8 HOURS >>> 4 CHECKPOINTS >>> 4 THEMES
UPR BRUSSELS
6 JUNE 2026
Challenge your eye 🇧🇪
Spend eight hours racing through Brussels with four themes and twelve photos. Your perspective on a city millions think they know. Find the moments hiding in plain sight and shoot series that tell stories a jury can't ignore.
Magritte saw surrealism in these streets, Brel sang their contradictions and the best street photography doesn't explain the city, it reveals it.
Your camera, your vision, your race.
Tickets available now.
Highlights RACE
Date race Saturday 6 June, 2026
CP1 (start) Parc du Cinquantenaire - Check UPR beachflag
Start at checkpoint is @ 11:00h
Finish at checkpoint is @ 19:00h
Submit photos next day @ 13:00h
4 checkpoints & 4 themes
Prizes: 3 × Best Photographer, 4 × Best Theme, 4 × Jury's Choice
Over €1,000 in prizes
GET YOUR TICKETS
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GET YOUR TICKETS ❯❯❯
GENERAL ADMISSION:
€30
Final Week:
€35 (Last 7 days before race)
STARTING POINT
Parc du Cinquantenaire
Look for UPR beach flag
Exact meeting point details sent 1 week before race
Look for: UPR beach flag
Arrive between 10:00-11:00h for registration.
First theme revealed at 11:00h.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Metro: Mérode (Lines 1 and 5)
Tram: Mérode (Line 81)
Bus: Lines 27, 61, 80 - Stop Mérode
From Mérode station: 5-minute walk to the park
PARKING
Limited street parking around the park.
Public transport strongly recommended.
MEET YOUR JURY
Our jury is handpicked for their street photography expertise and deep knowledge of Brussels. They'll evaluate your work from multiple angles - composition, storytelling, series cohesion and authenticity.
This is a photography-active group: festival contributors, documentary photographers, competition veterans. They know what separates a good shot from a great series.
Kevin Scarlett
Kevin Scarlett is a English photographer and graphic designer based in Brussels. Street photography is second nature to Kevin. Active since 2010 on the avenues of his adopted hometown, practicing street photography before he’d even heard of the genre.
He has been consistently recognised in competitions and festivals dedicated to this medium for many years.
Interested in the uneveryday, oddballs, lost causes, myths and folklore, global or local. Taking pictures is his way of understanding the world we live in and finding beauty in the most unlikely of places.
Daniel Rachamim
I am a photographer working in portraiture, street photography, and NGO documentation. Trained in photography and cinema, I have collaborated with major cultural institutions and NGOs.
Based in Brussels, my first passion is street photography, which has been exhibited at the Museum of Art and History in Parc du Cinquantenaire, among other venues.
Jeffrey De Keyser
Jeffrey De Keyser (1984) is a Belgian street photographer and social science teacher based in Ghent.
His surreal, existential work explores the human condition through visual storytelling and has been exhibited and published internationally.
HOW IT WORKS
1. Register & Pay
Buy your ticket online. Race day details sent 1 week before, with a final reminder 2 days before the event.
2. ARRIVE & CHECK IN
Registration opens 10:00h at Parc du Cinquantenaire. Pick up your race card, check in via the UPR app, meet fellow photographers. First theme revealed at 11:00h - race starts.
3. RACE THE CITY
Checkpoints are sequenced 1 → 2 → 3 → 4. You must visit them in order.
Each checkpoint has a time window. You must arrive within that window to check in, receive the next theme, and get the next checkpoint location.
You have until 19:00h to complete all 4 checkpoints. You'll shoot 12 photos total (3 per theme). Submission deadline is next day at 13:00h.
Plan your time and route between checkpoints carefully - managing the time windows is part of the challenge.
4. SUBMIT YOUR PHOTOS
Submit all 12 photos directly through the UPR app before 13:00h the next day.
5. JURY EVALUATION
The jury reviews all submissions. Judged on theme interpretation, series cohesion, and execution.
6. WINNERS ANNOUNCED
The moment you've been waiting for! Winners revealed approximately 5 weeks after the race on UPR website and Instagram.
Winners receive:
Prize money and partner prizes
Spotlight feature across UPR platforms
Recognition in European street photography circles
The entire community gets to see the winning series. For more questions visit FAQ page.
RACE DAY TIMELINE
10:00h - 11:00h
└─ Checkpoint 1 Registration + Theme 1 revealed
13:00h-14:00h
└─ Checkpoint 2 Check in + Theme 2 and 3 revealed
15:00h -16:00h
└─ Checkpoint 3 Check in + Theme 4 revealed
18:00h -19:00h
└─ Checkpoint 4 Final check in
NEXT DAY - 13:00h
└─ Photo submission deadline via SwissTransfer (email transfer link to info@urbanphotorace.com)
~5 Weeks later
└─ Winners announced UPR website + Instagram
Questions about the race? Visit our FAQ page.
SIGMA BF x UPR
5 Sigma BF cameras available
Yours to try, yours to race with.
Sigma is bringing 5 of their new BF cameras to Urban Photo Race Brussels 2026. Pick one up at the start, shoot the whole race with it, and bring it back at the end.
What is the Sigma BF?
The SIGMA BF is a full-frame mirrorless camera built for simplicity. Stripped to the essentials, packed with power.
35mm full-frame sensor (24.6 MP)
Seamless aluminum unibody construction
Intuitive controls, shutter speed, aperture, ISO, EV compensation directly accessible
13 creative color modes
Internal 230GB storage (holds 14,000+ JPEGs)
L-Mount system
Made for street and the spontaneous moments that come with it.
How it works
If you've got a ticket, look out for an interest email in late May. The first 5 ticket holders to flag interest get a camera for the day.
Drop by the Sigma table at CP1 from 9:30
Shoot with it through the whole race
Bring it back at CP4
No commitment, just a chance to use a full-frame mirrorless in real street conditions all day.
Why try it
A pro camera in your hands for the whole race, with Sigma's team at the start line to walk you through it. They might share your shots on their blog and socials too.
RACE PRIZES
Best photographer
Overall winners across all 4 themes.
1st Place:
+ €250 cash
+ SIGMA 35mm F1.4 DG II | ART (E-mount or L-mount)
+ Photofacts Academy annual membership (€179 value)2nd Place:
+ €120
+ Albelli €100 Voucher3rd Place:
+ €75
+ WISPER workshop Street Photography: A Look at the City
Best Theme (4 awards):
Best interpretation of each challenge.
Winner per theme: €50
4 themes × €50 = €200 total
Jury's Choice (4 awards):
Each jury member selects their personal favorite series.
Jury's favorite: €35 (3 awards)
Jury's Special Recognition: Lomography Simple Use Camera
loaded with Classicolor 35 mm film (1 award)
3 jury picks = €105 total + camera/film
Prize money will be transferred to winners' bank accounts within one month of the official announcement.
All submissions are verified to ensure a fair and transparent process.
PRIZE PARTNERS
Brussels 2026 is supported by:
SIGMA
Built for photographers who demand precision on the street. Sigma's Art line lenses deliver exceptional sharpness and character in every frame. Main prize partner for UPR Brussels, offering the Best Photographer a Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG II Art lens. On race day, five Sigma BF cameras will be available for participants to shoot with.
WISPER
A Belgian arts organisation where people connect with art in freedom across six disciplines including photography. WISPER believes everyone with an artistic hunger or curiosity should feel at home and free to be themselves. The 3rd place Best Photographer wins a spot in their street photography workshop: A Look at the City.
Photofacts Academy
The leading Dutch language online photography platform with 125+ courses taught by the best photography educators from the Netherlands and Belgium. The Best Photographer wins an annual membership worth €179, giving full access to the entire course library for a full year.
Lomography
A global community and brand dedicated to analogue photography. From experimental cameras to vibrant colour films, Lomography celebrates the unpredictable, the creative and the unexpected. Jury's Special Recognition wins a Simple Use Camera loaded with Classicolor 35mm film. For those who shoot differently.
Albelli
Turns your best photos into something you can actually hold. Photo books, prints, canvases, calendars and more, all made to last. The 2nd place Best Photographer wins a €100 voucher to create something lasting from their race day work.
Ready to race through Brussels?
Tickets available now
