Zooming in on Biodiversity

The 1st ASEAN-Wide Photo Contest on Biodiversity beings on May 22, 2009 and ends at 12:00nn ACT (ASEAN Common Time) of August 30, 2009.

The contest theme is "Zooming in on Biodiversity" and should capture various images related to biodiversity (plants, animals, marine life, ASEAN Heritage Parks) or the many benefits that biodiversity brings to human beings, its importance, the threats biodiversity face (deforestation, Climate change), or how biodiversity affects lives. Photos showing initiatives to protect biodiversity resources such as plants, animals, and marine species are also welcome.

Contest Categories

• Professional Category - Professional photographers who derive income from the sale of photographs or provision of photographic services
• Amateur Category - Amateur photographers
• Student Category - High School and College/University students (must be 18 to 25 years old)

Contest Mechanics

• Entries must be exclusive to this contest, unpublished, and must not have been submitted as entries in previous contests.
• Each contestant can submit a maximum of three (3) photos.
• Only color photos are qualified.
• Contestants can enter photos taken using a digital or non-digital camera.
• Entries must be submitted in JPEG format (as .jpg files) and should have a minimum resolution of six megapixles (6mb) or a screen resolution of 3000x2000 pixels.
• Digitally altered images will be disqualified.
• Traditional or standard photo enhancing must be limited to only photo resizing.
• Each photo entry should have the following information:
  
  • Contestant's name
  • Nationality
  • The category in which you are entering the photo
  • Short caption (maximum of four sentences) for the photo that describes the image.
  • The place where the photo was taken
  • Date the photo was taken
  • Contestant's email address
  • Home address
  • Home, office, and/or mobile phone numbers
  • Age
  • Gender
  • If a student: name of school, address, and contact number must be indicated. Also include a certification from the head of the school that the contestant is a student of that school.
• The title of the photo must contain the following:
  
  • Photographer's name
  • Image name (title)
  • Number of the photo entry (1 to 3) (e.g. charmlee_thegrasshopper1.jpg)
  • Method of submission. Methods of sending entries can be by post office (snail mail), courier services, or email (as attachment).
  • By email:
    
    • Submit the actual image file, not a link or other type of file.
    • Images should be sent as .jpg attachment to aseanbiodiversityphoto@yahoo.com with "Photo Contest" in the subject line.
    • An email should contain one photo entry only.
    • If an image file is not readable and cannot be downloaded, the entry will be disqualified.
  • By mail, courier services:
    
    • Photos must be stored in a compact disc (CD).
    • Please address all entries to:
      

      The Public Affairs Unit
      
      ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity
      
      UPLB Forestry Campus
      
      College, Los Baños, Laguna 4031
      
      Philippines
      

Contest Criteria

• Relevance to the theme - 40%
• Composition - 20%
• Creativity - 20%
• Technical excellence - 20%

Prizes

• Professional Category
  
  • 1st Prize: $1,500 + travel, meals, and accommodation to attend the awarding ceremonies in Singapore
  • 2nd Prize: $1,000
  • 3rd Prize: $700
• Amateur Category
  
  • 1st Prize: $1,000 + travel, meals, and accommodation to attend the awarding ceremonies in Singapore
  • 2nd Prize: $750
  • 3rd Prize: $500
• Student Category
  
  • 1st Prize: $1,000 + travel, meals, and accommodation to attend the awarding ceremonies in Singapore
  • 2nd Prize: $750
  • 3rd Prize: $500

Notes:

• Travel documents, taxes, and other travel-related expenses shall be the responsibility of the winner.
• Prizes are not transferable. Cash prizes can be claimed at the ACB Headquarters in the Philippines, or offices of ACB's National Contact Points in the ASEAN Member States within 60 days from receipt of notification. Winners must present valid identification.
• Winners will be notified through phone, email, or registered mail by the Head of the Public Affairs Unit of the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity.

Awarding Ceremony

For the first prize winners of the three categories, the awarding ceremony will be held in Singapore on October 21, 2009 as a side event of the ASEAN Conference on Biodiversity 2009 (ACB2009).

Other winners may attend the ceremony at their own expense.

For the second and third prize winners, who cannot attend the ceremony, the cash prizes and certificates will be presented by ACB's Governing Board Member and/or National Contact Point of the ASEAN Member State where the winner is a citizen.

Source: Zooming in on Biodiversity: The First ASEAN-Wide Photo Contest on Biodiversity