Montier Photo Festival

Article 1: ORGANIZATION

AFPAN “l’Or Vert” (Association for the Montier Wildlife and Nature Photo Festival) organizes a free photography and filmed sequences competition for its International Wildlife Photography Festival which taking place from 21st to 24th November 2024 in Montier-en-Der (La Porte du Der, Haute-Marne, Grand Est, France).


Article 2: TERMS OF ENTRY

2-1 Competitors

The competition is open to any individual photographer except the technical committee, staff and members of the board of AFPAN “l’Or Vert” – the association organizing the Festival – and the jury.

A distinct “junior” category is available for participants aged under 16 at the closing date of the competition. Each young participant must obtain the permission of a parent or guardian to enter the competition.

2-2 Aim of the competition

The competition aims to show still or filmed images of wild f lora, fauna, landscapes, as well as accounts supporting the conservation of habitats, species and biodiversity.

2-3 Ethics and photographic approach

By participating in the Montier Photo Competition, the photographer undertakes to testify in favour of the preservation of environments, species or the representation of biodiversity, in respect of a naturalistic ethic of shooting respectful of wildlife and the environment.

The author of a work presented undertakes to:

  • Be the author and hold the rights and permissions to broadcast its content;
  • ensure full compliance with any national or international legislation regarding protected species and habitats where the image was taken;
  • not having used Generative AI to add or modify the content of the work presented and this for all categories of the competition;
  • show an interest in the environment and to justify a naturalistic behavior that does not harm either living species or natural environments. For animal species, this excludes all practices, harmful to their survival, their disturbance or their dependence aimed at modifying their natural behavior, diverting them from their role in nature or depriving them of their freedom of action or movement. For the flora, this excludes any image not made in a natural environment, with artifice and outside their natural environment.


2-4 Moral commitment and sincerity of the photographer

Great attention will be paid to the personal approach of the photographer and the naturalist involvement of the photographer who undertakes to:

  • Provide any additional document on request of the organizer (original RAW, images from the same series or video rushes).
Refer to the tutorial if necessary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMa98yojnJU
  • The informations in the IPTC f ields (legend, location and shooting conditions, explaining their work truthfully and accurately) must OBLIGATORILY be f illed in and can be used by the technical committee to inform the jury if necessary.

Before being able to submit a photograph, the photographer will unreservedly accept the entire article 2 by validating a sincerity commitment on the platform.

These informations will be used by the jury to check the ethical commitment of the photographer.


Article 3 : REGISTRATION AND CLOSING DATE

Entries and submissions will be made before 30th April 2024 midnight (UTC/GMT) on the website concours.photomontier.org


Article 4: SECTIONS

Categories 1 to 9 will feature outdoor photos in accordance with the goals and ethics of the competition.

The processing or software retouching must not distort the original shooting and keep it realistic compared to the original. The retouching is limited to slight modifications aimed at giving a realistic appearance to the scene photographed, without distorting the spirit of the original shot.

Reversal of reading direction and black and white processing are accepted.

Cropping is allowed within the limit of 10 million pixels (see article 5.2 File for print).

Images conforming to the original including the moderated HDR, the focus stacking or the panoramic photo are allowed.

1- Wild birds in nature (3 photos maximum)
2-
Wild mammals in nature (3 photos maximum)
3-
Other wild animals in nature (3 photos maximum)
4-
Wild plants (maximum 3 photos)
5-
Graphics, forms and matter of nature (3 photos maximum)
6-
Natural landscapes of the world (3 photos maximum)
7-
Still image sequences representing a homogeneous sequence, chronological or harmonious of 3 to 5 images on the previous themes
8-
Film sequence showing a short video of nature (see article 6)
9-
Man and nature (militant or documentary images, 3 photos maximum)
10-
Nature revisited (3 photos maximum)
Will be featured in the “Nature Revisited” category, images of the author, using techniques that modify the perception of the original image, such as could not have been achieved in a single shot, software assembly, special technique or effect in the context of aesthetic or creative photographic work that respects the aims and spirit of the competition. The use of Generative AI in this category is prohibited.

Article 5: TERMS OF PARTICIPATION

5-1 Submission of photographs on the platform

Each participant will deposit the photographs according to the modalities indicated on the platform of the competition
with a resizing to 3000 pixels for the largest side (72 Dpi), without margins nor inscription, 6Mo maximum and in adobe RGB.

Refer to the tutorial if necessary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMa98yojnJU

5-2 Preselection and submission of originals

A pre-selection of works in competition will be carried out by a technical committee composed of photographers and organizers before presentation to the jury. The author of a pre-selected image will be invited to deposit the original digital file via the competition platform in mid-June.

5.3 Passed for print
The author of an award-winning or selected image for the annual contest edition will be invited to deposit a digital file in high definition (minimum 10 million pixels, without resampling) on the platform of the contest for the realization of prints for the exhibition towards the end of July.

5-4 Submission of video

Each participant will be able to submit a video clip on the theme of the competition, including a slow motion or timelapse, a single take or a montage of between 30 and 90 seconds maximum in FULL HD 1920×1080 / MP4, landscape format. The presence of titles, subtitles or captions must be informative and anonymous, excluding any distinctive sign: logo or signature in the credits. The video will be silent or accompanied by natural sounds or comments recorded by the director, excluding musical accompaniments.

Article 6: JUDGING AND PRIZES

A jury composed of personalities from the world of wildlife photography or naturalists will shortlist the competition images for the festival exhibition and award prizes for each category. The jury award the prizes by verifying the relevance of the image presented according to the information contained in the IPTC fields and the original provided. The jury reserves the right to disqualify any winning or shortlisted image, even after the results are announced and during the exhibition, should any breach to article 2 be known. Any entry that cannot be authenticated will be disqualif ied. In this case, the organizers reserve the right to make this information public.

Article 7: LIMITATIONS

Entrants are not allowed to enter images that have already received an award or recognition in a previous competition organized by AFPAN “l’Or Vert” and the organizer prompt entrants not to enter images that have already received an award or recognition in another national or international competition.

Article 8: PRIZE GIVING CEREMONY

Award winners will be invited to discover the winning images and receive their prizes at the award ceremony during the Festival. Uncollected prizes will be kept at AFPAN “l’Or Vert” for 4 months and put back into play afterwards. The prizes may be sent at the request of the winner and the shipping costs are at his expense.

Article 9: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND USE OF PHOTOGRAPHS

9-1 Intellectual property rights of the author of the photograph

By entering the competition, the author of a shortlisted photograph or f ilmed sequence grants to AFPAN “l’Or Vert” the right to reproduce and publish the images to promote the competition and competition exhibition.


This includes:

  • a slideshow of the shortlisted images and filmed sequences;
  • publication in a portfolio and the festival exhibitions book;
  • promotion of the competition – online as well as in the local, national and international press;
  • reproduction for the exhibition during the Montier-en-Der Photo Festival;
  • the Broadcast of a montage of the videos selected.

Always in direct relation with the competition.

No other use will be made without the prior written consent of the photographer. No assignment will be made to any third party.

9-2 9-2 Participants with awarded or shortlisted photographs or filmed sequence may use the logo of the organization (provided by the organizers) for the communication relating to the competition award and in relation to the awarded photograph or video clip. Whatever the medium, the logo should always link to the organization’s website.

9-3 Entering this competition may not give rise to any financial compensation.

9-4 Should a participant wish to withdraw from the competition, he/she must inform the organizers within 30 days of the competition closing date, so that his/her photographs are withdrawn from the contest. Withdrawing an entry will not be possible after printing or publication in publicity materials.

Article 10: LIABILITY

The organizers cannot accept liability for the loss of all or a part of digital data or the cancellation of this competition should events impose it. Competitors may contact the organizers at any time to update or cancel their personal data. By submitting an entry, participants fully agree to the competition rules by digital signature when entering the competition online.

Article 11: COMPLAINTS AND INFORMATION

During the competition period, the organizers and the technical committee will deal with and respond only to possible technical difficulties related to the deposit of images, if so please email us at: concours@photo-montier.org

Article 12: PARTNERSHIP

With the partnership of Stéphane DENIZOT: www.stephanedenizot.com; www.aucoeurdelimage.com

Article 13: CONFIDENTIALITY

Confidentiality Personal information concerning the registration of participants, including their identity, is confidential. The competition organizer undertakes to honor the legal confidentiality conditions applicable in France and not to disclose this information to third parties.

Translation:
Please note that the French language version of these competition rules is legally binding.

COMPETITION CONTACT :

Thomas AKREMANN – AFPAN “l’Or Vert”