2023 IAPBP Image Competition – Official Rules - International Association of Professional Birth Photographers | birthphotographers.com

2023 IAPBP Image Competition – Official Rules

 

Birth is beautiful – let’s share it with the world!

 

We are pleased to announce and launch the 2023 International Association of Professional Birth Photographers Image of the Year Competition. Each year, IAPBP recognizes excellence in birth photography. This is our eleventh year sharing beautiful images of birth with our members, our Judges, friends, family, fans, the media and ultimately, the world!

 

Judge Panel

Our 2023 Judge Panel is comprised of past winners, birth industry leaders, and photography industry leaders. We have divided our Judges into two teams: Preliminary Panel and Expert Panel.

Preliminary Panel will be made up of birth industry leaders, past winners, and respected artists from around the world and will look similar to how our judging panel has looked in past years.

Expert Panel will be made up of a small group of multi-award-winning photographers, a blend of birth and non-birth experts, who have past experience judging in photography competitions and multiple years in their field of expertise. 

  • Round 1 will be judged by both the Preliminary Panel and the Expert Panel and includes giving each individual photograph a rating of 0 – 2 (Do not move to Round 2, Maybe, Yes move to Round 2). 
  • Round 2 will be judged by the Expert Panel. Judges will be instructed to give each individual photograph a score based on a rubric. Each image will be judged individually and the scores will be calculated to identify the winner of each category. Expert Panelists may also be called upon to help break a tie.

Awards

The panel will be choosing winners for each of the following awards:

  • Best of Labor
  • Best of Birth Details
  • Best of Delivery
  • Best of Postpartum
  • Best Fine Art of Labor
  • Best Fine Art of Birth Details
  • Best Fine Art of Delivery
  • Best Fine Art of Postpartum
  • Best Documentary of Labor
  • Best Documentary of Birth Details
  • Best Documentary of Delivery
  • Best Documentary of Postpartum
  • Best Black & White of Labor
  • Best Black & White of Birth Details
  • Best Black & White of Delivery
  • Best Black & White of Postpartum
  • Best Overall Image
  • Best Overall Hardship, Loss & Triumph
  • Honorable Mentions

We will also be hosting a Members’ Choice awards again this year so all members will have a chance to vote and provide feedback. Our Members’ will choose winners for the following awards:

  • Best of Labor
  • Best of Birth Details
  • Best of Delivery
  • Best of Postpartum
  • Best Overall Image

Image Categories

Main Categories

For our 2023 Image Competition we will have four separate categories. It is mandatory for every entry to be categorized.

  1. Labor – Early labor through Transition
  2. Delivery – Begins when baby begins to exit the body up until  delivery of the placenta
  3. Postpartum – After placenta delivery and remaining in the birth space
  4. Birth Details – Details of the birth anytime during early labor through postpartum.
    How do you know if an image qualifies to be a Birth Detail image? A detail can be defined as “an individual feature, fact or item.” The detail(s) should support the story of the image. Therefore, if the story changes when you remove the detail, then it is a detail shot. If you remove the detail and the story stays the same, then it is not a detail shot. 
Subcategories

In addition, we will have the following optional subcategories. Entrants are not required to submit their images into a subcategory. There is a requirement of at least 10 image submissions per subcategory before the subcategory will qualify for an award. 

  1.  Fine Art – Images submitted in this category can be altered however you wish; to include cloning, brushing, layering, etc.
  2. Documentary – Images submitted in this category will depict a scene that has unfolded before their camera without any post-processing manipulation. Pixel edits such as cloning and brushing are not allowed in this category. If you do want to make post-processing edits, you are welcome to submit your image into a main category which does not have strict guidelines.
  3. Black & White – Any image in this category must be monochrome. Intentional monotone sepia images are allowed in this category. Other monotone colors such as blues, greens or reds are not allowed.
  4. Hardship, Loss & Triumph – In an effort to honor and recognize the 1 in 4 birthing persons who experience miscarriage and/or infant loss we have opened our competition to this special group of birth stories. We understand the sensitivity of choosing a winner of this category, therefore, the winner of this category will select a nonprofit of their choice to receive 10% of the entry fees from its submissions. This category does not have a timeframe limit, images from any year may be submitted to this category. Each image submitted into this category must also fit into one of the four main categories. 

Each category can be entered as many times as you want, with no limit of entries. Each entry form contains 5 images. If you would like to submit more than 5 images you will need to submit additional entry forms. There is no limit of entry forms a person may submit. 

 

Entry Fees

The entry fee is different between members and non-members. There is no limit to the number of entries you may submit. Each entry form contains 5 images so if you would like to submit more than 5 images you will need to submit additional entry forms. 

The following are the entry fees: 

Member Pricing:
  • One Image: $25 USD
  • Two Images: $40 USD
  • Three Images: $60 USD
  • Four Images: $80 USD
  • Five Images: $100 USD

In order to submit, you must be a member. Click here to learn about becoming a member

 

Prize Amounts

Overall Winner
  • Receive a downloadable, printable certificate
  • Cash prize – $500
Best of Main Category Winners
  • Receive a downloadable, printable certificate
  • Cash Prize – $250
Best of Subcategory Winners: Fine Art, Documentary, Black & White
  • One Year Membership to the IAPBP Online Directory
  • Receive a downloadable, printable certificate
Members’ Choice Best of Category Winners
  • One Year Membership to the IAPBP Online Directory
  • Receive a downloadable, printable certificate
Best Hardship / Loss
  • One Year Membership to the IAPBP Online Directory
  • Receive a downloadable, printable certificate
  • An engraved crystal trophy
  • 10% of the subcategory entry fees donated to the nonprofit of your choice

Prizes will be delivered via email communication in the weeks following the winning announcement.

All entries must have been captured in the 2022 calendar year and be submitted to the competition by February 17, 2023 at 4:59:59 p.m. EST.

Winners will be announced at the end of March once the votes have been received and tallied from both the Judges and Members. Please view our complete list of terms and conditions below for details. If you have any questions regarding the competition or entry process please use our dedicated competition email address:  competition@birthphotographers.com.


2023 Terms & Conditions

Entry Deadline:

All entries must be submitted and received by Friday, February 17, 2023 at 5:00:00PM EST. Winners will be announced at the end of March once the votes have been received and tallied from all judges and member choice votes.

Membership Requirements:

This competition is open to members only. Member Choice Awards will only be awarded to members in good standing of the International Association of Professional Birth Photographers, LLC.

Entries Guidelines:

Photograph must have been taken within the 2022 calendar years, January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022 with the exception of any images submitted into the Hardship/Loss/Triumph category which does not have a year restriction. Members may enter as many images as they wish. The main categories are: Labor, Delivery, Postpartum, and Birth Details. Members can enter multiple images in any category. For the purposes of this competition, the end of delivery and the beginning of postpartum is determined once the placenta has been delivered during the birth process. Postpartum images should be photographed within the first 48 hours of birth to qualify. Up to 5 entries are allowed on one entry form. A valid entry consists of a paid entry fee, an image category, an image title, and one birth photograph saved in two ways: (1) a full resolution unwatermarked image for judging purposes only. This image will not be shared publicly. Unwatermarked images ensure a fair Judging process. When judging is complete these full resolution images will be deleted from the IAPBP server and not used in any other way. (2) a full resolution watermarked image. This image will be used in the gallery that goes live to the public and offered to the media with proper credits given to the photographer. Once your entry and images have been submitted, that submission is final and images may not be swapped out or replaced. Images must be in digital format only. All digital files must be in JPG format. Both black and white and color images are acceptable. The photograph must be a single work of original material taken by the entrant. Circle crops and story boards are not allowed. Entries are based on copyright owner. The photo entered must have been taken by the entrant entering it. By entering the competition, the participant acknowledges that the submitted photograph is an original work created solely by the entrant and that the photograph does not infringe on the copyrights of any person or entity.

Entry Fees:

There is no limit to the number of entries you may submit. Each entry form contains 5 images so if you would like to submit more than 5 images you will need to submit additional entry forms. You may submit as many images as you’d like. 

The following are the entry fees: 

NON-Member Pricing:
  • One Image: $25 USD
  • Two Images: $40 USD
  • Three Images: $60 USD
  • Four Images: $80 USD
  • Five Images: $100 USD

Watermarks:

IAPBP requires that watermarks be present on images presented to the public and media. Small, non-obtrusive watermarks are acceptable. IAPBP reserves the right to ask members to reduce the size of the watermark if we feel it is too large or takes away from the overall image and presentation. Opaque watermarks, instead of large colorful watermarks, tend to work best as they are less likely to distract from the image itself. If we do not receive an edited image upon request within 24 hours the entry will be disqualified. You may re-enter the same image with the adjusted watermark if it is submitted before the end of the competition deadline as stated below.

Model Releases:

You must have permission from those featured in the image to share the image publicly in the form of a model release. Upon request, each entrant must be prepared to provide a signed release from all persons who appear in the photograph submitted authorizing the photographer and its authorized parties to reproduce, distribute and display the entry in connection with the competition. IAPBP is particularly mindful of having releases when the entry contains nudity. Failure to provide such releases upon request may result in disqualification at any time during the competition and selection of an alternate winner. If at any time, one or more persons featured in the image requests that the image be removed, even with a signed model release, the image will be removed at the discretion of IAPBP without refund of the entry fee.

Judging:

Each entry will be judged separately by the panel of Judges based on creativity and photographic quality.

In the event of a tie, the tied entries will be re-submitted to the Judges for a re-judging between the tied entries alone. Decisions of the Judges are final. Winners will be notified by email. Winners will be determined as follows: 1st Place Winner, Best in Category for Labor, Delivery, Postpartum, Birth Details, Best in Subcategories for each main category: Fine Art, Documentary, Black & White, and Best Overall Hardship/Loss/Triumph. Acknowledgment for Honorable Mentions will also be given at the discretion of the Judges. Additionally, IAPBP members will be asked to choose their favorite images via voting on the IAPBP website. Member ballots will be tallied and Members Choice Awards will be given as follows: 1st Place Winner, Best in Category for Labor, Delivery, Postpartum, and Birth Details. Members Choice awards will be awarded to current members in good standing. All winning image(s) will be featured on birthphotographers.com. The winning image will also be used on the birthphotographers.com social media account and throughout the year for marketing purposes. 

Media:

Historically, the IAPBP Image Competition has drawn mass media attention. Members should be aware that their work may be shared by both large and small media outlets. IAPBP works hard to be sure that members are given proper credit with links. While we cannot control every aspect of media sharing and going “viral,” we are asking the media outlets to sign an agreement that they will give proper credit before getting access to a downloadable folder of watermarked, web ready, entries. Photos, your business name and email address will be provided to the media. Entrants can opt out of having your info and photo(s) going to the media on the entry form. Please be aware that your images may still be shared from the gallery itself, even if you opt out.

Cash Awards & Prizes:

The following prizes will be awarded to the winners chosen by our judge panel: Overall 1st Place Winner: $500; Best In Category (Labor, Delivery, Postpartum, and Birth Details): $250 each. Additional Awards will be awarded at the judges’ discretion and do not receive a cash award. Members’ Choice awards do not receive a cash award. Cash prizes will be delivered via PayPal within 5 business days of the winning announcement. Additional prizes by corporate sponsors can be added at any time during the competition and may be distributed to the winners at the discretion of IAPBP. Prizes for products and store credits cannot be exchanged for cash value. Corporate sponsors are solely responsible for prize delivery of their products / services. IAPBP reserves the right to adjust the prize amounts based on participation. No prize transfer, assignment, or substitution by winners permitted.

Additional Rules, Terms and Conditions:

All qualified images entered in to the competition will be presented to the Judges. If for any reason the competition is not capable of running as planned, The International Association of Professional Birth Photographers reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual(s) who tamper with the entry process, and/or to cancel, terminate, modify, or suspend the competition. If The International Association of Professional Birth Photographers elects to cancel or terminate the competition, we will not retain any rights in the submitted photographs and refunds are not applicable . This contest is void where prohibited. By entering, entrants also agree to be bound by these Official Rules; that the decisions of the Judges are final and binding with respect to all matters relating to the competition; and if the entrant wins that The International Association of Professional Birth Photographers may use the winning photographs and each winner’s name, photograph, likeness, etc. in any publicity or advertising relating to the competition or future promotions without compensation or approval (except where prohibited by law). The International Association of Professional Birth Photographers reserves the right to verify the validity and originality of any entry and/or entrant and to disqualify any entrant who submits an entry that is not in accordance with these official rules or who tampers with the entry or voting process. Void where prohibited.


Submit to the 2023 Image Competition

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