COMPLETE NAME: Nature’s Best Photography Winland Smith Rice International Awards 2009 competition

This competition is organized by the Nature’s Best Photography magazine and is named in memory of accomplished photographer and conservation advocate, Windland Smith Rice.

To learn more about the competition watch:

QUICK FACTS

COMPETITION TERRITORY: international

ENTRY OPEN: Jan 26 2009 – May 4 2009

ENTRY TYPE: online upload or mail

FEES: entry fee: $25 for a total of up to 20 images

PRIZES: more than $15,000 in cash and prizes (for more detail scroll down)

JUDGING: on quality, originality, and artistic merit

EDITING OF IMAGES:

• By principle not allowed: nothing should be added to the image or taken away (aside from dust spots). Acceptable: normal processing of RAW image files and minor adjustments to colour and contrast, minimal cropping.
• The Creative Digital category explicitly encourages images to be created and/or manipulated with programs such as Adobe Photoshop.

YOUR RIGHTS AS A PHOTOGRAPHER:

• With entering the competition, you agree to “allow your photographs, your name, occupation, city and state of residence to be published as selected award winners in Nature’s Best Photography magazines, print and digital exhibitions, events, and other public venues, published on websites owned by or in alliance with NBPWSRIA as award winners; and used for promotions of the NBPWSRIA”.
• You retain ownership and all other rights to future use your photographs.

PHOTO CATEGORIES:

• Animal antics. Wildlife in humorous or surprising situations.
• Art in nature. Naturally occuring artistic compositions (colors, forms, textures, etc.) in nature.
• Bird. Wild birds in native habitats displaying plumage, mating rituals, nesting, feeding, or other behaviors.
• Up to 20 photographs submitted as a group entry by a camera club, maximum 3 photographs by each member.
• Creative Digital. Images that are created and/or manipulated using digital/eletronic technology (such as Adobe Photoshop).
• Endangered species. Plants or animas that are listed as endangered species by the IUCN.
• Environmental issues. Images that document current environmental issues, such as pollution, global warming, loss of habitat, etc.
• Indigenous cultures. People living within their ancient historic communities, practicing their traditional culture: dress, arts/crafts, dance, rituals, hunting/gathering, food preparation, examples of sustainable living, etc.
• Landscape. Dramatic scenes and unusual perspectives of land providing expansive views.
• Oceans. The fascinatihg world of the sea: tide pools, coral reefs, marine life, waves, etc. Photos above the ocean’s surface, related to ocean life.
• People in nature. People enjoying the outdoors: backpackers, kayakers, divers, hikers, etc., in natural settings.
• Plant life. Flowers, trees, and other flora in natural habitat. May include wide vistas.
• Small world spectaculars. Shots of plants, animals, and miniature landscapes taken with macro lenses.
• Weather. Tornados, hurricanes, floods, rain, wind, cloud formations, etc.
• Wildlife. Wild animals photographed in their natural habitat.
• Youth photographer of the year. Up to 20 photographs by photographers 18 years or younger. All images must match one of the above categories.
• Zoos & Aquariums. Animal portraits, behavior, zookeepers working with animals, visitors (model release!), special events, etc. Zoos and aquariums must belong to the World Association of Zoos & Aquaria (WAZA).

WINNING PHOTOGRAPHS

Watch the opening of the 2008 exhibition:

What do winners get:

• Published in the Awards 2009 Collector’s Edition of Nature’s Best Photography.
• May be selected for annual exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC, and displayed in other locations and photo gallery presentations related to the competition.
• How the “more than $15,000 in cash and prizes” is distributed is not clear. I have contacted them via email for more details, their answer, quote: “The prizes will be in the form of gift items and monetary prizes.  Specifics will be posted on our website at a later date.” Since there is a $25 entry fee, I think it would be fair of them to be more transparent and state the prizes BEFORE the entry has opened and not after it closes! Oh, well…

QUICK LINKS

To learn more about the previous years winners, click here (opens in a new window).

To read competition rules yourself, read this pdf.

Some more tips about the judging and quality of pictures.

Ready to enter? Click here.

Official website of the competition: http://www.naturesbestphotography.com/index.php

IMPORTANT NOTE

I cannot take any responsibility for changing of rules or mistypes in this article. This article has only an informative nature. For official rules always refer to the official website!

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