The seventh annual Royal Meteorological Society’s Weather Photographer of the Year, in association with AccuWeather, is now open for entries till 28 June 2022.
The competition is free-to-enter and is open to all photographers, professional and amateur, of all ages and abilities. Last year’s competition had over 9,000 entries.
The competition has three main categories – Weather Photographer of the Year, Young Weather Photographer of the Year and Mobile Phone Weather Photographer of the Year – plus the Public Vote.
Morning Fog, Adda River, Airuno, Lecco, Italy – overall winner of the Weather Photographer of the Year 2021. © Giulio Montini
In the main category the winner gets £500 cash, plus a Canon SELPHY CP1300 printer. The runner-up gets £250 cash and third place gets £100 cash. All of them will also receive a copy of the book Weather – A Force of Nature: Spectacular Images from Weather Photographer of the Year.
The winner of Young Weather Photographer of the Year will win a Canon SELPHY CP1300 printer and media pack, plus various other prizes.
The winner of Mobile Phone Weather Photographer of the Year will win £500 cash, a Canon SELPHY CP1300 printer and media pack, plus a signed copy of the book Smart Photos by Jo Bradford. The runner-up will win £250 cash and a signed Jo Bradford book.
Inspiring opportunities
The organisers said, ‘It doesn’t matter where you are or what you are doing, there will always be weather, and that can lend itself to some inspiring photo opportunities, whether you’re at the coast, up a mountain, in a desert or in your back garden. We can guarantee you’ll have a view that no-one else will have seen and the judges are waiting for you to share it.’
The organisers also say they are, ‘particularly keen to see photos that show the impact of climate change and document what is happening on a personal level.’
Self-portrait in a boat, Lake Kok-Kol, Russia – shot with a quadcopter. First runner-up, Weather Photographer of the Year 2021 © Evgeny Borisov
New entry platform
This year the competition has moved to a new platform, Zealous, and you can enter via Royal Meteorological Society on Zealous.
The Youth category of the awards is being is being supported by The Week Junior Science+Nature as a media partner and no longer has a minimum age limit.
It is open to anyone under the age of 18, provided that a responsible adult submits the entry.
For the first time this year, the judges will also combine shortlisted entries across both the main and mobile phone categories to form the public vote, which will take place in August and September 2022.
Kansas Storm, USA: an approaching supercell – winner of Young Weather Photographer of the Year 2021. © Phoenix Blue
Changing climate
Professor Liz Bentley, chief executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, said, ‘It never fails to amaze me the quality and breadth of images that we receive. Weather can be truly unique to specific parts of the world, and many of the photographers capture it so beautifully that you almost feel as if you were there. It’s a privilege to share in those moments. We also can’t ignore that our climate is changing, and photography that captures the personal stories and impact of climate change has power in shaping how it is understood and acted upon.’
Foggy Morning, Qasr Al Hosn, Abu Dhabi, UAE – winner of the Mobile Phone Category, Weather Photographer of the Year 2021. © Christopher de Castro Comeso
AccuWeather support
AccuWeather, one of the world’s most known and trusted weather brands worldwide and the most accurate source of weather forecasts and warnings globally, is supporting the competition for the fourth time.
Jesse Ferrell, AccuWeather senior weather editor and content judge, commented, ’We are delighted to partner once more with the RMetS for this competition, which captures and celebrates the beauty and awe of weather. Just as we check our watches, we check the weather multiple times daily on our app, planning our day and our lives around the weather forecast. Last year’s new Mobile Phone category created an impressive uptick in participation, demonstrating our innovative approach to welcoming a broad, diverse pool of entrants, and we look forward to building on that momentum for this year.’
You can watch a short video about Weather Photographer of the Year below…
Live streamed results
The winners of Weather Photographer of the Year 2022, Young Weather Photographer of the Year 2022 and Mobile Phone Weather Photographer of the Year 2022 will be announced via a social media live stream on 6 October 2022.
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