Photo competition
The annual FMC Photo Competition celebrates Aotearoa’s stunning outdoors and gives our members the chance to share their most amazing shots. Every photo entered also supports FMC’s vital advocacy work by providing us with photos of the wild places we all love and want to protect.
Winners of 2024
Below the Bushline With no Human Element
Lake Diana
Glen Howie, Wakatipu Tramping Club

Above the Bushline With no Human Element
Hooker River Sunset
Ken Wright, Individual Supporter

Above the Bushline with Human Element and Overall Winner
Taranaki Maunga
Thomas Hadley, NZAC Wellington Section

Below the Bushline with Human Element
Margaret Burn Canyon, first descent
Leo Tregret, NZ Canyoning Association

Historic
Brian Brake shooting Snows of Aorangi 1953
Photo: JD Knowles
Alan Knowles, Tararua Tramping Club

Native Flora and Fauna
Kōtuku/white egret Ardea alba, Freshwater Basin, Milford Sound
Stephen Martin, Fiordland Tramping and Outdoor Recreation Club

Long Exposure
Aurora trails
Alistair Watkins, Individual Supporter


Prizes and sponsors
Big thanks to our 2025 competition sponsors.
Our photo competition wouldn’t be possible without the generous support of our sponsors. They’ve provided an incredible prize pool — worth over $6,000 — to celebrate your photography and inspire your entries! Please support our sponsors — without them, this competition wouldn’t be possible!
Thanks to Bivouac Outdoor, our main sponsor for 2025. They have confirmed a magnificent list of prizes, altogether worth $1,920:
- Exped Ultra 0-Degree Down Sleeping Bag, $899.99
- Exped Skyline 45 Pack, $399.99
- Outdoor Research Women’s SuperStrand Jacket, either Men’s or Women’s $319.99
- Exped ULTRA 5R Sleeping Mat, $299.99
Our other sponsors and the prizes they have kindly provided are:
- Rab: 2 $450 vouchers to spend at Outfitters on your favourite Rab gear, $450 each.
- Wilderness Magazine: 7 annual print + website subscription $120 each.
- Potton and Burton:3 copies of A Wild Life by Shaun Barnett, valued at $59.99 each, 3 copies of Rakiura by Rob Brown, valued at 64.99, 1 copy of Seeking the Light by Gavin Lang, valued at 89.99.
- Naomi Arnold: 1 signed copy of North Bound, $39.99
- Fiordland Packs: Unique NZ made 55L or 65L pack, $660 and 4 new trapper waist-bags, $120 each.
Excio: One year membership to Excio Community valued at $120 for each winner and one year digital subscription to Excio Captivating Photography Journal valued at $100

How does it work?
Each FMC member club and individual member can enter their best photos.
Clubs are encouraged to run their own internal photo competitions and submitrd the top two images per category to the FMC annual competition. Individual members who don’t belong to a member club can also enter — for judging purposes, these entries are grouped together as one ‘club’.
There are seven categories you can enter:
- Above Bushline with human element
- Above Bushline without human element
- Below Bushline with human element
- Below Bushline without human element
- Historic
- Native Flora, Fauna & Fungi
- Long Exposure
Since 2019, we’ve also introduced an annual theme. This special category encourages photography that highlights the places and values under immediate threat — the landscapes, ecosystems, and campaigns that FMC and our partners are working hard to protect.
All entries are judged by a panel of award-winning photographers, and the winning images are published in the November issue of Backcountry magazine.

How to enter?
It’s easy to submit your photos
- Prepare your files: Make sure each photo is between 1MB and 5MB, ensure each one is named using the naming convention on the entry form.
- Fill out the entry form:
- Upload everything: Create a new folder on your favourite cloud storage (Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive — whatever works for you). Drop in your photos and the completed entry form. If you need a hand, Here’s a quick video showing how to use Google Drive.
- Share your folder: Generate a sharing link and email it to photocomp@fmc.org.nz.
- We’ll send you a confirmation email once your entry is safely received.
Closing dates:
- Individual members: entries close 1 September 2025
- Clubs: entries close 15 September 2025
Please use a cloud service to send us your photos. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or email providers (such as Google Photos) can shrink your files without you realising.

FAQs
