SENKOSTORY

Menu

SENKO 2026 — Open for Submissions

For the SENKO 2026 Competition, we invite high school students across Thailand to explore their communities and share meaningful local stories through photography. This competition is an opportunity for students to express their perspectives, develop storytelling skills, and rediscover the value of their local culture.

🥇Prizes

1)  👑 Winning Team

  • The winning team including the supervising teacher will go on an all-expenses-paid one week trip to Hokkaido, Japan (August 17 ~ 23, 2026) , where they will represent Thailand at the Higashikawa Youth Photo Festival
  • The free trip to Higashikawa Youth Photo Exchange, Hokkaido (August 17 ~ 23, 2026) will cover the following items for all 3 students and the supervising teacher. 
    • Round trip airplane tickets from Bangkok to Higashikawa
    • Accomodation & meals while in Higashikawa 
    • Travel insurance only during the period of the event. 
    • Round trip airplane tickets from any domestic airport to Bangkok, if applicable. 
      • If the winning team is from the Bangkok area or from a location reasonably close to Bangkok, the students and teachers will have to arrange and pay for their own transportation to the airport in Bangkok. 
      • If the winning team is from another province or a rural area, the students and teachers will need to arrange and pay for their own transportation to the nearest domestic airport. 
  • All other expenses not listed above must be covered by the students and teacher. 
  • NOTE: If the winning team would like to stay in Tokyo for several days after the Higashikawa Youth Photo Exchange before returning to Thailand, we may be able to arrange the requested return flight dates. However, all expenses in Tokyo must be paid by the students and teacher, as this is not part of the official educational program.

2)  🫂 Audience Favorite Team / Popular Vote

  • Our judges will select the 10 finalist teams, whose photos and videos will be shared on our social media platforms (TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook) for our followers to vote for the audience’s favorite team. The team will be rewarded with 15,000THB!
  • NOTE: The winning team can also win the popular vote award.

3)  📄 Certificates

  • Winning Team — SENKO Jury Award  
  • Audience Favorite Team — SENKO Audience Choice Award 
  • Top 10 Finalists — SENKO Official Selection Award 
  • All Participants — SENKO Certificate of Creative Storytelling

📅 Submission Deadline

The final deadline for submissions will be June 7, 2026 at 11:59PM.  Any submissions after this will not be accepted.

👥 Eligibility

  • Open to students of all nationality who are currently in Grade 10-12 (Mor 4-6) and are enrolled in a highschool located in Thailand (regardless of whether it is a public school, private school, or even international school).
  • For students in Thai schools, you are eligible if you will be in Grade 10-12 (or 4-6) from the new academic year that starts in May, 2026. Please note that if you have already graduated highschool, we unfortunately cannot accept your application.
  • A student may only be part of one team. However, multiple teams from the same school may have the same supervising teacher.
  • Schools may submit multiple teams, and teachers may supervise more than one team.

Story Theme

This year’s theme is “Local Charm”. Capture the unique character of any place through visual storytelling — whether it’s your own community or somewhere that reflects meaningful cultural, social, or environmental identity.

✅ Submission Requirement

Each team must submit the following materials.

1. 📸 Photoseries

a. Six (6) final selected photographs
b. Corresponding original files (RAW files for camera users, unretouched)
c.  File format: JPEG

2. ✍️ Written Materials & Group Photo

a.  The story of the six photos and the inspiration behind the photo series (theme, concept, location, subjects, etc.) — max. 150 words
b.  An explanation of the retouching process including tools and adjustments used for the photos — max. 100 words
c. One creative group photo of the three students

3. 🎬 Video Material: Show us who you are! (Example video)

a. Submit one vertical video introducing yourself beyond your photos. This is your chance to show your personality, originality, creativity, and point of view — and to convince the judges why they should pick your team to go to Japan.
          1.  Length: max.. 2.5 minutes
          2. Format: 9:16 (optimized for social media)
          3. Students Students may speak in either Thai or English. If students speak in Thai, please add English subtitles.
          4. Teachers do not need to appear in the video.

b. There is no required formula. Your video can be cinematic, vlog-style, documentary-style, experimental, funny, emotional, or simple — as long as it feels true to you.

c. Here are some examples of what you can include/talk about in the video. They are not required and only serve as inspirations.
          1.  Who you are and where you are from
          2.  What photography means to you
          3.  Why you want to join SENKO
          4.  The story, process, or challenges behind your photos
          5.  A favorite photo or photographer

d. some advice
           1.  Think about videos you enjoy on social media — what makes them fun, unique, engaging, and creative?
           2.  If your video is boring and bland (ex. just sitting down and talking to the camera), it’s probably not going to impress the judges.
           3.  The use of AI is not encouraged but permitted. If you do use AI, please do not use AI to recreate characters from movies, anime, games, or shows, or to generate any logos or brand imagery. Keep all visuals original — if someone could recognize it as an existing character or brand, leave it out.

4. 🔁 Share your story with friends and family! ! 

a. Post your photos on at least one team member’s Instagram account
b. Follow and Tag @senkostory in the post
c. Add #SENKO2026 in the caption

NOTE:

  • There is no “correct” formula for the video material.. Your video can be cinematic, vlog-style, documentary-style, etc.. Be creative, be original, have fun with it. This video will be a part of the judging criteria
  • Tip: Think about videos you enjoy on social media — what makes them work?

🏆 Judging Criteria

📸 Photo will be evaluated based on:

a. Theme
How well do the photos and story align with the theme?

b. Message
What is the message? How effectively is it conveyed?

c. Expression
Composition, lighting, balance, framing, and technical quality.

d. Timing
How well is the decisive moment captured?

e. Authenticity
Originality and uniqueness of both photos and narrative.

f. Motivation
Clarity & depth in describing the creative development

🎬 Video will be evaluated based on:

a. Creativity & Authenticity
Originality in presentation and approach.

b. Engagement 
Is your video fun to watch? 

c. Execution
Overall production quality and editing/pacing.

📝 The Use of AI or Image Manipulation

Basic retouching (e.g. exposure, color correction, cropping) is permitted.

However, AI-generated content or any form of image fabrication is strictly prohibited, including the use of software (e.g. Photoshop) to add, insert, or artificially create visual elements.

All submissions may be reviewed using AI detection tools.

Teams found to have used AI-generated or manipulated content will be disqualified. SENKO reserves the right to restrict future participation from any school with multiple violations.

📜 Media Consent

By submitting to SENKO 2026, participants confirm that permission has been obtained from a parent or legal guardian for SENKO to use submitted materials for communication and promotional purposes.

This includes:

  • Participants’ first names, school, and province
  • Team group photos
  • Submitted photographs and videos


These materials may be shared across SENKO’s website, social media platforms, and other related promotional channels.

Download the consent form here and have your parents/legal guardian sign it.

📅 Results & Public Voting

June 7 – Submission Deadline

June 11 – Top 10 Teams and their photos/videos will be shared on social media

June 11 – June 17 – Public voting on our social media

June 14 – Winning Team will be privately contacted via email and social media.

June 18 – Winning Team & Audience Favorite Team will be announced

👉💡Follow our social media

@senkostory (IG & TikTok) | SENKO (Facebook)

  • Discover past winning photos 🌅
  • Experience what it’s like to take photos in Japan 🎌
  • Stay updated on important announcements and tips 💯
Register Now (Thai)
Register Now (English)