2025 Friends of Blackwater Photo Contest

Description

Friends of Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge Photo Contest 2025
The Friends of Blackwater (FOB) are hosting a digital photo contest from February 1,  2025 through March 31, 2025 to showcase Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) and raise funds for refuge projects. Visitors are invited to submit photos taken between January 1, 2024 and March 31, 2025 in refuge areas open to the public. These areas include: Wildlife Drive, Marsh Edge Trail, Key Wallace Drive (bridge area), Woods Trail, Tubman Road Trail, paddling trails, the Visitor Center butterfly garden, and Refuge property along Maple Dam Road, as well as the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center Legacy Garden.
A panel of expert photographers will judge the digital submissions. Winners and honorable mentions will be announced in May 2025. 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners will receive monetary awards and will be invited to exhibit framed prints of the winning submissions at the Blackwater NWR Visitor Center.  We urge the winners to take advantage of this.  Anyone expressing an interest in purchasing prints displayed at Blackwater NWR Vistors Center are referred directly to the photographer.  Additionally, winners will receive a one-year Friends of Blackwater membership. Submission criteria are detailed under Rules & Regulations; for common questions, see the FAQ. 
Entrant Categories, Fees & Awards

Adult: Age 18 and older as of March 31, 2025. 
Fees: $30 for up to the first three (3), $10 for each additional photo.  Maximum of 6 photos total.  
Awards in each photo category: 1st Place- $100, 2nd Place- $75, 3rd Place- $50.
 
Youth: 13 to 17 years of age as of MARCH 31, 2025.
Fees: Free to enter. Use code YOUTH2025 at checkout. Maximum of 3 photos total. 
Awards in each photo category: 1st Place- $50, 2nd Place- $25, 3rd Place- $15.

Photo Categories

Wildlife (mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, etc.)
Flora and Macro (plants, fungi, spiders, insects, etc.)
Landscapes and Waterscapes Nightsky

Judging Criteria

Technical excellence (sharpness, lighting, composition, exposure)
Accurate representation of Blackwater NWR
Originality/creativity
Interest

Image Submission Criteria

Digital image format- JPG/JPEG
Minimum of 960 pixels on the shortest side 
Maximum of 4800 pixels on the longest side
Less than 4 MB in size
For this contest, a photographic image is an image captured on a light-sensitive device or surface. A photo created with artificial intelligence (AI) is not a photographic image and will not be accepted. AI renderings generated via text prompt may not be used in whole or part in the creation of a submitted image.
The following ArtCall video offers a tutorial on how to resize photos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cLfrF2x_OA        

Photo Entry
The following ArtCall video offers a tutorial on how to submit photos for the ArtCall.org call site.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7QnOh5WBhM