Subsurface 2013 Annual Photo Contest
Rules & Guidelines

The divingiscool.com and divecenter.hu websites proudly announce the Subsurface 2013 Annual Underwater Photo Contest with 4,200 USD in prizes. The submission deadline is midnight (CET) on 30th April 2013. The contest is open to anyone, each photographer can submit 2 images and there is no registration fee. The winners will be selected by an international jury and public voting.

Categories

OM - Open Macro: macro shots of underwater subjects, any underwater image of a 20x15 cm (8x6 inch) or smaller picture area.
OW - Open Wide Angle: wide angle underwater shots (images show larger area than the designated 20x15 cm in the Macro category).
C - Compact: wide angle or macro photos taken underwater with a compact camera. (Photos taken with a point and shoot camera eligible only, photos taken with SLRs or any cameras with interchangeable lenses are not eligible.) Using of attached conversion lens is allowed.

Photos taken with a compact camera can be submitted to any categories. Photos taken with an SLR camera or any camera which has interchangeable lens (MILC, Micro 4/3 etc.) can be submitted only to OM and OW categories. Scanned analog slides can be submitted only to OM and OW categories. Stills taken by a video camera can be submitted to any category if the image’s longer side is at least 1800 pixels. However if the video camera has interchangeable lens the photos can be submitted only to OM and OW categories.
Split images are allowed if at least 65% of the photo is under water. Close-focus wide angle and split images can be submitted only to OW and C categories.

Subjects, locations, ethics

· All subjects must be alive and in their natural environment underwater and all entries need to have been taken by the person submitting the entry.
· All photos must be taken in a natural underwater environment, pool or aquarium shots won't be accepted. Any kind of subject are allowed, e.g. animals, underwater environments, divers, wrecks, freshwater spots.
. Marine life shouldn't be stressed or endangered. A photo will be disqualified if it shows a diver who is damaging the environment. Please don’t enter photo of animals being fed.
. Do not use a watermark with the author´s name or any other identifier in the photo.

Please follow these guidelines for image manipulation

Allowed
- Adjustments applied to the whole image: color temperature, brightness, contrast, sharpening, saturation, tonal or color balance adjustments (conversion to grayscale is allowed)
- Rotation
- Limited removal of backscatter
- Cropping is allowed, maximum 25% (of the original image area) in the open wide angle and macro, 60% in the compact category

Not allowed
- Removing, inserting or cloning objects, pasting from other images
- Adding graphic elements (watermark, signature, frame etc.)
- Color temperature, brightness, contrast, sharpening, saturation, tonal or color balance adjustments applied only to selected areas of the photo
- Heavy vignetting to mask objects
- Upscaling
- Distortion or excessive blurring
- Double exposures, HDR photos, stitched panoramas

File specifications and submission instructions

. You have to submit your photos through divingiscool.com website after registration. For the website the registration is free. No mail or email entries.
· JPEG images only, at least 1800 pixels on widest side (upscaling not allowed), limit file size to 2MB. Colour space: sRGB Please do not delete or modify the original EXIF info.
· A maximum of two images in digital format may be entered by a contestant, the two images may be submitted in the same or different category. Each individual image may be entered in only one category.
· Photos must be submitted by midnight (CET) April 30, 2013.

Original RAW or JPEG files may be requested for auditing purposes.
If a submitted photo does not comply with rules and regulations it will be disqualified without further notice.

Submission and rights

· The contest is open to all underwater photographers.
· There is no registration fee.
. The entrant who participate in the contest (submit at least one photo) accepts the rules and guidelines.
. The organizers, jury members and their relatives are not eligible to submit photos.
. The entrant certifies the work as his own and represents that the ownership and copyright for all submissions is the exclusive property of the entrant.
· Entrants, by submitting images, grant permission to the organizers of the Subsurface 2013 Annual Photo Contest to use the images to post winners on website/social media and/or for promotion of future contests. Organizers may show the competition entries on their web sites. All rights remain with the photographer.

Judging and prizes

. Judging will be by a panel of professional photographers.
· The judges' decisions are final.
. There will be a public vote for the submitted photos on the divingiscool.com and divecenter.hu websites. If there are too much submitted photos the organizers reserve the right to limit the number of the photos in the public vote gallery by a pre judging process.
. Each individual photo can only win one prize.
. The winners will choose from the prizes. The order of choosing: Open Wide Angle 1st, Open Macro 1st, Compact 1st, Open Wide Angle 2nd, Open Macro 2nd, Public Vote 1st, Compact 2nd, Open Wide Angle 3rd, Open Macro 3rd, Compact 3rd, Public vote 2nd, etc.
. The organizers will contact the winners by email after the final decision. The winner who do not respond in a week can choose from the prizes later.
. In the event that an award winning entry is later found to have violated any rule, it will be disqualified, and officials of this competition reserve the right to recall prizes.
. No substitutions can be offered for prize awards.
. Winners will be responsible for taxes, import duties, customs fees. The prizes do not consist travel expenses (airfare, etc). All prize travel arrangements must be coordinated with the prize donor and are subject to availability at the time reservations are made.
. Winners will be notified by mail and winning entries can be viewed at divingiscool.com and divecenter.hu.