Judges for the China International Press Photo Contest began their search for the best among tens of thousands of photos from photojournalists around the world on Monday.

Photographers from more than 70 countries and regions submitted more than 30,000 photos to the competition. A photo of the year for 2015 will be selected along with winners of gold, silver, and bronze medals in eight categories, such as war and conflict, disaster and disease as well as general news, according to the organizers.

A jury of renowned photojournalists, editors and theorists will spend a week on selecting the winners. The results will be announced on Friday in southwest China's Chengdu.

The contest, hosted by the China Photojournalist Society, was first held in 2005 and has earned international acclaim since then.