《纽约时报》摄影随笔比赛参赛指南：一文读懂规则、获奖范文与官方评分标准

2025年纽约时报还剩最后一个比赛——本地视角：摄影随笔比赛（Local Lens: A Photo Essay Contest），此前机构已经介绍过另外两个低门槛、纯写作的比赛：

《纽约时报》学生评论竞赛参赛指南：一文读懂规则、获奖范文与官方评分标准

《纽约时报》百字个人叙事参赛必备：完整规则、获奖范文与官方评分标准一览

这次介绍的是图文创作比赛，这项比赛以 “用镜头捕捉本地故事，用文字赋予影像灵魂” 为核心，邀请创作者聚焦身边的社区、人物与日常——可能是街角老店的坚守，是邻里间的温暖联结，或是城市变迁中的微小印记，通过一组照片搭配精炼随笔，完成对 “本地” 的深度诠释。

《纽约时报》摄影随笔比赛参赛指南：一文读懂规则、获奖范文与官方评分标准

创作一个图片故事，记录一个你身边有趣、线下的本地社区。

无论是你奶奶的麻将圈、在附近篮球场消磨时光的年轻人，还是为社区动物收容所义务遛狗的跨代际志愿者，这个群体可以涵盖任何年龄段的人，只要他们能够线下相聚，并建立起有意义的社交联结。

比赛更鼓励你选择一个你自身并非其中一员的群体进行探索。

无论选择何种圈子，任务都是通过访谈与摄影，深入他们的世界，最终将所有素材融合成一篇视觉故事——通过一篇简短引言和一系列带文字说明的照片，为你所选群体的故事赋予生命力。

比赛规则

面向人群：13-19岁初高中学生

作品提交时间：2025年12月3日-2026年1月14日

作品形式：图像+文字

作品要求：

上传6-8张有序图像，像讲述一个视觉故事一样，按你希望的观看顺序上传照片。
每张图片需配以不超过75字的简短说明。这些文字不仅要解释画面内容，更要阐明它为何对你的故事至关重要。
300字以内的引言：这是一份背景提要，是你故事的“开端”。它需要提供照片和描述无法完全呈现的背景信息，共同回答：这个社区是谁？它如何形成？为何重要？
在引言或任何一条图片描述中，必须嵌入至少一句来自该社群成员的引语，讲述这个社群对他们的意义。
可独立完成或与他人合作，也可与最多4人组队参加，但每位学生只能提交一份作品。
必须获得被拍摄者的许可，并留存其联系方式。
请最大限度地减少数码后期处理。允许进行基础调整（如裁剪、亮度、色彩平衡），但不得改变照片的真实内容。
18岁以下参赛者须获得家长或监护人同意才能参赛。
内容须为原创作品，禁止抄袭、代笔或人工智能生成。
作品需为首次发表，未在其他平台（如校刊）公开过。
作品需适合《纽约时报》的读者群体（请避免使用不当语言）。

提交：官网

获奖荣誉：优胜作品将获得在学习网络平台（Learning Network）公开发表的机会，并有机会被遴选刊登于《纽约时报》纸质版。

往年获奖作品示例

A Four-Legged Community for Everyone

By Madeline Leluc, 15, North Charleston, S.C.

When Livia Brooks relocated to Mount Pleasant, S.C., two years ago, she faced the daunting prospect of starting fresh in an unfamiliar city. “Those initial months were really challenging,” she recalled. “I didn’t know many people, and being in a completely new environment was tough — so I did what a lot of people do when they’re lonely and rescued a dog.”

One afternoon, as Livia retrieved her mail at her apartment complex, she stumbled upon a flier on the community board. The flier bore a simple message: “Have a dog? Want friends? Come to the James Island County dog park Thursday at 5 p.m.”

For Livia and her fellow club members, these weekly Thursday meetings are an opportunity to forget about life’s stresses and just be themselves. “Honestly, I don’t know what I would do without the new people I’ve met in my life, they’ve become family,” she said. “Plus, Lola, my dog, has made so many friends, every Thursday she nudges me out of the door.”

01、“I think Lola knows how happy being at the park makes me,” Livia said.

02、Peanut dressed in a lei for the club’s “Culture Day.” Her owner, Koa Iona, struggled with homesickness after moving to South Carolina from Hawaii. “I actually met someone from the same island where I grew up, and we instantly clicked — it was like I was back in Oahu,” she said.

03、On warm evenings, the club enjoys playing a variety of games, including mini golf. With the help of some friends, Livia set up a makeshift course with obstacles and flags. Yet, more often than not, the ball is kidnapped by a dog and disappears into the pond.

Since attending her first Thursday meet-up, Livia has maintained an unbroken attendance record. “Whenever I see someone new around the neighborhood, I immediately invite them to come, regardless of whether they have a dog,” she said. “I hope this environment can help others as much as it helps me.”

The Last Reindeer Herders of China

By Andrew Li, 17, Tsinghua International School, Beijing

The Reindeer Tribe represents China’s only reindeer herding tribe, and is situated in the Inner Mongolia region of China. Today, this specific branch of Ewenkis, an ethnic group Indigenous to sub-Arctic Asia, only has a couple hundred members remaining. Maliya Suo, the last female chieftain of the tribe, passed away two years ago. In 2003, the government confiscated their rifles, compelling the tribe to relocate to settlements below the mountains. As they moved out of the mountains, their language, culture and people slowly faded into the mists.

Nevertheless, Budongxia Bu and her husband, Xiaoliangku Xiao, were among the few who opted to stay in the deep forest in their commitment to preserving their nomadic lifestyle. As such, Budongxia stands as one of the final guardians of their ethnic culture. Their only son went to the city for university and has long since been unable to adapt to life in the mountains. Budongxia remains the sole family member fluent in the Ewenki language.

Their generation grapples with the delicate balance between heritage preservation and the encroaching influence of modern society. The balance of the past, the present and the future is the greatest challenge. In this delicate dance, a photographer’s lens captured their essence, freezing moments of resilience amid minus-45-Fahrenheit winds.

01、Budongxia, wearing traditional Ewenki clothing, herded the reindeer into the deep forest to feast on lichen. “Due to the deteriorating environment, our reindeer are becoming smaller and fewer in number, compelling us to venture deeper into the forest in search of lichen,” she explained.

02、The couple prefer their primitive tents over the modern ones. After the government confiscated their rifles, they made scarecrows out of bearskins to scare the wolves away. “People think this is the Ewenki way,” Xiaoliangku said, “but the real way is long gone and only exists in our memories.”

Budongxia and Xiaoliangku are among the last of the Ewenki people who still embrace a nomadic lifestyle. Periodically relocating, their tents afford them the efficiency needed for this way of life.

03、All reindeer wear bells around their necks to enable their herders to identify their location. Some reindeer have special bells that produce unique sounds, aiding in their identification.

Every part of a reindeer is useful to the Ewenki people. Parts such as the antlers are sold, and the meat is used for food.

“The reindeer are our life,” Budongxia said. “Without them, we are nothing. But the modern world is leaving us behind.”

评分标准

比赛的评分标准主要涵盖以下六个核心维度：