Rotary Young Photographer

Photography has the power to capture special places, moments and memories.

The Rotary Young Photographer competition gives participants the chance to express themselves through photography, whilst interpreting the competition’s annual theme in an imaginative way.

2025-26 Theme - "Happiness in Nature"

Age Categories

The competition is open to young people in three age groups:

Junior Up to 10 years

Intermediate 11 – 13 years

Senior 14 – 17 years

Competition Information

The Rotary Young Photographer competition is run over three stages; club level, district and the national final.

The deadline for entries for the District round 2025/26 is Saturday 28th March 2026. Late entries will not be accepted – the independent, non-Rotarian judges need adequate time to carefully assess the entries.

Resources for the Public

Competition specific Information Packs, and a poster are available to the public in the Rotary Youth Competitions pages of the website. Those interested in finding out more please contact your local Rotary club in the first instance. The various competition Information Packs are published here.

For non-Rotarians interested in finding out more please contact your local Rotary club in the first instance. Schools should contact their local Rotary club to arrange entry to club heats. Clubs can determin their own rules/requirements (but see note below re entry to District). Each club will decide their own entry deadline, but this will generally be by early January to allow one month for the club winning entries to be assessed by them for entry to District.

Resources for Rotarians

Download information and entry forms from here - Rotarians will need to be logged in to gain access .

**Please note: If you do not print off the form and you would like to use the interactive version, please save a copy to your computer before you start inputting. If you do not save the form to your computer, you will lose all inputted information

The Information Pack contains everything a Rotary club needs to know about offering these competitions to young people in their community. The rules change (generally only minimally) from year to year. The theme changes each year. Please ensure you look at the current year's Information Pack!

Club entries should be e-mailed (with a fully completed, current-year, and signed entry form - please scan as a separate attachment) to Howard Ferdinando. The entry guidelines document is on the Rotary GB&I website. Every club may submit one entry in each age category - this would normally be the winners of the club competition. For clubs who engage with more than one school I will accept one entry per age category per school - should a club not be able to decide on just a single entry. Digital copies only are needed as this is now the procedure for entry to Rotary GB&I. 

Rotarians are encouraged to carefully read the rules - these have changed in the last two or three years, and in short:

• Only one photo is required. (Note: If 3 are sent as per the old rules, then the judges will use discretion to pick the best and to judge that one). 
• Prints are NOT required. Digital only - to be e-mailed. It is recommended that pictures are sent as .jpg files of between 1 and 2 megabytes. It is required that the maximum must not exceed 15MB.

District 1180 Competition History

2025 competition:

District Winner (Senior) Lewis Turner, sponsored by Roydon Revolve Rotary Club. This was sent to RGBI as the D1180 entry, but did not win through. There was tough competition.

No entries were received for the 2024 competition.

No entries were received for the 2023 competition.

The 2022 competition saw no entries - for understandable reasons.

The 2021 competition results:

The District winner (Intermediate) was Sarah Gajdos (Wirral Grammar School for Girls). There were no entries for the other categories - the coronavirus pandemic was presumably the cause.

Sarah's entry went to RGBI as the District entry, but did not win. Competition was tough.

The 2019 competition results:

Senior - Peter Cliough, entered by Bebington

Intermediate - Anthony Marriott, entered by Bebington

Junior - no qualifying entries (see note below!). The entry from Izzy Devereaux, via Liverpool South club, was assessed as "winner", but (on several technicalities) could not be sent to Rotary GB&I.

The 2018 competition results:

Junior - Philippa Graybrook, sponsored by the RC of Nantwich . Her photos are displayed here. The set theme was "a different perspective" and Philippa looked at the flowers from the bird's perspective, then looked at the bird from another perspective........very imaginative for a 10 year old, and excellent photography too.

Intermediate - Poppi Thomson, sponsored by the RC of Liverpool South 

These two winning entries were submitted to Rotary GB&I as the District entries. Philippa Graybrook's entry was placed 3rd nationally - well done to Philippa. Rotary GB&I judges comment was "Good composition, colour, using good angles".