Rules, Terms and Conditions

Home in the Hill Country Photo Contest

The Texas Hill Country – famous for its pristine streams, blooming wildflowers, star-filled night skies, and tucked-away small towns – is home to over 3.8 million people and growing fast. Home to three of the fastest growing counties in the country, the Hill Country’s population is projected to grow to 5.2 million by 2040. Native flora and fauna that have called the region home for millennia – from beloved gray foxes and live oaks to delicate monarchs and milkweeds – are finding their habitats reduced as our human homes continually expand into their native ranges. As more and more people call the Hill Country home, many of the region’s most special qualities – like sweeping open spaces, clear flowing waters, and starry night skies – are at risk of being loved to death and lost forever.

The Hill Country Alliance (HCA) calls on anyone with a camera to share your view of this iconic region and its many inhabitants in the 2024 Home in the Hill Country Photo Contest. May 1 through May 31, 2024, entries can be submitted to HCA’s website. Photographers of all ages and skill levels, from amateur to professional, are invited to participate in HCA’s 18th annual photography contest. Winners will receive cash prizes and their photos will appear in HCA’s 2025 Calendar.

We are looking for original photography that captures the vibrant beauty of our native landscapes, wildlife, and water resources of the Texas Hill Country. Countless creatures call the Hill Country home, and beyond the wildlife and plants that reside here, we’re also interested in seeing the people and communities that make up this special part of Texas. We particularly encourage photographers to consider submitting shots that feature the diversity of the Hill Country, its people, and its future.
Entering is easy! Photos can be submitted online in just a few minutes. See below for details.

Winning photos and prizes

Winners:

13 winners will appear in HCA’s 2025 Texas Hill Country Calendar. Other photos will be featured throughout the calendar in cameo appearances. In addition to a full-page photo feature, winners will receive a cash prize.

  • Grand Prize: $300
  • First Runner-up: $200
  • Second Runner-up: $150
  • Third Runner-up: $100
  • All other full calendar page winners: $50

People’s Choice Honoree:

This year’s photo contest will provide an opportunity for the public to view the photos that have been entered into the photo contest and vote for their favorite. The photo that receives the highest number of votes will be named the People’s Choice Honoree. The People’s Choice recipient will receive a $100 prize and their photo will be featured in HCA’s 2025 Texas Hill Country Calendar.

Agreement to release your photos to HCA

Your entry in the contest constitutes your agreement to allow the use of your photos in future HCA communications and promotions. This use may include its calendar, printed postcards, the HCA website, HCA collections of winners, online photo features, promotional cards, educational presentations, resources, and publications both online and off, emails and e-newsletters.

Entrants retain ownership and copyright to their photographs. Credit will be given by HCA to the photographer where possible.

Eligibility

HCA’s Photo Contest is open to everyone, except employees of HCA, members of the Hill Country Alliance Board of Directors and their immediate families. Photographers of all ages are encouraged to enter. The Hill Country Alliance will have the sole right to judge entrant eligibility and to verify this eligibility for the purpose of selecting contest winners.

Format

  • Photos must be submitted in horizontal or landscape format as opposed to vertical or portrait orientation to be considered for printing and prizes
  • Photographs should be submitted electronically as high quality jpegs, at a minimum of 72 ppi and 1008 pixels wide using the submission form on the HCA website.
  • File size for each photograph submitted should not exceed 4MB
  • If chosen as a finalist, images must be submitted in 300 ppi maximum quality jpeg or tiff with a width of 12 inches and a height of 9 inches for printing (NOTE: This is slightly smaller than 14×10 in as in past years).
  • All photos must be submitted in either JPEG or TIFF format
  • Only color photos will qualify; no black and white photos will be accepted
  • Photos must be free of watermarks or other text
  • Photos that have been digitally altered beyond standards will be disqualified
  • Any images not following the above formatting will not be considered

Other Considerations

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Each contestant may enter a maximum of four photographs
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Previously published material for which non-exclusive rights were granted may be entered as long as you still warrant that you retain full rights to the photo. You must disclose when and where the photo appeared previously upon submission.
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Photographs must be taken within the 17-county Hill Country Region (see map)
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HCA is not responsible for lost or damaged submissions
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Contestants must be the original photographer and/or owner of the copyright of each photo submitted.
Release required for identifiable people
If people are identifiable in the photo, the contest participant is responsible for the consent of the parties involved. If a photo is selected for print that includes identifiable persons, the photographer must submit a release form from the person or persons in the image with the name, address, and signature of the parties on the release form.
Judging
Images will be judged on originality, technical excellence, composition and ability to capture the unique flavor of the Hill Country. Decisions made by the judges will be final. The judges will be a panel of qualified artists, photographers and regional leaders with knowledge and passion about the Hill Country.
The photographs should accurately reflect the subject matter and the scene as it actually appeared. Photos that have been digitally altered beyond standards will be automatically disqualified.
Acceptable are adjustments to color, contrast, brightness and sharpening; removal of dust and scratches; cropping; and use of HDR (high dynamic range), where multiple exposures of the same scene are combined for a greater tonal range. Long or multiple exposure photos of night sky imagery are permitted – and encouraged!
Not acceptable are photo composites (combination of two or more photos, not of the same scene); or the use of artistic digital filters and effects which do not show the scene in its natural way.
Deadline
Online entries can be uploaded to the HCA website starting May 1, 2024 and no later than midnight on May 31, 2024. Finalists will be contacted in June and will be requested to submit high resolution images and release forms if applicable directly to HCA. Winners chosen from the list of finalists will appear in the 2025 calendar to be published in October of 2024.
Click here to submit photos for the Hill Country Alliance Photo Contest:
www.hillcountryalliance.org/photocontest
Questions and inquiries about the contest or rules can be emailed to leah@hillcountryalliance.org