Red Bull Illume is the world's greatest international photography contest dedicated to action and adventure sports. It showcases the most creative and captivating photography on the planet and aims to bring the public closer to the world of action and adventure sports. In 2016, Red Bull Illume Image Quest will be held for the fourth time. New for 2016 is the mobile category. From tens of thousands of entries, 55 finalists will be selected by international judges in eleven categories. Submissions will run from December 1 2015 until March 31 2016.
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Quotes on Red Bull Illume
This is the most incredible collection I have ever seen assembled in one place and it is one of the most phenomenal experiences I have had in my 17 years of photo editing. – Anne Telford, Photo Editor of Communication
I think we all felt, finally, that our work was recognized as an art form thanks to the way Red Bull Illume showcased our images. – Brian Bielmann, Photographer
Commitment, passion and daring are qualities necessary to persevere in action and adventure sports—they are also the required elements to effectively capture the action on film. The Red Bull Illume Image Quest spotlights the individual behind the camera, praising the triumphs achieved in action and adventure sports photography. - Rangefinder Magazine (20.12.2006)
Red Bull Illume Image Quest 2016
The 2016 Red Bull Illume Image Quest was the fourth edition of the contest after 2007, 2010 and 2013. New for 2016 was the mobile category. A judging panel of 53 photo editors went through thousands of entries and eventually selected 11 Category Winners and one Overall Winner, who were unveiled at the Red Bull Illume Winner Award Ceremony on September 28th, 2016 in Chicago, USA. Lorenz Holder (GER) took home the Overall Winner, making this the second time he has won Red Bull Illume Image Quest, as well as winning the Athlete's Choice Award, which was voted on by several of the biggest athletes in their respective sports. Following the Winner Award Ceremony in Chicago, all finalist images will travel across the world as part of a unique nighttime photo exhibition.
Official partners for 2016 include online retailer Yodobashi, consumer electronics giant Sony, external storage brand G-Technology, photo bag manufacturer tamrac and lighting experts broncolor.
Submissions were open from December 1, 2015 and closed on April1, 2016. Over 5,000 photographers originating from 120 different countries submitted 34,624 photos.
Category Winners 2016
Red Bull Illume Image Quest 2013
The submission phase of the third edition of Red Bull Illume was open from December 1, 2012 until April 30, 2013. The 50 finalists were unveiled on August 29, 2013 at a ceremony at the Avenue of Stars in Hong Kong. The overall winner was Lorenz Holder (GER) whose image of snowboarder Xaver Hoffmann performing a jump at a satellite dish in Raisting, Germany was selected by an international panel of 50 photo experts, winning him a Leica S camera, a broncolor Move Outdoor kit as well as Sun-Sniper gear worth over €2,000. Following the Winner's Award Ceremony in Hong Kong, during which the Top 50 finalists were unveiled, the images of the 50 finalists traveled the world as an exhibition tour during 2013/2014. The exhibited images were illuminated on 2x2m light-boxes; to showcase this, the exhibition was strictly open after the sun had set. The 2013 Red Bull Illume Image Quest was the 3rd edition of the competition. Submissions were open from December 1 2012 until April 30 2013.
Photographers could submit images to the following categories:
Category Winners 2013
Image Quest 2010
The submission phase of the second edition of Red Bull Illume opened from October 1, 2009 until February 28, 2010. The 50 finalists were unveiled on August 31, 2010 at a ceremony in Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. The overall winner was Chris Burkard (USA) whose image of surfer Peter Mendia off Chile's west coast was selected by an international panel of 53 photo experts, winning him a Leica S2 camera worth €30.000. The exhibition then toured the cities of Houston, Charleston, Miami, Denver, Salzburg and Bern.
Photographers could submit images to the following categories:
Category Winners 2010
Image Quest 2007
The first edition of the Image Quest In 2007 resulted in 2,000 established and amateur photographers from over 90 different countries submitting more than 7,500 images. They were judged by a panel of expert photo editors such as Kari Stein of Sports Illustrated, Paul Sanders of The Times and Nick Hamilton of Transworld Snowboarding. The subsequent exhibition tour showcased the 50 finalist images in exceptional outdoor venues across North America, e.g. on the slopes of Aspen or Huntington Beach Pier.
Category Winners 2007
In video games
In PlayStation Home, Red Bull released a virtual themed space for the Red Bull Illume on November 26, 2009. It is an exhibition of action and adventure sports photographs from Red Bull Illume. The winning photograph from each of the competition’s ten categories is displayed on large illuminate cubes, imitating the real-life exhibit. There is also an exit to the Red Bull Air Race space and the Red Bull Beach space which features the Red Bull Flugtag.