Awards guide · North America
Interior Design Best of Year Photo Guide: Image Rules, Deadlines and How to Enter
For entrants planning the photography for Interior Design Best of Year Awards. Checked against Interior Design magazine’s published rules on November 1, 2026.
The Interior Design Best of Year Awards are Interior Design magazine’s annual awards for interior projects and products, with 50 project categories in 2026, from residences to hospitality and offices. The 2026 call closed September 18, 2026; finalists are notified in November and winners announced in December 2026. Project entries need 5–10 JPEG images at a minimum of 350 dpi at 8 × 10 in, each with a photographer credit.
At a glance
| Interior Design Best of Year | |
|---|---|
| Organiser | Interior Design magazine |
| Who can enter | Firms entering projects, companies entering products, and students in accredited design programmes (product category only). No geographic limit is stated. |
| Eligible projects | Completed between September 2025 and September 2026 (2026 awards). On the Boards takes in-progress work; Iconic Project takes projects completed before 2025. |
| Entry platform | OpenWater portal (boyawards.secure-platform.com) |
| Fee | US$295 to August 14, US$350 from August 15 to September 11, US$385 to the September 18 deadline (2026). Student entries are free. No limit on the number of entries. |
| Next deadline | Not published. The 2026 awards closed September 18, 2026. |
Source: Best of Year Awards FAQ, Best of Year 2026 categories.
Key dates
| Date | |
|---|---|
| Early fee ends (2026 awards) | August 14, 2026 |
| Standard fee ends | September 11, 2026 |
| Final deadline | September 18, 2026 |
| Finalists notified | November 2026 |
| Winners announced | December 2026 |
Photo requirements
| Rule | |
|---|---|
| File format | JPEG |
| Size and resolution | Minimum 350 dpi at 8 × 10 in or 10 × 8 in. |
| Orientation | Either: the size may be 8 × 10 in (portrait) or 10 × 8 in (landscape). |
| How many | Projects: 5–10 high-resolution images. Products: 2–3 images. A floor plan, project documentation and a walkthrough video link are optional. |
| Editing | Images should appear exactly as the entrant wants them shown digitally and in print. |
| Credit and permissions | Every image needs a photographer credit. |
Categories
The 2026 call had 50 project categories and 57 product categories, and an entry can be duplicated into several. Photo-driven project categories include Residence: Apartment, City House/Townhouse, Beach House, Country House and Restoration/Renovation, Kitchen + Bath, Staircase, Shining Moment, the hospitality and office groups, and Building Facade.
How to enter
- Check the completion window and choose a category; each entry goes into one category, and can be copied into others.
- Create an account on the Best of Year portal and start a project entry.
- Enter the project name, location, a description of up to 500 words in English, completion date, lead firm and team, sources, and size and cost per sq. ft. (cost is not published).
- Upload 5–10 JPEG images at 350 dpi or more at 8 × 10 in, with photographer credits.
- Pay the fee for the current deadline tier and submit; changes after submission go through [email protected].
How entries are judged
- Finalists are emailed in November and listed on InteriorDesign.net and boyawards.com; winners are announced in December.
- Winners are featured in an issue of Interior Design; winners and honorees appear in an online gallery.
- Categories may be renamed, consolidated or eliminated, and entries reassigned, at the editor’s discretion.
Planning the photography
- Export at 2,800 × 3,500 pixels or larger: 350 dpi at 8 × 10 in is the stated minimum.
- Deliver final, publication-ready images: they should appear exactly as you want them shown in print and online.
- Collect photographer credits for every image before you start the entry form.
- Edit to a tight 5–10 image set: fewer than 5 does not meet the project requirement, and more than 10 is not accepted.
- Enter by mid-August if the budget matters: the fee rises from US$295 to US$385 by the final deadline.
Not in the published rules
As of November 1, 2026 the organiser’s public documents do not state:
- Dates and fees for the 2027 awards
- Who judges, judging criteria and whether judging is anonymous
- Maximum file size
- File-naming rules
- Rules on renderings, virtual staging or AI-generated images (except for On the Boards entries)
- Whether people or logos may appear in photos
- Any rule on where projects or entrants must be located, including Canada
Check the entry platform or ask the organiser before the shoot.
How I photograph awards entries
I’m an architectural and interior photographer based in Richmond, working across Metro Vancouver and, with published travel fees, the rest of BC. For an awards entry the brief comes from the rules:
- A shot list built from the categories you are entering, with an image for each thing the judges score.
- Real spaces, no virtual staging, and edits limited to normal correction of exposure, colour and verticals.
- Files delivered to the programme’s spec: files exported to the Interior Design Best of Year rules (Minimum 350 dpi at 8 × 10 in or 10 × 8 in).
- A ready credit line (“Photography: Travis Zhang”) and a licence that covers the organiser’s promotional use of winning images.
- Published prices: CA$1,100 for a half day with 12 finished images, or CA$2,000 for a full day with 20 images including twilight, plus 5% GST. Details are in the cost guide.
Frequently asked questions
What are the photo requirements for the Interior Design Best of Year Awards?
Interior Design Best of Year project entries need 5–10 high-resolution JPEG images at a minimum of 350 dpi at 8 × 10 in or 10 × 8 in. Every image needs a photographer credit, and product entries need 2–3 images.
When is the Interior Design Best of Year deadline?
The 2026 Interior Design Best of Year Awards closed September 18, 2026, with finalists notified in November and winners announced in December 2026. The 2027 deadline has not been published.
How much does it cost to enter Best of Year?
In 2026 an Interior Design Best of Year entry cost US$295 through August 14, US$350 from August 15 to September 11, and US$385 until the September 18 deadline. Student entries were free, and there is no limit on the number of entries.
Which projects are eligible for Best of Year?
For the 2026 Interior Design Best of Year Awards, projects had to be completed between September 2025 and September 2026. In-progress work goes in On the Boards, and projects completed before 2025 can enter Iconic Project.
This guide summarises Interior Design magazine’s published rules and is not affiliated with Interior Design magazine. The official documents take precedence.