Website: Smile Hunt

Condé Nast Traveler has announced its annual Dream Trip contest for 2009. Participants are asked to send in a photo of a great travel moment, accompanied by a short description. The lucky winner will be awarded a $25,000 dream trip to anywhere on Earth. Additionally, ten finalists will each win a Sony Alpha DSLR-A350. Plus, for every photo submitted, you will automatically be entered for a chance to win a five-night trip for two to Hotel Cala di Volpe on Sardinia, Italy.

Website: Condé Nast Traveler’s Annual Dream Trip Contest
Review: Read our in-depth review of the Sony A350 DSLR

The winners of the Burrad-Lucas wildlife photography competition have been announced. Thomas Vignaud’s picture of a Tompot Blenny was selected as the overall winner. “The perfect framing and spot-on exposure combine to beautiful effect. Thomas has used the strobe light masterfully to gain a sense of the blenny looming out of the darkness. Ultimately however, it was the blenny’s characterful face and frilly appendages that clinched it for us!” commented judges William and Matthew Burrard-Lucas.

Photo Credit: Tompot Blenny by Thomas Vignaud

The winners of the second International Garden Photographer of the Year competition have been announced. The overall winner of the £5,000 prize for the best single image is UK-based photographer, Jonathan Berman for his infrared shot, In Tresco Abbey Gardens. The Best Portfolio Prize is awarded to Sebastian Kaps, from Germany, for Georgengarten: a collection of six images illustrating the landscape garden at Dessau, Germany, following a heavy snowfall. The Young Garden Photographer of the Year title goes to 15-year-old Kat Waters for the best single image from an under 16 year old. The category winners are Deborah Casso, Paul Debois, Jonathan Berman, Colin Varndell, Dennis Frates and Bapi Chakraborty.

In a new departure for Fujifilm Professional, its Distinctions Awards will now be open to photographers right across the world. As in previous years the Awards has an open brief and is open to any photographer - professional, enthusiast or student. The only stipulation is that submissions must have been originated on film from Fujifilm’s range of professional or consumer films. Images are scanned and then submitted via the Distinctions website, www.fujifilmdistinctions.co.uk - the closing date for entries is 1 September 2009. Entry is free and photographers can submit as many images as they like.

You could win a National Geographic Expedition for two to the Galapagos Islands and be featured in an advert in the 2009 Energizer Ultimate Photo Contest. Beginning today until Tuesday, June 30th, there are six thematic categories to enter: animals/wildlife, nature, travel, people and cultures, weather and inspiration/Keep Going. Photos must be submitted online. No print or film submissions will be accepted. Acclaimed National Geographic photographer Jim Richardson will be judging the contest. The Grand Prize Winner will be announced on or about October 15th.

DivePhotoGuide.com and Wetpixel.com have announced the winners of the 2009 DEEP Indonesia international underwater photography competition. DEEP Indonesia is part of a unique international series of international underwater imagery competitions founded by professional underwater photographers Jason Heller & Eric Cheng and hosted by popular websites DivePhotoGuide.com and Wetpixel.com, collaboratively with DEEP Indonesia, Indonesia’s first and only watersports expo. Photographers from around the globe competed in seven themed categories (Divers, Animal Portraits, Animal Behavior, Reefscapes, Environment & Conservation, Compact Camera, and Indonesian Residents) to win over $30,000 in prizes. The category winners are Edvin Eng, Marina Kochetova (twice), Gabriele Donati, Marchione Giacomo, John Trone and Maria Rivarola.

Lenovo and Microsoft have announced that the Shutter Sisters, otherwise known as Jen Lemen and Stephanie Roberts, are the winners of the Name Your Dream Assignment competition. Over 1,300 people voted for the Shutter Sisters to fulfill their dream - “Picture Hope.”  The Shutter Sisters will soon be traveling around five continents to capture hope in surprising places. As winners, Jen and Stephanie receive a Lenovo W700ds, Microsoft Vista, Microsoft Expression Media 2, and $50,000 to live out their dream. The two runners up, The World in a Bubble and The Travelling Poet Project, each receive a Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds and Microsoft Expression Media. The 20 finalists all receive a copy of Microsoft Expression Media 2.

Website: Name Your Dream Assignment

The Photography.Book.Now International Juried Competition today announced prize packages for all levels of achievement in its photography book competition. Prizes will be awarded to the most creative and innovative photography books in three categories –Fine Art, Editorial, and Commercial. The grand prize winner gets $25,000. Click through / read on to learn what the category winners and runners-up are going to receive.

Nature’s Best magazine has an ongoing photography competition, which is open for entries until 4 May 2009. The annual Windland Smith Rice International Awards programme evolved from the magazine’s mission of celebrating the beauty and diversity of nature through the art of photography to become one of the world’s greatest nature photography competitions boasting over 20,000 entries each year. There are 17 categories to choose from, and you can submit up to 20 entries. The entry fee is $25. The main reason for entering this competition is that the winning images will be featured in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in an exhibition dedicated to Nature’s Best Photography. The winning images will also be featured in the Fall issue of Nature’s Best, and in featured online galleries on AOL.com and MSNBC.com.

Website: Guidelines and entry form

International Garden Photographer of the Year has announced the theme for its annual Early Bird summer competition. This year’s theme is “In Full Bloom.” The deadline is 30 June 2009. The judges will then look through all entries received up to that date and decide which ones fit the theme best. All entries will go through automatically to the main International Garden Photographer of the Year competition, whose deadline is 30 November. Meanwhile, an exhibition of photos submitted to last year’s competition will be on display at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, from May to September 2009.

Website: Enter the competition

The Travel Photographer of the Year 2009 competition is now open for entries. Any photographer, amateur and professional, aged 17 years and over from any country can enter the three Portfolio categories and the One Shot category. The New Talent, First Shot and Young travel Photographer of the Year categories all have restrictions on entry as follows: New Talent is for photographic students, amateur or semi-professional photographers only. First Shot category is for amateur photographers only. Young Travel Photographer of the Year is for photographers aged 16 and under. Entries close on 22nd September 2009. The entry fee is £15 for each portfolio category, £20 for New Talent, £10 for One Shot and First Shot and free for Young Travel Photographer of the Year.

The Art of Photography Show, an international photo exhibition which will take place 29 August through 1 November, is now open for entries. Images created via any form of photography will be accepted for consideration , so long as part of the image is photographically created. The total worth of the awards is $10,000, up from $5,000 last year. Do note that there is an entry fee, which is $25 for the first entry, and $10 for each additional entry.

David Zimmerman has been announced as the winner of L’Iris D’Or Award, the 2009 Sony World Photography Awards Photographer of the Year. Zimmerman received the award at this year’s Sony World Photography Awards Gala ceremony in Cannes, France on Thursday 16 April. The American photographer’s entry in the Landscape category beat off stiff competition from some of the world’s finest photographers to win the title, accompanied by a $25,000 cash prize along with Sony camera equipment. His winning landscape series “Desert? hauntingly depicts the American southwest desert environment as a fragile ecosystem. The eleven other professional category 2009 winners also collected their awards at the ceremony.