Unique photography competition 'Red Roofs of Scotland' has launched

New photo competition celebrates the red roofs of Scotland
(Image credit: Ross Ryan / Highland Cinema)

A unique new international photography competition has been launched in Scotland, inviting photographers to submit images that celebrate the country's traditional unique red-roofed buildings.

The Highland Cinema is a newly built independent cinema and café bar that opened in September 2020, located in the heart of Fort William, Lochaber. The building has an iconic design with a striking red roof and locally sourced stone frontage.

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The tradition of red-roofed buildings in Scotland is dispersed across an array of croft houses in the Highlands, to barn roofs in the Shetlands, and tenements in the urban landscapes of the Central Belt. Red pantiles and corrugated iron used in Scottish roofing were supposedly intended to slow down the process of metal corrosion.

(Image credit: David Barbour)

This novel and uniquely Scottish photography competition will mark the second anniversary of Highland Cinema's opening, but is not limited to any singular location in the country; images of any beautiful, quirky, rustic and interesting red-roof buildings situated in Scotland are eligible for submission.

Amateur photographers of any age are welcome to enter the Red Roofs of Scotland inaugural 2022 competition, using any equipment, though submitted images must have been captured within the last three years. A first place cash prize of £500 (approximately $670 / AU$920) is up for grabs, sponsored by The Scottish Gallery in Edinburgh. The second place winner receives £300 ($400 / AU$552) provided by Highland Cinema, and third place will receive £200 ($267 / AU$369) from Respiole Studios. 

(Image credit: LR / Highland Cinema)

All other shortlisted entries are to receive £100 ($00 / AU$00) and the best 20 images will be printed for exhibition and display inside the Highland Cinema, with credit of course, and winners may be in with a chance to have prints of their images displayed and sold nationally. 

The deadline for entry is 28 August 2022, giving photographers plenty of time to get out there and photograph the beautiful red roofed buildings that Scotland has to offer. Winners are expected to be announced on 29 September 2022. There is no entry fee for the competition, though terms and conditions will apply, and can be found on the competition website

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Beth Nicholls
Staff Writer

A staff writer for Digital Camera World, Beth has an extensive background in various elements of technology with five years of experience working as a tester and sales assistant for CeX. After completing a degree in Music Journalism, followed by obtaining a Master's degree in Photography awarded by the University of Brighton, she spends her time outside of DCW as a freelance photographer specialising in live music events and band press shots under the alias 'bethshootsbands'.