Intrepid photographers with social media skills are in luck: everyone’s favorite photo sharing platform Instagram has teamed up with Getty Images to offer $10,000 photography grants to three lucky winners (see 10 Tips for Promoting Yourself (and Your Art) on Instagram).
However, instead of using their photo skills to snap selfies and expertly arranged pictures of their meals, contestants must focus on documenting underrepresented communities. The purpose of the grant is not only to support up-and-coming photographers, but also to continue to attract a diverse, global audience. And if your Instagram feed becomes just a little less brunch-centric along the way, well, that’s just a bonus.
“Photographers in all corners of the world use the Instagram platform to share unique and authentic stories that otherwise rarely come into focus,” Elodie Mailliet Storm, Getty Images senior director of content partnerships, stated in a press release. “Getty Images is guided by our belief in the power of pictures to move the world and we are excited to collaborate with Instagram on this grant to support and amplify new and important voices.”
Participants can upload as many entries as they want, tagging them with the hashtag #GettyImagesInstagramGrant. In September, a panel of veteran photographers will make their selections based on “the existing body of work represented on their Instagram account, focusing on the quality of their imagery, their photographic skills and on the project and stories told through their photos.”
Three budding photographers will each walk away with mentorship from a Getty photographer, a feature in the 2015 Photoville festival, and a $10,000 cash prize. The deadline for submissions is June 4.
For more information on the contest, visit Getty Images.