From January 11 to April 16, 2023, the Russian Geographical Society accepts works for the IX "The Most Beautiful Country" photo contest. It is dedicated to the preservation of the wildlife of Russia and fostering respect for the environment.
The works of the participants form a huge impressive picture. Russian nature evokes a storm of emotions. Just one look at its landscapes, and you're ready to go on a journey, discover things and admire our country.
The main theme of the contest is nature, but there are nominations where authors can introduce compatriots, tell the story of their lives so that the audience can see the people who live nearby and admire them.
Each nomination is like a portal to an amazing world that can be explored endlessly: "Landscape", "Wild Animals", "Birds", "Elemental Magic", "Russia from a Bird's-eye View", "Russia in Faces", "Living Archive", "Art of Wildlife (art-photo)", "Macroworld" and "Taken on a Smartphone".
The new partners of the contest are the Elena and Gennady Timchenko Charitable Foundation (nomination "People of Action") and the Russian State Library ("Living Archive").
The main condition: all the pictures must be taken on the territory of Russia. Both professionals and amateurs without any age and place of residence restrictions are welcome to participate in the contest.
This year the number of works is expected to increase due to the activity of those photographers who participated in photo contests of regional branches of the Russian Geographical Society.
"The Most Beautiful Country" is becoming more popular among young participants under the age of 16 inclusive. Since 2018, there has been a separate competition for them.
All works will be reviewed by an expert commission consisting of professional photographers and photo editors. The experts will choose the finalists in each nomination and then the jury members will choose the winners.
The jury traditionally includes famous photographers, film directors, actors and art critics. In 2023, the winners will be chosen by the following judges: Sergey Shoigu, President of the Russian Geographical Society; Sergey Gorshkov, Russian wildlife photographer; Ivan Vagner, Russian cosmonaut; Sergey Garmash, theater and film actor, director and screenwriter; Vladimir Mashkov, Russian theater and film actor, director and producer; Marko Urso, Italian wildlife photographer; Olga Michi, Russian photographer; Andrew Parkinson, British photographer; Konstantin Shatenev, wildlife photographer, winner of the VIII photo contest in the nomination "Wild Animals"; Sergey Anisimov, travel photographer.
The main award in each nomination of the main contest is 250,000 rubles. The finalists' works will be featured in photo exhibitions in Russia and abroad.
Each photo contest is always a discovery that awakens a sense of love for the Motherland. We are sure that impressive pictures and new discoveries are waiting for us in 2023!
The annual photo contest "The Most Beautiful Country" is a large-scale media project of the Russian Geographical Society dedicated to the preservation of Russia's wildlife and fostering respect for the environment. The contest was held for the first time in 2015. Since then, the Russian Geographical Society has received 622 thousand works in a span of 8 years. Both professionals and amateurs without any age and place of residence restrictions are welcome to participate in the contest. The only condition is that all the pictures must be taken on the territory of Russia. The main nominations of the 2023 contest are: "Landscape", "Wild Animals", "Birds", "Elemental Magic", "Russia from a Bird's-eye View", "Russia in Faces", "Living Archive", "Art of Wildlife (art-photo)", "Macroworld" and "Taken on a Smartphone". Participation is free of charge. The official website of the contest: photo.rgo.ru.