Every month, PentaxForums.com hosts an official photo contest for its members. All members are invited to participate! The contest procedure and rules are outlined in this post.

How to Submit

To submit a photo, it is enough to start a thread in the submission forum containing your photo. Note: others won't be able to view your submission until voting time.

Official Rules for PentaxForums.com Monthly Photo Contests

Please follow these guidelines when submitting entries for our monthly photo contests. Your photo may be disqualified or you may be asked to re-upload it upon any violations.

• Submit only one photo per contest
  
• Your submission must have been taken with a Pentax or Ricoh camera and match the contest theme
• Post your submission in a separate thread within the contest submission forum
• The photo dimensions must be between 300x300 and 1400x1200 pixels (WxH)
  Recommended dimensions: 1200x800 for horizontals, 800x533 for verticals
• To ensure smooth loading, photos must be no larger than 1.5MB in filesize
• We recommend that you use our attachment system to ensure you are within limits
• You may receive an e-mail or PM prior to voting time if we detect any issues with your submission
• To verify that your submission was successful, navigate to the contest submission forum and make sure you see your submission thread as well as a photo within it. Only the last photo in your first submission thread will be considered. If you did not use our attachment system, make sure that your photo can be accessed by the public (i.e. isn't behind some sort of permission-based system).
  

Fine print:

• Photos that have won a previous contest (1st, 2nd, or 3rd place) cannot be re-submitted to future contests
• Your submission must be taken by you and may not be a derivative work. Composites are allowed provided you advise in your submission that it is a composite and provided that you took all the photos that form part of the composite image.
• Photos that are Not Safe for Work/Not Work Safe (NSFW/NWS) (i.e. any form of nudity) are no longer allowed in our monthly photo contests. You may still share these photos in our Post Your Photos forum.
  
• Post-processing that enhances your submission is allowed
• Image borders are allowed, but should be used in moderation
• Submissions do not have to be taken in the same month as the contest unless otherwise specified
  
• To avoid voting bias, please do not watermark your photos with your username (but rather with your real name or website if needed)
• Do not specifically list which photo(s) you voted for or comment on others when commenting on the voting thread
• Only the first post of your first submission thread will be checked for a photo. Thus, to change your submission prior to the closing of the contest, simply edit your post. Do not reply with additional submissions.
  
• If your photo doesn't contain EXIF information, please specify the camera and lens in your thread, using the appropriate fields
• Contest start/end dates subject to change based on staff availability
  
• If your photo wins, it will be showcased in our Premier Gallery along with all previous winners. We reserve the right to permanently leave a copy of your photo in that gallery.
  We also reserve the right to publish your photo on our homepage and via social media channels. Proper attribution is guaranteed. You may request that the published photo be altered to include a copyright notice.
  
• Regarding prize substitutions: we do not guarantee substitutions if you are unable to claim your prize. International shipping is offered.
• Prior to receiving your prize, we reserve to right to ask you for a brief blog post describing the technique you used to shoot and process your photo, as well as what equipment you used.
  

Note that we use an automated system to process voting threads. Therefore, if your photo does not meet any of the submission requirements, it WILL NOT BE INCLUDED, and you may or may not be notified of disqualification beforehand.

General Procedure for PentaxForums.com Monthly Photo Contests

Note that our contest procedure has been changed as of July, 2014.

Around the first day of each month, we:

• Announce a new contest theme in a sticky thread in the main contest forum
  • As soon as the theme is announced within the users may start submitting their contest photos
• Close the previous month's contest and make those submissions visible to the public in a special gallery
• Start accepting user nominations for finalist photos from the previous month
  • Comment on others' submissions via the gallery linked above to nominate them to become finalists
  • Include the text "not a nomination" to ask a question without nominating

Following the end of the 2nd week of each month, we:

• Announce 15 finalists from the previous month's contest based on highest number of nominations
• Create a public poll to determine the winners
  • Every forum member gets one vote

At the end of the 3rd week of each month, we:

• Close the voting thread
• Announce a winner of the previous month's contest and send out prizes
  

Proper Conduct

We ask that you do not comment on which photos you voted for within our voting threads.

When submitting photos, your submission thread must have the photo embedded (i.e. IMG and not URL tags), and it must conform to the size guidelines above. You may only submit one photo per contest: if you submit more than one, then only the FIRST photo within your thread will be included.

Additionally, once a new theme is posted, the previous month's contest is considered closed. No late submissions are accepted. As a failsafe, try to have your submission in before before last day of each month. We typically don't announce themes until midnight U.S. time on the last day, but this may vary.

You cannot vote in contest polls if you registered after the corresponding contest closed to submissions.

[Pete_XL]

Hello Adam,

I uploaded my photo "Passig By Andromeda" to the contest "Night Tim Is The Right Time".
Somebody commented it and asked, what mout I used, so I answered with a picture of the mount.
That was not a good idea because now the picture of the equipment is shown in the contest voting instead of the Andromeda photo :-(
Could you pleas fix it so I have a Chance in this contest?
Thank you and here ist "Passing By Andromeda":

[Adam]

Hello Adam,

I uploaded my photo "Passig By Andromeda" to the contest "Night Tim Is The Right Time".
Somebody commented it and asked, what mout I used, so I answered with a picture of the mount.
That was not a good idea because now the picture of the equipment is shown in the contest voting instead of the Andromeda photo :-(
Could you pleas fix it so I have a Chance in this contest?
Thank you and here ist "Passing By Andromeda":

If you edit the first post using the advanced editor and hit submit, the thumbnail should be updated. Editing a post should override the thumbnail with the first image found in that post.

[Pete_XL]

If you edit the first post using the advanced editor and hit submit, the thumbnail should be updated. Editing a post should override the thumbnail with the first image found in that post.

It worked after I deleted the wrong picture and uploaded the right one instead.


Thanks very much, Adam!

[suraswami]

Does posting a reply to comment posted for your photograph and comment to the comment count as votes? Or is it unique number of people posting their comments/votes to the contested photo?

If allowed can I keep posting thanks for every post and increase my rating?

[Adam]

Does posting a reply to comment posted for your photograph and comment to the comment count as votes? Or is it unique number of people posting their comments/votes to the contested photo?

If allowed can I keep posting thanks for every post and increase my rating?

Your own comments aren't counted. Also, multiple comments from other users are only counted once.

[terrasprite]

Hi there, I have a collection of old lenses. They are faves of mine for occasional use and would love to apply them to competitions. However I attach them to my Canon 5D. My question is why can't we have a competition or category that is more about the lens than the make of camera? Bring more love to our great lenses!!
David

[Adam]

Hi there, I have a collection of old lenses. They are faves of mine for occasional use and would love to apply them to competitions. However I attach them to my Canon 5D. My question is why can't we have a competition or category that is more about the lens than the make of camera? Bring more love to our great lenses!!
David

For the most part, only our monthly contests have a camera brand requirement. You're welcome to enter just about any photo in the many challenges and games in the sections below:

Mini-Challenges, Games, and Photo Stories - PentaxForums.com
Weekly Photo Challenges - PentaxForums.com

Adam
PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide | Site Help | My Photography)



PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

[Evie]

Ok, maybe I did not review all the thread fully... so I am sorry if the question repeats, but I want to ask about rule

• "Post-processing that enhances your submission is allowed"

Does that mean that any post-processing is not allowed? I could say that brightening my photo and sharpening it, or adjusting colors enhanced it. What kind of post-processing is not allowed?

[Adam]

Ok, maybe I did not review all the thread fully... so I am sorry if the question repeats, but I want to ask about rule

• "Post-processing that enhances your submission is allowed"

Does that mean that any post-processing is not allowed? I could say that brightening my photo and sharpening it, or adjusting colors enhanced it. What kind of post-processing is not allowed?

Any kind of post processing is allowed as long as you're not incorporating others' work.

[3party]

Every month, PentaxForums.com hosts an official photo contest for its members. All members are invited to participate! The contest procedure and rules are outlined in this post.

How to Submit

To submit a photo, it is enough to start a thread in the submission forum containing your photo. Note: others won't be able to view your submission until voting time.

Official Rules for PentaxForums.com Monthly Photo Contests

Please follow these guidelines when submitting entries for our monthly photo contests. Your photo may be disqualified or you may be asked to re-upload it upon any violations.

• Submit only one photo per contest
  
• Your submission must have been taken with a Pentax or Ricoh camera and match the contest theme
• Post your submission in a separate thread within the contest submission forum
• The photo dimensions must be between 300x300 and 1400x1200 pixels (WxH)
  Recommended dimensions: 1200x800 for horizontals, 800x533 for verticals
• To ensure smooth loading, photos must be no larger than 1.5Mb in filesize
• We recommend that you use our attachment system to ensure you are within limits
• You may receive an e-mail prior to voting time if we detect any issues with your submission
• To verify that your submission was successful, navigate to the contest submission forum and make sure you see your submission thread as well as a photo within it. Only the last photo in your first submission thread will be considered. If you did not use our attachment system, make sure that your photo can be accessed by the public (i.e. isn't behind some sort of permission-based system).
  

Fine print:

• Photos that have won a previous contest cannot be re-submitted to future contests
• Your submission must be taken by you and may not be a derivative work
• Photos that are Not Safe for Work/Not Work Safe (NSFW/NWS) (i.e. any form of nudity) are no longer allowed in our monthly photo contests. You may still share these photos in our Post Your Photos forum.
  
• Post-processing that enhances your submission is allowed
• Image borders are allowed, but should be used in moderation
• Submissions do not have to be taken in the same month as the contest unless otherwise specified
  
• To avoid voting bias, please do not watermark your photos with your username (but rather with your real name or website if needed)
• Do not specifically list which photo(s) you voted for or comment on others when commenting on the voting thread
• Only the first post of your first submission thread will be checked for a photo. Thus, to change your submission, simply edit your post. Do not reply with additional submissions.
  
• If your photo doesn't contain EXIF information, please specify the camera and lens in your thread, using the appropriate fields
• Contest start/end dates subject to change based on staff availability
  
• If your photo wins, it will be showcased in our Premier Gallery along with all previous winners. We reserve the right to permanently leave a copy of your photo in that gallery.
  We also reserve the right to publish your photo on our homepage and via social media channels. Proper attribution is guaranteed. You may request that the published photo be altered to include a copyright notice.
  
• Regarding prize substitutions: we do not guarantee substitutions if you are unable to claim your prize. International shipping is offered.
• Prior to receiving your prize, we reserve to right to ask you for a brief blog post describing the technique you used to shoot and process your photo, as well as what equipment you used.
  

Note that we use an automated system to process voting threads. Therefore, if your photo does not meet any of the submission requirements, it WILL NOT BE INCLUDED, and you may or may not be notified of disqualification beforehand.

General Procedure for PentaxForums.com Monthly Photo Contests

Note that our contest procedure has been changed as of July, 2014.

Around the first day of each month, we:

• Announce a new contest theme in a sticky thread in the main contest forum
  • As soon as the theme is announced within the users may start submitting their contest photos
• Make the previous month's submissions visible to the public in a special gallery
• Start accepting user nominations for finalist photos from the previous month
  • Comment on others' submissions via the gallery linked above to nominate them to become finalists
  • Include the text "not a nomination" to ask a question without nominating

Following the end of the 2nd week of each month, we:

• Announce 15 finalists from the previous month's contest based on highest number of nominations
• Create a public poll to determine the winners
  • Every forum member gets one vote

At the end of the 3rd week of each month, we:

• Close the voting thread
• Announce a winner of the previous month's contest and send out prizes
  

Proper Conduct

We ask that you do not comment on which photos you voted for within our voting threads.

When submitting photos, your submission thread must have the photo embedded (i.e. IMG and not URL tags), and it must conform to the size guidelines above. You may only submit one photo per contest: if you submit more than one, then only the FIRST photo within your thread will be included.

Additionally, once a new theme is posted, the previous month's contest is considered closed. No late submissions are accepted. As a failsafe, try to have your submission in before before last day of each month. We typically don't announce themes until midnight U.S. time on the last day, but this may vary.

You cannot vote in contest polls if you registered after the corresponding contest closed to submissions.

No mention under Rules & Procedures of HOW MANY photos one may nominate. How many? Thanks

[Adam]

No mention under Rules & Procedures of HOW MANY photos one may nominate. How many? Thanks

There's no limit

See above,

• The photo dimensions must be between 300x300 and 1400x1200 pixels (WxH)
  Recommended dimensions: 1200x800 for horizontals, 800x533 for verticals
• To ensure smooth loading, photos must be no larger than 1.5Mb in filesize

[Aardvark]

One quick question, it ays Pentax or Ricoh camera, how do I stand with a Samsung GX20 ??

[Adam]

One quick question, it ays Pentax or Ricoh camera, how do I stand with a Samsung GX20 ??

That's allowed too (it's just a rebadged K20D).

[Joyce Keay]

I have in mind for the March contest a sign that is firmly affixed to a building. I do not believe there are any words on this sign just a model of something (not telling). Would such a sign me appropriate for this month's contest? Thanks.