OFFICIAL CONTEST RULES

1. All entrants must submit a completed contest entry form with their photo(s). 
2. This contest is free and open to everyone except for Oregon Wild staff and board of directors, contest jurors, prize contributors and their immediate families.
3. Only photos taken within the categories outlined in the Submission Guidelines are eligible for consideration. No exceptions. See guidelines and maps.
4. Photos must have been taken within the last three years.
5. Only color images will be considered for this contest
6. Up to ten photos may be submitted per person.
7. Photos may be submitted electronically or by mail. See submission guidelines for important specifics. Submissions will not be returned- do not send originals.
8. Photographers will retain original copyrights to their photos.
9. Entrants grant Oregon Wild permission to use their photo(s) in any publication, marketing or fundraising materials and on the Oregon Wild web site.  All photos used will receive captioning where allowed.
10. All decisions by the judges are final.
11. Only submissions that adhere to the contest rules and submission guidelines are eligible to compete.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

The submission deadline is midnight September 30, 2008

ELIGIBLE CATEGORIES:

WILDLANDS: Photos must be of federal public lands in Oregon. This includes National Forest and BLM lands (including designated Wilderness and National Scenic areas), National Parks, National Wildlife Refuges, National Grasslands, and National Monuments.  Images featuring recreation are acceptable and encouraged.  Photos from state and local public lands, or private lands, are not eligible.

WILDLIFE: Photos must be of native Oregon species in their natural habitat. This category includes fish.

WATERS: Photos must be of pristine, undeveloped waterways in Oregon. This includes rivers, lakes, streams, waterfalls and wetlands. Images featuring recreation are acceptable and encouraged.

ENDANGERED PLACES: Photos must have been taken on federally managed public lands in Oregon. Photos must be of old growth forests. For the purposes of this competition old growth is defined as any tree 100 years old or older. (Please use your best judgment to determine the age of trees). Special consideration will be given to photos taken:

• within the boundaries of the BLM Western Oregon Plan Revisions planning area (Click here for map.)
• of ponderosa forests east of the Cascades

ACCEPTABLE FORMATS:

Slides: May be submitted in 35mm format or larger. Color images only. Slides will not be returned - DO NOT SEND ORIGINALS. The front of each slide must identify each of the following:

• The specific name of the area where the photo was taken
• Photographer’s full name (as you wish the credit to appear)
• Photographer’s phone number
• Date the photo was taken

 Example: Lost Lake, Jane Doe: 503-555-5555, 7/3/07

Prints: Traditional photos must be submitted on photographic stock and must measure at least     5” x 7.” Color images only. Please no date or time stamps on images. Photos will not be returned - DO NOT SEND ORIGINALS. The back of each photo must identify all of the following:

• The specific name of the area where the photo was taken
• Photographer’s full name (as you wish the credit to appear)
• Photographer’s phone number
• Date the photo was taken

Example: Lost Lake, Jane Doe: 503-555-5555, 7/3/07

Digital photos: Photos taken with a digital camera must be submitted at a minimum resolution of 1600 x 1200 pixels and in jpeg format. Minor digital enhancement for cropping, red-eye removal, filters, and corrective functions are permitted, but images that have been judged to be significantly altered will be disqualified. Photographers are not permitted to place borders or frames around their images or to place watermarks, signatures, dates, or copyright notices on their images. Images MUST maintain the integrity of the area as it was photographed. For example, you may enhance the brightness of your image but you may not remove a clearcut from the background.

Digital images submitted with numeric filenames will be disqualified.

It is necessary that each filename identify who took each photo and where it was taken. Please re-name your images to include the following:

• The specific area where the photo was taken
• Photographer’s full name 

 Example: “LostLake.JohnDoe.jpg” 

Multiple images of an area by the same photographer should be labeled as such: LostLake1.JohnDoe.jpg, LostLake2.JohnDoe.jpg, LostLake3.JohnDoe.jpg

Mailing discs: Please place digital images on a disc and mail it with an entry form to Oregon Wild.  Please write your name, phone number and the date the photos were taken on the disc.

E-mailing Images: Photos may be e-mailed to photocontest@oregonwild.org and must include an application form. Please do not send more than three images per email.

WINNERS:

Images will be judged on their effectiveness in conveying the uniqueness of the subject matter, technical expertise, composition, creativity and ability to capture the following Wilderness values: recreation; scenic treasure, spiritual renewal, clean water, native species and wildlife habitat.

A winner will be selected from submissions in each category. If insufficient entries are received for any particular category, Oregon Wild reserves the right to not give an award in that category. This is at the sole discretion of the contest judges.

Winners will be announced in the fall at a party in Portland (details to be announced). The winners will receive prizes from Oregon’s fine outdoor businesses - see website for updates. In addition, the winning photos will appear in the Oregon Wild newsletter on dates to be determined by the Oregon Wild staff.