Short Description:
The Paris Photo–Aperture PhotoBook Awards are an annual celebration of the photobook’s enduring role within the narrative of photography. The awards, established in 2012, recognize excellence in three major categories of photobook publishing: First PhotoBook, PhotoBook of the Year, and Photography Catalog of the Year. Each year winners are selected from among nearly one thousand books submitted by artists and publishers from around the world.
The PhotoBook Awards is juried for both the shortlist and final selection. The shortlist jury will convene in New York for three concentrated days of review and deliberation to select thirty-five distinguished books in the three prize categories. The 2025 shortlist is juried by leading figures in the field of photography:
- Brendan Embser, senior editor, Aperture
- Florian Koenigsberger, image equity lead, Google
- Paul Moakley, executive producer, The New Yorker
- Anna Planas, artistic director, Paris Photo
- Keisha Scarville, artist
The final jury of the PhotoBook Awards, composed of five members, will meet at the Grand Palais, Paris, in November to award a winner for each prize category. The winners will be announced at Paris Photo and online on Friday, November 14. The final jury for the 2025 Paris Photo–Aperture PhotoBook Awards will be announced soon.
Application Requirements:
- Generate your submission form via the contest page
- Complete payment
- Send one copy of each submitted photobook with your submission form(s) to Aperture’s offices in New York by September 5, 2025
You will need to provide the following information for each book submitted:
- Book title, year of publication, and publisher information
- A short description, or summary, of the book that includes a few words about which prize category best fits the book
- Full names of the photographer or artist, designer, and editor
- Book dimensions, number of pages, edition number or print run
- A short description of where your book can be purchased or acquired
- An image or render of the book cover (JPG file)
Shipping your book(s):
All books must be received before 5 p.m. (EDT) on September 5, 2025. Please note: This year all books should be mailed to Aperture’s Chelsea address in New York City. This date does not include postmark. All entries must be physically received by this date, and there will be no refunds if the books are not delivered on time. Books should be sent to the following address:
Aperture
ATTN: PhotoBook Awards
548 W 28th Street, Floor 4
New York, NY 10001
Please note: Books must arrive at Aperture’s Chelsea office with a printed copy of their submission form. You can print out the submission form on Picter. For detailed instructions on printing the submission form, see here.
Eligibility:
Open worldwide
Program Benefits or Awards:
The First PhotoBook Prize
A $10,000 prize is awarded to the photographer(s) or artist(s) whose first finished, publicly available photobook is judged to be the best of the year. Twenty books will be shortlisted in this category, presented to the jury for final selection, and exhibited during Paris Photo.
The PhotoBook of the Year Prize
This prize is awarded to the photographer(s) or artist(s) and the publisher of the photobook judged to be the best of the year. Ten books will be shortlisted in this category, presented to the jury for final selection, and exhibited during Paris Photo.
The Photography Catalog of the Year Prize
This prize is awarded to the publication, publisher, and/or organizing institution responsible for the exhibition catalog or museum publication judged to be the best of the year. Five books will be shortlisted in this category, presented to the jury for final selection, and exhibited during Paris Photo.
Exhibition
The thirty-five shortlisted books, accompanied by the jury’s statements, will be on view at Paris Photo. In addition to a presentation at Paris Photo, all the shortlisted books and the winners in each category are exhibited around the world, ensuring maximum exposure for all the titles.
In past years, venues have included Backlight, Tampere, Finland; Copenhagen Photo Festival, Denmark; Flash Forward Festival, Boston; Fotofestiwal, Lodz, Poland; FotoFocus, Cincinnati; Huis Marseille, Amsterdam; IMA Concept Store, Tokyo; Istituto Italiano di Fotografia, Milan; Landskrona Foto, Sweden; PhotoIreland, Dublin; Printed Matter, New York; Tenderbooks, London; and Visual Studies Workshop, Rochester, New York.
Entry Fee:
June 11–July 11, 2025: Early-Bird Special
- First PhotoBook: $20 per project
- PhotoBook of the Year: $50 for first project from a given publisher, $20 for each subsequent project from the same publisher
- Photography Catalog of the Year: $50 for first project from a given publisher, $20 for each subsequent project from the same publisher
July 11–September 5, 2025:
- First PhotoBook: $30 per project
- PhotoBook of the Year: $60 for first project from a given publisher, $30 for each subsequent project from the same publisher
- Photography Catalog of the Year: $60 for first project from a given publisher, $30 for each subsequent project from the same publisher
Location: New York City, USA
Deadline: September 05, 2025
Website link:
https://aperture.org/calls-for-entry/photobook-awards
