TEANECK, N.J., Sept. 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Leica Camera announces the fourth annual call for entries to its Leica Women Foto Project Award in partnership with Photoville and Women Photograph. The brand's initiative to promote diversity in photography expands to new regions across the globe. Leica Camera will accept entries from the United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada (excluding Québec) and the United States. One winner from each region will be awarded a Leica SL2-S camera and a Vario-Elmarit-SL 24-70mm f/2.8 ASPH. Lens, and a cash prize of $10,000 USD. Applicants are requested to submit a photo story made with any camera (owning a Leica is not required) that bears witness to humanity as expressed through the female perspective. Submissions will be selected by a diverse group of jurors renowned in the world of photography. The growth of the award serves to expand the possibilities of female stories that can be told and cultures that can be explored through the art of photography.

Since its inception in 2019, the Leica Women Foto Project has served as a platform to cultivate a diverse and inclusive community through photography. Its mission is to encourage photographers to demonstrate the importance and impact of a woman's point of view. To date, the initiative has fueled diversity in visual storytelling through grants and sponsorships with Women Photograph, Photoville, Las Fotos Project, and the ConnectHer Film Festival while co-creating the Leica Women Foto Project Grant for the International Leica Society's own philanthropic efforts. This Spring, the initiative will amplify the female perspective through a feature at Photoville in New York, with additional programs to be launched throughout the year.

"Photography has the power to give reason for hope: Don't look the other way, shake things up, express and advocate for change – the connection to humanity and our responsibility to bear witness to its moments is at the heart of Leica's culture - from the Leica Oskar Barnack Award to the Leica Women Foto Project Award. With these initiatives, we recognize and celebrate the courageous photographers and the stories they express through their unique lens," states Art Director for Leica Galleries Worldwide and LWFP Juror Karin Rehn-Kaufmann.

"The Leica Women Foto Project aims to illuminate underrepresented visual storytellers through programs and resources that foster the development and amplification of the female perspective," says Kiran Karnani, VP of Marketing for Leica Camera USA. "With the Leica Women Foto Project Award expanding to new regions, we underscore our commitment to the narratives shaped by multicultural perspectives while bearing witness to the moments that impact how we see and interact with our world. We hope that this expansion allows for even more dynamic and nuanced storytelling through the female gaze."

Leica Women Foto Project Award recipients will be determined by a panel of notable judges based on the quality of photography, sophistication of the project and dedication to the medium of photography.