About

Center provides contestants with a high quality and worthwhile photographic awards. All contestants stand to benefit from the submission process by having their work seen. Often judges will show interest in work that is not selected for the awards but that may be relevant for other purposes. We provide contact information for each photographer that advances to the final rounds of judging for the jurors.

To help encourage your work and provide feedback, we inform contestants whose images have made it to the final rounds. Finally, we ask that the jurors to write a juror's statement, which speaks to all of the applicants, to shed some light on the judges process and selection criteria.

Who Can Enter

The competitions are open to all photographers, national and international. Center employees, board members, advisory council members, contest sponsors and family members of the aforementioned may not apply.

Eligible Work

Work derived from all photographic processes, both traditional and digital, are accepted, as well as mixed media work that is photo-based (only still images are accepted, no multimedia components). Projects that have been published in book form with a photographic publishing house or university press are not eligible for the Project Competition or Project Launch award. Previous winners of the Project Competition and Choice Awards may enter but are ineligible to win first, second, third or Juror's Choice again. Honorable Mention and finalists may enter and are eligible to win.

The Project Launch Award is designed to help a photographer complete a work in progress. Work is ineligible if (5) or more images have been exhibited at a commercial gallery, a formal showcase, any curated showing, or a commissioned space that sells art. Work is ineligible if (5) or more images have been published online or in print in more than (2) publications. This requirement does not include publishing images on your own personal blog or website.

If you have a question about your eligibility for a competition, please email programs@visitcenter.org before submitting your application.

We understand that sometimes photographic projects are a work in progress but may be also be considered as a cohesive body of work. You may choose to submit to both the Project Launch and Project Competition, however, if the situation arises that the project is awarded in one category, it would be disqualified from the other category.

ARTIST'S STATEMENTS

(Not required for the Choice Awards)
The first sentence of your artist statement should include a short synopsis of the project. Please limit your statement to a single page, double-spaced, and indicate the process or medium used and the final exhibition size, ex. 8x10 black and white negative, 20x24 gelatin silver prints or 35mm slides.
Please structure your statement as follows:

Name
Project Title
Medium
One Sentence Project Summary
Statement

PRINTS

(no longer accepted)

DIGITAL FILES

All images must be uploaded through our online system after payment has been received. Files must be in jpeg format, sized 1000 pixels on the long side at 72 dpi. (When submitting a horizontal image, the width of your picture should be 1000 pixels, with your height adjusted proportionately. If you are submitting a vertical image, the height of your image should be 1000 pixels and your width should be adjusted proportionately.)

There is a 500k limit to the file size of each image uploaded. Use a jpeg quality level of 10 and high. Do not check the progressive jpg or optimized checkbox. If you follow these guidelines, the size of your images will typically fall between 100-500k. Each image must be submitted as a separate file (no Powerpoint or iPhoto presentations). Please save images as RGB, ICC profile Adobe RGB (1998) or Grayscale, ICC profile Dot Gain 20%. The process for uploading files requires no special software.

TITLES

Please title your digital images in the VisualServer by double-clicking on the image after upload. A dialog box will come up with instructions. Repeat for all images.

Please sequence your images in the VisualServer in the order of the titles provided on the application.

LIABILITY

International submissions are welcome. International winners are responsible for duties and shipping of the prizes.

USAGE

By entering the competition, contestants grant Center permission to reproduce works from their submitted materials in connection with the administration, judging and promotion of Center, the Center Awards and Center review events. Permissible uses of the images submitted shall include their reproduction, distribution and display in Center exhibitions, multimedia presentations, and printed materials related to promotion of Center and the Center Awards and events. Center shall have the right to grant permissions to the press and publicity agents in connection with the promotion of the Center Awards, exhibitions, and related events. All Project Competition winners, including the Juror's Choice as well as the winners of the Project Launch and Center's Choice Awards are asked to donate a print from the winning work to Center. Center reserves the right to choose the image of our choice from the winning projects. Submission of an entry to this competition signifies acceptance of all conditions stated.