The Flash: Youth Photo Contest

Submission Rules & Guidelines

The Flash - the Media Center's new photo contest for local teens! Show off your photo skills and win some cool swag for it (in addition to bragging rights).

Finalists Announced! Vote Now!

Click on the thumbnail to see the full-sized image.

Grades 9-10

*Bridge of Tears, Venice* Sarah Jacobs	*Compact Image* Ofa Tuipulota	*In a Daze* Empris Johnson

Grades 11-12

*New York Tourists* Julia Benton	*To Become One with Nature* Katie Rockhold	*Untitled* Ashley Chu

Vote!

The finalists' photos will be displayed at the Media Center throughout the month of May where voting will continue. Or vote online on Facebook! Prizes include cash prizes, Media Center T-shirts, Custom Framed Photos, Certificates of Achievement, AND: A free photography workshop at the Pacific Art League in Palo Alto!

Winners will be announced May 29, 2009 at The Sound at the Media Center.

Eligibilty

To be eligible to submit photo entries for The Flash, you must live or attend school in the Media Center service area, which includes Atherton, East Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Palo Alto, and Stanford, CA. The Flash is open to high school students grades 9-12 or, if not enrolled in school, ages 13-18.

Guidelines

- Entries must be your original photos.

- Photos should just be an image (i.e. no names, dates, watermarks, etc.)

- Submit photos in JPEG (.jpg) format.

- Photos must be submitted in high resolution (300dpi or higher). This will maintain quality when finalists are printed.

- Filename of photo entry must match the photo title written on the entry form.

e.g. Photo Title: The Sunset

File name: thesunset.jpg)

Age Groups

Submissions will be judged in two separate grades/age groups: 9^th/10^th grade or 11^th/12^th grade. On the submission form, you must indicate which grade/age group you are in.

Judging

All entries were submitted by May 3, 2009. Judges evaluated all of the entries and picked finalists for each category and age group (9^th/10^th Grade and 11^th/12^th Grade) based on creativity and shot composition.

If you have questions, send an email to flash@midpenmedia.org.

Thanks to our judges:

Alton Sun has been teaching photography for years and is a professional event and portrait photographer in the bay area. Known for combining models with exclusive locations, he presents a distinct balance between style and edge. You can catch some of his work at www.AltonSun.com and may be able to join him during one of his many photo-adventures.

Godfrey DiGiorgi is a fine art photographer based in Sunnyvale, CA with a commitment to photography reaching back to childhood days. His award-winning photography has been exhibited and sold in galleries both local and abroad, and has been used for book, editorial and advertising publication. A frequent contributor/participant in on-line photo critique forums, Godfrey is a judge for the Minox Historical Society photography contests (www.minoxgallery.org). Learn more about Godfrey by following him on Twitter: twitter.com/godfreydigiorgi, or by visiting his website: www.gdgphoto.com.

Kameelah Rasheed was raised and still lives in East Palo Alto, CA. She is a 23 year old, educator, writer, and self-taught photographer. At 20, she earned her BA in Public Policy from Pomona College, graduating as a Truman Scholar and Rockefeller Brothers Fund Fellow. In 2006, she was named an Amy Biehl US Fulbright Scholar to South Africa. While she was in Johannesburg she photographed the 2007 public sector strikes, Human Rights marches, and the Zimbabwe Solidarity demonstrations. In 2008, she earned her Ed.M from Stanford University and now teaches Humanities at East Palo Alto Academy High School. Recently, she and her students founded a documentary photography program called Zoom In! Collective that collaborates with youth in Johannesburg, South Africa. She is also a freelance writer and her work has appeared in The Nation (online), WireTap Magazine, Make/Shift: Feminisms in Motion, and Pambazuka News: Social Justice in Africa.