February Photo Contest

Regulations:  Professional and amateur photographers may enter this contest by submitting up to five (5) images regardless of theme taken in Somerset County, New Jersey. Each entrant must also submit a completed entry form. By entering this contest, each entrant gives the Somerset County Film Commission permission to use their entry (including photographs), in whole or in part, for display on the website and other printed publications without compensation. Each entrant grants the Somerset County Film Commission a non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, publish, display, and distribute their entry, in whole or in part, and entrants will retain the right to use entries for their own purposes. The deadline for entries is February 28, 2021 (“Contest Period”).  Entrants who do not provide all required information will be disqualified.

Eligibility:  This contest is open to residents of the County of Somerset, New Jersey. 

Submission Rules:  Entrants can submit color or B/W photographs in JPG or PNG format only. All photos must be high resolution: 300 dpi minimum; at least 1900 pixels x 800 pixels; not to exceed 10 MB per photo. Be careful to not reduce resolution when saving any cropped images. Vertical images will be drastically cropped if chosen. You may only alter a photo’s brightness and contrast (no manipulation, special effects, multiple exposures, etc.). “Shopped” photos or HDR shots are not allowed. The Somerset County Film Commission has sole discretion to disqualify photographs considered to be in violation of these official rules. In addition, all photographs must be taken and solely owned by the entrant, and must not infringe upon any rights of any third party including, without limitation, copyright, trademark and right of publicity or privacy.

 Submission Information:  Photographs are to be submitted electronically. All photo files must be named in the following format. If you are submitting more than one photo, add a number to the end as shown below. File names should correspond to the information on the entry form.

Format: PhotoSubjectorLocation_Theme_LastName.jpg

Example: ColonialPark_NatEn_Smith.jpg

Example: ConcertDivisionSt_ComEv_Smith.jpg

Deadline:  All submissions must be received by the Somerset County Film Commission by February 28, 2022 by 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time. No late submissions will be accepted.

 Judging:  A panel of judges will select the winner and runner up for each theme as well as an overall winner. Representatives of the Somerset County Film Commission will serve as judges.  All entries will be judged on the relevance to the listed themes and goals of the Film Commission. All decisions of the judges with respect to all aspects of this contest are final and binding. The Somerset County Film Commission reserves the right to disqualify entries which do not conform to these official rules or are deemed to be inappropriate. Please do not contact the Somerset County Film Commission to find out if your submission has been received. When you submit your entry, you will receive a confirmation e-mail. Winners will be contacted by e-mail.

Publication and Display:  Entrants grant the Somerset County Film Commission (except where prohibited by law) the right to use and publish their names, likenesses, and/or any information contained in their entry in print and/or other media in connection with the contest, including on the internet, by the Somerset County Film Commission without additional compensation, notice, review or approval.

Subject Release Forms:  Entrants are responsible for acquiring releases from identifiable individuals featured in their photographs. The release form for use in connection with this contest can be found below. Failure to submit a release form for identifiable individuals appearing in a photograph will result in the photograph’s disqualification (in the Somerset County Film Commission ‘s) sole discretion).  Photo Subject Release Form, if a subject release form is required, the subject release form must be scanned and attached to the entry.

General Agreement:  Submission of entry to the contest automatically constitutes the contestant’s agreement to be bound by these rules and the decisions of the Somerset County Film Commission and acceptance of all conditions set forth in these official rules. Entries not complying with these official rules will be disqualified at the Somerset County Film Commission’s sole discretion. It is the responsibility of the contestant to ensure that publication of the photographs by the Somerset County Film Commission raises no legal claims and does not infringe upon the rights of any third party, including, without limitation, copyright, trademark and right of publicity or privacy. The Somerset County Film Commission is not responsible and/or liable for any of the following, whether caused by the Somerset County Film Commission, the entrant, or by human error: any late, lost, damaged, incomplete, illegible, destroyed, misdirected or postage-due entries or mail; miscommunications, misdirected transmissions or other errors of any kind whether human, mechanical or electronic. The Somerset County Film Commission reserves the right to cancel, modify or suspend the contest without notice, including, without limitation, if, for any reason, this contest is not capable of running as planned. By entering, participants agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Somerset County Film Commission, its officers and its staff, from any and all liability arising from or in connection to this contest, including without limitation, a breach or alleged breach of any of the above representations and warranties.

 List of Winners:  Somerset County Film Commission will post a list of winners and their winning entries on its website after the conclusion of the photo contest. Winners will also be notified by mail or e-mail.