Official Contest Rules – Lux Umbraque: Light and Shadow

General

The LUQ ongoing travel photography contest (“Contest”) runs most weeks. Daily winners are usually selected from entries submitted on each day from Sunday through Thursday, and announced on or around the following day. One of each week’s daily winners is selected to be the weekly winner, and announced on or around the following Monday. Times and dates are Eastern Time in the United States. Photos submitted on Friday or Saturday will be included in Sunday’s photos.

Unless otherwise noted, the prize for the weekly winner is US$50, payable as an Amazon Gift Certificate sent by e-mail.

There is no cost to enter.

Contestants may enter as often as they like, except that LUQ in its sole discretion may in the future, and without notice, limit contestants’ entries.

On days on which, in the sole discretion of the judge or judges, no daily photograph is deemed sufficiently meritorious, no daily winner will be chosen. On weeks without any daily winners, no weekly prize will be awarded.

The judge or judges, in their sole discretion, may decide to award additional prizes for particularly meritorious entries.

The judge or judges, in their sole discretion, may decide to limit the number of times a contestant can win.

All decisions of the judge or judges are final, and may be made on subjective criteria.

This is a skill-based competition in which photos are judged based on merit and adherence to themes or other criteria which may be announced from time to time. Chance plays no part in the determination of winners.

Who May Enter

The Contest is open only to individuals who have reached the age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence at the time of entry, who are legally and otherwise able to receive an Amazon Gift Certificate, and who reside (a) in the United States (including all its territories); or (b) other countries with which the United States has full diplomatic relations and with which no trade or other embargoes, or other regulations, prohibit or significantly limit communication and commerce — except that the Contest is not open to individuals whose local or other laws prohibit them from entering.

The Contest is void where prohibited.

How To Enter

An individual may enter only by uploading a photo s/he owns, via LUQ’s photo upload form. Contestants must include a valid e-mail address, which will be used to contact winners and to award prizes.

Uploads must be 4MB or smaller.

Photographs need not have been taken with a digital camera. Scans and other digitalizations are acceptable.

Photographs need not be entered into this Contest exclusively. Contestants may enter them elsewhere as well.

Photos that have been significantly modified (beyond minor adjustments to lighting, color, contrast, and framing) are eligible to win only if those modifications are noted as part of the entry process.

Submissions that the judge or judges, in their sole and perhaps arbitrary discretion, deem obscene or otherwise objectionable will be disqualified.

Entrants warrant that they are (a) submitting their own work; and that (b) they have the legal right to enter the work in the Contest. LUQ in its sole discretion may request demonstration of (a) and (b) before awarding a prize; and LUQ in its sole discretion will determine the sufficiency of any such documentation provided by a contestant.

LUQ is not responsible for technological or other glitches that may delay or prevent image submission, or that may render images unavailable or unsuitable for judging.

Entrants warrant that they have not incurred, do not incur, and will not incur any financial loss, or any other loss, by entering a photo in the Contest.

Judging Criteria

Submissions will be be judged by a judge or judges of LUQ’s choosing, and will be judged based on possibly subjective criteria including, in no particular order, the following:

Relevance to travel
Recency
Creativity
Technical merit
Story telling
Overall aesthetics

as well as on other criteria that may be announced from time to time.

Variability

The Contest runs most days and most weeks, except when paused. LUQ will make a good faith effort to notify contestants of the Contest status. Contestants recognize that the Contest may not be running when they enter a photograph.

Additionally, Contest details — including without limitation the start of the week (currently Sunday) and the time frame for announcing winners — may change with notice here.

Contest Prizes

One prize of US$50.00, awardable as an Amazon Gift Certificate, will be awarded by e-mail on or around the Monday following each week during which (a) the Contest is running in full; and (b) at least one daily submission was chosen as a daily winner. Additional prizes may be awarded at the sole discretion of the Contest judge or judges.

Representations

Each individual who enters a submission into the Contest represents that: (a) the submission belongs to the individual; (b) the individual has the right to enter the submission into the contest; (c) the submission does not violate or infringe upon the rights of any third party, including without limitation intellectual property rights; (d) the submission is not defamatory or libelous; and (e) the submission does not violate any applicable laws.

License

By entering a photo into the contest, each entrant grants LUQ the non-exclusive right to use the photo artistically in connection with the contest. LUQ will not otherwise publish the photo, and contestants retain full copyright and other legal rights in their work.

Contestants additionally grant LUQ the right to use their name and any public information they provide in connection with the contest.

Limitation Of Liability

Entrants agree that LUQ and its selected judges shall not be responsible for any injuries or damages of any kind attributable in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, to participation in the Contest, or to any Contest-related activity.

Entrants further agree that they have incurred no financial or other loss, and will incur no financial or other loss, by entering a photo in the Contest.