greatoutdoors!

Rules

TERM

The Great Outdoors Photography Contest begins February 6, 2009, at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) and ends at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) April 20, 2009. An additional fee of $10 will be added to each entry received during the extended deadline period between 12:01 a.m. PDT on April 21, 2009, and 11:59 p.m. PDT on May 4, 2009.

WHO MAY ENTER

Employees of National Geographic Society, Photo District News, and each of their affiliates and subsidiaries, and advertising and promotion agencies, and their immediate family members (spouse, parent, child, siblings and their respective spouses, regardless of where they live) or persons living in the same households of such individuals, whether or not related, are not eligible to enter or win a prize. Entrants must be at least 18 years of age as of the date of entry. CONTEST IS VOID IN ARIZONA, NEW JERSEY, AND VERMONT, AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

ENTRY FEES

Each Entry consists of an entry form, a single image, and an entry fee. Entry fees are different for each contest -- amateur and professional.
The entry fee for the amateur contest (NGT) is $12 per entry for entries received between 12:01 a.m EST February 6, 2009, and 11:59 p.m. April 20, 2009 PDT . Submissions received between 12:01 a.m. PDT April 21, 2009, and May 4, 2009, at 11:59 p.m. PDT will be subject to an additional late fee of $10.
The entry fee for the professional contest (PDN) is $35 per entry. Submissions received between 12:01 a.m. PDT April 21, 2009, and May 4, 2009, at 11:59 p.m. PDT will be subject to an additional late fee of $10.
Entries become the property of Sponsors and will not be returned or acknowledged.

HOW TO ENTER

To enter your submissions electronically, please visit www.TheGreatOutdoorsPhotoContest.com to register. Once the registration process has been completed, you will receive an e-mail confirmation. Simply log into the website and follow the online instructions to upload images from your computer. Images formatted in JPEG or TIFF measuring at least 1,000 pixels on their long dimension are preferred. Images may be color profiled in sRGB, Adobe-1998, or not color-managed. For more information on electronic submission guidelines see our FAQ online.

Each submitted photograph, in its entirety, must be a single work of original material taken by the Contest entrant. By entering the Contest, entrant represents, acknowledges and warrants that the submitted photograph is an original work created solely by the entrant, that the photograph does not infringe on the copyrights, trademarks, moral rights, rights of privacy/publicity or intellectual property rights of any person or entity, and that no other party has any right, title, claim or interest in the photograph.
The photograph must not, in the sole and unfettered discretion of the Sponsors, contain obscene, provocative, defamatory, sexually explicit, or otherwise objectionable or inappropriate content. Photographs deemed inappropriate will be disqualified.
Photographs that include sculptures, statues, paintings, and other works of art will be accepted as long as they do not constitute copyright infringement or fraud; provided that entrants must be prepared to provide a release form as described below in "Third Party Releases/Licenses." When photographing the work of others, it must be as an object in its environment and not a full-frame close up of another person's art.
If the Photograph includes other people, you must be prepared to provide a signed written personal release from all persons who appear in the Photograph submitted, authorizing use of the Photograph as provided below in "Third Party Releases/Licenses." If you are unable to provide a personal release, upon request by Sponsor and in the form provided by Sponsor, then your entry may be disqualified. You do not need to send the release with your entry. If you win, we will contact you if a model release is needed.
The entries will be judged in accordance with the Judging Criteria, as defined below.
On-line entries must be made by the authorized account holder of the e-mail address submitted at the time of entry. "Authorized account holder" is defined as the natural person who is assigned to an e-mail address by an Internet access provider, online service provider, internet domain owner, or other person or organization (e.g., business, educational institution, etc.) that is responsible for assigning e-mail addresses for the domain associated with the submitted e-mail address.

CONTEST PRIZES:

AMATEUR CONTEST (NGT)

GRAND PRIZE
Grand prize package is a 5-night stay for 2 people in a Deluxe Selva Room at the Mandarin Oriental Riviera Maya in Mexico including breakfast daily, one dinner at the signature restaurant Ambar, and two Aromatherapy Massage treatments in a couples suite. Approximate Retail Value of package is US $6,000.
Bookings are subject to availability at time of booking. Cannot be transfered or redeemed for cash. Room, service charges, and room taxes are included. Valid through September 2010 excluding Nov. 25-30, 2009, Dec. 20, 2009 to Jan. 3, 2010, Feb. 11-16, 2010, and March 27, 2010 to April 18, 2010.

CATEGORY WINNERS:
Each category prize winner will receive:

a $100 gift card for B&H Photo in New York City.
Gold Pass - PDN PhotoPlus International Conference + Expo

PROFESSIONAL CONTEST (PDN)

CATEGORY WINNERS

$100 B&H Photo gift card
Gold Pass - PDN PhotoPlus International Conference + Expo
a digital camera
a PDN Photoserve portfolio
a subscription to PDN magazine and PDNonline.com
a PDN swag bag
Professional winners will be published in the August 2009 issue of PDN magazine.

THE POTENTIAL WINNERS ARE REQUIRED TO EXECUTE THE FOLLOWING: (1) AN AFFIDAVIT OF ELIGIBILITY AND LIABILITY RELEASE; (2) WARRANTY OF OWNERSHIP AND LICENSE; (3) PUBLICITY RELEASE; AND (4) ANY OTHER AFFIDAVITS AND/OR RELEASES OR ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS THAT MAY BE REQUIRED BY PRIZE SUPPLIER(S). UNLESS PROHIBITED BY LAW, THE POTENTIAL WINNERS MUST SIGN THESE THREE DOCUMENTS NO LATER THAN 15 DAYS FROM THE DATE OF PRIZE NOTIFICATION IN ORDER FOR SPONSORS TO AWARD THE PRIZE. NONCOMPLIANCE OR RETURN OF PRIZE NOTIFICATION AS UNDELIVERABLE MAY RESULT IN DISQUALIFICATION AND, AT SPONSORS' DISCRETION, SELECTION OF AN ALTERNATE WINNER.

JUDGING

Contest consists of two (2) rounds of evaluation. In Round One, a panel of National Geographic Traveler Photo editors and Photo District News experts in photography (the "Judges") will each review a portion of the entries and select a group of entries to proceed to Round Two on the basis of creativity (34%), sense of place (33%), and capturing the moment (33%) (the "Judging Criteria"). In Round Two, the Judges will collectively select a winner from each category and one Grand prize winner who will receive the trip prize.
Winners will be selected on or about June 1, 2009, and notified by e-mail by June 15, 2009.
Decisions of the Sponsors and Judges are final and binding.
Sponsors reserve the right not to award all prizes in the event an insufficient number of eligible entries meeting the minimum judging criteria are received, as determined by Sponsors and Judges in their sole discretion.

ENTRANT LICENSES/RELEASES

If the photograph contains any material or elements that are not owned by the entrant and/or that are subject to the rights of third parties, and/or if any persons appear in the photograph, the entrant is responsible for obtaining, prior to submission of the photograph, any and all releases and consents necessary to permit the exhibition and use of the photograph in the manner set forth in these Official Rules without additional compensation. If any person appearing in any photograph is under the age of majority in their state/province/territory of residence the signature of a parent or legal guardian is required on each release.
By participating, ALL ENTRANTS grant the Sponsors and their designees, licensees or affiliates (the "Authorized Parties") a non-exclusive, worldwide license, through June 15, 2010, to post the entries online so that viewers may view all competing entries. In addition, each WINNER grants to the Authorized Parties a license for use of his/her winning entry in connection with The Great Outdoors Photo Contest and promotion of The Great Outdoors Photo Contest, in any media now or hereafter known, including but not limited to: publication in PDN and/or Traveler magazines showcasing the winners; exhibit of the work at the PhotoPlus Expo 2009; The Great Outdoors Photo Contest live gallery; the Great Outdoors Photo Contest website and on PDNOnline.com and nationalgeographic.com; and in exhibits and promotions related to the Great Outdoors Photo Contest. Such winners' license is a non-exclusive, worldwide, 24 months (beginning the date winners are notified) license to reproduce, distribute, display and create derivative works of the entries. Authorized Parties will not be required to pay any additional consideration or seek any additional approval in connection with such use.

THIRD PARTY RELEASES/LICENSES

Upon Sponsor's request, each entrant must be prepared to provide a signed written personal release from all persons who appear in the photograph submitted, authorizing Authorized Parties to reproduce, distribute, display and create derivative works of the photograph entry in connection with The Great Outdoors Photo Contest and promotion of The Great Outdoors Photo Contest, in any media now or hereafter known, including but not limited to: publication in PDN and/or Traveler magazines showcasing the winners; exhibit of the work at the PhotoPlus Expo 2009; The Great Outdoors Photo Contest live gallery; the Great Outdoors Photo Contest Web site and on PDNOnline.com and nationalgeographic.com; and in exhibits and promotions related to the Great Outdoors Photo Contest. In addition, upon Sponsor's request, each entrant must be prepared to provide a signed written license from the copyright owner of any sculpture, artwork or other copyrighted material that appears in the photograph entry, authorizing Authorized Parties to reproduce, distribute, display and create derivative works of the photograph in connection with The Great Outdoors Photo Contest and promotion of The Great Outdoors Photo Contest, in any media now or hereafter known, including but not limited to: publication in PDN and/or Traveler magazines showcasing the winners; exhibit of the work at the PhotoPlus Expo 2009; The Great Outdoors Photo Contest live gallery; the Great Outdoors Photo Contest Website and on PDNOnline.com and nationalgeographic.com; and in exhibits and promotions related to the Great Outdoors Photo Contest. Failure to provide such releases upon request may result in disqualification and selection of an alternate winner.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

By participating, entrants agree to release, discharge, and hold harmless National Geographic Society, Photo District News, and each of their respective partners, affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising agencies, agents and their employees, officers, directors, and representatives from any claims, losses, and damages arising out of their participation in this Contest or any Contest-related activities and the acceptance and use, misuse, or possession of any prize awarded hereunder.
Sponsors assume no responsibility for any error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, or delay in operation or transmission; communications line failure; theft or destruction of or unauthorized access to Contest entries or entry forms; or alteration of entries or entry forms. Sponsors are not responsible for any problems with or technical malfunction of any telephone network or lines, computer online systems, servers or providers, computer equipment, software, failure of any e-mail entry to be received on account of technical problems or traffic congestion on the Internet or at any website, human errors of any kind, or any combination thereof, including any injury or damage to entrants' or any other persons' computers related to or resulting from participation, uploading, or downloading of any materials related to this Contest.

CONDITIONS

THIS CONTEST IS VOID IN ARIZONA, NEW JERSEY AND VERMONT, AND WHERE PROHIBITED. This Contest is subject to federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Certain restrictions may apply. Sponsor is not responsible for late, lost, incomplete or misdirected entries. Entries void if the Sponsor determines the entry to not be an original, or if the entries are illegible, incomplete, damaged, irregular, altered, counterfeit, produced in error or obtained through fraud or theft.
Participants also agree (a) to be bound by these Official Rules; (b) that the decisions of the Judges are final on all matters relating to the Contest; and (c) if he/she wins, that Sponsor may use the winning photographs and each winner's name, photograph, likeness, and/or voice in any publicity or advertising relating to the Contest or future promotions without compensation or approval (except in Tennessee and where prohibited by law). All federal, state and local taxes, fees and surcharges on prizes are the sole responsibility of the prize winners. In the event that the selected winner(s) of any prize is/are ineligible or refuses the prize, the prize will be forfeited and Sponsors, in their sole discretion, may choose whether to award the prize to another entrant.

RIGHT TO CANCEL OR SUSPEND CONTEST

If for any reason the Contest is not capable of running as planned, due to infection by computer virus, bugs, worms, trojan horses, denial of service attacks, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures, or any other causes beyond the control of Sponsors that corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, or proper conduct of this Contest, Sponsors reserve the right, at their sole discretion, to disqualify any individual(s) who tamper with the entry process, and/or to cancel, terminate, modify, or suspend the Contest. If Sponsors elect to cancel or terminate the Contest, Sponsors will not retain any rights in the submitted photographs and will return the entry fees.

WINNERS LIST

Amateur winners' names will be available online at www.nationalgeographic.com traveler after June 15, 2009, or send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: National Geographic Traveler, Great Outdoors Photo Contest, 1145 17th St., NW, Washington, DC 20036. Professional Winners names will be available in the August issue of PDN and Online in August on www.pdnonline.com

NOTICE TO INDIVIDUALS: REMOVAL FROM MAILING LIST: Any individual (or other duly authorized person) may elect to exclude the name and address of that individual from all lists used by Sponsor to mail skill contests or sweepstakes. To elect to have an individual's name excluded from all such lists, submit a removal request in writing to: "Great Outdoors Photography Contest," National Geographic Traveler, 1145 17th St., NW, Washington, DC 20036. This notification system may be used to prohibit mailing of all skill contests or sweepstakes by Sponsor to such individual.