Diaframmi Photo Awards

General rules
The Diaframmi Awards International Photo Contest is open to both professional and amateurs alike. An image that has been entered may be disqualified if the promoting organisation, at its discretion, considers that the photo does not comply with the rules and conditions of the competition.

Categories for 2017
Photos must comply with the following topics/categories:

OPEN – COLOUR: Abstract, Beauty, Conceptual, Dynamism & Movement, Fashion, Fine Art, Food, Music & Dance, Nudes, Products/Objects, Still Life, Marriage, Science & Research, Others (for this category you do not need to send RAW files).
OPEN – BLACK AND WHITE: Black and white photos (for this category you do not need to send RAW files).
ANIMALS: Wildlife. Wild, non-domestic animals or animals raised in captivity, mammals, birds, bats, fish, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates, molluscs, ringed worms and arthropods, shown as an integral part of their natural habitat.
PEOPLES, USES AND CULTURE: Men, Women, Children, Human Relationships, Portraits, photos that capture the image of a person or a small group of people. Any image that depicts humankind, peoples, or ethnic groups in any part of the world, particular populations that still live in close contact with their natural environment or still live following typical customs and traditions.
LANDSCAPE: Astrophysics, the Environment, Trees, Landscapes, Mountains, Night Scenes, the Sea and Seascapes (both above and underwater), Star Trails, Panoramic Photography, Aerial Photography. Photos that include landscapes (non-urban) and show images from the natural world. Our aim is that you show the forces of nature and the impact of the natural elements of the world caused by an atmospheric event such as a storm, a magnificent sunset or even snow. People and animals can also be part of the image, but the main goal must be the impact caused by the natural elements. In addition to landscapes, images that depict the characteristic elements of a land – even the flora – or abstract elements (such as conditions caused by the atmosphere or light) are also allowed.
STREET PHOTOGRAPHY: Subjects in real and spontaneous situations in public places in order to highlight any aspect of society in an artistic way. A location in general where human activity is visible, places where social interactions can be observed and captured. The subject may also be completely devoid of people or may even be an environment where an object takes on human characteristics.
SPORT: Sports events, exercise and competitiveness. Photos of any sport, scenes of activity or decisive moments; the rules and dynamism of games and the dynamism of actions that highlight and show commitment and passion for competition.
PHOTOJOURNALISM: Photographs are required to be a “journalistic” documentation of real, spontaneous events. This single shot must be able to tell a real story, an incident, a newsworthy moment; it must be accompanied by a caption of up to 600 characters written in English. The caption must include:
• The name of the city, region or state, and the country where the photo was taken.
• The date the photo was taken must be provided.
• A description of the photo and what is happening in it.
STORYBOARD: A sequence of images (min. 5, max. 10) that tells a story without needing a written description. In this category you can put forward a series of photos on any topic: themed portfolios or storyboards (sequences of photos that tell a story about nature, fauna, ethology, natural environments and the land, etc.). The photographer is free to choose the topic, the style, the setting, and the subjects they like. This category requires five or more images linked together in a logical sequence. The project must consist of a minimum of 5 photos and a maximum of 10. Photos can be taken sequentially or at different times, provided they are closely linked to each other.
Sponsor category:
THE WORK OF MAN: Man's work. Images depicting man at work. Man understood as a human race. Photos that highlight the struggle that every individual is forced to undertake for daily survival. (for this category you do not need to send RAW files).

Dates:
The contest opens on the: 22 MAY 2017

Deadline: 15 July 2017 at 24:00
The panel of judges will vote from: 1 to 13 August 2017
Finalists will be announced from: 14 to 20 August 2017
Forwarding high-definition files and checking of RAW files from: 21 August to 3 September 2017
Winning participants will be announced from: 4 to 10 September 2017
Date of the inauguration of the exhibition and awards ceremony: 7 October 2017

Dates may be subject to variations; these will be notified in advance via our website and social networks.

Cost of participating and payment methods:
The fee for enrolling in the photo contest must be paid according to the instructions on the website when filling in the registration form. Payments must be made according to the amounts set out below. Photos taken by participants who have not paid the registration fee in full will be disqualified. The total number of registered images can be freely distributed among the different categories.

- €10: from 1 to 3 photos
- €15: from 4 to 6 photos
- €20: from 7 to 9 photos
- Storyboard category: €25 for each storyboard

Payment method:
- PayPal
- Credit card

Prizes
The participant whose photo obtains the highest final score will be awarded the title of: Overall Winner of the Diaframmi Awards International Photo Contest 2017 and will receive €500 in vouchers to spend at major international online stores (Amazon, Pixmania, or any other online store that issues gift certificates or vouchers) as well as a free one-night stay to attend the awards ceremony.
The top three winners in each category will receive a trophy with the winning photo imprinted on it. In addition, all the work of the finalists in each category will be shown in a group exhibition.
The top three winners in each category will be classified as finalists, as will any special mentions awarded by the organisation for each category.
The decision of the panel of judges will be final. The panel of judges reserves the right to award special prizes as well as the right to withhold prizes if the quality of the photos submitted is not satisfactory. Prizes must be collected by the winner in person at the awards ceremony or by a representative the organisation has been notified of in advance and in writing. Should this not be possible, the prize will be sent – at the expense of the recipient – to their home by courier or post. The list of prizes is set out as follows:

Prizes:
Overall Winner of the Diaframmi Awards International Photo Contest
• €500 in vouchers to spend on Amazon or Pixmania
• A one-night stay to attend the awards ceremony
• Their photo published in the press and uploaded on websites
• Exhibition of the winning photo as part of the group show

1st place winner in each category
• €100 in vouchers to spend on Amazon or Pixmania
• Their photo published in the press and uploaded on websites
• Exhibition of the winning photo as part of the group show

2nd and 3rd place winners in each category
• A trophy with their photo and name imprinted on it
• Their photo published in the press and uploaded on websites
• Exhibition of the winning photo as part of the group show

Under-20s winner
• A trophy with their photo and name imprinted on it
• Their photo published in the press and uploaded on websites

Special mentions
• A trophy with their photo and name imprinted on it
• Their photo published in the press and uploaded on websites
• Exhibition of the winning photo as part of the group show

Sending your photos:
All work must be sent via internet. Images not sent via our registration page will not be judged. An image cannot be presented for more than one section, but a photo used in the Storyboard category can also participate as a single image in one of the other sections. Each participant can send a maximum of 9 photos plus any number of storyboards. For every single category you participate in, only one image/storyboard can be chosen as a finalist. Photos must be in JPG format with sRGB colour profile. The file size of each image must not exceed 2MB. The size of the photos must be no more than 1920 pixels along the longest side, regardless if that side is vertical or horizontal. No totally computer-generated work, photomontages, or photos that contain a signature or watermark will be accepted. The finalists of the contest will be required to provide the RAW file of the image (except for the COLOUR, BLACK AND WHITE and PORTRAITS categories).

The panel of judges:
The panel of judges is made up of photographers, journalists, publishers and other expert photographers. The participants in every category will be judged. The sponsors do not take part in the judging process. The judges will evaluate the photos and take into account the following: visual impact; composition; originality; technique; creativity; ability to communicate a message, feeling or emotion. Every entry will be judged online and independently by all the judges who will autonomously evaluate the photos. The best photos in each category – chosen based on the total number of votes received – will go on to the next stage for the final judging. The number of finalists will vary from category to category and will depend on the quality of the work received. Before the final stage, finalists must send us the high-resolution files of their images together with the original RAW files prior to the deadline set out in the rules. Files received after this date will be disqualified from the contest. The winners of the categories will be chosen based on the highest score obtained for the images presented. Participants with the highest final score in each category will be announced as the winners of that specific category.
All participants will receive an email stating the results of the contest. The results will also be posted on the www.diaframmichiusi.it. website.

Copyright and dissemination:
Each participant retains the copyright for the image/s they send. Participants must certify that the work is their own. Participants agree to the dissemination of their material which can be used, free of charge, for promotional purposes related to this photography contest such as its website and social networks, unless otherwise specified by the participant on the registration form. The winning photos and those with special mention will be made available to press organisations who wish to announce the results of the contest. Whenever an image is used, the organisers will always mention the photographer’s name. No participating photograph will be put up for sale or used by the sponsors except in the case of any internal, private and non-commercial exhibitions to promote the Diaframmi Chiusi Festival, the contest and/or the exhibition.
Each photographer is personally responsible for the subject matter of their entries and for what is stated on the registration form. The form also authorises the publication and dissemination of the images, even in different sizes, exclusively for cultural or educational purposes related to this event. The participating photographs will be published on the Festival’s website http://www.diaframmichiusi.it in the section devoted to the contest.

Digital development of the images:
Digitally manipulated images are not allowed. The representation of forms, human behaviour, or natural phenomena must remain completely faithful to the original shot. You may digitally adjust the image to optimise it (brightness, contrast, colour balance, dust spots, etc.), and you may crop an image but the cropping must not remove more than 50% of the original image. You may not add or remove any elements from the composition. The judges have the power to reject any image that has, in their unquestionable judgement, been overly retouched to the detriment of the integrity of the original image.

Group exhibition:
The work of the finalists in each category will be displayed in a group exhibition (information regarding the exhibition and the awards will be notified at a later date). Some of the winning photos may also be selected for as-yet-unplanned exhibitions in Italy and/or abroad. When the exhibition ends, prints of the photos displayed may be bid for at a public auction with proceeds going to a charity that supports a solidarity project.

By filling in the form, you agree to the terms and conditions set out in Law196/2003 (on Data Protection) and any subsequent amendments thereof: Participation in the contest involves, on the part of the Photographer, authorising their personal data and information to be processed and for the Organiser to use them to fulfil the needs of the contest and any other associated and/or federated purposes. This personal data may also be used to notify said Photographers about the contest’s results as well as future initiatives.
Enrolment by a participant entails accepting all the rules and conditions of this regulation.
A participant may be excluded by the organisation if they do not conform to the rules and conditions of the contest.