COMPLETE NAME: 2010 Windland Smith Rice International Awards

ORGANIZED BY: Nature’s Best Photography magazine

1. Who can enter?

TERRITORY: international

ENTRANT STATUS: amateur, professional

AGE LIMITATIONS: none

2. Competition info

ENTRY CLOSES: 5th April 2010

ENTRY TYPE: online upload, mail

ENTRY FEE: $25

3. What should photos be about?

> Categories

There are 17 categories available:

• Animal antics – Wildlife in humorous or surprising situations.
• Art in nature – Naturally occurring artistic compositions (colors, forms, textures, etc.) in nature.
• Birds - Wild birds in native habitats displaying plumage, mating rituals, nesting, feeding, or other behaviors.
• Camera club – Up to 20 photographs may be submitted as a group entry by a camera club. Each individual image in a camera club submission must fit within one of the contest categories, without exception. NOTE: Each individual member can contribute no more than three (3) images to the group submission. The entry will be judged as a portfolio and selected on the overall excellence of the entire group of images. Participating club members are also permitted to submit their own entry (up to 20 images) separate from the Camera Club entry, and may include the same images in both submissions.
• Conversation Photographer of the Year – Nominate a CPY recipient, visit www.naturesbestphotography.com/competition_conservation.php
• Creative Digital – Any nature-related image or combination of images that is created and/or manipulated using digital/electronic technology (such as Adobe® Photoshop®). Let your imagination go wild! Please provide the details on all techniques used.
• Endangered species – Plants or animals that are listed as endangered species by the IUCN. Please visit www.redlist.org to confirm the endangered status of a species before submitting to this category.
• Environmental issues – Images that document current environmental issues, such as pollution, global warming, loss of habitat, etc.
• Landscape - Dramatic scenes and unusual perspectives of wild places providing expansive views.
• Oceans - The fascinating world of the sea: tide pools, coral reefs, marine life, waves, etc. Photos taken above the ocean’s surface, related to ocean life or landscapes, are also welcome.
• 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 close-up lenses.
• Weather - From dramatic storms to tranquil skies—weather in all its fury and forms. (Tornados, hurricanes, floods, rain, wind, beautiful cloud formations, etc.)
• Wildlife - Wild animals (mammals, reptiles, amphibians, etc.—birds are a separate category) photographed in their natural habitat (no captive animals allowed).
• Youth Photographer of the Year – An entry of up to 20 photographs may be submitted by photographers 18 years of age or younger. Each individual image in a youth submission must fit within the contest categories, without exception.
• ZOOs and Aquariums – Images may include animal portraits, behavior, zookeepers working with animals, visitors (may require model release), special events, etc. All photographs must have been taken at zoos and aquariums belonging to the World Association of Zoos & Aquaria (WAZA).

Maximum 20 images per entry.

> Judging Criteria

• technical quality,
• originality,
• artistic merit

We want to see fresh images that reflect your talent. When you try to make your photographs unique in some way, you increase your chances of moving to the next round.

The odds of having your image selected as a winner increase with limited competition, so you may want to submit more images that fit within the more specific categories.

> Judging Process

Preliminary round – factors that instantly eliminate an image from the competition:

• main subject being out of focus,
• blown-out highlights,
• poor compositions,
• bad exposures
• image that is just like the ones they have already selected.

Second round – judged on:

• technically sufficient,
• artistry,
• the uniqueness of the image
• we look for particularly striking images that stand out
• compositions are well-balanced,
• all of the elements that are in the image add to it, and nothing detracts
• the primary subject is kept away from the edge of the frame
• horizons are level
• no artificial light has been added unless it is well-controlled, such as fill flash or bounced natural light that leaves the image looking as it appears in nature

Final round – At this point each original transparency or high-resolution file is examined in great detail, taking into consideration which images seem familiar, and which ones seem new, fresh, or different.

4. Photo Requirements

AREA WHERE IT CAN BE TAKEN: anywhere

AGE OF PHOTO: no limit

IMAGE FORMAT: Save each of your images as low-resolution JPEGs files NO LARGER THAN 500K, at 72 ppi, at approx. 6″ on the longest side. Label each file with your first and last name, image title, and the category. Photographers who have images that pass into the final round for judging will be required to supply high-resolution files (and RAW files if available), a more complete caption and camera specifications before the final judging.

PHOTO EDITING: All photographs must accurately reflect the subject matter as it appeared in the viewfinder. Nothing should be added to an image, and aside from dust spots, nothing should be taken away. Normal processing of RAW image files and minor adjustments to color and contrast are acceptable, as is minimal cropping. EXCEPTIONS: Anything goes in the Creative Digital category! Stitched panoramas may be entered in any category, but they must be identified.

OTHER REQUIREMENTS: Prints and images on negative film are NOT accepted.

5. Legal Issues

> Your legal responsibilities

Entrants must not infringe on the rights of any other photographer or person, or submit images that involve the willful harassment of wildlife or damage to the environment by the photographer

> Photo usage rights

The winning photographs will be published in Nature’s Best Photography Magazine and may be selected for gallery exhibitions and other Nature’s Best Photography Windland Smith Rice International Awards (NBPWSRIA) competition promotion opportunities, including, but not limtied to, a compliation book or calendar, electronic collection of winners and web pages providing NBPWSRIA information, updates, rules and ongoing photography tips.

Your entry to this contest constitutes your agreement 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 allience with NBPWSRIA as award winners; and used for promotions of the NBPWSRIA.

Entrants retain ownership and all other rights to future use of their photographs.

6. Judges

There is no information who the judges are.

7. Prizes

Grand Prize winner:

• “Yellowstone in Winter” photo workshop provided by Arizona Highways Photo Workshops
• published in the 2010 Collectors Edition of Nature’s Best Photography magazine
• exhibition at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC

Category winners & Highly Honored photographs:

• published in the 2010 Collectors Edition of Nature’s Best Photography magazine
• exhibition at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC

8. Useful Links

Need inspiration? See what images have won in 2008!

Read official rules yourself (opens a pdf)!

Ready to enter? Register here!

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

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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