Open Call Award October 2026
Theme: Open Call Competition Judge: Maggie Steber
With no explicit lead, the Open Call competition is designed to invite photographers of all ages, backgrounds, and experiences to share with us their best images.
Make sure to sign up for the newsletter and join us over on Facebook, Instagram, and X where we’ll be sharing all our favorite images from the competition. Congratulations to all the talented photographers who made it to the final!
Finalists
Jury's Feedback
1ST PRIZE: Woo Jung Choi
“This photograph goes beyond beautiful and is dreamlike and takes the viewer into a very magical place. It has an ethereal quality, and it speaks to a culture that has a present tied to the past. To me, it is about cultural preservation.” — Maggie Steber, VII Photographer
2ND PRIZE: Amihay Shraga
“There is a melancholy feeling to this image, and it feels painterly. The colors in the image, a kind of blue and a warm backdrop, kept me looking at this quiet man in his moment of ritual. It is a photograph that holds me.” — Maggie Steber, VII Photographer
3RD PRIZE: Eisa Almaazmi
“A beautiful image that captures the delicate, intricate beauty of this unique insect. Framed in its natural habitat, between cascading mint-green desert stems against the darkness of the night, the fine patterns of its wings and striking turquoise eye are brought into focus. The image speaks to the photographer’s patience, sensitivity, and technical skill in capturing a subject so rarely seen, offering a glimpse into a little-known part of the natural world.” –The Independent Photographer Editors
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© Maggie Steber
Judge: Maggie Steber
Maggie Steber is an internationally acclaimed documentary photographer and Guggenheim Fellow renowned for her deeply empathetic visual storytelling across 72 countries. Featured in 16 National Geographic stories and named one of its 11 Women of Vision, Steber’s storied career includes leading a Pulitzer Prize-winning photography team at The Miami Herald and earning prestigious honors such as the Leica Medal of Excellence, a World Press Photo Award, and the Lucie Award. A dedicated mentor, Steber teaches internationally at institutions such as the World Press Photo Joop Swart Masterclass and the International Center for Photography. She is a contributing photographer to the VII Foundation.
