Nikon Photo Contest 2024-2025
Nikon's biennial global photo contest is a manufacturer-run competition with one of the cleanest published AI distinctions in the field. The rules separate two categories of AI use: fully AI-generated images (banned) and AI-based editing of photographs the entrant captured themselves (allowed). The clarity matters because it removes the ambiguity that other contests leave to jury interpretation. Free entry; the 2024-2025 cycle closed in March 2025, with the next cycle expected to open later. The sibling Nikon Small World photomicrography contest runs annually with similar restrictions.
- Deadline
- March 16, 2025
- Entry fee
- Free entry
Authenticity policy
AI policy
Images generated by AI are prohibited. However, AI-based editing of images taken by the entrant him or herself is allowed.
RAW files
Not specified
Editing rules
The contest draws a clean line between AI-generated images (prohibited) and AI-based editing of the entrant's own captures (allowed). This explicit framing is rarer than it should be — many competitions leave the boundary implicit and let the jury decide case by case.
Verified on June 8, 2026