Become a Member

Get instant access to all courses on the site!
Learn More

The Wedding School Image Competition

USD $10.00

Please read category descriptions, rules, terms and conditions below before entering. No changes to your image can be made after your image has been uploaded and paid, please double check entry before finalizing.

JPG files only, 2400 pixels max on the longest edge

Out of stock

Category:

Description

It is no secret that competing in image competitions has helped my business.   I began with local PPA groups, entering their small monthly and quarterly print competitions and taking in all of the feedback on every single entry.  Then I moved up to national and international competitions, waiting eagerly for my print to come up amongst the thousands entered.  The score I got mattered, whether I made it into the winner’s gallery or on the wall of prints, whether my name was called at awards night or not, but what mattered the most was the feedback from the judges.  Had I missed a horizon line going through my subject’s heads?  Had the emotional impact I thought was so strong fallen flat?  Was I not telling my story clearly enough?  What could I do better?  Based on the tremendous growth that I had while working on these competitions, I have always wanted to create an image competition for wedding photographers…and now I have!

I am so excited to bring the Wedding School Image Competition and Spotlight Gallery to you now!

What exactly IS the Image Competition and Spotlight Gallery?

Once the competition is closed, the images will be reviewed by a panel of judges.  These judges will choose the images that represent the highest standard of wedding photography, and those images will go in a Spotlight Gallery.  This Gallery will be prominently featured on The Wedding School’s website, with each photographer’s name and contact information shared with each image.

From there, an entire day will be dedicated to critiques.  One of the most popular classes and workshops we’ve offered with The Wedding School have been our critiques, and I am so thrilled to be bringing these back to you on a larger scale!  Every image entered will be up for possible anonymous critique, offering you lovingly helpful advice to improve on each image, and celebrating the strengths of of images that truly tell the story of a wedding day in a technically excellent, artistically wonderful way.

HOW TO ENTER

(All entry fees are in USD.)

Step One: Pick your image category (See below for category descriptions), and choose if you’d like an entry WITH ($20) or WITHOUT a critique ($10).

Step Two: Choose and upload your image

Step Three : Choose and upload more images in other categories

Step Four: Go to your cart, complete your payment, and check out!

You can choose as many images as you want and enter each category as many times as you would like. Please make sure that you read the description of each category and only submit photos through the online submission process that fit those descriptions. Your submission may be disqualified if it does not fit the applicable category guidelines.

CATEGORY DESCRIPTIONS

  • WEDDING DAY PORTRAITS :  Portraits taken of actual paying wedding clients on their actual wedding day.  Solo photographs of brides, grooms, and photographs of the wedding couple together.  Images should be portraits from the portrait session on the wedding date.
  • WEDDING DETAILS : All details, big and small!  From dresses to tuxes, cufflinks to mason jars, any detail is welcome here!
  • WEDDING PHOTOJOURNALISM :  Moments, moments.  Any un-posed moment on a wedding day.  The moment cannot in any way be influenced by the photographer.  You cannot have set up any aspect of the scenario, posing, moment occurring, or positioning of the clients.
  • ENGAGEMENT PORTRAITS :  Portraits taken of actual paying engagement session clients during their actual engagement session.

WHO MAY ENTER

This image competition for wedding photographers is open only to those 18 years of age or older at the time of entry who do not reside in an area where such contests are prohibited or restricted by law. Officers, directors, employees, contractors, representatives and agents of The Wedding School, Susan Stripling Photography, its or their parent companies, subsidiaries and affiliated companies, advertising, promotional and judging persons or agencies, persons engaged in the development, production or distribution of materials for this competition and their immediate family members and/or persons living in the same household as such individuals (whether related or not) are not eligible to participate. This competition is void in all U.S. territories and possessions and where otherwise prohibited by law.

HOW SPOTLIGHT GALLERY IMAGES ARE CHOSEN

For each of the four categories, a panel of judges selected by Susan Stripling and The Wedding School will determine the images chosen for the Spotlight Gallery.  All images are chosen at the discretion of the judges, and the judges are chosen by Susan Stripling and The Wedding School for their exemplary contributions to the field of wedding photography, their ability as an impartial judge, and their talent at conveying a photo critique.

OTHER IMPORTANT TERMS AND CONDITIONS

  • You represent that your photographs in the wedding categories are from REAL WEDDINGS where you were the hired or contracted photographer.  Elopements, vow renewals, small weddings, large weddings : these all count.  The clients must have gotten married on the day the image was captured.
  • You represent that your photographs from the engagement category are from real clients who hired you to photograph their engagement session.
  • You represent and warrant that each of your photographs submitted for this awards competition is an original work of authorship and each element is owned by you.
  • Images may be manipulated in Photoshop, Lightroom, and other editing software to burn, dodge, straighten, crop, and correct the exposure of images in all categories.  No additional editing is allowed in the Photojournalism category, and images that are further manipulated will be disqualified.  Additional editing (composites, cloning) are allowed in the other categories, but the degree of skill and effectiveness of the final image will be considered.
  • You may not use stock photography, or other non-original compositional elements in your submission.
  • The rules and requirements for each category description form part of these terms and conditions.
  • You may not submit a photographic image taken during a workshop, tutorial, or similar instructional course where the primary focus was photographic education.
  • You may not submit photographic images taken at bridal sessions, pre-wedding photography sessions (except for the engagement category), or other events that take place on any day but the client’s actual wedding date (again, except for the engagement category).
  • You may not submit photographic images taken at styled shoots.
  • No logos or watermarks.
  • Any photographic image submitted for this awards competition which is not wholly original to the photographer may be disqualified.
  • If any of these terms and conditions are violated, your photograph may be removed from the competition and no refund for the entry fee will be available.

Your entry shall not:

  • Contain trademarks or copyrighted material not owned by you or used without permission (you may be required to produce written permission and releases before you can receive a spotlight gallery feature, and if you are unable to do so you may be disqualified)
  • Your entry shall not use individuals’ names, likenesses, identities, biographical information, or other privacy or publicity rights, in whole or in part without permission (you may be required to produce written permission and releases before you can receive a spotlight gallery feature, and if you are unable to do so you may be disqualified)
  • Contain profanity, pornographic, or sexual content, content promoting alcohol, illegal drugs, tobacco, firearms, or weapons, hateful content of any kind (including racism, sexism, etc.), content that promotes violence or harm to another living creature, or any other offensive, obscene, or inappropriate content
  • Defame, misrepresent, or contain disparaging remarks about other people or companies
  • Promote a political agenda regardless of the political affiliation.

GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS

There’s no risk to enter this image competition for wedding photographers, all entrants retain copyright of their images at all times.

This is an image competition for wedding photographers, and it’s a competition of skill in which you can submit a photograph or photographs for various categories and compete for a place in the Spotlight Gallery. You, the entrant, retain copyright of each image you submit subject to the terms and conditions of this competition. This competition begins at 12:00 a.m. on the 12th of November, 2019 and ends at 11:59 p.m. on February 11, 2019. The Spotlight Gallery will be announced by June 01, 2019.

By entering this competition, you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions, and you grant an ongoing, universal, royalty-free, non-exclusive right and license to The Wedding School/Susan Stripling Photography LLC to use, copy, distribute, perform, display, publish, and create derivative works of your submission for any commercial or non-commercial purpose, but only in connection with the promotion, advertising or announcements of or for the Image Competition, Critique, and Spotlight Gallery (which may include such things as being displayed on the theweddingschool.com and/or The Wedding School’s social media accounts).  By entering this image competition for wedding photographers you acknowledge that your image may be part of a televised critique, and that your name will be kept anonymous during that critique only.

INDEMNITY AND RELEASE

Entrants are required to indicate that they have read, accepted, and agreed to be bound by these terms and conditions. As a condition to entry, all entrants and winners agree to indemnify, hold harmless, and release Susan Stripling Photography LLC, The Wedding School and its and their directors, officers, parents, subsidiaries and affiliated companies, contractors, agents, representatives, suppliers, printers, application developers, and advertising, promotional or judging agencies, from and against any and all liability, claims or actions of any kind whatsoever, including without limitation intellectual property infringement, rights of publicity violations, injuries, damages, or losses to persons or property arising out of or relating to any entry or submission, the terms or conditions of this competition, or any of your activities related thereto.

Susan Stripling Photography, LLC and The Wedding School reserve the right to modify or cancel the image competition for wedding photographers for any reason, at any time, including in the event that any portion of any website used to administer any aspect of the competition becomes technically corrupted.