Youth Photography Showcase
The Alpine Bank Youth Photography Showcase is open to all Colorado middle and high school students, providing an opportunity to exhibit their photography in a professional gallery setting.
November 17th-21st, 2026 | 12pm-6pm
Durango Arts Center
A Call To Students: Lights, Camera, Action!
Up to 100 student photographs will be selected for a week-long exhibition during Colorado Photography Week. Selected students may also offer their photographs for sale, have their work featured in the online gallery, and be recognized during the Colorado Pro Photographer Showdown.
Because the Youth Photography Showcase is open to students statewide, entries will close once the first 200 eligible submissions have been received.
Each selected student photographer will receive one complimentary ticket (a $35 value) to attend the Colorado Pro Photographer Showdown on Wednesday, November 18, 2026, at Fort Lewis College. To claim the complimentary ticket, students must confirm their intent to attend no later than November 17, 2026. Unclaimed tickets will be released for public sale.
Parents, family members, and guests are encouraged to attend the Colorado Pro Photographer Showdown and may purchase tickets separately. Please note that complimentary student ticket holders will be seated in a reserved student section, and accompanying guests will be seated in reserved audience seating.
A few of the student photographers on stage at the Community Concert Hall at Fort Lewis College photographed with the professionals.
Student photographs on exhibit and for sale at the Durango Arts Center.
Durango City Lifestyle Magazine Cover Award
Durango City Lifestyle Magazine will select one student photograph from the 2026 Youth Photography Showcase to be featured on the cover of its February 2027 issue. The selected student will also receive a $500 professional photography payment, earning the distinction as one of Colorado Photography Week’s newest paid professional photographers!
The publisher of Durango City Lifestyle will have sole discretion in selecting the cover photograph based on image quality, composition, orientation, and suitability for publication, and reserves the right not to select a photograph if none meet the magazine’s editorial standards.
Before the award is finalized, the selected student and a parent or legal guardian must sign the required publication permission and liability release.
Durango City Lifestyle Magazine Cover Award
Durango City Lifestyle Magazine will select one student photograph from the 2026 Youth Photography Showcase to be featured on the cover of its February 2027 issue. The selected student will also receive a $500 professional photography payment, earning the distinction as one of Colorado Photography Week’s newest paid professional photographers!
The publisher of Durango City Lifestyle will have sole discretion in selecting the cover photograph based on image quality, composition, orientation, and suitability for publication, and reserves the right not to select a photograph if none meet the magazine’s editorial standards.
Before the award is finalized, the selected student and a parent or legal guardian must sign the required publication permission and liability release.
2026 Student Photo Gallery
View the Gallery in person on November 17th – 21st, 2026 | 12:00pm – 6:00 pm at the Durango Arts Center.