Countdown begins for İstanbul Photo Awards 2018

The jury for an international photo contest will gather in İstanbul to select winners from March 18-21.

The İstanbul Photo Awards 2018 is being organized by Anadolu Agency for the fourth time.

The official sponsors for the awards are İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB), Turkish Airlines and Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA).

Entries for the contest were accepted between Nov. 1, 2017- Jan. 31, 2018.

Nearly 37,000 photographs from 125 countries are competing for the prize.

The winning photos will be compiled in an annual photobook and will be displayed at exhibitions in Turkey and abroad all-year-around.

Marion Mertens, senior digital editor at Paris Match in France, Cameron Spencer, Getty Images chief photographer, Yuri Kozyrev, photojournalist with Netherlands-based Noor Images, Georges De Keerle, photographer and visual media adviser, Michel Scotto, AFP director of Photo Business Development, Ahmet Sel, Anadolu Agency's visual news editor in chief and Fırat Yurdakul, Anadolu Agency's photography editor return as jury members this year.

Two new names have been added to this year's panel for the first time. They include Andrei Polikanov, an important photo news editor, and Frederic Lagargue, winner of last year's İstanbul Photo Awards, for his image "Fleeing From Daesh".

The winner of Photo of the Year will be awarded $10,000, while winners in other categories will receive $8,000 for first prize, $5,000 for second and $3,000 for third.

Last year, Daniel Berehulak, winner of the third prize in the Single News category of Anadolu Agency's İstanbul Photo Awards 2017, won the Pulitzer Prize.