ISLAMABAD: To showcase Pakistan’s rich cultural heritage through mobile photography, the Higher Education Commission (HEC) has invited Pakistanis to participate in the ECO International Mobile Photography Festival 2026.
The competition is open to both amateur and professional photographers. Participants must be at least 15 years old, and each person can submit up to three photographs. The festival, titled “Our Heritage,” is being organized by the ECO Cultural Institute (ECI). This year’s theme is “Passing on Heritage,” which focuses on traditions, skills, customs and cultural knowledge passed from one generation to another.
According to the official festival details, citizens of all 10 ECO member countries can participate. These include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Türkiye, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
Participants can capture different forms of cultural heritage, including traditional handicrafts such as carpet weaving, embroidery and pottery.
Photos can also cover folk music, traditional ceremonies, customs, farming knowledge, storytelling, poetry and oral traditions. All photographs submitted to the competition must be taken with a mobile phone camera. Photos captured with DSLR, mirrorless, compact or action cameras, as well as drones, will not be accepted.
The organizers have also banned AI-generated images and AI-based editing that changes the actual content of a photograph.
However, basic editing is allowed. Participants can adjust brightness, exposure, contrast, white balance, color, sharpness and noise. They can also crop their photos as long as these changes do not alter the original content.
Photos must be submitted in JPEG or PNG format.
The shortest side of each image must be at least 2,000 pixels, while the maximum file size is 10 MB. Photos containing watermarks, signatures, logos or text will not be accepted. Applicants must provide their personal details, nationality, country and city of residence, email address and phone number.
The deadline to submit photographs is September 12, 2026 through the ECI website or by email at festival@ecieco.org. The jury will evaluate entries from September 13 to September 23. Winners are scheduled to be announced on September 24, 2026. The closing ceremony and physical exhibition of selected photographs will take place on October 4, 2026.
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