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Welcome to the 2025 Pangolin Photo Challenge!

The Pangolin Photo Challenge is back, and this year, it’s bigger and better. You voted for the categories, and we’re excited to bring you six challenges with a prize pool worth over $30,000!

More importantly, by entering, you’re helping us raise funds to buy two vehicles for the conservation teams we work with at Pangolin.Africa. These vehicles will be used for on-the-ground education, community outreach, pangolin rescue and rehabilitation work across South Africa.

Watch the video below as Toby walks you through everything you need to know to enter this year’s Photo Challenge.

Please note that the entry requirements for this year’s challenge differ from those of past years. Please watch the video below to learn how to re-enter and support our Pangolin conservation efforts.

How to Enter

To enter, just buy any item (you can chose the amount) from the Pangolin.Africa store that contributes to the vehicles and that unlocks your six entries, which you can use however you like. Images must be taken in 2024 or 2025, except for the “Best of 2025” category, which is for photos taken in 2025 only.

This competition is open to amateur photographers only, and as with last year, there’s no PRO challenge.

The deadline for all entries is 31 December 2025.

This Year’s Challenges Voted By You

birds of the world 1
birds of the world 4
birds of the world 3
birds of the world 5
birds of the world 2
birds of the world 6

What the Judges Are Looking For

Welcome to the Birds of the World round of this year’s Pangolin Photo Challenge.

This is your chance to shine a light on the incredible variety of birdlife around the world, from powerful raptors in flight to tiny songbirds in the undergrowth. We’re looking for images that show wild birds in their element, going about their lives naturally.

Please note: birds must be wild and not captive, and no baiting is allowed. We want real moments, not staged ones. This round is all about honest, respectful bird photography, the kind that tells a true story.

Photos taken at natural or permanent water sources (like bird baths, ponds, or waterholes) are fine, as long as they’re not artificially stocked with fish or designed to lure birds unnaturally.

Show us the beauty, movement, and behaviour of birds as you find them. Wild and free.

Useful Video: Bird Photography Tips: https://youtu.be/VSv3gvDLKOY

Welcome to the Mammal Behaviour round of the Pangolin Photo Challenge.

This round is all about capturing wild mammals in action, the moments that reveal how they live, interact, and survive. Whether it’s a tense standoff, a playful chase, a mother caring for her young, or a quiet moment of connection, we want to see those behaviours that tell real stories.

The animals must be wild, not captive, and the scene should be natural – no interference, no baiting, and no staged situations. We’re after authentic moments that show animals simply being themselves in their own world.

We’re also looking for originality. Surprise us with a fresh take or a unique point of view – something that shows familiar species in a way we haven’t seen before.

Useful Video: Janine’s Go-To Nature Photography Settings – https://youtu.be/0Qu3wnCtiAU

This round is all about the incredible wildlife outside of Africa.

As an African-based photography operator (with big global ambitions!), we’re excited to see what the rest of the world has to offer, species we don’t get to see in our own backyard.

We’re open to everything: tiny insects, reptiles, amphibians, birds (as long as they’re not African migrants), and, of course, the bigger mammals too. If the image was taken outside the African continent, it qualifies.

As always, we’re only accepting photos of wild animals – no captive creatures, no baiting, and no staged scenes. Show us authentic moments from the wild corners of the world you’ve explored.

This round focuses on the incredible variety of wildlife that lives in and around water and the powerful connection between animals and this essential element.

From oceans and rivers to quiet ponds or even a single dewdrop, water brings life and drama to the wild. We’re looking for images where water plays a central role in the scene as a habitat, a hunting ground, a place to play, or simply to reflect.

All animals must be wild, not captive, and their behaviour must be natural and unmanipulated. Ethical photography is key: no interference, no baiting, and nothing that compromises the welfare of the animals or their environment.
Show us how water shapes the wild.

Useful Video: High Key is a great option for photographing near water – https://youtu.be/IHnz9NvmK8k

Welcome to the Monochrome Wildlife round of the Pangolin Photo Challenge.

This round is all about the power of black and white. Strip away the colour and focus on form, contrast, light, and emotion. Whether it’s the strength of an elephant, the elegance of a gazelle, or the intensity of a predator’s stare, we want to see how you tell a wildlife story using nothing but shades of grey.

Show us the raw beauty of the wild in its purest form. From the tiniest insect to the largest mammal, your subject is up to you. Just make it count. We’re looking for images that move us, surprise us, or make us pause. The best entries will use light, texture, and strong composition to bring the scene to life without the help of colour.

Get creative with your approach: high contrast, low key, high key, or anything in between. The goal is to make your viewer feel something.

As always, your subject must be wild and photographed ethically: no baiting, staging, or captive animals.

Useful Video: Black and White editing with Janine – https://youtu.be/-wHe-orCUt0

This round is all about celebrating your best work from 2025, showcasing the beauty and diversity of the wildlife that graced our planet this year.

We’re looking for your most compelling wildlife shot: whether it’s a touching moment between a mother and her young, an action-packed predator chase, an awe-inspiring bird in flight, or an intimate portrait of a rare animal. Whatever it is, we want to see the image that best captures the wonder of the natural world.

As always, your subject must be wild, not captive, and photographed ethically, without disturbing their behaviour or environment. Ethical photography is essential to this challenge, and we expect full respect for wildlife and their habitats.

Challenge Prizes Sponsored By….Us!

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5 x Challenge Prizes (except Best of 2025)

The owner of the best image in each of the 5 challenges (excluding the Best of 2025) will win a 6-night stay for one person at The Pangolin Chobe Hotel* OR a voucher for $2,000 to put towards any Pangolin Photo Safari advertised on this website.

  • 6 nights at The Pangolin Chobe Hotel

  • Twice-daily photo safari activities (boat and land)

  • Photo tuition from the Pangolin Photo Host

  • Cameras, lenses, and memory cards

  • All meals and drinks

  • Valid for stays between December and February (set dates)

  • Airport transfers (if required)

  • Park fees and tourism levies

Best of 2025 and Lucky Draw Winner
The owner of the best image in The Best of 2025 Challenge and the Lucky Draw winner will win a Best of Chobe photo safari for two people worth $10,000!!!

This prize includes (exact details can be seen here):

  • Airport meet-and-greet

  • Photographic tuition and advice throughout by a Pangolin Photo Host

  • Use of a Canon DSLR camera and telephoto lens (if required), including memory cards

  • 3 nights on The Pangolin Voyager (full board)

  • Twice-daily activities in Chobe National Park on a Pangolin photo boat

  • 3 nights The Pangolin Chobe Hotel (full board)

  • Twice-daily photo safaris (boat and land)

  • All park fees and bed levies, as applicable

  • All meals and drinks

*Please note that the 6-night stay at the Pangolin Chobe Hotel has set starting dates between December and February. We will be happy to arrange extensions before or after this stay to other destinations in the region. If you are not able to join us during this time of the year, you can exchange your prize for a voucher to the value of $2,000 to put towards any photo safari published on our website. The voucher can be used for new bookings only and is not applicable to existing confirmed bookings.

Pangolin Photo Challenge 2025
The Pangolin Photo Challenge 2025 is now open, and this year, we need your help!

We’re raising money to buy two vehicles for the rescue and rehabilitation centres supported by our non-profit, Pangolin.Africa, and by entering, you’re directly supporting that mission.

This year, there are six challenges, and you can submit up to six images in total. You don’t have to enter all six; just choose the ones that suit you. We’re not awarding a portfolio prize this year, so each image will be judged on its own merits.

Every image you enter also counts as a ticket into our grand prize draw. That means just one photo could win you a photo safari.

To participate, simply purchase any “rescue vehicle” item from our Pangolin.Africa store. Once you do, you’ll get access to submit your images.

Your photos must be taken in 2024 or 2025. The “Best of 2025” challenge is for images shot exclusively this year. Please review the rules and judging criteria on this page before entering.

You have until December 31, 2025, to submit your entries. Good luck! We can’t wait to see your work.

Who can enter?
The competition is open to all amateur photographers aged 18 or over from any country in the world, with the following three exceptions:

  • Employees of Pangolin Photo Safaris and their immediate relatives or household.
  • Photo tour leaders and qualified (full-time or freelance) field guides and trackers. If you are any of these, then you may not enter.
  • Professional wildlife photographers who generate more than 20% of their gross annual income from activities related to wildlife photography, e.g. Stock images, selling prints, hosting seminars and classes, etc.

The Pangolin Photo Challenge 2025 is divided into six challenges: Birds of the World, Mammal Behaviour, Out of Africa, Water as an Element, Monochrome Wildlife and The Best of 2025.

When you buy any item from the Pangolin.Africa store, you’ll receive six entries to the Pangolin Photo Challenge. You can use these however you like, either as a single challenge or spread across multiple challenges. It’s entirely up to you.

Image Submission
The image submitted to the Pangolin Photo Challenge must adhere to the following conditions:

The submitted image must have been taken in 2024 or 2025 (except for the Best of 2025 Challenge, which must have been taken in 2025). The file’s metadata will be inspected to ensure qualification. The capture date will be published on the website along with the image.

Please ensure that when you export your image from your editing programme of choice, you select to include the metadata (also known as Exif data) with the image. This contains your display settings.

You may not enter any images that were submitted in the 2024 Pangolin Photo Challenge. Repeat images will not be considered.

All images should be a faithful representation of the original scene in the natural world. The subject should be wild, not captive. The scene should not be staged for photography. Composite images will not be allowed (except for night photography images). Post-production adjustments can be used, but excessive use will be taken into account when evaluating the image’s overall standing with the judges.

The judges may request the original image file for review when the shortlist has been completed. This will precede their judgement and declaration of the challenges and portfolio winners and runners-up.

Please note. An image that has previously won a national or international nature photography competition before the Pangolin Photo Challenge will NOT be considered. If chosen as a winning image and later found to be in contravention of this rule, it will be disqualified.

The judges reserve the right to refuse photos that they deem unsuitable at their discretion. The image must be the sole property of the submitter and have no third-party publishing rights or restrictions attached to it.

The submitter must have taken the image. Your images must be submitted as JPEG files without a watermark. The platform that we use will place a standard watermark on your image to protect it and also allow for the image to be judged anonymously.

The judging process is conducted blindly, so all watermarked images will be rejected. Once the winners have been selected, the competition organisers will delete all the submitted images from their servers or cloud-based storage.

The owners of the winning images permit their images to be used to promote the Pangolin Photo Challenge.

All entrants permit Pangolin Photo Safaris to display their image on the Pangolin Photo Safaris website and social media channels.

No AI-generated images will be allowed. If suspected, the judges will also request RAW files, as well as pictures taken before and after a sequence.

Editing: Do’s and Don’ts

Do:

  • Adjust your image in post-production, but avoid overdoing it. Adjustments in exposure, contrast, white balance, sharpness, and local adjustments are allowed. AI denoising is allowed with restraint!
  • Cropping is acceptable, but ensure that it is not in an unusual shape or cropped too small, which would compromise image quality.
  • Turning your image from colour to black and white (or similar) is fine.
  • You may remove sensor spots from the image.
  • We will allow for HDR manipulation and focus stacking, provided they are used with restraint.
  • Panoramas are allowed.

Don’t:

  • Add anything to the image in post-production.
  • Use effects like frames or canvas mimicry.
  • Include a watermark on the image, as the judging is done blind.
  • Remove any object in the image that would constitute more than 5% of the image (except for sensor spots).

We acknowledge that editing software has become increasingly sophisticated at removing elements from images (in fact, Sabine made a video about it here). We would not advise using this technology too enthusiastically, as we will be requesting the original image, and a drastic removal of elements would count against you in a tight contest.

Baiting
No images that have used live or dead bait when capturing the image will be allowed in this photo competition. If the judges suspect that a subject has been coerced, baited, or harassed, the image will be disqualified from the competition.

To clarify, we do not consider photographing a bird or mammal drinking or bathing in a permanent water source (such as a waterhole, man-made lake or reservoir, garden pond, or birdbath) to be a baiting scenario.

If the body of water has been stocked with fish, for example, to capture images of birds fishing, we would consider this to be baiting. This includes hides where fish are replenished regularly, rather than a natural breeding ground for the fish. If you are unsure, please email us at [email protected] with information about the scenario in question so we can make an informed judgement.

Agreement of Participation
By entering an image into this photo competition, you agree to and are bound by the rules set out above. Entrants agree to have their names added to the Pangolin Photo Safaris email newsletter database. This will be the primary method of communication and updates.

Judges
The judging of the Pangolin Photo Challenge will be carried out by the Pangolin Photo Hosts and Directors, as well as guest judges selected for their expertise in the fields of wildlife and landscape photography. The judges’ decision is final, binding, and non-negotiable.

Can I enter more than one image in a challenge?

How old can the image be?

The image must have been taken by you in 2024 or 2025 (except for the Best of 2025 challenge, which must have been taken this year). We don’t accept images taken before January 1, 2024.

What format should my image be in?
We have had to set a file size limit of 10 MB and a maximum resolution of 1920 pixels along the longest edge, as we need to upload all the images and make them downloadable by the photo hosts in Botswana, where internet access is not very robust. The file type should be JPEG.

Why can’t I submit images with my watermark?
The judges of the photo challenge are the Pangolin Photo Hosts, based in Botswana, along with our guest judges. To ensure fairness to all entrants, they will be judged anonymously.

What will happen to my images after the contest ends?
As soon as the competition ends, we will delete all the submitted images.

Can I enter if I am a professional photographer?
All amateur wildlife photographers can enter with the following exceptions:

  • Employees of Pangolin Photo Safaris and their immediate relatives or household.
  • All professional wildlife photographers, photo tour leaders, full-time (or freelance) field guides, and trackers who derive more than 20% of their gross annual income from wildlife photography-related activities, including Stock image sales.

Due diligence will be performed if deemed necessary. The directors of Pangolin Photo Safaris will make the decision to allow or disallow the image resulting from this investigation.

This decision will be final and binding. Negotiations or discussions will not be entered into. If an image wins a challenge (or the portfolio prize) and it is later discovered that the photographer is deemed to be in contravention of the rules, the prize will be awarded to the runner-up in the same challenge instead. The judge’s decision is final.

I can’t upload my image. Can you help?
If you are experiencing difficulties uploading your image or entering the competition, please email [email protected], and we will assist you where possible.

What if I cannot travel before the safaris and vouchers expire?
All safaris and photo safari vouchers must be redeemed for travel by December 31, 2027.

If you are unable to travel before that time, we will exchange the safaris for vouchers to spend on Hosted Pangolin Photo Safaris in Botswana.

The 6-night stay at the Pangolin Chobe Hotel awarded to the winner of a challenge will be exchanged for a $2000 voucher for travel in 2026 and beyond. No expiry date.

The main Best of Chobe Prizes must be taken in either 2026 or 2027; otherwise, we will exchange vouchers to the value of $4,000 per prize

Will you be showing all the images in one place?

Yes. The system we are using allows all the images to be viewed again after they have been entered. They are also searchable by the photographer’s name. Additionally, the system displays the settings used by the photographer to help you better understand how the image was captured.