Red Bull Illume Image Quest 2021 Prizes & Benefits

Since 2006, Red Bull Illume has existed to put adventure and action sports photographers on the map – shining the light on the men and women behind the lens. Now is the chance for a new generation of photographers to claim the ultimate prize – a coveted Red Bull Illume Trophy.

This year the total value of prizes on offer to winners is more than €200,000. But the real prize is priceless –that’s the exposure and prestige associated with being a Red Bull Illume winner.

Their work is not only printed in the limited-edition Photobook but they also joined the global Red Bull Illume network that ensures further collaborations and opportunities. Numerous adventure and action sports photographers over the years have credited Red Bull Illume as playing a pivotal role in boosting their career.

"Not only was it an incredible journey, it has brought to me a lot of opportunities!" says Ben Thouard, overall winner of the Image Quest 2019.

"Being part of this contest brought me many professional opportunities. I met so many incredible photographers, it was a great experience." - Baptiste Fauchille, 2019 category finalist.

In addition to the prestige associated with the contest, and exposure across global press, winners can this year also expect some incredible prizes, from a Lenovo^TM computer*, SanDisk Professional^TM workflow bundle to a paid photoshoot with Black Diamond and a Leica camera.

The submissions were open until August 01, 2021. To learn more about which categories were open, click here.

To see how the judging process worked, watch this video.

Prizes

1 Overall Winner

The judging panel has selected the overall winner from the 11 category winners, who was awarded with prizes worth around €50,000 from all of our global partners!

The prize package from Lenovo included the Lenovo Yoga™ 9i 2-in-1, Yoga Mouse,Yoga Headset, the Lenovo Smart Frame, a Q-series HD Monitor and a laptop backpack.

SanDisk Professional awarded the overall winner with a Workflow Bundle from their new product range as well as a SanDisk Extreme Team Engagement.

Black Diamond gifted mountain sports equipment worth $2,500.

The package from Leica included the SL2 camera with three premium lenses: Super-Vario-Elmar-SL 1:3.5-4.5/16-35 ASPH, Vario-Elmarit-SL 1:2.8-4/24-90 ASPH and Apo-Vario-Elmarit-SL 1:2.8-4/ 90-280 and the Handgrip.

The overall winner was provided with exceptional equipment from COOPH, producer of photography apparel and accessories, that is worth €2,000.

11 Category Winners

All 11 category winners received prizes that are worth around €10,000!

Each category winner got the Yoga 9i 2-in1 laptop from Lenovo and a Workflow Bundle from SanDisk Professional.

Also they received a Stonehauler Duffle Bag from Black Diamond on top of a one year pro deal and Leica awarded them with their Q2 camera.

On top of that, WhiteWall gave all category winners their very own winning image, printed and framed.

COOPH gifted the Photo Glove ULTIMATE.

Special Category Prizes

Emerging by Black Diamond: The category winner was awarded with a 3 day Black Diamond photoshoot that's worth $5,000.

Best Mountain Photo: Black Diamond also rewarded the Best Mountain Photo with a selection of their products worth $5,000.

Energy by Red Bull Photography: Red Bull Photography supported the Energy category winner with the execution of their dream photoshoot.

RBIL21 Prizes Black Diamond RB Photography

56 Finalists

Each one of the 56 finalists received prizes that are worth around €2,000.

All of them got the Lenovo Tab M10 HD (2Gen), the SanDisk iXpand Luxe Flash Drive, headlamps from Black Diamond and beanies from COOPH.

256 Semi-Finalists

All semi-finalists got the opportunity to become an ambassador for one of the Red Bull Illume partners and their work is printed in the limited-edition Photobook. Their imagery is reviewed by industry professionals, which can lead to opportunities for further worldwide press exposure.

Incredible Benefits

Winning a photography award like Red Bull Illume is about more than winning a big trophy, it’s about getting your work seen by, not only, a panel of photography and digital experts, but the whole world.

This could change your life and photography game for ever. Your work will be featured in magazines, blogs, and news stories from top photographic and sports publications.

It opens the door to a whole bunch of new opportunities; many previous winners have turned their passions into their careers thanks to Red Bull Illume.

"Taking part in Red Bull Illume was life changing, really. It was so amazing to meet all the other photographers at the Winner Award Ceremony." - Laurence Crossman-Emms, 2019 category winner.

Of course, you’ll never know unless you enter!

The submission phase is over!

Submissions for the world’s greatest adventure and action sports imagery contest were open until August 01, 2021, and are now closed! Want to find out who decided which images get illuminated on the incredible 2x2m lightboxes? Click here to meet the judges.

*Lenovo products awarded to Red Bull Illume Image Quest 2021 winners may vary per geography and availability.