The second Epson International Pano Awards is dedicated to the art of panoramic photography. Advances in digital photography and software such as PTGui and Adobe Photoshop has resulted in an explosion in image stitching, especially in the panoramic format. Panoramic film photography also remains alive and well.
The Epson International Pano Awards showcases the work of panoramic photographers worldwide and is the largest and most important competition for panoramic photography.
The 2011 competition is now open for all professional and amateur photographers with a combined prize pool of over $20,000 in cash and prizes!
Objective
People, abstract/creative, B&W and vertical panoramic images can be entered in any of the official competition categories listed below.
- Open categories
- Nature (including landscapes)
- The Built Environment (including architecture)
- Amateur categories
- Nature (including landscapes)
- The Built Environment (including architecture)
What’s new in the 2011 competition?
- an exhibition of the winners and top scoring images at the PMA Photo Imaging Trade Show in Sydney, June 2011!
- a new VR section to be announced soon
- prizes will also be awarded for runner up in each category
- no limit on the number of entries allowed per entrant
Prizes
The second Epson International Pano Awards has a combined prize pool of over $20,000 in cash and prizes!
Rules
- Entries in the Nature categories must be predominantly of natural subjects, although some man made objects within image are accepted. An example of this would be a jetty or a building within a landscape.
- Entries in the Built Environment categories must be predominantly of man-made subjects, although some natural subjects within the image are accepted. An example of this would be a park within a city environment.
- All images must be panoramic format, defined for this competition as a minimum 2:1 ratio (long side:short side). See Wikipedia for information regarding this definition. Images not complying with the minimum ratio rule will be given the lowest average score.
- Entrants are not encouraged to crop single shot 35mm files to fit the minimum ratio. If your entry is selected for the exhibition at PMA and is a cropped 35mm file, it will not be included due to quality and file size. Cropping from medium and large format is acceptable, however stitching and single captures from dedicated panoramic cameras are preferred.
- Winning and high scoring entrants must be able to supply a high res file of their entry suitable for exhibition printing, within 7 days of judging completion.
- The Epson International Pano Awards recognizes that you retain full ownership of the copyright in each entry.
- Images may be from single capture or stitching software, film or digital capture, but must be 100% photographic in origin.
- VR/immersive/360 degree panoramic images are most welcome in the Open or Amateur competitions, however they must be entered as a ‘flat’ jpeg file if entered in Open or Amateur (not as formats such as .swf or Quicktime VR).
- 360 degree images are exempt from the minimum 2:1 ratio rule.
- An Amateur is defined for this competition as someone who earns less than USD $20,000 per year from photography as an occupation. Amateurs may enter the Open or Amateur competitions.
- A Professional is defined for this competition as someone who earns greater than USD $20,000 per year from photography as an occupation. Professionals may only enter the Open competition.
- There is no restriction on the date of origin of entries, or on the number of entries per entrant.
- Amateur and non-professionals may enter an identical image into the Amateur and Open competitions if they wish.
- There will be a late entry period from 16 – 30 April 2011. Late entry fees will apply.
How to enter?
Entries are submitted through the competition’s official website. Before submitting your entries, have these things in mind:
- Images should be: sRGB, 8-bit, 3000 Pixels on the longest side, 300 dpi, saved as a jpeg at a setting of 10 or higher.
- Your own name should be included in each file name.
- Images are judged on calibrated monitors. Please ensure your own monitor is calibrated prior to entering your images.
Entry fee
- Open awards
- Entry fees are US $18 per image, US $32 for 2 images, US $42 for 3 images, US $48 for 4 images and US $10 for each additional image.
- Amateur awards
- Entry fees are US $16 per image, US $28 for 2 images, US $36 for 3 images, US $40 for 4 images and US $8 for each additional image.
