What Our Judges Are Looking For in 2026

Seven photographers and guides are judging the 2026 Penda Travel Photography Competition. Between them, they cover wildlife, landscape and photographic guiding in destinations around the world.

We asked them what makes an image stand out. There’s no single formula, but a few themes came up again and again.

• A story or a moment. Images that show something happening.
• A feeling. Photographs that make you stop and feel something about the subject.
• Light. Good light used with intent.
• Ordinary subjects, done well. A rare animal helps, but a common one photographed with skill and a fresh eye can win.
• Technical quality as the starting point. Sharpness and exposure get an image noticed. Composition and story make it win.
• Ethics. No baiting, no stress to animals and no misleading edits.

Alan Hewitt

Alan Hewitt is a UK-based freelance wildlife photographer, filmmaker, podcaster, writer and experienced safari leader. He’s also an official ambassador for FUJIFILM UK. Alan regularly guides our photography safaris, including the one in Botswana that the main winner of our competition gets to join.

“I’m delighted to be part of the judging panel again for Penda Photo Tours’ photography competition! In reviewing submissions, I’ll be looking for a blend of qualities, starting with technical excellence. Sharp focus, accurate exposure, strong composition, and natural, careful processing are all essential foundations. While rare species are always exciting, a beautifully executed image of a common subject will always stand out more than a poorly captured shot of a rarity.

Beyond the technicals, I’ll be looking for photographs that reveal behavioural insight or tell a story about the natural world, images that teach us something or spark curiosity. Creative use of light and thoughtful inclusion of surroundings often elevate a photograph even further.

Equally important are ethics and authenticity. I’ll be watching for images that show respect for wildlife and habitat, no signs of stress, disturbance, or artificial image manipulation.

Last year we had some incredible photographs and the bar is set! But let’s celebrate the beauty, resilience, and diversity of wildlife and culture through this competition, and may these images inspire us all to cherish and protect the natural world in all its forms.” 

Georgia Barker

Georgia is a wildlife photographer with a focus on birds, and the creator behind Nature with Georgia .

“I want to see images that make me feel something, whether that’s an “aww”, a laugh, a sense of wonder, or even a little bit of sadness. I’m looking for photographs that make me stop and actually feel something about the animal in front of me.

I also want to see a unique style and way of seeing. It doesn’t have to be the technically perfect wildlife photograph. I’m much more interested in what makes an image feel like you.

And it doesn’t have to be a rare species or some once in a lifetime wildlife encounter. In fact, I’d love to see how you can make an ordinary animal feel extraordinary. Show me a pigeon, a squirrel, a robin, a cow, a fox, whatever you happen to have around you, but show me your way of seeing it.

Beautiful light is lovely, a rare species is exciting, but ultimately I’m looking for photographs with personality, emotion, originality and a sense of story.

Emil von Maltitz

Emil von Maltitz is a multi-award-winning South African photographer and educator with a wide-ranging portfolio. He’s particularly specialised in landscape photography, and has led many landscape-focused photo tours around the world.

“Great photography is more than technically perfect images. It goes without saying that images need to be well exposed, sharp and corrected of things like dust-spots. What elevates the images after that are creative composition, mood and moment.

Creative composition refers to the way that the photographer has viewed the world through the lens. Sometimes looking at things in a new or intriguing way is going to make the viewer stop and contemplate the photograph rather than just scrolling past. William Thackeray is popularly known to have written that, “The two most engaging powers of a photograph are to make new things familiar and familiar things new.” A winning photograph photograph is one that engages the viewer to look at the subject in a new way, or at the very least interesting way. 

Mood is equally important to an excellent photograph. This can be ascribed to the light that falls on the scene, the atmosphere around the subject, the weather that contributes to the sense of story within the frame. 

Finally, moment is all-important as it is that slice of time that freezes the action and the subject. Whether it is a landscape of grand proportion or the briefest split second in a wildlife encounter, capturing the moment is the very epitome and definition of photography. That moment needs to tell a story so that the viewer can read and infer more into the scene than is simply captured within the frame.

Images that shine are those that are able to include the above three elements in their capture; Composition, Mood and Moment.” 

Charlotte Arthun

Charlotte Arthun is an American wildlife photographer with a background in biology. She’s worked as a resident photographer in South Africa’s Sabi Sands, and led many international photographic safaris. Her imagery has been used in specialist publications and books (including contributions to conservation volumes).

“I will be looking for images that capture something rare or unique in the wild. I am drawn to images that show animal behavior, unusual perspectives, or wildlife rarely seen, rather than traditional portraits. I especially love shots that include an animal’s environment or landscape. And of course, I’ll be looking at the quality of light and how it is incorporated into the scene.” 

Jake Brass

Jake is a wildlife photographer and conservationist with a master’s degree in zoology and conservation.

“I’ll be looking for an image that tells a story, an image that goes beyond just a click and one that helps to convey an emotion or a moment. Those images that make you look again and again, noticing a little bit more each time.” 

Show us your best work!

Our Penda Travel Photography Competition celebrates the power of visual storytelling across the themes of Wildlife, Landscape, and Culture & Communities. Photographers of all levels are invited to enter by submitting their best images through our competition page. The main winner gets to join us on our Botswana photo safari, and runners up get some great camera accessories by Vincov. Most importantly, the competition helps support Wild Shots Outreach, a nonprofit that provides photography training and career pathways to young people from disadvantaged communities in South Africa. Your entries directly contribute to their mission of fostering new voices in conservation storytelling – so by participating, you’re not just showcasing your work, but also making a meaningful impact.

Read more and find out how to enter