First Monthly IGPOTY Contest Begins Today: Picturing Summer at the Garden

Posted in Photography on June 1 2011, by Ann Rafalko

Summer, regardless of whether or not the calendar says so, is here. So let’s make “Picturing Summer at the Garden” the theme for this inaugural monthly NYBG-IGPOTY contest on Flickr!

But first, let’s set some ground rules:

1.Photos must be taken at The New York Botanical Garden, but needn’t be from this month, year, or even decade. Please make sure they adhere to the theme and that you own the copyright to them.

2. Please enter only one photo per calendar week. That means in June you can enter up to five (5) photos, but please submit them a week apart. The weeks of June are defined as: Week 1, 6/1 – 6/4; Week 2, 6/5 – 6/11; Week 3, 6/12 – 6/18; Week 4, 6/19 – 6/25; and Week 5, 6/26 – 6/30.

3. For your photograph to be considered, it must be placed into the NYBG Group Pool and be tagged with the term NYBGIGPOTY.

4. The NYBG Flickr Pool is moderated by NYBG staff. While we work a lot, we tend to not work in the evenings and on weekends, so if your photo does not immediately show up in the pool, that is why; it just hasn’t been approved yet. If several days go by, or if Monday afternoon comes around and your photo still hasn’t shown up in the pool, please let us know.

5. In the spirit of IGPOTY, please feel free to comment on each others photos (nicely, please) and to share tips, tricks, techniques, and stories.

6. One monthly winner and one or two runner’s up will be chosen by a panel of NYBG staff and friends of the Garden. We’re hoping to get commentary on the photos from IGPOTY’s staff as well!

7. The winner will receive a small prize from us, but we haven’t figured out what that will be yet. Stay tuned!

8. Entering the monthly NYBG-IGPOTY contest does not mean that you have been entered into the official International Garden Photographer of the Year contest. Click here to enter.

As a reminder of what IGPOTY is all about: It’s an international garden photography competition run out of the U.K. in conjunction with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.  2011 is the first year that The New York Botanical Garden is participating as the exclusive U.S. partner. IGPOTY is hosting a special commendation for a photo taken here at the Garden in honor of our 120th Anniversary. The winner will receive a year’s Membership to the Garden. The winner of the overall IGPOTY contest will win around $8,000 (depending on the exchange rate). All winners will be published in a book, and will be featured in an exhibition at Kew, and soon at the Garden as well. Everyone who enters the contest may request a written critique of their photographs from IGPOTY’s wonderful panel of judges.

Please let us know if you have any questions by leaving us a comment below. Good luck, and happy shooting!

Photos by Ivo M. Vermeulen, who, like all NYBG Marketing department employees, is not eligible for these monthly Flickr contests.