Entries open for Norwich’s 2026 Beyond the Frame photography competition

Norwich University of the Arts is excited to launch its Beyond the Frame photography competition for 2026.

Beyond the Frame encourages young photographers to develop their craft and showcase their talent. The competition, which launched in 2017, is open to students aged 11 to 19 in the UK and around the world, who are in full-time secondary or further education.

This year, professional photographers David Vintiner and Ellie Rothnie join the judging panel.

David is a London-based photographer whose projects focus on human behaviour, exploring unique communities and the rituals and events that connect people. Alongside his personal practice David works on editorial and commercial projects for the likes of The Guardian, Wired, The New York Times & TIME.

Ellie is an internationally acclaimed wildlife photographer, speaker and Canon Ambassador. Her practice reflects an enduring love of animal portraiture, featuring species in her native UK as well as Europe, East Africa, Japan and North and Central America.

David and Ellie will be joined on the judging panel by James Smith, Course Leader for BA (Hons) Photography at Norwich.

The competition award categories for 2026 are:

• 11-15 age category
• 16-19 age category
• People: For people-focused imagery, such as portraiture, fashion or editorial.
• Places: For imagery such as culture, nature, architecture, or landscape photography
• Things: For imagery such as still life, food, product, lifestyle or fine art photography

Winners in age categories will receive a Canon EOS R50 Camera, while winning and shortlisted students will have the opportunity to see their work on show at our Beyond the Frame exhibition in July next year.

Last year’s competition received over 400 entries, with 50 students making it to the final shortlist.

To find out more about the competition, including entry requirements and details of how to submit work, visit the Beyond the Frame website.

Images: ‘Bella Ramsey’ by David Vintiner and ‘Keel Billed Toucan at Dawn’ by Ellie Rothnie