Edinburg Photography Competition
This juried exhibit is open to all. Youth & Adult divisions. All photos must be taken within Edinburg and be original works created with a lens-based camera (not AI generated). See the Photography Competition Guidelines for full details.
Submission categories:
People
Places
Nature
Cultural
Selected images will be invited to be part of a community exhibit in Fall 2024 and be eligible for inclusion in the the annual City of Edinburg calendar.
Important Dates:
Entries Accepted (online only): May 1-May 29
Entries Juried: June 5-12
Exhibit Selections Announced: June 19
Community Exhibit: Fall 2024
Edinburg Photography Competition Guidelines
Terms:
1. The Edinburg Photography Competition is open for submissions on May 1, 2024 at 8:00am CST and closes for submissions May 29, 2024 at 5:00pm CST.
2. By submitting an entry, each contestant agrees to the rules of the contest and states that they are 18 years old or older or has guardian consent to participate.
3. By submitting the entry, the entrant certifies that they are the sole creator and copyright owner of the submitted photograph.
4. Entries will be juried for inclusion in a community exhibit.
5. Exhibit selections are eligible for inclusion in a community calendar.
6. Winners of the competition will be selected from the exhibit.
Who may enter:
1. Entrants must be at least 10 years of age.
2. Anyone under age 18 must have guardian consent to participate.
3. Youth Division is for ages 10-18 years (and still enrolled in high school);
4. Adult Division is for ages 18 years (and no longer in high school) and up.
5. Entrants may submit 4 entries into each of the four submission categories for a total of up to 16 entries.
6. City of Edinburg employees or anyone who is contracted by the City of Edinburg is eligible to participate in the exhibit and calendar but are ineligible to receive cash prizes.
7. The City of Edinburg will determine winners’ eligibility in its sole discretion.
What to enter:
Digital, Analog, Phone Images and Images taken with any lens-based camera are all accepted. Videos are not permitted. Images generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI) are not permitted.
The contest categories are:
1. People
2. Places
3. Nature
4. Culture
Photo requirements:
1. Photographs must have been taken in Edinburg, TX.
2. Photographs must have been taken by the entrant since January 1, 2023. This date applies to all images in a composite.
3. Cropped photos are eligible in all categories.
4. Minor adjustments, including the removal of sensor dust or scratches on scans of negatives, dodging and burning, sharpening, contrast, toning, slight color adjustment and conversion to grayscale are acceptable for all categories.
5. The addition and subtraction of objects is not permitted.
6. If the judges determine that a photographer has altered their photo beyond normal photojournalism best practices, they reserve the right to disqualify it.
7. For a photo in which a person is recognizable, you must also submit a model release from the subject or, in the case of a minor, the subject’s parent or guardian. A sample model release is at the end of this document.
8. When photographing the work of others, it must be as an object in its environment and not a full-frame close-up of another person's creation.
9. Photos that depict other people’s work (such as sculptures, statues, paintings, and other copyrightable works) must provide a release from the rights holder to the City of Edinburg. A sample art release is at the end of this document.
10. If the entrant is unable to provide all required releases, the City of Edinburg in its sole discretion reserves the right to disqualify the submission.
11. Photos that violate or infringe upon another person's rights, including but not limited to copyright, are not eligible.
12. Photos that contain sexually explicit, nude, obscene, violent, or other objectionable or inappropriate content, as determined by the City of Edinburg in its sole discretion, are ineligible for all categories of this contest.
13. Upon entering the contest, entrants certify that subjects were treated with respect and dignity, and that no people, wildlife, or the environment were harmed in creating a photograph. Live baiting of wildlife is not permitted.
Submission Requirements:
1. Photographs must be submitted in .jpeg, .jpg, .png, or .gif format.
2. Minimum of 300 dpi, at least 2,000 pixels wide, minimum of 1 MB and no larger than 10 MB in size.
3. Photos must have a title.
4. You must list the location for each photo.
5. You must complete a separate form for each photo submitted.
6. We do not accept photographs submitted through the mail and do not accept more than one contestant per e-mail address.
7. High-quality scans of non-digital photographs are acceptable.
8. Digital photographs should be taken at the highest resolution possible.
Selected Photos
1. Photos selected by the jurors are invited to participate in a community exhibit at the Edinburg Arts, Culture, and Events Center.
2. Exhibit details will be provided after the selections (drop-off requirements, etc), but it will be the responsibility of the photographer to provide a high resolution and hang-ready (d-hooks and wire) photograph.
3. Photos selected by the jurors are eligible to be part of the annual community calendar.
4. Cash prize winners of the competition will be announced at the exhibit reception.
Use of Images
1. By submitting your photos you are granting the City of Edinburg the royalty-free, world-wide, perpetual, nonexclusive license to display, distribute, reproduce, and create derivative works of the photo submission, in whole or in part, in any media now existing or subsequently developed, for any City of Edinburg purpose, including, but not limited to advertising and promotion of the City of Edinburg in print, its website, and its publications.
2. By entering this Contest, you agree that the you have read the guidelines and will make no monetary or other claim against the City of Edinburg for the use of any content provided by the City of Edinburg in connection with your participation in this contest.
Retention of Images
1. By uploading your photographs, you authorize us to retain the images of such uploaded photographs in our system until the conclusion of the competition.
2. You further authorize us to retain such images following the conclusion of the competition, for promotional purposes.
Changes in Schedule
The City of Edinburg reserves the right to change competition deadlines and dates due to circumstances beyond reasonable control.
The City of Edinburg has the right to cancel the competition at any time for any reason.
Competition Results
Competition results will be coming soon. Huge thanks to our jurors: DM Whitman, UTRGV; Sandy Mead, Artist.