Show Your Photos to the World
If you are a photographer seeking an opportunity to display your images at an art gallery for art connoisseurs, potential buyers or the public to view, you may be interested in the Focal Resolution-1 Photography Show.

Focal Resolution-1  is calling for photographers from around the world to submit their images for the exhibition.

The entries will be shown at the Scalamandre Silks Building located in Long Island City.

The Exhibition Details and Awards
The photography show will be held January 9-24, 2010. All photographers who submit their images by the deadline will have their works exhibited at the gallery.

Ten photographers will be selected for distinction and will be published in the Bonni Benrubi Gallery’s catalog and featured on its website for one month. All other participating photographers will be included in its catalog with a thumbnail image of their work along with their name and place of origin.

What to Submit
The Focal Resolution-1 contest states:

We are looking for any and every type of photography in order to fill this exhibition with as many methods and mediums as we can. Any actual photographic method for realizing a photographic image or any aesthetic position will be welcomed, including:

• Digital
• Traditional
• Ancient methods
• Photo-montage
• Straight, Art
• Polaroid
• Toy camera

Also acceptable includes: Panoramic, photo essays, time, landscape, Nikon, architectural, Pinhole, handcrafted, Leica, Monochrome, tinted, Ambrotype, Collodian, Kodak, gum bichromate, Platinum/Palladium, Gelatin-Silver, egg tempera, Portrait, reporter, cityscape, chloride contact, Cyanotype, Kallitype, Bromoil, Ziatype, carbon pigment, stereoscopic, and all!

We will not accept purely digitally (computer) generated images.
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Other Information
For full details about submission guidelines for this photography show, click here to download the PDF document. The deadline for entries is until all exhibition spots are filled or the date of December 28, 2009. There is an entry fee of $40 for up to three submissions.

Adventure Cycling is holding its first annual Bicycle Travel Photo Contest and is asking for digital photos from photographers that show the wonder and fun of bicycling through touring and travel.

What to Submit
According to Adventure Cycling:

“These images can be taken anywhere in the world.  Photos that focus on the scenery of an area must include some connection to or indication of bike travel. We are especially interested in images that showcase the wide range of bike-touring experiences: road and dirt riding, rural and urban settings, scenery, people, and the emotions.”

How to Submit
Adventure Cycling will accept digital image via email or through its Flikr image site. According to the guidelines:

“Via Flickr^TM - If you have multiple photos to enter in the competition, please consider using this method to enter the contest. After logging in, upload your images using the mechanism provided.

“If you are not already a member of Adventure Cycling’s Contests group on Flickr^TM, join by clicking “Join this Group?” on the group’s homepage. Browse to the image you wish to submit for the contest, and use the “Send to Group” function to add your images to Adventure Cycling’s Photo Contest photo pool.

“Once added to the group, tag each photo with Adventure09. If you do not upload your photo to Adventure Cycling’s Contests group on Flickr^TM, or do not tag your photo with an appropriate tag, it will not be considered for the competition.

“Via Email Submission Process - If you choose not to use Flickr^TM to submit your image, you may email your photo to flickr_contest@adventurecycling.org. Send a low-resolution version of the image (72dpi) along with the subject of the image, the location the image was taken, and the name of the photographer(s).

“You will also need to be able to provide a print quality high-resolution version of the photo upon request, no less than 2250 pixels wide and no less than 3000 pixels tall, preferably at 300 dpi.”

Prize
The winner of the contest will have his or her photo published in the 2010 March issue of Adventure Cyclist magazine and Adventure Cycling’s website. The total readership of the magazine and website is over 1 million annually.

Other Information
Entrants retain all rights to their photographs. All individuals, 18 years or older, are eligible to enter. There is no entry fee. The deadline for this contest is December 31, 2009.

The Rings and Things “Your Design Rocks!” contest is for all professionals, students and fans of jewelry design. Rings and Things is announcing an open call for designs in one or more of the following categories of jewelry:

* Glass and Crystal
* Gemstones and Crystal
* Mostly Metal
* Metal Clay
* Found Objects/Miscellaneous

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Contest Guidelines

The rules of the contest as stated by Rings and Things are:

• Entry must be an original work for which you retain all rights, and which you have the legal right to submit to us.
• Entry must be a newly-made creation (made since March, 2009).
• Piece may not be currently entered in another competition or have won any contest in the past.
• Entry must be primarily made from items purchased or available from Rings & Things, with the exception of found objects and parts you have made (handmade glass or ceramic parts, wood carvings, etc.). See our frequently asked questions if you’re unsure about what materials you can use or which category you should enter.
• 2009 winners may not enter a category in which they won first place during 2009. We do, however, encourage you to move out of your “comfort zone,” expand your creativity and enter a different category in 2010!
• Entrants under 18 years of age must provide a parent or legal guardian co-signature on a print version of their entry form, ensuring that all guidelines have been read and agreed upon.
• Limit three entries per person or design team.
• Incomplete entries and entries that do not follow these guidelines and our image requirements will be disqualified from judging and disqualified from our Early Bird raffle and New Entrant raffle.
• Rings & Things employees are not eligible for “Your Designs Rock!”

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Judging

Submissions are critiqued on three parameters: originality, craftsmanship, and aesthetics. The panel of judges offers these tips and advice to contestants:

“We’re looking for something different, something eye catching and attention grabbing. Something that hasn’t been seen everywhere.”

“I assume that every detail of your design is something you decided belongs there. In other words, ask yourself: is the piece 100% the way I want it?”

“We love seeing designs that use components in unusual ways. In other words, think outside the bead!”

“A good photo says it all! There are a ton of jewelry images online and in magazines. The jewelry that inevitably catches my eye is what has been well photographed with crisp color and good focus.”

“A major difference between winners and also-rans is how professionally finished the piece is. Are the ends of wires and head pins clean cut and tightly bent into place? Are dents from pliers visible on the wires? If working with a high polish, is it bright and scratch-free?”

Awards and Other Info

Grand Prize: $750 R&T gift certificate
Category First-Place Prizes: $250 R&T gift certificates
Honorable Mentions: $75 R&T gift certificates

The contest is accepting entries starting on January 1, 2010. The deadline for entries is February 28, 2010. Winners will be announced during the first week of June 2010. Winning entries may appear in the 2010 edition of the Rings and Things catalog. For complete details about this contest, click here.

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The Society for Environmental Graphic Design (SEGD) is holding its 2010 SEGD Design Awards for all graphic design students that have produced a project during 2008-2009.

The projects must show the use of graphic design elements that clearly communicate information, an image, or specific identity in a physical location or environment.

Graphic designers who are already employed may submit any project created during 2007-2009.

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What Sort of Projects Are Eligible?
According to the official rules for this competition:

* The competition is open to all SEGD members and non-members.
* Projects must have been completed during 2007-2009.
* Projects must demonstrate the use of design elements that communicate a clear idea regarding an image, concept, or information in an environmental setting.
* Student work must be created during 2008-2009 by full-time students that are enrolled in a recognized design curriculum.
* There is no limit to the number of entries any individual or company can enter.
* Special recognition may be given to projects developed under low budgets. Check the appropriate status box to indicate this special entry.

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Who Is Eligible to Enter?

• Environmental graphic designers
• Industrial designers
• Graphic designers and artists
• Exhibit designers
• Interior designers
• Architects
• Landscape architects
• Fabricators
• Consultants
• Clients
• Students

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Entry Fees
Students that are members of SEGD need to submit a $30 entry fee per project. Non-member students must submit a $40 entry fee per project. For professional graphic designers, non-members pay $220 per entry while members of SEGD pay $110 per project.

Awards
Winners will have their design project published in segdDesign magazine and have their awards presented at the SEGD Conference and Expo.

Other Details
For full information on the competition and guidelines, click here. The deadline for this contest is January 29, 2009.

Rejected to Accepted
If you are a graphic designer or part of a graphic design team, having your project bounced or turned down is never an easy situation to deal with. The design may have been good, but for whatever reasons it didn’t make the cut.

But now there is hope for your rejected projects - The Project Never Graphic Design Contest is calling for all graphic designers to submit any of their rejected work that was not published or used in a media campaign.
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According to the contest sponsors:

“Project Never is a free awards competition created by graphic designers for graphic designers. Thousands of effective designs die each day - often for good reason. At the same time, successful designers and agencies generate many worthy ideas for each project or campaign, only one of which gets chosen for wider audiences. Project Never honors the most creative design concept that never reached production.”
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Contest Details

• Submissions may be sent in from any country as long as the entry is presented in the English language.
• Describe what the project was created for and what it was intended to do in 50-200 words.
• All print and media is acceptable.
• Digital entries must be submitted in JPEG or PDF formats. File size limit is 5MB.
• Submitted entries must have been produced between the dates of January 1, 2009 and February 19, 2010.
• There are no entry fees.

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Judging
The entries that make it to the final stages of this contest will be judged according to the following standards:

• Presentation of submission
• Design quality
• How effective the project would have been if it had gone to press
• Creative concept
• Effectiveness of the project on the viewer

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Awards
The winner will be featured on projectnever.com with a link to the winner’s website along with a bio of the company or individual.

The judges’ commentary on the winning entry will be featured on projectnever.com. A Pantone Essentials Advance bundle will be awarded to the winner.

Other Information
The contest deadline is February 19, 2010. Winners will be announced on April 15, 2010. For complete details and guidelines, click here. To submit your entries, click here for the official form.

Bombardier is a global transportation company that is involved in aerospace and rail transportation. It is announcing an open call for all designers to enter its You Rail Train Interior Design Contest - Visions of Modern Transportation.

What the Contest Is About
What will the interiors of the trains of the future look like?

Will they provide work areas or libraries so individuals can be more productive during their commute? Or perhaps these trains will offer amenities such as massage chairs, 3D movies, or custom cuisine.

The contest asks for interior designs that are connected to the following topics as described by Bombardier:

• The Leisure Passenger. The target group of this interior are families and passengers on their way to leisure. They enjoy the services on board and traveling implies some kind of experience for them.

• The Business Traveler. The design is addressed to passengers on their way to work or back at home and may represent some kind of office space with all necessary elements of a work environment.

• The Everyday Passenger. The design shall attract passengers to use public transport and give them a feeling of comfort and being at home.

Individuals who want to submit upholstery designs can use the online design tool provided by the contest site by first registering here. Those who want to submit original designs of upholstery or train interiors can do so by registering first. Click here to register.

Submissions will be judged by a select panel from Bombardier. For the full contest rules and guidelines, click here.

Prizes
The top awards for best freely created designs are:

• 1^st - 2000 €  ( ~ $2,990 USD)
• 2^nd - 1500 € ( ~ $2,245 USD)
• 3^rd - 1000 € ( ~ $1,496 USD)
• 4^th through 10^th - Netbook

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The top awards for assisted (online design tool) entries are:

• 1st prize: 600 € (~ $898 USD)
• 2nd prize: 400 € (~ $598 USD)
• 3rd prize: 200 € (~  $299 USD)

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Other Information
For the full contest rules and guidelines, click here. The deadline for this contest is December 16, 2009. The winners will be announced in March 2010.