Now in its third edition, Stories is a series-based award designed to celebrate the best in photographic narrative. In 2022, along with our existing awards focused on Australian photography, we are excited to launch a new Stories category open to photographers world-wide. We see this as an opportunity to further celebrate Australian photography on an international stage.

Operated by Photo Collective and supported by Picter, Momento Pro, Nikon Australia and PPIB, Stories seeks traditional, artful and new modes of storytelling which reflect our current times.

PLEASE NOTE:

The Australian Category is for Australian residents and Australians living abroad. Themes and content do not need to be Australian and can be made anywhere in the world.

The International Category is open to all photographers residing outside of Australia. Themes and content can be made anywhere in the world.

What winners receive

The three winning Stories (2x Australian, 1x International) will be announced at the 2022 Stories Event in Melbourne, Australia and through our social media platforms, email database and the Photo Collective website. Shortlisted finalists will continue to be profiled, shared and featured through our channels throughout the year.

Australian Prize 1

• Cash Prize AU$2,000
• Nikon Z Camera Kit to the value of AU$4,000
• Featured in the 2022 Stories Publication
• Exhibited at the 2022 Stories Event in Melbourne, Australia (event costs covered by Photo Collective)
• Momento Pro voucher AU$375

Australian Prize 2

• Cash Prize AU$2,000
• Nikon Z Camera Kit to the value of AU$4,000
• Featured in the 2022 Stories Publication
• Exhibited at the 2022 Stories Event in Melbourne, Australia (event costs covered by Photo Collective)
• Momento Pro voucher AU$375

International Prize

• Cash Prize AU$3,000
• Featured in the 2022 Stories Publication
• Exhibited at the 2022 Stories Event in Melbourne, Australia (event costs covered by Photo Collective)

ABOUT PHOTO COLLECTIVE

Since 2014, we have been immersed in the discovery of diverse imagery.

Photo collective represents photographers, advocates, educators and curators working towards the collective goal of celebrating and contributing to the changing ecology of Australian photography. We achieve this through award recognition, publications, exhibitions, community engagement initiatives and educational programs.

Initial Judging

Once entries close, our in-house committee will consider all Stories through a scoring system. During scoring the panel is free to discuss anything that may aid in judging the Stories. For example this may include explaining an uncommon technique used or identifying subject matter. The highest scoring 20 submissions from the Australian Category and 20 submissions from the International Category will then be shortlisted for the next round of judging. In the event of multiple Stories being tied, the panel may re-score the submissions in the tie, and discuss the merits of each body of work to come to a final decision. Once they have selected the top 20 submissions across both categories they will manually review all entries to ensure nothing was overlooked. If they feel there are more than 20 submissions in either category which are serious contenders they will bring them in for the next round. All 40 shortlisted entrants will then be contacted by email and a public announcement will be made via email, social channels and through our website.

Final Judging

Following initial judging, the Australian Category committee members will discuss and review each of the 20 finalist Stories. The committee will have the opportunity to preview all submissions before judging commences. Each entry is then scored and deliberated over to determine the final outcome. In the event of multiple entries being tied, the judging committee will discuss the merits of each of the entries to come to a final decision. All 20 finalists in the Australian Category will be included in the Stories Publication and Event.

The International Category committee members will also discuss and review each of the 20 shortlisted Stories, before selecting 10 finalists to be included in the 2022 Stories Publication and Event. The committee will have the opportunity to preview all submissions before judging commences. Each entry is then scored and deliberated over to determine the final outcome. In the event of multiple entries being tied, the judging committee will discuss the merits of each of the entries to come to a final decision. We believe this discussion and deliberation allows the judging committee to work together to deliver the best possible outcome for the entrants.

Winners Announcements

The three winning Stories (2x Australian, 1x International) will be announced at the Stories 2022 Event and through our social media platforms, email database and website. The 20 Australian Category and 10 International Category finalists will also be published in the Stories 2022 Annual and will continue to be profiled, shared and featured through our channels throughout the year.

Other judging considerations

Administrators and employees of Photo Collective are not allowed to enter Stories. Neither is the judging committee for Stories allowed to enter. We are committed to ensuring that all entrants are treated equally regardless of their background or notoriety. We ensure our committee is held to the highest standard of ethics and every submission is treated with the same amount of time and respect. When discussing the finalists, if committee members know the image or creator, they will acknowledge this briefly before presenting their ideas and thoughts so that this can be taking into consideration.

Harriet Tarbuck & Tom Goldner

Co-Creative Directors at Photo Collective

Harriet is a photographer, curator and educator. Living and working across Australia, the UK and Asia, Harriet's passion for photography is created through her want and need to connect with people and hear their stories. Across her work, Harriet aims to show that through our own unique experiences there are genuine threads that connect us all.

Since completing her photographic studies at Leeds College of Art and Design in the UK, Harriet has spent fourteen years fostering community engagement through photography, while living in Melbourne.

Tom Goldner is an Australian artist, curator and teacher of photography residing on Wurundjeri country in Sherbrooke, Victoria. His career spans art, commercial projects, education, fundraising, gallery management and community engagement initiatives.

Goldner's creative practice is positioned within the expanded documentary genre of photography. His projects utilise a multifaceted, collaborative and experimental approach to storytelling. His projects have been exhibited regularly in Australia, published internationally and held in both private and public collections.

Harriet and Tom hold the position of co-creative director at Photo Collective - an organisation dedicated to finding meaning and sharing knowledge through photography.

Anne Moffat

Anne Moffat (b. 1991) is a photographer working across an array of editorial, commercial and personal projects currently based in Melbourne, Australia on unceded Wurundjeri land. Anne draws on familial ties to Malaysia, China, and New Zealand, as well as family migration to Australia, to inform her social documentation and portraiture.

Anne's work has recently been awarded Jury's Choice in the Prix Virginia (2021), as well as shortlisted in the British Journal of Photography's Portrait of Humanity (2020), the Singapore International Photography Festival Portfolio Open Call (2020), and the William and Winifred Bowness Photography Prize (2019).

Anne's most recent project, Forget Me Not 勿忘我 is currently exhibiting at the Centre for Contemporary Photography in Melbourne until 27 June 2021. Her images have been shown around Australia, internationally, and even in space (as part of a world first major exhibition over 111,000 feet into the stratosphere).

Anne complements her practice with a Bachelor of Science and Diploma of Languages from The University of Melbourne, and is a member of Women Photograph, Diversify Photo and Authority Collective.

Stephen Dupont

Stephen Dupont is an Australian artist who works with photography, video and print. Working in the field of documentary, he enjoys certain magazine assignments, but is mostly committed to long term personal projects. He moves within the editorial, art and film worlds. Born in Sydney in 1967, he grew up in the western suburbs and Southern Highlands under tough social conditions and displacement, with social worker parents, who were full-time carers of state wards.

Stephen is recognised around the world for his concerned photography on the human condition, war and climate, earning him dozens of prizes including the 2007 W. Eugene Smith Grant for Humanistic Photography for his work in Afghanistan, the 2010 Robert Gardner Fellowship from Harvard University, a Robert Capa Gold Medal Citation, the Olivier Rebbot Award and several World Press Photo Awards. He holds a Masters degree in Philosophy, enjoys teaching workshops and giving public talks around photography, film and his life. Dozens of books and catalogues on Stephen's photography and diaries have been published, (Steidl, NYPL, Radius, PowerHouse, Yale & Aperture).

Stephen likes to explore new and innovative ways through photography, often collaborating with other artists, writers and creatives through books, exhibitions, film and theatre,(Gerhard Steidl, Jacques Menasche, David Field, Tim Page)

Angus Scott

Angus Scott (b.1991) is a lens-based artist and visual editor living and working on Wurundjeri Country in Melbourne, Australia.

Working with both still and moving image, Angus' creative practice is anchored in land and culture; the overlapping influences of where we live and who we are. Informed by familial narratives, national myths and connection to landscape, his work oscillates between poetic and observational forms of documentary storytelling.

In 2021, Angus was the recipient of the inaugural OD Prize and was then exhibited in London as part of the winter program by Open Doors Gallery. In the same year, he exhibited his large format, two-channel video installation, Do Brumbies Dream in Red? in Narrm/Melbourne. Angus' debut monograph, Teetering like a September myth was released in 2022.

As an editor for Photo Collective, Angus spends his days immersed in Australian photography with a strong focus on visual narrative. He collaboratively assists in the production of written content and short films along with the compilation of publications such as Photo Collective Magazine.

Akosua Viktoria Adu-Sanyah

Akosua (pronounced ‘A-koss-ya) Viktoria Adu-Sanyah is an internationally exhibited and published German-Ghanaian visual artist and documentary photographer based in Zürich, Switzerland. Her work is frequently awarded for exploring new territories through image-making, research, and human connection. She believes in the diversity of thought and expression, which results in various practices that inform each other: she equally engages in documentary work and conceptual arts. Published in Bloomberg, npr, DerBund, and others.

Paul McDonald

Paul McDonald is a socially engaged artist, educator and curator whose personal practice explores masculinity and mental health. His photographic work has been published both nationally and internationally.

He was recently commissioned by 'The Dax Centre' Melbourne and BridgingHope Charity to produce and exhibit his first major solo exhibition 'resonance' in response to the Cunningham Dax Collection. Paul gained experience as a senior manager in the private sector from 2000-2008. From 2008-2012 he held senior management positions, Associate Director at Australian Centre for Photography. From 2012-2014 he was gallery Director at 10x8 gallery, Sydney. In 2014 he founded Contact Sheet, St Leonard's NSW, where he is currently self-employed as Director.

Paul completed his MA in Photojournalism and Documentary Photography at University of the Arts London in December 2016 with Distinction. He currently is a lecturer at Macleay College teaching Photojournalism, News Photography and MOJO(Mobile Journalism).

As Director of Contact Sheet Paul curated and presented over 50 exhibitions, a series of free public programs attracting an audience of over 7,500 visitors and provided a structured mentoring program to over 60 clients, workshops for over 180 clients and hosted over 15 internships in partnership with local colleges and Universities. Since 2009 Paul has developed and presented a number of participatory programs discussing social issues and engaging with local communities and diverse groups.