Loading Events
This event has passed.

Photo Credit: Emily Werner

The Potawatomi Zoo is looking for your best photos of creatures big and small at the Potawatomi Zoo to be featured in our 2023 Zoo Members’ calendar and in other print and web-based projects. We look forward to seeing your work!

Entering
1. Submissions for the 2023 Conservation Calendar may be submitted between July 20 and August 22 via e-mail to PZSphoto@potawatomizoo.org.
2. Please see Submission and Subject Matter Guidelines below.

Photo Categories
1. Birds
2. Black and White
3. Cats
4. Giraffes
5. Humor
6. Large Mammals (anything larger than a sloth)
7. Native Wildlife (NEW!)
8. Macro (extremely close up)
9. Reptiles
10. Small Mammals (sloth-sized or smaller)
11. Your Family at the Zoo (NEW! Requires MODEL RELEASE from people in photo.)
12. Zoo Farm

Submission Guidelines
1. You may enter one photo per category, for a maximum of 12 photos.
2. Submissions must include your name, mailing address, daytime phone number, and your age (if under age 18). Those 18 and under must include a parent or guardian’s contact information for permission to enter.
3. All photos must be submitted via e-mail to PZSphoto@potawatomizoo.org between July 20 and August 22. Due to the number of submissions received, we may not be able to respond to each message or submission.
4. Current Potawatomi Zoo staff, consultants, volunteers, and docents may not participate.
5. In order to print, photos should be at least 3000×2000 pixels @ 300dpi.
6. Landscape/horizontal images are preferred for use in the calendar.
7. If cell phone photos are submitted, please make sure the photo is sent “full-size”. The file size should be over 2 MB to qualify.

Subject Matter Guidelines
1. Photos must be taken at the Potawatomi Zoo within the last 12 months.
2. Photos should not include animals no longer living at the Potawatomi Zoo.
3. Photos should be landscape orientation or be able to be cropped to landscape.
4. If there are people in your pictures, please provide explicit permission to use the pictures via a model release. Model release available HERE.
5. Do not enter photos that you didn’t take or that infringe upon anyone else’s copyright.
6. We reserve the right to disqualify photos for any reason.

Voting
1. Voting for our Conservation Calendar begins August 25 and runs through September 15 at 4 p.m.
2. At least four photos will be submitted to the public in each category for voting on Facebook and Instagram.
3. The finalists’ photographs will be posted in separate albums on the Zoo’s Facebook and in separate posts by category on Instagram.
4. Anyone can vote for their favorite photo by using the “like” feature on each photo on Facebook and commenting the number of their favorite picture on Instagram.

Winning
1. The photos with the most votes in each category will be the winners of each category.
2. No one photographer may win more than 2 categories.
3. Winning photographs must be fit in the calendar’s dimensions to be included in the calendar.
4. The photos that receive the top five votes over all categories will go to a panel of judges to select the cover image.
5. Winners from each category will be announced September 20 on the Potawatomi Zoo’s Facebook page.
6. The winning photos of each category will be featured in the Zoo’s 2023 calendar.
7. In case of a tie vote, the category winner will be chosen by the panel of judges.

Prizes
1. The 12 winners from each category will receive two copies of the 2023 calendar.
2. The photo selected for the cover by the panel of judges will be considered the Grand Prize Winner. The Grand Prize Winner will receive a one-year membership to the Potawatomi Zoo and a copy of the 2023 calendar.
3. Submitters are not eligible to win the Grand Prize in consecutive years.

Permission to Use Submitted Photos by Potawatomi Zoo and Zoological Society.
By submitting any photos into the contest, you give Potawatomi Zoo and Potawatomi Zoological Society permission to use them now and in the future for purposes of publication, including but not limited to marketing and promotional materials, educational materials, printed materials, television broadcasts, web sites, internal communications and signage. You will not be compensated for such use outside of prizes awarded as described above at the discretion of the Potawatomi Zoo. However, where reasonable, we will give you credit for the photos. By entering the contest, you agree to all of the above. As a non-profit entity, the Potawatomi Zoological Society relies heavily on donations from the community, including in-kind services and goods. This photo contest is an example of that – we are seeking donated photos of our animals to help promote the Zoo.

We truly appreciate all submissions for our contest, and we hope it will serve as a fun and exciting way to showcase the Potawatomi Zoo and promote civic pride in this unique community amenity.