The LOBA Women Grant 2026 is being announced for the first time. As part of the Leica Oskar Barnack Award (LOBA), the new category for project funding is explicitly aimed at female photographers.
With the substantial support of the LOBA Women Grant, female photographers will have the opportunity to realize a new project idea and image series, which will then be presented in the context of the LOBA. In the future, the Leica Oskar Barnack Award will not only include an award in the main category and a newcomer grant, but also the LOBA Women Grant as an additional position. In contrast to the existing categories, this new grant will select a project idea that will receive its first presentation at the LOBA in the following year. This new aspect of photography promotion is another item on the program of the Leica Jubilee 2025: throughout the year, the anniversary of the first series-produced Leica I will be celebrated under the motto “100 Years of Leica: Witness to a Century”.
Based on the experience of the previous Leica Women Photo Award, which was launched by Leica Camera USA in 2019, the new LOBA Women Grant will be even more global from this year onwards. Women photographers worldwide are encouraged to bring their projects to the public. Recognizing the persistent gender imbalance in the field of photography, the LOBA Women Grant provides recognition and visibility for female photographers on an international level.
Application deadline: March 15, 2026