The “Energy of Life” National Photography Competition, organized for the second time by Yeşilırmak Electricity Distribution Inc. (YEDAŞ) in collaboration with the Turkish Federation of Photography Art (TFSF), is now open for entries. The competition aims to capture the role of electricity in our lives and the relationship between energy, people, cities, and nature through the distinctive language of photographic art. All amateur and professional photographers aged 18 and over are eligible to participate.
Yeşilırmak Electricity Distribution Inc. (YEDAŞ) is once again bringing photography enthusiasts together through its “Energy of Life” National Photography Competition, organized to showcase the visible and invisible impact of electricity on every aspect of life through the art of photography.
Held in collaboration with TFSF, the competition seeks to portray electricity not merely as a technical service, but as an essential element that sustains life—from illuminating cities and supporting production to shaping everyday experiences and our relationship with nature.
Open to amateur and professional photographers from across Türkiye, the competition also aims to create a compelling visual record of the relationship between electricity and life.
2,874 Photographs Entered Last Year
Held for the first time last year, the “Energy of Life” National Photography Competition attracted considerable interest from photographers across Türkiye. A total of 2,874 photographs were submitted and evaluated by a jury of experts. Following the evaluation, 41 works received awards, while 35 were selected for exhibition. A total of TRY 295,000 in prize money was distributed.
Last year’s first prize went to Orhan Tanhan for his photograph “As the Sun Sets,” taken in Mardin. Bringing the colors of sunset on the horizon together with a row of streetlights stretching along a road, the photograph was awarded first place by the jury for its powerful portrayal of the relationship between electricity and life.
Serap Ünal won second prize with “Joy Within the Light,” photographed in Adana, which captures a warm, spontaneous moment shared by a young man and a bird. Third prize went to Veysel Kaya for “A Visit,” taken in Bursa, depicting a man embracing his four dogs in a snow-covered landscape.
Saim Çakar received an honorable mention for “The Energy Journey of Life,” photographed in Muş, which captures the rhythmic visual pattern created by a succession of electricity poles. The strong interest and diverse perspectives that emerged from last year’s competition played an important role in YEDAŞ’s decision to organize it for a second time.
The Value Electricity Adds to Life Through the Lens
The “Energy of Life” National Photography Competition invites participants to interpret the connection between electricity and life from their own unique perspectives. Its key themes include lights illuminating cities, the dedicated work of electricity crews in the field, the aesthetic details of energy infrastructure, the relationship between nature and energy, nighttime illumination, production facilities, and the role of electricity in everyday life.
Through an artistic approach, participants can explore the role electricity plays in sustaining life and capture the often-overlooked contributions of energy through their own lenses. The competition aims to bring together original photographs that portray energy infrastructure not merely as a technical system, but as an essential value that makes life possible, keeps cities vibrant, and connects people.
Total Prize Pool of TRY 295,000
Winning entries will receive cash prizes as well as TFSF medals.
- First Prize: TFSF Gold Medal + TRY 40,000
- Second Prize: TFSF Silver Medal + TRY 30,000
- Third Prize: TFSF Bronze Medal + TRY 20,000
- 3 Honorable Mentions: TRY 10,000 each
- Up to 35 works selected for exhibition: TRY 5,000 each
Entries must be submitted through TFSF’s online competition system. The entry requirements, technical specifications, and further details are available on the TFSF website. At the conclusion of the competition, the winning and exhibition-selected works will be presented to art enthusiasts in an exhibition. In this way, the theme “Energy of Life” will reach wider audiences through the unique perspectives of photographers from different regions of Türkiye.
Jury Features Prominent Figures in Photography
The jury of the “Energy of Life” National Photography Competition comprises experienced professionals who have made significant contributions to photography and visual storytelling. The jury members are Coşkun Aral, Merih Akoğul, Kamil Fırat, Erhan Sevenler, and İsa Terli.
Among the jury members, Coşkun Aral stands out for a career spanning more than 40 years, during which he has documented wars, conflicts, and social events in different parts of the world through photography and documentary filmmaking. His coverage of major events, including the Lebanese Civil War, Afghanistan, Chernobyl, and the Iran–Iraq War, has appeared in international publications such as Time, Newsweek, and Paris Match. Aral reached a wide audience through his television program Haberci and is known for viewing photography not merely as a medium for reporting news, but also as a powerful means of preserving collective memory.
Coşkun Aral: Aral began his career in press photography in 1974 and has documented wars, conflicts, and social events in many parts of the world. His photographs have appeared in international publications such as Time and Newsweek, and his assignments have taken him to Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Northern Ireland, the Far East, and numerous other regions. Throughout his career, he has worked on numerous documentaries, television programs, photography exhibitions, and international projects. He reached a wide audience through Haberci, a television program he produced and directed. He also contributed to the establishment of Türkiye’s first information and documentary television channel, İZ TV, where he served as editor-in-chief. Recognized with numerous professional awards, Aral continues his work in photography and documentary filmmaking.
Merih Akoğul: A graduate of the Photography Department at the Faculty of Fine Arts of Mimar Sinan University, Akoğul works as a photographer, writer, educator, and curator. He has held more than 30 solo exhibitions in Türkiye and abroad and has published 15 books covering various subjects. For more than 30 years, he has taught photography at various universities and curated numerous exhibitions and festivals. He served on the Advisory Board of the Photography Department at Istanbul Modern from 2012 to 2025 and received the TFSF Photography Award in 2022 and the İFSAK Photography Award in 2024.
Kamil Fırat: Fırat has been working in photography, art theory, and design philosophy since 1980. He is a retired faculty member of the Photography Department at Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University. His work focuses on Anatolian archaeology, Ottoman architecture, and the visual memory of the region in which we live. He has held solo exhibitions in Türkiye and countries including Germany, Belgium, Kosovo, India, and Russia. Fırat has also published numerous photography books and historical studies and served as curator of the Bursa International Photography Festival from 2015 to 2020.
Erhan Sevenler: A graduate of the Photography Department at Marmara University’s Faculty of Fine Arts, Sevenler began his professional career as a photojournalist at Anadolu Agency in 1996. Throughout his career, he has photographed numerous major events, including the 1999 Marmara earthquake, the Iraq War, the Arab Spring in Libya, the Mavi Marmara raid, and the Syrian civil war. After spending many years working in conflict and crisis zones, he joined the founding teams of the Anadolu Agency News Academy and War Correspondents Academy, where he also worked as an instructor. The recipient of numerous national and international awards, Sevenler continues to develop photography projects and teach news photography at universities.
İsa Terli: Terli graduated from Gaziantep University’s Radio and Television Broadcasting program and Selçuk University’s Journalism Department. He has worked in television, local government, and press photography. Since 2014, he has been a photojournalist at Anadolu Agency and has received numerous photography awards throughout his career. He has held two solo exhibitions, “Life in Gülağaç” and “A Breath of Istanbul,” and his photographs have also been featured in numerous group exhibitions. Terli has served on the juries of many photography competitions and has been pursuing projects focused on astronomy and lunar photography since 2017.
Final Submission Deadline: November 12
Open to amateur and professional photographers from across Türkiye, the “Energy of Life” National Photography Competition has a final submission deadline of November 12, 2026.
YEDAŞ invites all photography enthusiasts to capture the connection between electricity and life through their own lenses and share their unique interpretations of the “Energy of Life.”
