Picture Editors Guild award ceremony

It was a picture that spread round the world within minutes of the astonishing events that saw US Airlines flight 1549 ditch into New York's Hudson river. A ferry passenger captured the scene on his mobile phone's camera and immediately shared the somewhat shaky image with the global internet community.

And the extraordinary impact of that example of 'citizen journalism' has led to an innovative category in the newly launched UK Picture Editors' Guild Awards and means readers of this paper have a chance for recognition for their photo skills alongside Press professionals.

Entries for BT Citizen Photograph of the Year must be submitted to the Guild of Picture Editors before the end of this month to qualify for the 2010 competition. The winner will receive a £500 prize and join press photographers from around the country at a gala award evening in September.

UK Picture Editors Guild's chairman, Alan Sparrow said:” We don't expect entries to match the drama of an Airbus floating in the river with rescued passengers standing on the wing. That opportunity was a one-in-a-million. What we are seeking are pictures where a non-professional has shown initiative to record an event that was unexpected and to have shared it with a wider audience.”

All the country's professional Press photographers are eligible to contest seven other categories, also with a £500 first place prize each, and an overall winner collects £1,500 as the SABMiller Photographer of the Year.

Adapted to the digital era, the contest uses a dedicated website – www.piced.net – showing all the details of the Awards and an easy to use facility to upload entries.

The deadline for submissions is midnight on July 31st for all categories which will then be judged by panels of experienced Picture Editors. The Awards, newly created by the Guild, have been sponsored by SABMiller the international brewer, telecoms giant BT, business information group Bloomberg, and Newscast, the visual communications agency.

Winners will be revealed at the Awards presentation evening, hosted by BBC broadcaster Kate Silverton, on September 21st at the historic Honourable Artillery Company headquarters in the City of London.

Tag your entries with 'piced' when you are uploading your story to Demotix.

UK ONLY