2024 Rules

Submitting your entry

Where: At the library’s Adult/Teen or Children’s Information Desks 

When: Sat., July 6 – Sat., July 13 during open library hours. No late entries will be accepted. 

Maximum number of entries: 2 photos per person. They can be in the same or different photo categories.

Age groups:

• Adult (18+)
• Teen (12 - 17)
• Kids (7 - 11)
• Lil’ Snapper (1 - 6), a non-judged open division, an opportunity for budding young photographers to showcase their first photos

Photo categories: 

• People
• Animals
• Flora ((main subject is plants, trees, flowers; cut or in nature)
• Scenic (landscapes and natural scenery)
• Architecture (urban design, buildings, bridges, physical structures)

Entry format: Photos must be 5x7” prints and matted in an 8x10” matte board only (available at hobby stores). Use a separate entry form for each photo and tape the completed form to the back of the matte board. A sample matted photo is available at the Adult/Teen and Children’s Information Desks. Entry forms will be available at the information desks, or click below after May 1 to download and print.

Judging and Prizes

Judges may recategorize photos if necessary. Each photo will be judged for impact, composition, and quality of lighting. The judges are local professional photographers and instructors Gary Harwood and Jim Roetzel. Please note: Any individual who has derived more than $250.00 from the sales of personal photographs over the previous 12 months is not eligible for this contest.

Three winners per category, per age group, will be recognized with ribbons and Certificates of Achievement. One Best in Show winner for each age group will win a cash prize. Prizes are compliments of the Friends of the Library:

• Adult Best in Show: $50
• Teen Best in Show: $40
• Kids Best in Show: $30

Judges’ awards will be announced: Mon., July 22 at 7 PM at our Awards Ceremony, which all participants and their families are invited to attend. 

Photos will be on display in the library: July 21 - July 25. Visitors will be able to vote for their favorite photos for the SMFPL People’s Choice Award, the Stephen Pierce Memorial Award for teens, and the Spike the Turtle Kids’ Choice Award. The Choice Awards will be announced after July 26.

Winning photographers will be contacted about submitting a digital copy of their photo for display in the library’s online albums. Photographs remain property of the entrant.

Photos may be picked up: At the Adult Information Desk, along with any awards won, beginning July 27. Any photos not picked up by August 11, 2024 will be discarded. 

This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Library.