International Photography Open Call

Nocturne:
Photography After Dark

Night changes the rules of seeing. TCG Gallery invites photographers worldwide to submit work made after daylight recedes, when darkness, limited visibility, and artificial light reshape the world.

Prospectus

Streetlights isolate gestures. Windows glow against dark buildings. Familiar places become theatrical, private, or strange. Long exposures stretch time. Flash reveals what the eye would miss. Beyond the city, moonlight, stars, weather, and deep shadow remake the landscape.

We welcome urban night photography, nocturnal landscapes, astrophotography, nightlife, interiors, staged scenes, low-light portraits, long exposures, light painting, flash photography, and experimental work. The night may appear as a physical setting, a psychological condition, or a space in which ordinary life behaves differently.

The work does not have to be conventionally dark. We are interested in what becomes visible after daylight recedes: isolation, intimacy, spectacle, labor, danger, freedom, stillness, and the strange life of illuminated things.

Possible interpretations

• Cities, streets, highways, and public spaces after dark
• Night landscapes, moonlight, weather, stars, and the night sky
• Nightlife, performance, celebration, and subculture
• Solitude, insomnia, intimacy, secrecy, and surveillance
• Artificial light, neon, windows, signs, headlights, and streetlights
• Flash photography, long exposure, light painting, and motion
• Low-light portraiture, documentary, staged, abstract, and experimental work
• Darkness as mood, metaphor, or psychological space

Eligibility and selection

• Open worldwide to photographers and visual artists age 18 and older.
• Digital, film, alternative process, documentary, fine art, conceptual, staged, experimental, and mixed-media photographic work is welcome.
• All submitted work must be original and created by the submitting artist.
• Images created by or substantially altered with generative artificial intelligence are not eligible.
• Approximately 30 strong images will be selected for the curated online exhibition and permanent website archive.

Submissions are reviewed for image quality, originality, relationship to the theme, and the strength of the exhibition as a whole. TCG Gallery uses blind review whenever possible, placing emphasis on the work rather than biography, resume, or prior exhibition history.

What selected artists receive

• Inclusion in the curated online exhibition
• Artist and artwork details published with selected work
• Permanent placement in the TCG Gallery exhibition archive
• Promotion through TCG Gallery's website, email list, and social channels
• Eligibility for optional artwork sales inquiries through the gallery

Submission details

• Submit JPG or JPEG files, at least 1200 pixels on the longest side.
• Do not include watermarks, signatures, or identifying marks on the image.
• Suggested filename: firstname_lastname_title-01.jpeg
• The $15 entry fee covers up to three images. Artists may submit more than one entry.
• Fee waivers are available on the honor system for artists experiencing financial hardship. Contact TCG Gallery before submitting.

Sales and compliance

Artists may list selected work for sale or mark it not for sale. TCG Gallery may direct interested collectors to the artist or assist with communication when appropriate. TCG Gallery retains a 30% commission on work sold through the gallery.

TCG Gallery cannot accept submissions or provide services where doing so would violate applicable United States sanctions, export, payment-processing, or compliance restrictions.

Submit work

Complete the entry form with your contact information, artwork details, and up to three JPG or JPEG files. Payment follows submission.