Dushanbe, Tajikistan, December 31, 2020 – The U.S. Embassy in Dushanbe, in cooperation with the eight American Spaces in Tajikistan, announces the launch of a year-long photo contest for 2021. Amateur photographers are invited to join photography clubs of the American Spaces to participate, which will be held virtually. American Spaces are located in Dushanbe, Khujand, Bokhtar, Kulob, Khorugh, Isfara, Panjakent, and Gharm.
Members of each photography club can submit photos until the 20th of each month. An invited expert/panel of experts will vote to choose the three “best” photos of each month, taking into account the following factors:
- How well the photo satisfies basic elements – clear, colorful, well-framed, balanced, effective use of light;
- How well the photo includes composition elements: Rule of Thirds, Leading Lines, Diagonals, Framing, Contrast, Vividness (closeness to subject), Patterns, Symmetry;
- If the photo includes people, how well it shows: Emotion, Action, and Engagement (interaction).
- If the photo includes landscapes, how well it shows the beauty of Tajikistan.
Then, followers of the American Space will vote for the favorite photo out of the top three published on the Space’s Instagram page. The photo that gets the most votes will be posted on the US Embassy’s Instagram page and followers will vote on the winning photo for the month.
The photographer who submits the winning photo of the month will be rewarded with a digital camera. At the end of twelve months, the overall winner of the competition will receive a professional DSLR camera. Every six and twelve months, the American Spaces will print the best photographs and display them at the Spaces. At the end of twelve months, the twelve winning photographers will be invited to Dushanbe to present their photographs at an exhibition at the American Space in Dushanbe.
American Spaces will cover the costs associated with printing and framing a certain number of winning photos. They will also cover the transportation and accommodation costs of the winners to Dushanbe.
Only amateur photographers from the age of 13 can take part in the competition. Photographers must submit their creative work (use of other people’s materials is not allowed). The submitted photograph cannot be significantly retouched: nothing in the photograph (people, animals, scenery, objects, etc.) may be altered, removed, or rearranged. Cropping is permitted, as is darkening, lightening, or color alteration of the image.
Types of photos to be accepted for the competition are limited to specific theme of the month that will be announced at the beginning of each month. Photographs submitted for the contest should be 1080 X 1080 pixels in size. Photos submitted in low resolutions will not be considered for the contest.
