Unity Through Diversity: Leica Camera Launches Call for Entries and Reveals New Theme for the 6th Annual Leica Women Foto Project Award

© Leica Camera / Stratahr Stasiaschmidt

Leica Camera has announced the return of the sixth annual Leica Women Foto Project Award, a celebrated initiative designed to empower and recognize visual storytellers who bring a unique and powerful feminine perspective to the world of photography. This year’s theme, “Unity Through Diversity”, encourages applicants to submit a photo essay on the importance of connection in a time of division. Open to applicants from the United States, United Kingdom, Mexico, and Canada (excluding Québec), the Leica Women Foto Project Award offers an extraordinary chance for winners to receive a Leica SL3 camera, a Vario-Elmarit-SL 24-70mm f/2.8 ASPH. lens, and a $10,000 USD cash prize.

Empowering the feminine perspective and its effect on our perception and interaction with the world, the Leica Women Foto Project aims to transform visual storytelling. This award has played a key role in broadening the diversity of visual narratives, providing grants and collaborations with Women Photograph, Photoville, Las Fotos Project, and the ConnectHer Film Festival, while also co-founding the Leica Women Foto Project Grant to support the Leica Society International’s philanthropic initiatives.

“The 2025 Leica Women’s Foto Project will celebrate the incredible talent and unique female perspectives within photography,” said Karin Kaufmann, Art Director, Chief Representative of Leica Galleries International. “Each year, we witness stories that not only captivate and inspire but also challenge and redefine the boundaries of visual storytelling. This annual project continues our commitment to fostering diversity and empowering voices that need to be heard. I am thrilled to see the powerful narratives that will emerge from this year’s participants and to support their journey in shaping the future of photography.”

The recipients of the Leica Women Foto Project Award will be selected by a distinguished panel of judges, who will evaluate entries based on the quality of photography, the depth of the project, and a commitment to the art of photography. The 2025 judging panel includes:

• Karin Rehn-Kaufmann, Director, Leica Galleries Worldwide
• Nikki Reed, Actress, Photographer
• Maggie Steber, Documentary Photographer & Guggenheim Grant Fellow
• Natalia Jimenez, Senior Picture Editor, The Washington Post
• Laura Roumanos, Co-Founder, Photoville
• Lucy Wescott, Director of CPJ’s Emergencies Response Team
• Kathryn Boyd Brolin, Photographer, Filmmaker and Entrepreneur
• Ana Linares, Travel Photographer and Condé Nast Contributor
• Sara Rumens, Features Picture Editor, The Times
• Mary McCartney, Photographer and filmmaker
• Eva Woolridge, Photographer and Leica Women Foto Project Awardee
• Elizabeth Krist, Former Senior Photo Editor at National Geographic

The call for entries for the 2025 Leica Women Foto Project Award will begin on September 17th at 2.00PM BST and close on November 5th at 04:59AM GMT. The Awardees will be announced on International Women’s Day, March 8, 2025.

Applications for the Leica Women Foto Project Award can be submitted through the online registration form found on https://leicawomenfotoproject.com/submit with terms and conditions. All photos must adhere to the Submission Guidelines as outlined on the official website. Candidates must be legal residents of US, Canada, UK, or Mexico and 21 years or older at time and date of entry. Leica Camera will announce the winners of the Leica Women Foto Project Award on March 8th , 2025 via Leica Camera USA’s and Leica Camera UK’s website, newsletter, and @leicacamerausa, and @leicauk on Facebook and Instagram.

Please visit https://leica-camera.com/en-US/leica-women-foto-project/about to apply for the 2025 Leica Women Foto Project Award.