Calling All Inventors, Dreamers & Makers…Time to Unveil Your Masterworks!
Check out the latest on our BJDC competitions…time to let your imaginations flow! We’ve got 3 competitions this year…a BJD Costume Contest, a BJD Diorama Contest, and a BJD Photography Contest!
Awards will be given for first, second and third place in each category. AND an overall PEOPLE’S CHOICE Award will be given from favorite of all categories.! It is possible to win a “place” award in a category AND the People’s Choice award.
*All entrants will be asked to sign up for the competition when registering on Thursday June 19th and to declare your category. Entrants may enter one of the three costume categories AND the category 4 Diorama category.
If you have any questions about the category of your entry, we will help you with the appropriate category when you turn in your submission.
Set your sights upon the 2026 BJD Costume Contest!
Attention Inventors, Airship Travelers, Clockwork Aristocrats, and Curious Makers! The BJDC 2026 BJD Costume Competition has been revealed!
This year’s convention theme, Full Steam Ahead, invites you to journey into a world of brass, gears, steam, and imagination. Whether your vision includes daring sky pirates, elegant Victorian adventurers, brilliant engineers, mysterious automatons, or fantastical creations powered by clockwork and creativity—the interpretation is entirely yours.
The costume competition is divided into three categories so creators of all kinds may participate:
Category 1
Outfit completely designed and made by you
Category 2
Outfit made by you using someone else’s pattern OR designed by you but made by someone else
Category 3
Outfit both designed and made by someone else but styled and assembled by you
You must be a convention attendee to participate.. One BJD Costume entry per attendee. The doll must be a BJD.
If you use another artist’s designs, patterns, or work, please credit the designer/maker appropriately.
Additional Rules:
All dolls must be properly supported
No more than two dolls per entry
Please limit presentations to a 24” square footprint
Props are welcome to enhance your display
Entries must be delivered to the Competition Room during Game Night on June 19th between 6:00–6:30 PM for judging that evening.
And remember… all judging is performed by your fellow attendees.
The most extraordinary winners will be unveiled at the Final Banquet!
Direct your spyglass toward the 2026 BJDC Diorama Contest!
Ready to build the world behind the adventure? Step into the 2026 BJDC Diorama Competition!
This year’s convention theme, Full Steam Ahead,, invites you to bring entire worlds of imagination to life. Will your creation feature a bustling airship port, a mysterious inventor’s laboratory, an elegant clockwork city, a hidden underground workshop, or a skybound voyage through the clouds? Wherever your imagination travels, we want to see it!
Category 4
Diorama completely designed and assembled by you (structure, furniture, accessories) using any elements you choose.
You must be a convention attendee to participate in this contest. One BJD Diorama entry per attendee.
All judging is performed by fellow attendees!
If you use another artist’s designs or work, please credit the designer/maker appropriately.
Additional Rules:
If dolls are included, they must be properly supported
Please limit your presentation to a 24” x 36” area
No electrical outlets are available. Lighting is permitted if battery operated
Entries must be delivered to the competition area during Game Night on June 19th between 6:00–6:30 PM for judging that evening.
The most extraordinary worlds and creations will be revealed at the Final Banquet!
Gather your gadgets and enter the BJDC 2026 Photo Contest!
Attention Photographers, Explorers of Light, and Keepers of Mechanical Dreams!
The BJDC 2026 BJD Photo Contest is now accepting submissions from photographers around the globe! Both convention attendees and non-attendees are welcome to participate.
This year’s convention theme, Full Steam Ahead, invites you to capture worlds of brass, steam, adventure, invention, and imagination through your lens. Whether your vision features daring aeronauts, elegant clockwork cities, mysterious laboratories, sky pirates, steam-powered travelers, or fantastical Victorian worlds—the interpretation is entirely yours.
Rules:
The subject of the photo must be a BJD. More than one BJD may appear in each photograph. No recasts permitted.
No photos of a sexual, violent, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate nature will be accepted.
Submissions should be high resolution with a minimum of 300 dpi and submitted in .jpeg or .tiff format. Please do not include watermarks or signatures on your image.
Each entrant may submit one entry only, so choose your finest work for exhibition.
All submissions must be the original work of the photographer submitting the image and may not have been previously published or entered into another competition.
Absolutely no AI-generated or AI-assisted imagery is permitted. Of course, traditional photo editing such as color correction, lighting adjustments, cropping, and standard retouching is acceptable.
Awards will be presented for First, Second, and Third Place.
Winning photographers will receive:
Publication in the BJDC 2026 Souvenir Book
Recognition across BJDC social media and online platforms
A personal copy of the BJDC 2026 Souvenir Book
By submitting a photograph, entrants agree to allow BJDC to publish the image online, on social media, and within the Souvenir Book should the photograph be selected as a winner.
Contest runs from May 10 through June 1, 2026. All entries must be received electronically no later than midnight CST on June 1st.
Winners will be announced during the BJDC 2026 Convention and via social media afterward.
To enter, transmit your photograph electronically to: bjdcphotocontest@gmail.com
Please include the following with your submission:
Your name, address, and contact email
Sculpt(s): The sculpt name(s) of the doll or dolls featured
Description: A brief description of your photograph (200 words or fewer)
So prepare your camera, adjust the lens, ignite the imagination, and capture the extraordinary. We eagerly await your visions from the world beyond the clouds.