Organizer Information
Communication Arts (CA) is the largest international trade journal of visual communication, founded in 1959 by Richard Coyne and Robert Blanchard, initially as the Journal of Commercial Art. The magazine's coverage spans graphic design, advertising, photography, illustration, typography, and interactive media, and it continues to be edited and published under the guidance of the Coyne family. To generate additional income and editorial content, CA launched an annual juried competition in 1960, which eventually segmented into separate competitions across its core disciplines, including a dedicated Photography Competition. CA's competitions are juried by creative professionals and judge work based on creativity rather than commercial return, with winning entries published in the Communication Arts Annuals and on commarts.com.
Title & Description
Communication Arts Photography Competition 2027
For 68 years, Communication Arts has honored the craft of talented photographers from around the world through this competition, one of the most prestigious in the field of creative photography. Any photograph first published or produced from March 2026 through March 2027 is eligible. Entries are selected by an international jury of distinguished creative directors and photographers, with winning entries distributed worldwide in the Communication Arts Photography Annual, in print and digital editions, and on commarts.com, giving creators significant exposure. As a service to art directors, designers, and art buyers, a comprehensive index carries contact information for the photographers represented. In support of photographers' craft, the competition will not accept AI text-to-image generated submissions.
Categories
- Photography
- Video/Film
- Advertising
- Art
Eligibility
- Entries may originate from any country
- Any photograph first published or produced from March 2026 through March 2027 is eligible
- Descriptions in English are very important to the judges
- Submission of entries acknowledges Communication Arts' right to use them for publication and exhibition
- Student Work category is limited to projects created for a school assignment; personal unpublished work must instead be submitted in the Unpublished category, and work entered in Student Work cannot also be entered in other categories
- Student projects must be completely original and must not use content owned by another copyright holder unless the entrant has specific usage rights; unauthorized use will result in disqualification, and Communication Arts will not become involved in resulting copyright disputes
- AI text-to-image generated submissions will not be accepted
Program Benefits & Awards
- Winning entries distributed worldwide in the Communication Arts Photography Annual, in print and digital editions, and on commarts.com
- A comprehensive index carrying contact information for represented photographers, as a service to art directors, designers, and art buyers
- Each winning entrant receives a personalized Award of Excellence, milled from solid aluminum
- Award certificates issued for firms, individuals, and clients
- No cash prize is offered
Application Fee
Entry fees vary by category and entry type (single photograph vs. series), as follows:
- Advertising: $40 (single); $80 (series, limit of five)
- Books: $40 (single, must be published); $80 (series, must be published, limit of five)
- Editorial: $40 (single); $80 (series, limit of five)
- For Sale: $40 (single); $80 (series, limit of five)
- Institutional: $40 (single); $80 (series, limit of five)
- Motion/Cinematography: $90 (single, time-based media where photography is the primary element, no longer than five minutes); $180 (series, limit of three, each no longer than five minutes)
- Self-Promotion: $40 (single); $80 (series, limit of five)
- Unpublished: $40 (single); $80 (series, limit of five)
- Student Work: $20 (single photograph, JPG); $45 (single video); $40 (series of photographs, JPGs, limit of five); $90 (series of video, limit of three)
Additional fees noted in the source:
- A late fee of $10 per entry applies to entries registered after the March 12, 2027 deadline, up until March 26, 2027, after which no entries can be registered
- An additional $25 (U.S.) fee applies to wire transfer payments, to cover bank processing charges
- All entry fees are nonrefundable
Application Requirements
- Contact information for registration and notification
- Title and basic credits for each project
- Digital image files: RGB, JPG format, maximum file size 2MB
- Motion/Animation entries: MOV, MP4, or MPG format, maximum file size 500MB
- Entries submitted through the official online competition system (email submissions are not accepted)
- Campaigns or series limited to five photographs, all created for the same project
- Student Work entries must be created for a school assignment and be entered only in that category
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Entry Deadline: 12 March 2027
- Late Entry Period (with $10 per-entry late fee): March 12 – March 26, 2027
Location
Online/ Belmont, California, United States
Additional Details
- Judging process: each juror independently reviews a portion of entries, voting "in" or "out"; a majority vote moves a project from the screening round into the finals round, where judges again vote independently, with a simple majority typically required for a finalist to become a winner; jurors do not vote on work they were directly involved in
- Entrants retain all rights to their images; if selected, entrants must grant Communication Arts the right to reproduce the work for its online, digital, and print-based publications
- A project may be entered into multiple categories as long as it fits each category, and may also be entered as a series and as individual single entries
- A single piece containing multiple photographs (e.g. a brochure or poster) must be entered as a series, up to a maximum of five photographs; if it fits another category better than the one chosen, Communication Arts will move it without penalty or disqualification
- Payment accepted via Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, PayPal, checks, international money orders, or wire transfer; non-U.S. entrants paying by check must send U.S. funds drafted on a U.S. bank
- Communication Arts no longer accepts printed entries, having moved to an online-only judging process