The Russian Geographical Society begins accepting entries for the XII Photo Contest «The Most Beautiful Country», a large-scale international media project that helps rediscover Russia together with its participants. Everyone can compete for the prize, regardless of age and place of residence.
You can submit your work to the 12th photo contest until March 31, 2026. Each picture will be reviewed and evaluated, and then the process of choosing the best photos will begin. It starts with the work of members of an independent expert group, then the floor will be given to an authoritative jury of professional photographers, film directors, actors, art historians, etc. The authors of the best works will be awarded at a ceremony, and the photos themselves will be published in the album of the photo contest.
Entries for the XII Photo Contest «The Most Beautiful Country» are accepted from January 20 to March 31, 2026, on the websites photo.rgo.ru and photo-children.rgo.ru .
The photo contest «The Most Beautiful Country» has been held since 2015. During this time, it collected over 780,000 works, which were sent by more than 118,000 participants from almost 50 countries. Each of the images is unique and inimitable, each author contributes to the creation of a collective portrait of Russia. The photographs of all the finalists of each season of the contest are shown at exhibitions and published in colorful photo albums. After all, it is always a pleasure to rediscover Russia together with the Russian Geographical Society.
Who among wildlife photographers would not like to go to one of the most picturesque nature reserves in Russia, take impressive shots of rare animals and admire the unique landscapes? In 2026, the RGS is preparing a real gift for the finalists of «The Most Beautiful Country» contest — a photo tour in the specially protected natural territory of Altai. And this is not all the surprises for our participants, professional photographers or simple amateurs shooting on a smartphone.
In 2026, the project summarizes and preserves the experience gained over the years — the main categories (the winners of which receive a prize of 250,000 rubles) remain unchanged. These are particularly popular categories such as «Taken on a Smartphone», «Landscape», «Birds», as well as «Wild animals», «Macroworld», «Faces of Russia», «Art of Wildlife (fine-art photography)», «Elemental Magic» and «Live Archive».
«The Most Beautiful Country» contest gives a photographer the opportunity to share their own opinion about which natural and man-made objects can be considered the treasure of the country. The category «180 Wonders of Russia» was established in honor of the anniversary of the Russian Geographical Society. It immediately became one of the most popular and accumulated 2,500 works. These images demonstrate the diversity of our country’s heritage, primarily its natural sites, as well as places of power, religious buildings, and cultural monuments. In 2026, the «Wonders of Russia» category is waiting for the work of authors who are ready to add to this unique collection of photographs.
According to tradition, the works of young photographers (under the age of 16 inclusive) in the categories «Landscape», «Animal World», «Natural Phenomena», and «Macroworld» are accepted for the children’s contest. The winners will be awarded prizes in the amount of 100,000 rubles.
As before, participants can compete for special prizes awarded by the partners of the photo contest: «Reserved Russia» from VTB Bank, «Captured on a Camera Trap» from the «Amur Tiger» center and «PhosAgro» company, «Natural Art Object» from the Art, Science and Sports Charity Foundation.
It remains a good tradition to choose a photo that will become a favorite of the audience. Its author will be determined by an open vote on the website of the photo contest «The Most Beautiful Country» from among the finalists in all categories. As a prize, the winner will receive a gift set from the Russian Geographical Society.
The media project of the RGS is developing, becoming an increasingly more large-scale and vibrant event, and this year the organizing committee has prepared a real gift for fans of photographing pristine, untouched nature. In August 2026, a group of finalists of the 12th contest will be able to go on a photo tour of Sailyugemsky National Park (Altai Republic), dedicated to the birthday of the Russian Geographical Society and BRICS Geographer’s Day.
During the trip, the participants will hone their photography skills in the protected area under the guidance of Italian wildlife photographer and travel photojournalist Marco Urso, a member of «The Most Beautiful Country» jury. They will also be able to take photos of rare animals listed in the Red Book of the Russian Federation, observe birds of prey, and capture the flowering of endemic plants. An event in this format will provide unique materials and draw attention to nature conservation and nature reserves, the first of which in Russia («Barguzinsky») was founded on the initiative of the RGS in January 1917.
«The Most Beautiful Country» contest is not only a competition, but also a space for communication and the development of creative potential of people united by their love of nature photography. The participants gave positive feedback on the educational program events, which were held for the first time in 2025 in a number of Russian cities. These events provided an opportunity to hear opinions about their work from professionals, as well as learn new things in a warm atmosphere among like-minded people. The Russian Geographical Society continues its tradition and invites you to join the portfolio review and master classes in the company of members of the jury and the expert commission of the contest: Sergey Semenov, CEO and lead photographer of the world-famous AirPano project; Sergey Korshunov, teacher and founder of the online school of photography; Georgy Politsarnov, editor-in-chief of the magazine Prophotos.ru, photo technology expert. Their opinions will also share the finalists of «The Most Beautiful Country»: Ilya Trukhanov, winner of the special prize «Captured on a Camera Trap» for a shot from Sailyugemsky National Park; and Yuri Smityuk, who won the contest several times. The educational program events will be held in St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, and Vladivostok in February — March, 2026.