Council governance & administration

Australian Life Photography Competition 2025

Published

Terms and conditions

The Council of the City of Sydney ABN 22 636 550 790 (City) delivers an annual art program (Art & About Sydney) which includes an annual Australian Life Photography Competition (Competition).

By submitting an entry into the 2025 Competition, each entrant (you) and where you are under the age of 18, your parent/guardian, acknowledge and agree to the following terms and conditions:

  1. Entry

    1. The 2025 Competition is free to enter.
    2. The 2025 Competition has two age group categories: entrants aged 13-17 years old and entrants 18 years old and over.
    3. You must be 13 years or older to enter the 2025 Competition.
    4. Where you are under the age of 18:
      1. you must have the consent of your parent/guardian to enter;
      2. your parent/guardian must read the completed entry form, and read and agree these terms and conditions, for your entry to be valid; and
      3. your photo must be taken
    5. You must be an Australian citizen or have permanent resident status in Australia to enter the Competition.
    6. You may be required to provide evidence to demonstrate eligibility for the 2025 Competition.
    7. You can submit a maximum of one entry to the 2025 Competition (each entry comprising up to two photographs). If multiple entries from you are received by the City, only the first entry received first will be eligible for consideration.
    8. Your photograph must:
      1. have been taken in Australia between 2 April 2024 and 2 April 2025;
      2. be created with a camera (including a camera phone);
      3. not use or include any synthetic or artificially generated images or elements (including generative fill in post-production); and
      4. not have been created or developed, in whole or in part, using any generative artificial intelligence tools.
    9. To enter the 13-17 years old age group category, you must have been under the age of 18 when your photograph was taken.
    10. The 2025 Competition commences Thursday 20 February 2025. You must submit your entry to the City by 11.59pm AEST on Wednesday 2 April 2025. Late or lost entries will not be considered.
    11. Your entry must:
      1. meet and be submitted in accordance with the specifications outlined on the entry form (Specifications); and
      2. include a completed online entry form.
    12. You may be required to provide evidence to demonstrate that your entry meets the requirements set out in these terms and conditions, including supply of file(s) as recorded by the camera (original RAW files or equivalent).
    13. You, and any identifiable person in the photograph, may be asked to sign a model release as a condition for inclusion of your photograph in the 2025 Competition.

  2. Judging entries

    1. The judging panel selected by the City will judge each valid entry in accordance with the Specifications and will select up to 30 entries (finalists), comprising up to 20 entries from the 18 years old and over age group category and up to 10 entries from the 13-17 years old age group category. The decision of the panel is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
    2. The judging panel selected by the City will select one finalist in each age group category as having the most outstanding entries as the winner of the Australian Life Photography Prize for their respective age group category (major winners). The decision of the panel is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
    3. A Peoples' Choice Award is also available for one entrant. Voting will be online at www.artandabout.com.au and anyone may vote. Voting opens 9am on Thursday 24 July 2025 and closes 11.59pm on Sunday 10 August 2025. The entrant who receives the most online votes wins the People's Choice Award (minor winner) and no correspondence will be entered into.
    4. Finalists, major winners, and the minor winner will be notified by phone and email by a representative of the City.

  3. Renumeration and prize

    1. Each finalist will be paid a fee of AUD$500 (plus GST if applicable) payable by deposit to the finalist's nominated bank account. If a finalist does not provide account details to the City within three (3) weeks of being notified by the City then the City reserves the right not to pay that fee.
    2. The major winner of the over 18 years old age group category will be awarded the Australian Life Photography Prize of AUD $10,000 (plus GST if applicable) payable by deposit to the finalist's nominated bank account.
    3. The major winner of the 13-17 years old age group category will be awarded the Australian Life Photography Prize of AUD $2,000 (plus GST if applicable) payable by deposit to the finalist’s nominated bank account and an OM System camera pack having a recommended retail price of $2,499 (GST inclusive).
    4. If the major winners do not redeem the prize within three (3) weeks of being notified by the City then the prize will be forfeited. There will be no further unclaimed prize determinations, i.e. no further selection of an alternative winner by the City or the panel of judges.
    5. The minor winner will receive a prize of an OM System professional camera pack having a recommended retail price of $5,398 (GST inclusive). This prize is not transferable, exchangeable, or redeemable for cash. If the minor winner does not claim the prize within three (3) weeks of being notified by the City then the prize will be forfeited with no further prize determinations or alternative winner.

  4. Copyright and moral rights

    1. Clause 4 applies to each finalist, major winner and minor winner only.
    2. You, and where you are under the age of 18, your parent/guardian, grant the City an irrevocable worldwide licence to reproduce, publish, and communicate to the public your photograph (or any part of it):
      1. in any media format, including but not limited to advertisements, postcards, brochures, posters, television/print media, websites, social media, apps, publications and reports;
      2. for the purposes of:
        1. the 2025 Competition, including any associated event, exhibition or catalogue;
        2. publicity and promotion of Art & About Sydney and the Competition; and
        3. inclusion in the City's archives.
    3. You acknowledge and agree that the City may adapt your photograph where necessary, including but not limited to adapting the photograph for the online gallery, for any large format reproduction for exhibition, or for use in Art & About Sydney or Competition media and marketing campaigns.
    4. You, and where you are under the age of 18, your parent/guardian, warrant that you are the owner of all intellectual property rights in the photograph, or have obtained all necessary approvals and consents to permit the entry of the photograph into the 2025 Competition and for use of the photograph in accordance with these terms and conditions.
    5. Photography that infringes the intellectual property rights of any person will be immediately removed from the 2025 Competition and you must return to the City any remuneration or prize money paid to you by the City.
    6. Where the City includes your photograph in an exhibition of the 2025 Competition, you will be acknowledged on signage that lists your name and the title of the photograph and, subject to you providing consent, your contact details.
    7. Where the City uses your photograph in Art & About and Competition materials and publicity, on the City's website, and on the Art & About Sydney website, the City will use its best endeavours to acknowledge you as the creator of the photograph.

  5. Release and indemnity

    1. Clause 5 applies to each finalist, major winner and minor winner only.
    2. You, and where you are under the age of 18, your parent/guardian, release the City from any claim, damage, expense, loss, cost or liability with respect to:
      1. the infringement of your moral rights in connection with your photograph; and
      2. the use of your photograph by the City in accordance with these terms and conditions.
    3. You, and where you are under the age of 18, your parent/guardian, agree to indemnify the City against any claim, damage, expense, loss, cost (including reasonable legal costs) or liability (including liabilities of the City to third parties) arising out of or in connection with:
      1. infringement of any intellectual property rights in respect of your photograph;
      2. use of your photograph by the City in accordance with these terms and conditions; and
      3. the 2025 Competition.

  6. Exhibitions and events

    1. This clause 6 applies to each finalist, major winner and minor winner only.
    2. The City will exhibit reproductions of selected photographs from the 2025 Competition in Customs House from July 2025.
    3. The City will publish the finalists' and major winners' photographs on the Art & About Sydney website www.artandabout.com.au from July 2025.
    4. You agree to attend the City's official exhibition of 2025 Competition entries, and/or related events and media opportunities, and agree to do so with no fee or further remuneration being paid to you, other than as set out in these terms and conditions.
    5. If you are under the age of 18, your parent/guardian must accompany you when attending 2025 Competition related activities.

  7. Large format reproduced photograph

    1. Clause 7 applies to each finalist, major winner and minor winner only.
    2. Any large format reproduction of the photograph produced by the City, including reproductions for the purposes of exhibition, will be the property of the City.
    3. If your photograph was included in the City's official exhibition of 2025 Competition entries described in clause 6(b), the City will send you the large format reproduction of your photograph if it has not been lost or destroyed, once it is no longer required by the City.
    4. The City takes no responsibility for the reproduction whilst in transit, or if it is lost or damaged.
    5. Upon your receipt of the reproduction of the photograph, it will become your property.

  8. GST

    1. If a photograph provided by a finalist, minor winner or major winner is a taxable supply, then as consideration in whole or in part for a taxable supply the person receiving the supply (the City) must pay to the party making the supply (supplier) an additional amount equal to the amount of GST payable on the supply unless that consideration is expressed to be inclusive of GST.
    2. No later than 14 days after the date of payment of any GST the supplier must provide to the City a valid tax invoice.
    3. If you are not registered or required to be registered for GST then the supplier must give the City a "statement by the supplier" and other documentation the City reasonably requests.
    4. For the purposes of these terms and conditions "GST", "tax invoice" and "taxable supply" have the meaning given in A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (Cth).
    5. Any amount paid to a finalist, major winner or minor winner for the 2025 Competition pursuant to these terms and conditions is prize money. Nothing in these terms and conditions, or the conduct of the Competition, renders you an employee, worker, agent, or partner of the City.

  9. General

    1. The 2025 Competition is a game of skill, and chance plays no part in determining the winner.
    2. Employees of the City and Councillors of the City, and their immediate families, are ineligible to enter the 2025 Competition.
    3. By entering the 2025 Competition, you, and where you are under the age of 18, your parent/guardian, acknowledge and accept these terms and conditions.
    4. The City may cancel or vary the 2025 Competition or these terms and conditions at any time. The City will not be responsible for any loss or costs incurred by you, or your parent/guardian if you are under the age of 18, in relation to such cancellation or variation.