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Photo Contest

Celebrate Fairfax! Festival 1st Annual Photo Contest
Theme: Fairfax is Beautiful

Presented By

Are you a natural photographer or just enjoy capturing snapshots of the world around you? Celebrate Fairfax is looking for the best photographs of the natural beauty of Fairfax County and announces their 1^st annual Photo Contest! In order to enter into this contest, you must submit a photo of something beautiful you see in nature around Fairfax County. Let the county be your inspiration. The top 75 entries submitted will be displayed during the Celebrate Fairfax! Festival, which will be held June 7-9^th, 2013.

Entry Submission:

Download: 2013 Photo Contest Submission Form    

                Download: 2013 Photo Contest Submission Form PDF Version    

In order to submit your photo entry, you may send it by mail to:

ATTN Kirstin White - Celebrate Fairfax

12000 Government Center Parkway, Suite 247

Fairfax, Virginia 22035

Or you may drop your photo entry off in an envelope at any of the following locations:

1. 12000 Government Center Parkway, Suite 247. Fairfax, Virginia 22035
2. Providence REC Center - 7525 Marc Drive Falls Church, VA
3. Lee District REC Center - 6601 Telegraph Road Franconia, VA
   

                The deadline to receive in office is May 15, 2013 by 4pm. You will be notified by email by May 22, 2013 whether or not you have been chosen as a finalist. There will be 50 finalists in the open division and 25 finalists in the youth division.

                If you wish to have the entry returned to you, you may come by the Celebrate Fairfax office June 17^th - July 15^th, 2013, Monday through Friday during the hours of 9am-4pm to pick them up. After these dates have past any remaining entries will be recycled.

General Rules for the Celebrate Fairfax Photo Contest:

• This contest is open to any amateur/hobby photographer who does not receive primary income from photography.
• The photograph must be taken in Fairfax County or any jurisdiction within Fairfax County.  
•  Photo Contest entries are limited to one per person.
• The photograph may be taken of anything in nature around Fairfax County. This may also include historical buildings and sites, and various areas in the County parks.
•  Photograph Restrictions: Photographs must be a single print (no collages) and may not exceed 11 inches by 14 inches, including a mat. Every photo must be displayed on a black mat to be considered and displayed at the Festival. Entries must be directly related to the theme of the contest. Photograph entries must be an original black and white or color image produced by the entrant. The photos may be created using filters, light sources, and various lenses. Photographs with added wording, graphics or anything unoriginal to the proof will not be accepted. Please do not write anything on the front of the photograph. Photographs must be high resolution to be accepted.
• Entrants must own the copyright of all photographs submitted in the contest. Submission of any copyrighted photographs will not be accepted.
• Each entry must include a completed entry form which can be found under Entry Submission at the top of this webpage. Please submit this form in the same packaging with your entry. Entries will not be accepted without a completed form.
• You will be notified through email by May 22, 2013 whether or not you have been chosen as a finalist. Inquiries about the contest results will not be responded to unless you have not been notified by May 22, 2013.
• If the photograph submitted includes an individual that is identifiable, you must also submit a model release form. There is also a separate form that is specifically for minors (under the age of 18.) Please submit the following completed form, if needed, along with your entry.
  
  Download: Adult Model Release Form   
  
  Download: Model Release Form for a Minor          

Photographs submitted for the contest will be taken care of as best as possible; however, Celebrate Fairfax! will not be responsible for loss or damage to your entry.

Judging:

• All photo submissions will be judged on creativity, beauty, print quality, and visual impact.
•  Photo Contest entries will be judged by a special Celebrate Fairfax! committee consisting of local professional photographers and community leaders. All judges will be fair and unbiased in their decisions and all awards given by the judges are final.
•  Judges, Celebrate Fairfax staff, and Celebrate Fairfax, Inc. Board Members will not be eligible to submit photography into the competition.
• Entrants will be divided into two separate divisions; youth and open. The youth division will be ages 17 and under and the open division will be all ages. You may only enter into one division.
• Youth division participants are not eligible for the cash prizes. If chosen as a top winner, they may only receive an award ribbon. Contest photographers ages 17 and under who wish to be eligible for a cash prize may enter into the open division.

Prizes:

• The top 25 finalists chosen in the youth division will have their photographs displayed and will be given a free admission ticket to attend the Festival. The top three photographs chosen will be awarded first, second and third place ribbons.
• The top 50 finalists chosen in the open division will have their photographs displayed during the Festival June 7^th-9^th and will be eligible for cash prizes. Grand Prize: $150. Second Place: $100. Third Place: $50. Prize winners will be required to submit electronic versions prior to receiving the cash award.

 For additional questions, contact Kirstin White at 703-324-9424 or via email at Kirstin.White@fairfaxcounty.gov.