We are excited to announce the 2027 Pas de Deux Dance Photography Competition. Pas de Deux Photo is committed to elevating the art of dance photography. The competition is a fun and exciting celebration of dance photography. It is open to photographers from around the world. Winners of the photo competition will be announced Saturday, February 13th, 2027, during the Evening Celebration of the 2027 Pas de Deux Dance Photography Conference at Tampa Grand Hyatt.
Judging takes place in two rounds: first, a panel of Pas de Deux employees narrow down all entries into up to 100 finalists in each category. The images entered into the competition that make the final round will then be reviewed by a unique jury of professional dancers and dance photographers; Melody (Mennite) Walsh, Erin Baiano, and Lloyd Knight.
Entries can be from any year. Images that placed in the Top 15 of any category of the 2021 or 2022 competitions are not eligible. To qualify for the Grand Prize, submissions must include at least 5 individual images (a Series entry counts as one image toward the Grand Prize qualification). There is no additional cost to qualify for the Grand Prize, by submitting five or more separate entries, you are automatically entered into the Grand Prize competition.
Competition Categories
Dance Photo Series
This is a series of 4-7 images that share a theme or concept. Entrants will be judged both by the individual quality of the photos and overall thematic/conceptual coherence of the entire entry.
Children & Preteen Dance Portraits
These portraits should be taken of a dancer (or dancers) aged 12 years old or younger at the time of the shoot. They may be studio or on-location portraits, but they may not be portraits that would be classified as Fine Art.
Teen Dance Photos
These portraits should be taken of a dancer (or dancers) aged 13-19 years old at the time of the shoot. They may be studio or on-location portraits, but they may not be portraits that would be classified as Fine Art.
Fine Art Portraits
These portraits may have been shot in a studio, on location, or at a performance or rehearsal. These may be composites. These images may also be eligible for the other categories, and yet submitted to the fine art category.
On-Location Portraits
These portraits can be photographed at any location indoors or outdoors that is not a photography studio. Lighting can be used in these images, or it may be natural lighting.
Performance Photos
These would be shots from rehearsals or live performances using stage lighting. Any performance shots where the photographer supplements the lighting with their own lighting should be in the On-Location Portraits or Fine Art.
Studio Portraits
Studio portraits are defined by images created in a photography studio using natural light or strobes or any other type of lighting. Images photographed in a dance studio with studio lighting and a backdrop in a way that resembles a photo studio session.
Grand Prize
The Grand Prize Winner is evaluated based on their body of work submitted to the competition, regardless of the category or categories. Photographers must submit 5 or more images to be considered for the Grand Prize Award. Anyone who submits at least 5 images in automatically considered for the Grand Prize.
Prizes will be announced shortly. In the meantime, stay in touch for the latest update on the competition and the conference!
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