The Dedham Vale and Stour Valley, on the Suffolk/Essex border, is a landscape made famous by some of our finest painters. Now we’re asking photographers to take up the challenge! Over the coming year we will be running a seasonal photographic competition called Capturing a Masterpiece, which will culminate in autumn 2012 with an exhibition of the best entries and the chance to win some great prizes.
Capturing a Masterpiece is a photographic competition open to all amateur photographers. The competition is will take place in four seasonal stages, culminating in a final exhibition in autumn 2012. If you wish to let others know, your can download a poster here.
Downloads: Entry Form Terms and Conditions View: Map of Project Area
Key dates
Deadline for autumn entries: 12.00 noon, Friday 16th December 2011
Deadline for winter entries: 12.00 noon, Wednesday 14th March 2012 (extended)
Deadline for spring entries: 12.00 noon, Friday 8th June 2012
Deadline for summer entries: 12:00 noon, Friday 14th September 2012
Competition categories
The competition is divided into three categories that can be interpreted in any way you like. The categories are:
At the end of each season’s competition the judges will select a winner and runner up for each category, and the best children’s entry. These will go forward to the final exhibition and the chance to win one of the prizes.
The prizes
At the end of the competition the overall winner of each category will win £100 of vouchers for photography equipment.
£100 of photography equipment vouchers will be awarded for the best children’s image.
The image judged the best overall will win a further £100.
All the prize winners will be invited to attend a free photography training workshop, offered by Malcolm Farrow from Wild about Anglia.
Who can enter?
The competition is open to amateur photographers of all ages. We define an amateur photographer as someone who does not earn their main income through photography. There will be a separate competition for children under the age of 16 and their entries will also be eligible for the main competition.
How to enter
All entries must be submitted as digital image files (JPEG or TIFF) on CD. Please complete the entry form and post it together with your CD to the Managing a Masterpiece team (full address on the entry form). We regret that we are unable to acknowledge receipt or return the entries we receive.
Competitors may enter up to three images for each category for each season’s competition. You can enter as many of the seasonal competitions as you wish. The images must have been taken within the Managing a Masterpiece project area (click here to see map).
Sending digital images
Images should be supplied on CD. There are no restrictions on the type of camera you can use. However, please remember that the best images will be printed and displayed in a final exhibition, so the files you send us should be the best quality you can achieve with your equipment.
To do this, ensure that your camera is on its highest-quality setting when you get out and take your pictures. Ideally, your camera should have sufficient resolution to allow your image to be reproduced at A4 size or above (at 300 ppi). To do this, we recommend that you use a camera of 5 mega pixels or more, enabling the image to be of sufficient size for printing and inclusion in our exhibition.
Technical stuff
Your image files should be in 8bit TIFF or JPEG format. The colour profile for all digital images should be Adobe RGB 98. Please don’t send us the only copy you have – we will not be able to return any entries we receive.
You can also submit images that have been scanned from film or negative. These files should also be in the above format.
Digital processing, such as contrast, selective exposure and colour adjustments, removal of dust marks, and sharpening is acceptable. Digital manipulation, including composite images and the addition and/or subtraction of objects is prohibited. Images should retain their naturalism and integrity.
Competition small print
By entering the competition, the entrant verifies that he/she has read these terms and conditions and agrees to abide by them.
Your entry must be entirely your own original work, not defame anybody or breach any copyright. If your photograph features a recognisable person or people, their permission should be obtained for the image to be entered in the competition and be available if required.
Images that have already won another photography competition are ineligible.
All winners will be required to provide information about their pictures, including where, when and how the image was taken and details of equipment used.
Entrants agree that images entered may be used in a public exhibition of winning entries and to publicise the event. The competition is not open to employees, or immediate families of the Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Unit.
Winners will be notified by phone, letter or email.
The winners will be picked by judges from the Managing a Masterpiece – the judge’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
The prizes are non transferable and cannot be exchanged for cash.
Managing a Masterpiece reserve the right to change or cancel this competition at any time.
Managing a Masterpiece reserve the right to exclude any image not deemed suitable.
Entrants personal contact information will be held by Managing a Masterpiece / Dedham Vale AONB and Stour Valley Partnership for the duration of the competition and exhibition. We will not pass your contact details on to any other third party.
If a winning entrant is unable to be contacted after reasonable attempts have been made to do so, we reserve the right to either offer the prize to the next best entry or to withhold the prize.
Managing a Masterpiece reserves the right to disqualify any entry which breaches any of these rules or to withhold a prize if, in our opinion, entries do not reach the required standard.
The rules are governed by the laws of England and Wales.
Events...