PHOTO CONTEST RULES AND REGULATIONS

TO ENTER

Only online submissions will be considered. To enter your submissions electronically, please visit www.socalphotocontest.com to register. Once the registration process has been completed, you will receive an e-mail confirmation. Login to the Southern California's Face and Places photo contest site at www.socalphotocontest.com, and follow the instructions to upload images from your computer. The contest begins at 12:01 a.m. on 5/31/09 and ends at 11:59 p.m. on 9/14/09.

SPECIFICATIONS

Images formatted as a JPG measuring at least 1,000 pixels on its long dimension are preferred. To qualify, photographs must be taken, published or produced between 5/1/07 and 9/14/09 and must be taken in Southern California. Ongoing or in-progress projects that contain older images are also allowed.

ENTRY FEES

From 5/31/09-8/31/09, amateur entry fees are $10 for one photo and $15 for up to 6 photos. From 9/1-9/14, amateur entry fees are $15 for one photo and $20 for up to 6 photos. From 5/31/09-8/31/09, professional entry fees are $20 for one photo and $25 for up to 6 photos. From 9/1-9/14, professional entry fees are $25 for one photo and $30 for up to 6 photos. An entry consists of a single image or a series of images, and individuals may pay to enter an unlimited number of times.

JUDGING

Winners will be determined by a pre-selected panel of judges. Entries will be judged on the basis of creativity, photographic quality and effectiveness in expressing the contest theme.

PRIZES

The amateur grand prize winner will receive a Canon EOS 50D Camera, Canon EFS 18-200mm lens, Canon 580 EXII Flash, Photoserve Portfolio, PDN PhotoPlus International Conference Gold Expo Pass, and a subscription to PDN Magazine.

The professional grand prize winner will receive Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Camera (body only), Photoserve Portfolio, PDN PhotoPlus International Conference Gold Expo Pass and a subscription to PDN Magazine.

All category winners will receive a $200 Gift card from Best Buy and a subscription to PDN Magazine.

All winners will be featured on pdnonline.com in the winners' gallery and featured in The San Diego Union-Tribune and SignOnSanDiego.com

Select images will be exhibited at a gallery exhibit at the PDN PhotoPlus International Expo in October, 2009.

The People's Choice winner will receive a PDN swag bag and a subscription to PDN Magazine.

All winners will be notified by email by 9/31/09, and must pick up their prize at the Union-Tribune by 10/15/09. All PDN prizes will be mailed to winners by 11/30/09. The Union-Tribune is located at 350 Camino de la Reina, San Diego, CA, 92108. Prize pick-up hours are 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday-Friday. The Union-Tribune does not mail or deliver prizes. Winners are responsible for paying all applicable local, state and federal taxes. For tax reporting purposes, winners will be required to provide legal name, address and social security number or forfeit prize. The San Diego Union-Tribune, LLC is not responsible for lost or stolen prizes. All prizes are non-refundable or exchangeable and cash substitutions are not permitted. Unclaimed prizes will be forfeited. The Union-Tribune makes no warranty with respect to any prize and reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal of greater value.

ELIGIBILITY

All contestants must be 18 years of age or older and must show a valid driver's license or picture ID. You must fill-in all contact information to be eligible to win. Employees of The San Diego Union-Tribune, LLC, Nielsen Business Media, Photo District News, and immediate family members and/or those living in the same household of each are not eligible. The Union-Tribune shall be the sole judge of eligibility and reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual it finds to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the contest or website or to be acting in violation of the official rules. In fairness to all, the Union-Tribune and Photo District News cannot discuss the contest by phone, mail or in any other way with the contestants.

CONSENT AGREEMENT

Submitted materials will not be returned. The Union-Tribune is not responsible for the loss of any entry. Winners agree to allow use of name and photos by the Union-Tribune and Photo District News without further compensation. Submission of an entry to the contest automatically constitutes the contestant's acceptance of all conditions set forth in these rules.

OTHER CONDITIONS

The contest is subject to all federal, state, and local laws and is void where prohibited. The Union-Tribune reserves the right to change, modify, or extend contest dates if it should be deemed necessary. The Union-Tribune reserves the right to suspend or cancel the contest at any time. The Union-Tribune assumes no responsibility for injury or loss that may arise from participation in the contest. The Union-Tribune assumes no responsibility for computer system, phone line, hardware, software or program malfunctions, delayed computer transmissions or network connections that are human or technical in nature. The Union-Tribune reserves the right in its sole discretion to cancel or suspend this contest, in its entirety or in part should virus, bug, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or other causes beyond the Union-Tribune's control corrupt the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper play of the contest. The Union-Tribune is not responsible for incorrect or inaccurate entry information whether caused by Internet users or by any of the equipment or programming associated with or utilized in the contest by any technical or human errors, which may occur in the processing of the entries in the contest. The Union-Tribune reserves the right to withdraw the transmission of this contest at any time and award the prize from among eligible entries received prior to the date of the withdrawal. The Union-Tribune is solely responsible for the administration of the contest, and sponsors are in no way affiliated with the contest or liable for any matters arising due to the contest.

Thank you for reading this and GOOD LUCK!

The Southern California Face and Places Photo Contest is a competition that is a showcase of the very best of photography in and around Southern California. This juried photo contest offers great exposure to both professional and amateur photographers with a wide range of categories including people, animals/pets, nature/envorinment, beach life, and action sports. This is an opportunity for your photos to be reviewed by professional photographers and to win great prizes. Winners will be selected on the basis of creativity, originality, sense of place, capturing the moment and concept execution.