A contest to celebrate the beauty of quantum science and technology in all its forms
About
On the occasion of the 2025 International Year of Quantum Science and Technology (IYQ2025), the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) is launching an international photo contest to portray the beauty of quantum processes, the presence and impact of quantum science and technology on our everyday lives and the ways in which quantum research and education is carried out all over the world.
Organizer
The International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) is the organizer of the contest. The IUPAP Secretariat for Administrative Affairs is at Fondazione Internazionale Trieste, Strada Costiera 11, 34151 Trieste, Italy. The IUPAP Secretariat for Legal and Financial Affairs is domiciled at IUPAP c/o OBERSON ABELS SA, Rue de-Candolle 20, CH-1211 Geneva, 12 CP 225, Switzerland.
Terms
The IUPAP-IYQ2025 Photo Contest accepts entries beginning 08:00 EST, 1 May 2025, and ends at 23:59 EST on 31 July 2025. By submitting an entry, each participant agrees to the official rules and confirms that his/her entry complies with all requirements noted in the rules.
Winners will be notified 20 September 2025.
Winners will be publicly announced 27 September 2025
Themes
The contest is organized as part of the celebrations of the 2025 International Year of Quantum Science and Technology and seeks to portray the beauty of quantum processes, the presence and impact of quantum science and technology on our everyday lives and the ways in which quantum research and education is carried out all over the world.
Categories
Submissions will be open in two categories: “Beyond our eyes”, devoted to images obtained through scientific equipment or produced via numerical simulations of quantum processes, and “At a glance” for all other photos, including those illustrating the aesthetical value of the scientific equipment itself as well as visible quantum effects in Nature, such as light, and anything else within the imagination of the photographer.
- BEYOND OUR EYES: images that have been obtained through special scientific equipment (optical microscope, electron microscope, telescopes, satellites, drones, among others) or have been made via computer simulations. Images submitted within this category can have up to a maximum number of 3 co-authors.
- AT A GLANCE: all other images that have been obtained with a professional, amateur or cellular camera by simple observation. Images submitted within this category must have only one author.
Who May Enter
Participants must be over 18 years of age at the time of submission, both amateur and professional photographers, science students and researchers. Members of the IUPAP Council, Commissions, Affiliated Commissions or Working Groups, the contest judges, and consultants or contractors of IUPAP are not eligible to participate in the contest, as well as members of the IYQ2025 Secretariat and Steering Committee. The contest is void where prohibited by law.
How to Enter
Digital photographs, photo titles, and artist statements must be submitted online through the dedicated page on the IUPAP website. Entries submitted through the mail will not be accepted.
Photo/Image Type, Size, Format, and Resolution
Photographs/images must be in digital format, suitable for public exhibition and printing at high-resolution. All images must be 300 dpi or more and at least 3,000 pixels on the longest side. File size should be no less than 5MB and no greater than 20MB. TIF and JPEG/JPG are the ONLY accepted formats. Please submit the highest quality images that meet these requirements. Only still images are allowed. The technique used is free and at the choice of the participants. The images may be in black and white, monochrome or color. It is also allowed to submit works with collage or photomontage technique. Images that don’t meet these criteria will not be judged.
Photo Alterations
In the category “At a glance”, only limited enhancement of the original photographs is permitted for the purpose of improving brightness and contrast or removing minor cosmetic flaws. Photos in this category that have been digitally altered beyond standard optimization will be disqualified.
Content Standards
The photograph/image must not, in the sole discretion of the organizer, contain obscene, offensive, discriminatory, hateful, inflammatory, defamatory, sexually explicit, or otherwise objectionable or inappropriate content. The photo/image title must be complete and accurate, sufficient to convey the circumstances in which the photograph was taken. Disguising or misrepresenting the origin of the content is cause for disqualification. Judges will look at every photo to see if it is authentic and may disqualify photos that are in any way deceptive. Watermarks are not acceptable.
Required Information
The author’s name, address, date of birth, nationality, telephone number, email address, a title, and an artist statement must accompany each entry. Importantly, the submitter should also include a unique nickname to be used for the judging rounds. The same nickname must be used for all the photos/images submitted by the same author or group of authors.
The artist statement should include the subject of the image, the location and date the image was taken or produced, the equipment used, any adjustments made to the image, a description of how it is tied to the contest’s theme, and any other interesting details about the photo. This text should be between 500 and 1000 characters long without spaces and be written in English.
Model Releases
Any photograph that includes the image of identifiable persons must be accompanied by an authorization form with the signature of the photographed person. In the case of minors, the consent must be signed by their parents/guardians. Models of authorization forms are available on the contest website.
Limit of Entries
Each person may be author or co-author of up to a maximum of two (2) entries. The contest is limited to the first 1,500 entries.
Contestants must first register and choose a nickname with which to submit their entries. Then, with that nickname, they should enter one photo per entry form.
Judging Criteria
Each photograph/image will be judged on the following criteria:
- Content: appropriateness and coverage of content in relation to the theme
- Scientific interest: Overall effectiveness in engaging and communicating the contest theme to viewers (both categories). Scientific content (“Beyond our eyes” category)
- Creativity/artistry: Innovation and creativity in the concept
- Execution: execution of the techniques used.
Judging
Judging will be conducted by a panel of judges selected by IUPAP and may include IUPAP Staff. The composition of the Jury will be announced on the contest website by the closing date for submissions. Decisions of the organizer and judges are final and binding.
Prizes
BEYOND OUR EYES:
- 1st Place: EURO 1250
- 2nd Place: EURO 750
- 3rd Place: EURO 500
AT A GLANCE:
- 1st Place: EURO 1250
- 2nd Place: EURO 750
- 3rd Place: EURO 500
Limit one Jury selected award (prize or honorable mention) per nickname.
The 6 finalists selected by the Jury will be made available for printing and to be used as screensavers on various formats, both on the IUPAP’s website and over its social networks. The photos will also be used on IUPAP posters, flyers or related material and on the IUPAP website. Each IUPAP Commission, Affiliated Commission and Working Group might select additional images not included among the finalists to be used on their corresponding pages at the IUPAP website (https://iupap.org/). All the participating images that are not selected by the Jury or the IUPAP’s structure which are not excluded from the contest may be exhibited online at IUPAP’s activities. Due credit will be given to the authors for all these uses.
Winners List
The authors of all the photos/images selected as described before will be notified individually by email or telephone 10 days before the public announcement of the official contest results. Winners’ names will be displayed on the IUPAP website, in a press release, and other communication methods.
Agreement to Official Rules
By participating in the IUPAP-IYQ2025 Photo Contest, entrants agree to abide by the terms and conditions established by the organizer, IUPAP, which reserves the right to alter any of these official rules at any time and for any reason. All decisions made by the organizer concerning the contest shall be final and at its sole discretion.
Copyright, License, Releases, and Permissions
Each entrant grants IUPAP a royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, non-exclusive license to display, distribute, copy, and reproduce in any medium images submitted to the photo contest, and to use the images in derivative works such as posters, articles, or via any means or form of dissemination. IUPAP will include full credit to the photographer any time an image is used. IUPAP may allow cooperating organizations to use images to promote IYQ2025, or other purposes in alignment with IUPAP educational and outreach purposes. No images will be used for commercial purposes.
It is the responsibility of each entrant to obtain all relevant model and/or property releases. By submitting images, each entrant assures that all images are their original works and no copyright and/or trademark infringement rights have been violated. It is not the responsibility of IUPAP to obtain model and/or property release forms or to assure/examine protection of trademark or copyright infringement rights. In the case of photos portraying identifiable persons, the entry must include an authorization form with the signature of the photographed person. In the case of minors, the consent must be signed by their parents/guardians. Models of authorization forms are available on the contest website.
Each entrant agrees that their personal data, including name, hometown, and affiliation, may be used for advertising and promotional purposes in the context of the photo contest and for any other purposes outlined in these official rules. Personal data will be used by the organizer and its affiliates exclusively for the purposes stated herein.
IUPAP reserves the right to verify the validity and originality of any entry and/or entrant (including an entrant’s identity and address) and to disqualify any entrant who submits an entry that is not in accordance with these official rules or who tampers with the entry process.
Limitation of Liability
All entrants agree to release, discharge, and hold harmless IUPAP and its partners, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising agencies, agents and their employees, officers, directors, and representatives from any claims, losses, and damages arising out of their participation in this contest or any contest-related activities and the acceptance and use, misuse, or possession of any prize awarded hereunder.
IUPAP assumes no responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, or delay in operation or transmission; communications line failure; theft or destruction of or unauthorized access to contest entries or entry forms; or alteration of entries or entry forms. IUPAP is not responsible for any problems with or technical malfunction of any telephone network or lines, computer online systems, servers or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any entry to be received on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any website, human errors of any kind, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to entrants’ or any other persons’ computers related to or resulting from participation, uploading or downloading of any materials related to this contest. IUPAP is not liable for any loss, injury, or damage caused, whether directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from participating in this contest.
