Calling all photographers and visual artists! The Virginia Living Photography Awards celebrate the diverse beauty, culture, and creativity found across the Commonwealth. Here are the categories!
Submission Categories
💛
People & Lifestyle
Capture the spirit of Virginia! From candid moments with friends to captivating portraits, cozy interiors to vibrant street scenes, delicious meals to outdoor adventures—show us what makes life in Virginia special. Whether it’s a spontaneous laugh, your favorite local spot, or the way sunlight hits your morning coffee, we want to see Virginia through your lens. Let’s celebrate the people, places, and moments that make our state shine.
What We’re Looking For:
- Portrait photography (formal, informal, environmental, fashion)
- Architecture and interior design
- Food and culinary presentation
- Homes and gardens
- Sports and recreation
- Celebrations and events
🌱
Nature & Wildlife
Show us Virginia’s wild side! From the Blue Ridge Mountains to the sandy shores of Virginia Beach, backyard birds to forest creatures, blooming flowers to stormy skies—capture the natural beauty that surrounds you. Whether it’s a breathtaking sunset, a curious squirrel, morning dew on grass, or your favorite hiking trail, we want to see how Virginia’s outdoors moves you. Big or small, near or far, let’s celebrate the amazing nature right outside our door.
What We’re Looking For:
- Landscape photography (mountains, valleys, forests)
- Seascapes and waterways
- Wildlife in natural habitats
- Flora (wildflowers, trees, plants)
- Macro/close-up nature details
- Weather phenomena and seasonal changes
- Sunrise/sunset scenes
- Natural patterns and textures
Save the Date!
Submissions Open
📰
Documentary
Share your world with us! Documentary photography is all about capturing real, unposed moments that tell a story. Whether it’s a single powerful image or a series that unfolds a narrative, we want to see authentic slices of life that make people stop and look twice. From everyday moments to personal stories, community life to the world around us—if it’s genuine and tells a story, we’re interested. The key is combining good storytelling with solid technique, but the story always wins. Help us see the world through your eyes, one honest photo at a time!
What We’re Looking For:
- Single images, or Photo essays (3-5 images)
- Inspiring and uplifting, to gritty and unvarnished
- Real Stories, Real Moments
- Community Focus
- Story First, Technique Second
- Investigative visual journalism
- Historical documentation
- Storytelling through images
🎨
Experimental
Break the rules! This is where photography becomes pure art—no limits, no boundaries, just creative freedom. Mix techniques, bend reality, play with light, movement, and perspective in ways that surprise us. Whether you’re creating dreamy double exposures, wild abstract compositions, or something we’ve never seen before, show us Virginia through your wildest artistic vision. We’re looking for images that make people stop and say “How did they do that?” Innovation and creativity trump perfection every time. Go wild—we can’t wait to see what you dream up!
What We’re Looking For:
- Multiple exposures and composites
- Intentional camera movement (ICM)
- Abstract and conceptual photography
- Alternative processes and techniques
- Heavy post-processing and digital manipulation
- Mixed media incorporating photography
- Unconventional perspectives and angles
- Surreal or dreamlike interpretations
🤖
AI-Generated
Welcome to the exciting new genre photographic art! Create stunning images using AI tools like Midjourney, DALL-E, Stable Diffusion, or Adobe Firefly—the sky’s the limit. Dream up impossible worlds, fantastical creatures, surreal portraits, or mind-bending landscapes that could never exist through traditional photography. We’re looking for images that showcase your creativity and skill in guiding AI to bring your wildest visions to life. From photorealistic masterpieces to abstract dreamscapes, show us what happens when human imagination meets artificial intelligence. Ready to create the impossible? Remember to tell us which AI tools you used. Show us what you and AI can create together!
What We’re Looking For:
- Fully AI-generated images (any subject or theme)
- Photorealistic creations
- Fantasy and sci-fi imagery
- Abstract and conceptual art
- Impossible architectures and landscapes
- Surreal portraits and characters
- Creative prompt-based explorations
- Must disclose: AI platform and tools used
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