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Does anyone know what's happened to the contest? I contacted them a while back but only had a standard email saying that final judging was being conducted. The deadline was many months ago.

They announced the winners last week in an email. The first paragraph reads - [font="Times New Roman", serif]At long last, we are proud to share a sneak preview of the Grand Prize and Category Winners of the 2020 Nature’s Best Photography International Awards competition! Stay tuned for our presentation of Winners on our website next week as we officially share the news online. We look forward to getting back to printing and into exhibitions as they will hopefully begin to open their doors to the public. And I know you will be eager to see the Highly Honored images in each category that will follow in the next weeks.[/font]

It was very badly organised this time. After paying them entry fee and submitting the images, didn't hear anything from them.

jwild wrote:It was very badly organised this time. After paying them entry fee and submitting the images, didn't hear anything from them.

That was exactly my experience, too, after I had taken part in this competition for the first time in 2019 and had submitted a selection of my best images taken over the years : No information, no answering of emails, no notification of the judgement, no feedback at all with regard to the judgement and rating of the submissions - just nothing. You just could see the winners on their site several months after the closing of the contest. So that behaviour isn't an exception in 2020 and significantly differs from the treatment of the participants in other respected contests like BBC, GDT etc. I don't know if this disrespect particularily is targeted towards "new" photogs who are not in their hall of fame or a general way they act and primarily want to collect the fees. In any case, my submissions of 2019 remain my first and last participation in that contest.

Wolfgang

WJaekel wrote:

jwild wrote:It was very badly organised this time. After paying them entry fee and submitting the images, didn't hear anything from them.

That was exactly my experience, too, after I had taken part in this competition for the first time in 2019 and had submitted a selection of my best images taken over the years : No information, no answering of emails, no notification of the judgement, no feedback at all with regard to the judgement and rating of the submissions - just nothing. You just could see the winners on their site several months after the closing of the contest. So that behaviour isn't an exception in 2020 and significantly differs from the treatment of the participants in other respected contests like BBC, GDT etc. I don't know if this disrespect particularily is targeted towards "new" photogs who are not in their hall of fame or a general way they act and primarily want to collect the fees. In any case, my submissions of 2019 remain my first and last participation in that contest.

Wolfgang

Actually I happened to win this competition more than six times earlier, it was never like that!
And the funniest part is the editor wrote me recently for permission to use one of my pictures of Indian One-horned Rhino to promote their African competition !!! 
He projected it as a highly honored image in African competition of Natures Best,

Yes, it could have been much better managed. I think we all appreciate that Covid has complicated things but there are other international competitions that have managed to react to the change of circumstances without much delay. Also, it would have been nice to be informed of what's going on behind the scene instead of keeping silence for months, literally. Anyway, congratulations to those who have made the final cut.

It seems to me that they are in turmoil after ending their relationship with the Smithsonian. However I've never heard back from them on any submission which might possibly speak to their impression of my photography.