Contests
TWiT Photo: Guest Quest
CreativeLive pioneer Chase Jarvis. NAPP President and No. 1 bestselling author Scott Kelby. Pulitzer Prize winner Vincent Laforet. Are you ready to take your place next to such industry legends?
The premier photo show in the industry—TWiT Photo— is looking to showcase the hottest emerging photographer. TWiT Photo is the flagship photography show on the TWiT Netcast Network, which averages 5 million downloads per month. This contest will provide explosive exposure to our selected guest.
Each week on the show, TWiT Photo educates, inspires and empowers photographers of all levels while chatting with some of the world’s leading and most inspirational image-makers. Here’s your chance to share the spotlight…
You will have the rare opportunity to get your work in front of a prestigious judging panel made up of five past TWiT Photo guests, including Art Wolfe, Colby Brown, Tamara Lackey, Frank Doorhof and Zack Arias. Simply submit a portfolio of images based on a coherent theme to your favorite social media platform (choose from Google+, Facebook, 500px or Flickr).
Reward:
The contest winner will be our guest on a Winter 2011/2012 episode of TWiT Photo and will be featured on the TWiT blog and Catherine Hall Studios blog. Two honorable mentions, including a selection of their work, will be featured in an article on Catherine Hall Studios blog, promoted through Catherine Hall Studios’ Facebook, Twitter and Google+ accounts, and mentioned on TWiT Photo.
Timeline:
Deadline for submission: Nov. 22, 2011, at 11.59 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (November 23, 2011 at 7:59 a.m. GMT) (no exceptions)
Winner announcement: Dec. 6, 2011, on TWiT Photo and Catherine Hall Studios blog.
Submission Guidelines:
Entries must be from emerging photographers with 5 years or less professional experience who earn less than 51% percent of their total income from their photography career. To enter, submit a portfolio of 15-20 images based on a cohesive body of work that is a strong representation of your visual style.
For more detailed rules and guidelines on how to upload your portfolio submission, click on the link to the platform of your choice. Please note that you should submit your portfolio to only one platform. Duplicate submissions will result in entrant being disqualified.
Google+ – Updated Link.
500px
Flickr
Facebook
OFFICIAL RULES
Eligibility
TWiT Photo Guest Quest Contest (hereafter referred to as “The Contest”) is open to emerging photographers worldwide. The Contest defines an emerging photographer as one who has 5 years or less professional experience. A “professional photographer” is defined as one who derives a minimum of 51% percent of his or her total income from his or her photography career. At the time of entry to participate, you must be at least 18 years of age. Employees of TWiT LLC and Catherine Hall Studios (hereafter referred to as “Authorized Parties”) and members of their immediate families are not eligible. Void where prohibited by law or regulation.
TWiT Photo aims to foster relations with the social networking community through The Contest and requires all entrants to participate via any one of the four third party services (Google+, Facebook, Flickr and 500px).
Entrants must have the ability to appear via Skype or in person at the TWiT studio in Petaluma, CA. To appear via Skype, entrants must have hardwired DSL/cable high-speed Internet and be available for Skype testing before the show appearance can be confirmed. To appear in person, entrants must be responsible for travel arrangements, including logistics and expenses, to the TWiT studio in Petaluma, CA.
The Authorized Parties reserve the right to verify all eligibility requirements.
Entry and Deadlines
You may submit only 1 (one) entry into the contest on only 1 (one) submission platform. Duplicate submissions will result in the entrant being disqualified. Images must be 1200 pixels on their longest dimension, non-watermarked, and saved in High Quality JPG format in sRGB or Adobe RGB color space.
Submission deadline is at 11.59 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on November 22, 2011 (November 23, 2011 at 7:59 a.m. GMT). Pacific Daylight Time Clock used for contest may be accessed here: http://wwp.pacific-standard-time.com/.
Judging Process
The Authorized Parties will conduct preliminary judging on all entries. A panel of qualified judges will review the entries of all finalists and select their top choices on the basis of technique, composition, impact, creativity, visual appeal and cohesive visual style. Based on the judges’ selections, the Authorized Parties will determine the potential winner and honorable mentions in their sole discretion.
Currently, the panel of judges includes Art Wolfe, Colby Brown, Tamara Lackey, Frank Doorhof and Zack Arias. Due to judges’ varying schedules, the judging panel may be subject to change.
Prize
Grand Prize: The contest winner will appear as a guest in a Winter 2011 episode of TWiT Photo and will be featured on the TWiT blog and Catherine Hall Studios blog. The selection of the episode is in the sole discretion of the Authorized Parties.
Honorable mentions: Two additional entrants, including a selection of their work, will be featured in an article on Catherine Hall Studios blog, promoted through Catherine Hall Studios’ Facebook, Twitter and Google+ accounts, and mentioned on TWiT Photo.
Inappropriate Content
Obscene, provocative or otherwise questionable content may not be considered. The Authorized Parties retain sole discretion as to what constitutes inappropriate content and reserve the right to reject entries that are not submitted properly.
Copyright and Permissions
Each submitted photograph, in its entirety, must be a single work of original material taken by the entrant of The Contest. By entering The Contest, entrant represents, acknowledges and warrants that the submitted photograph is an original work created solely by the entrant, that the photograph does not infringe on the copyrights, trademarks, moral rights, rights of privacy/publicity or intellectual property rights of any person or entity, and that no other party has any right, title, claim or interest in the photograph.
If the photograph includes other people, you must be prepared to provide a signed written model release from all persons who appear in the photograph. You do not need to send the release with your entry. If you win, we will contact you if a model release is needed.
Licenses/Releases
If the photograph contains any persons or any elements subject to the rights of third parties, the entrant is responsible for obtaining, prior to submission of the photograph, any and all legally binding releases and consents necessary to permit the exhibition and use of the photograph in the manner set forth in these Official Rules without additional compensation.
By submitting an entry, the entrant grants to the Authorized Parties an irrevocable, royalty-free, non-exclusive, worldwide perpetual license to use his/her name, city, state and country of residence for credit purposes on any TWiT Photo programming; TWiT’s websites; Catherine Hall Studios blog and Catherine Hall Studios’ Google+, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and 500px accounts, without further compensation, notification or permission.
In addition, entrants grant to the Authorized Parties an irrevocable, royalty-free, non-exclusive, worldwide perpetual license to reproduce, distribute, display and create derivative works of the photographs submitted in the entry, in any media now or hereafter known, including but not limited to: Facebook; Google+; 500px; Flickr; YouTube; TWiT, LLC; TWiT Live; TWiT Photo podcast; TWiT website; TWiT blog; TWiT social media channels; as well as Catherine Hall Studios website; Catherine Hall Studios blog; and Catherine Hall Studios social media platforms, for purposes of the promotion of this Contest and other TWiT, LLC, and/or Catherine Hall Studios’ contests and/or for purposes of advertising and promoting TWiT, LLC, and Catherine Hall Studios on any TWiT Photo programming; TWiT’s websites; Catherine Hall Studios blog and Catherine Hall Studios’ Google+, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and 500px accounts, except as otherwise stated herein, without further compensation, notification or permission, unless prohibited by law.
Right to Disqualify
The Authorized Parties reserve the right to disqualify any entrant who directly or indirectly tampers with the entry process, the operation of the TWiT and Catherine Hall Studios websites or any third party platform, or otherwise violates the rules. Activities that could lead to the disqualification of an entrant include, but are not limited to, the following: (a) any attempt to influence the judges, (b) creation of multiple accounts to submit multiple entries, (c) any type of activity that appears to be (or is even suspected of being) unfair, inappropriate, or gaming the system.
Limitation of Liability
The Authorized Parties are not responsible for entries that are (a) late, stolen, misdirected, damaged, incomplete, garbled or incomplete or (b) not received or reviewable due to computer, Internet or electronic malfunction. The Authorized Parties reserve the right to cancel or modify the contest and award the prize through an alternate means if fraud or technical failure compromises the integrity of the contest, as determined by the Authorized Parties in their sole discretion. By submitting an entry, you agree that the Authorized Parties and its officers, directors, members, managers, employees and agents shall not be liable for injury, losses, damages, or costs of any kind resulting from participation in this contest or acceptance of or use or misuse of a prize or parts thereof. By entering, participants agree to be bound by these rules. In the event of a dispute regarding the identity of the person submitting an electronic entry, the entry will be deemed to be submitted by the person in whose name the third party platform is registered.
Third Party Services
The Contest is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Google, Facebook, Flickr or 500px. Before participating in The Contest, you must agree to the respective terms of your selected submission platform, see the Terms of Service from Google, Facebook, Yahoo and 500px. By participating, entrants agree to release, discharge and hold harmless the Authorized Parties, and each of their respective partners, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising agencies, agents and their employees, officers, directors, and representatives from any claims, losses, and damages arising out of their participation in The Contest or any Contest-related activities and the acceptance of any reward hereunder.
Conditions
The Contest is subject to U.S. federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Certain restrictions may apply. Entries will be void if the Authorized Parties determine the entry to not be an original, or if the entries are illegible, incomplete, damaged, irregular, altered, counterfeit, produced in error or obtained through fraud or theft. Entrants also agree (a) to be bound by these Official Rules; (b) that the decisions of the Judges are final on all matters relating to the Contest; and (c) if he/she wins that the Authorized Parties may use the entrants’ name, photograph, likeness, and/or voice in any publicity or advertising relating to The Contest or future promotions without compensation or approval. In the event that the selected winner is ineligible or refuses the reward, the reward will be forfeited and the Authorized Parties, in their sole discretion, may choose to issue the award to another entrant.
Reward Notification
The winner and two honorable mentions will be notified via their respective submission platforms within one week of the winner announcement on December 6, 2011, on TWiT Photo. If the selected winner or honorable mentions do not respond within seven (07) days of the notification, the reward/s will be forfeited. The Authorized Parties, in their sole discretion, may choose to issue the award/s to another entrant.
This contest is presented by TWiT, LLC, P.O. Box 1018, Petaluma, CA 94953, and Catherine Hall Studios, 3400 Mount Diablo Boulevard, Suite 205, Lafayette, CA 94549.
Hi Catherine,
will we get confirmation of our entries? i submit everything around 9pm Eastern time last night but there’s no confirmation to ease my conscience!!
thanks again!
Catherine!
I hope I submitted everything properly… I forgot to change the numbering of my images so they all say image #1… ops… so sorry! Cheers and Happy Turkey day:-)
Hey catherine! I went to submit on Facebook and something didnt go through right, I think my DOB, It says I am not eligible for the contest and will not let me redo my form.
anyway around this since facebook is the only platform I have.
Thank you!
Joseph.
Hi Catherine!! I am super excited about this contest, apparently too excited and didn’t read carefully enough on the details when entering. I am unable to submit the fb form again in order to have more than 8 images. Is there a way to delete my entry and I can try again? If not, I suppose I’ll settle for what I already entered. Love your work by the way :)
Hi Kristi,
Thank you! We’re excited to have you. There have been problems with the Facebook platform, so that people are unable to load more than 8 photos. So, you can leave your entry as is, and we will request more images if necessary from those who are chosen. I’m sorry for any confusion, and thanks for checking.
Best of luck!
Hey catherine! Im about to submit to 500px, I’m very new to it though. I made a collection and titled all of my work, but it doesn’t have “image 1” “2” and so on. Will I get disqualified?
Thank you!
Thanks for entering Robby! Below are instructions for uploading images on 500px. The final step should allow you add title to your images including the image number. See step 8 of the upload process – http://www.500px.com/upload. You will not be disqualified if image number is not in title; however, the judges may view the work out of order – this is why we ask for the image number in the title.
Catherine,
Can we see who’s submitted already? Can we submit someone or do they have to?
You may see who entered in each specific platform; however, we do not have a running log of the entrants names in one place. You may not submit on someone else’s behalf because they have to agree to the terms and conditions. Perhaps you could suggest entering to the person you speak of. Thanks for inquiring Shane!
Hello Catherine,
You and Leo, together with your guest are giving us such great content and education on photography, and I cannot thank you enough.
When I saw this competition, I was excited, and I thought I should join to. I am avid TWiT fan and had follow almost all of the episodes for a very long time, and the idea of having an opportunity to guest host the show, was very tempting. I prepared my portfolio…….
Except that when I reread the rules, it says emerging photographers with 5 years pro experience or less, and earns 51% of their income….
I have less than 5 years, but because I do this full time, my photography income make up more than 51%.
What a bummer… Let me know if you are interested to check out the portfolio I’ve prepared, any how.
Thank you once again, keep up the good work, and please say hie to Leo. :0)
Jon
Hello Jon, thank you so much for your kind words and support. You are eligible for the contest – please enter! The Contest defines an emerging photographer as one who has 5 years or less professional experience. A “professional photographer” is defined as one who derives a minimum of 51% percent of his or her total income from his or her photography career. I apologize for any confusion and appreciate you commenting on this so we may explain ourselves better. I look forward to seeing your entry!
Hello Catherine,
Thank you for your reply. I was posting on Google+ and awaiting to be added to the circle. Did I miss a step? Cos I am seeing other people being added and not me :)
Hi Catherine! I am very excited about this event, but I do have a concern: Just recently my hard-drive is broken, and all I have is a few images left that is over 2000 px. What should I do?
Images should be 1200 pixels on their longest dimension, non-watermarked, and saved in High Quality JPG format in sRGB or Adobe RGB color space. If you have close to this size, you should be fine. You just don’t want the images to small that when displayed they look pixelated (and therefore, lower quality)
Hey Catherine, I just submitted a few images of my own! Really loving the interviews Twit has been doing–it’s been a constant source of inspiration for me and it’s really great that you guys are helping others get inspired by helping successful photographers become more transparent in their workflow and journey.
On another note, I realize that the official rules said you must submit 15-20 images, but the submission forms only allowed 8 images.
Hey Aileen, I look forward to seeing your submission! Thank you so much for watching; it’s fantastic to hear that the show has been so influential for you.
Are you submitting via Facebook? That platform allows you to upload a cover photo and 7 more images, so you must repeat Steps 4-8 of the submission process in order to upload the rest of your images. Double-check “How to Submit” here: http://bit.ly/ty70bG
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Catherine – it looks like the Google+ link is broken? I get a not found error. also, I no longer see the contest rules in your Google feed. I needed to do a final review and also get the upload link for the web album . . but the link to Google + Contest notification appears dead!
Hi Gary – Link has been updated – thank you!!
Hey Catherine, I’ve been loving the show! I am also very excited to enter the contest – however, my one concern is that I don’t have release forms for most of my work. A lot of my favorite shots are “street photography” taken while traveling and exploring foreign places. Will this be okay since they were taken in public places even though they are of strangers? Also, I have a bit of celebrity work from event photography work I’ve done. There are no signed releases per se, although they were all notified by signage when entering the premises. In several of these situations, I was working in conjunction with AP… is that alright? Thanks!
Thanks for your great question Alex. Just to clarify, many types of photography (such as photojournalism) may not require a release. It is up to the individual photographer to determine if and when a release is necessary and if so, to be able to provide it upon request. As stated in Copyright and Permissions, “If you win, we will contact you if a model release is needed.”
If we determine that a photograph(s) of the winning artist requires a release that the artist is unable to provide, we may choose to exclude the image(s) from our promotional materials.
So glad you are loving the show!
[…] of work that is a strong representation of your visual style. Read more about this on : Main post https://www.catherinehall.net/blog/2011/10/25/twit-photo-guest-quest/ Google+ http://bit.ly/GuestQuestGooglePlus 500px http://www.frankdoorhof.com/site/2011/10/twit-photo-competition/ Flickr […]
Hi Catherine, what if I’m so new that I don’t even have one of these four social media options up and running… And then say I create one In the meantime. Will that be a negative mark against me, if it isn’t established?
Thanks so much! Love your show!
Quinn
Of course not! Enter away :)
[…] more details and guidelines head over to Catherine Hall’s post. Make sure you read the guidelines carefully there are quite a few conditions. TweetRelated […]
I was reading about this getting so excited until i read that you must be 18… maybe next year :(
In regards to having “5 years or less professional experience”, is this according to when we started using a DBA name, or when our earliest photos were taken? Even though I stared my business in 2008, some of my photos were taken as early as 2003. Would those images still be eligible for the contest?
Hi Jason!
The Contest defines an emerging photographer as one who has 5 years or less professional experience. A pro earns a minimum of 51% percent of his or her total income from his or her photography career. Therefore, you and your earlier images would be eligible :)
Question about the portfolio submissions. You said: ” submit a portfolio of 15-20 images based on a cohesive body of work that is a strong representation of your visual style”… so does this comment mean that all the photos have to be of the same genre? for example, I take concert and landscape/travel pictures… can I submit a portfolio of 10 images each?
Great Question: You may use your best judgement for this. We are interested in seeing a body of work that says a statement about the creator vs. a portfolio of random, disconnected images. Examples of what might make a body of work cohesive – similar style (often despite varying subject matter), exploration of a specific photographic genre, a story about a place or event, a similar post-production treatment applied to all images etc.
Hey Catherine, I didn’t see any new info about the submission guidelines on the last show. Did I miss it?
It took some time to get all the rules approved by the lawyers – thanks for your patience. All the information you need should be posted now!
Catherine, my wife and I really appreciate what an excellent host you are, in not assuming anything, and asking questions that really matter, but no one asks. The responses from professionals like yourself really drill down to what we really need to consider.
Re the contest: Our daughter has a photographic blog on Posterous, and her blog was chosen an their “spotlight blog of the week” getting almost 450,000 hits. I want to suggest your contest to her, and let her choose her images. What’s the best place to post them, and what further info does she need to know to enter.
Thank you, and we’ll keep watching here in France.
Hello French, Thank you very much for your incredibly kind comments. It is a great compliment to commend the questions I chose to ask. I do always try to stay unassuming. I look forward to seeing your daughters work. Tell her congrats on her already achieved successes.
Hi Catherine,
Am I required to use one of those social media platforms? They’re okay, but I use Zenfolio and they do excellent portfolio web galleries. Is that okay?
Hello Tye! Thanks so much for your interest in the contest. I completely understand your desire to submit your images on Zenfolio; however, in the effort of streamlining the image collection process we are sticking to the above listed social media platforms. We choose 4 in the hopes that most people will be active in at least one. If we opened it up to all platforms it would make the application production process to arduous.
Understandable. Thanks for the response Catherine. :D
How exciting! I can’t wait to pass this along to my photographer friends!
Thanks Kate for your support and for helping make the contest great!