The Judging Process

How does judging work?

It’s an important process for the judges, as each image must be judged in a professional manner. When the winners are announced we need to feel confident that the process has been fair and taken seriously.

The whole process takes over five weeks. It includes four different rounds of judging, each with a different panel of judges. Both the adult and youth competition are judged in the same way.

There are four rounds of judging:

Round 1 (9 - 21 May):

Judges allocate each image a score.
Each image is looked at by two different judges.
The cumulative score dictates who will go on to the next round.

Round 2 (23 - 28 May):

Judges allocate each image a score.
Each image is looked at by two different judges.
The cumulative score dictates who will go on to the next round.

All entries contacted with shortlisting results (30 May - 10 June)

All entrants are contacted during this period.
They will be told whether they have made it to the shortlist.
If you are successful at this stage, we will ask you to send us the RAW file to be evaluated in the next round.

Round 3 - Technical Round (13 - 17 June):

In this round, our technical judge will look at the RAW file for every shortlisted image.
They take great care to ensure that the images comply with the rules for each category.

For example, in Classic View, the integrity of the subject must be maintained and the making of physical changes to the landscape is not permitted. So you may not move trees or strip in the sky from another image.

Any images which do not comply with the rules will not make it to the next round, so make sure to read the full Competition Rules before you enter!

Round 4 (20 - 24 June):

This is the final round of judging, with a new set of judges. The Overall Winner is the image with the highest overall score out of all the main four categories.

In the event of a tie, head judge Charlie Waite makes the final decision.

Here's a video explanation of the process by Charlie:

Who are this year's judges?

We are so pleased to have a fantastic panel involved for 2022, our 15th awards.

Judging your entries are editors for leading industry magazines, writers, broadcasters, journalists and commissioners, as well as a number of highly talented professional landscape photographers.

The range of judges brings a wealth of experience, expertise and passion for photography.

Take a look at the panel for 2022.

Every year, we are blown away by the standard of entries we receive, so it's a difficult job for all the judges involved. We hope you’ve found this explanation of the judging process helpful.

Good luck!