Entries for next year's competition opened yesterday and close on February 23.
Winning and highly commended photographs will be announced at a prizegiving on March 24, followed by the opening of a free exhibition of winners and selected entries.
Museum marketing manager Charlotte Neilson said there were a record 2174 photography and 52 video entries in this year's exhibition.
But the museum was writing to every school in Otago and wanted to attract more entries from ``every nook and cranny'' in the region.
The 19th competition is open to all amateur photographers and videographers living in Otago.
Categories include animal, plant, human impact on the environment, pets and night skies, as well as a wildlife in action video category.
The competition is supported by Jonathan's Photo Warehouse, Canon, and the Otago Daily Times, and the overall photography winner will receive a Canon EOS 77D 18-135 kit, valued at $2299.
