Take a closer look at the Close-up Photographer of the Year contenders

News
By
published

[Drum roll…] And here are the contenders for the Close-up Photographer of the Year competition

Entrant to the Close-up Photographer of the Year 6 competition
A pair of stag beetles locked in combat are the subjects of 'Clash of the Titans' and are also fighting for the crown of the Insects category (Image credit: Ivanenko Svetlana / Close-up Photographer of the Year)
About CUPOTY

Entrant to the Close-up Photographer of the Year 6 competition

(Image credit: Close-up Photographer of the Year logo)

Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY) was founded in 2018 by Tracy and Dan Calder. It is the largest competition in the world dedicated to close-up, macro and micro photography.

“If your photos aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough,” proclaimed famed war photojournalist and Magnum Photos founder Robert Capa, before he got a little too close and was killed by stepping on a landmine in Vietnam in 1954 during the First Indochina War.

Still, those famous words are the ethos of the Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY) competition. Now in its sixth year, the competition celebrates the images that showcase the very best in close-up, macro and micro photography.

A shortlist of images going forward to compete for the title of the Close-up Photographer of the Year (CUPOTY) 2024 has been announced after 25 judges assessed 11,681 photographs across 11 categories to pick the selection of images that will compete for a place in the Top 100 pictures and from which the competition winners will be selected in January 2025.

It's a landscape but not as you know it – 'Desert and Forest' is an entrant to the Intimate Landscape category (Image credit: Minghui Yuan / Close-up Photographer of the Year)

There are 11 categories in the competition: Animals, Insects, Butterflies & Dragonflies, Arachnids, Invertebrate Portrait, Underwater, Intimate Landscape, Plants, Funghi, Studio Art, and Young – a category for under-18 photographers.

The winner of each category will take home a cash prize of £250 ($325/AU$500), as well as being in with the chance of scooping the £2,500 ($3,250/AU$5,000) cash top prize and overall winner's trophy. The Young Close-up Photographer of the Year will be awarded a Sigma 105mm f/2.8 DG DN Macro Art lens worth £700 ($900/AU$1400) in the mount of their choosing, along with a trophy.

This entrant to the Animals category is titled 'Tiny Host' – if you can't see why you need to look a little closer… (Image credit: Aloys Pichard / Close-up Photographer of the Year)

All category winners also receive a Universal License for all three Affinity apps (Photo, Designer + Publisher) for macOS, Windows & iPadOS. A Frames subscription will be awarded to the Intimate Landscape winner. Retouch4me Dust, Color Match and Portrait Volumes plug-ins will go to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in the Studio Art category.

While it's too late to enter this year's main CUPOTY competition, the CUPOTY Challenge – a special themed contest from Close-up Photographer of the Year – has just opened with the theme of 'Something Beautiful'. It has a prize of £300 ($400/AU$600) and you have until November 30, 2024 to enter.

This 'Chicory' macro shot is a contender for the Plants category (Image credit: Johannes Kottonau / Close-up Photographer of the Year)

Getting your hands on one of the best macro lenses might help your chances!

Adam Waring
Adam Waring
News Editor

Prior to joining digitalcameraworld.com as News Editor, Adam was the editor of N-Photo: The Nikon Magazine for seven years, and as such is one of Digital Camera World's leading experts when it comes to all things Nikon-related.

Whether it’s reviews and hands-on tests of the latest Nikon cameras and lenses, sharing his skills using filters, tripods, lighting, L brackets and other photography equipment, or trading tips and techniques on shooting landscapes, wildlife and almost any genre of photography, Adam is always on hand to provide his insights.

Prior to his tenure on N-Photo, Adam was also a veteran of publications such as PhotoPlus: The Canon Magazine, so his wealth of photographic knowledge isn’t solely limited to the Big N.