Lake Biodiversity Photo Challenge – 2024 Contest Rules

How to enter

  • Submission Form: Upload your photos and information via the photo submission form on lakeblitzphoto.livinglakescanada.ca.
  • Social Media: Follow Living Lakes Canada on social media and tagging Living Lakes Canada’s account in your post. Tell us the name and location of your lake in the caption. Your photos must appear as posts; stories are not eligible.

You may submit up to one entry per day and up to 10 entries in total. The photo must have been taken in the last 12 months. Contest runs June 1 – July 31st at 11:59 pm PST.

Please ensure that all photos adhere to our Nature Photography Code of Ethics.

Winners

Winners will be selected in 4 categories: 

  1. Lake Landscapes: capture a lake photo that includes the surrounding landscape such as mountains, forests, glaciers or people enjoying the lake. 
  2. Lake Biodiversity: capture a lake photo featuring a diversity of plants and animals. 
  3. Lake Impacts: capture a lake photo where there are instances of impacts on lake health such as visible pollution, algae blooms, deforestation, wildfire smoke or adjacent industry. 
  4. Youth Category: photographers aged 16 and under (must have a parent’s or guardian’s permission to enter)

And there are 2 judging streams for each category:

  1. Judges’ Favourite – Winners of Judges’ Favourite in each category will be chosen by a panel of Living Lakes Canada staff, partners and funders.
  2. Public Favourite – See online voting instructions below.

Overall, a Judges’ Favourite winner and a Public Favourite winner will be chosen for each category for a total of 8 prizes.

The Judges’ panel will be judging the photos based on the following criteria:

  • Quality and composition: how well the photo captures the subject and the resolution of the image is of a high quality. 
  • Relevance to Lake Biodiversity: how does the photo tell a story about lake landscapes and biodiversity or show a human impact. 

A Public Favourite for each category will be selected based on results from our online voting system. Voting will open August 1st and close on August 19th at 11:59 PM PST.

  • Visit the 2024 Online Gallery.
  • Click on a category, then vote for your favourite photo by clicking on the heart icon.
  • A red heart means your vote has been counted.
  • If you attempt to vote twice for 1 photo, the system will recognize you are voting again and won’t register your second vote.
  • You can change your vote by clicking on the heart icon on another photo.
  • Follow these steps for each category.

Prizes

There are great prizes to be won by our generous sponsors. 

The grand prize is an online photography workshop with Nikon Canada Ambassador and Kase Filters Global Ambassador, Viktoria Haack. Each of the four Public Favourite winners and four Judges’ Favourite winners in the Lake Landscapes, Lake Biodiversity, Lake Impacts and Youth categories will be invited to join the workshop. One prize pack per winner will also be awarded, containing a variety of LUSH cosmetics and Kicking Horse Coffee, and Laykhaus Candles. 

Contest Rules and Guidelines

Eligibility 

  • No purchase or fee is required to enter the contest.
  • Entrants must be a legal resident of Canada to win prizes. 
  • Entrants aged seventeen (17) years or under must have their parents or legal guardian’s consent to enter the Lake Biodiversity Photo Contest.

Rules and Guidelines 

  • Photos must adhere to our Nature Photography Code of Ethics. 
  • Photos must have been taken in the past 12 months. 
  • Photo entries must be original and not have been a winner in another national competition. 
  • Photos must not have been published or accepted for publication by a national magazine or newspaper.
  • Photos must be of legal activities, taking into consideration safety and any laws governing parks or protected areas where photos are taken. 
  • Photos that disturb or damage the environment, animals, or plants are not permitted.
  • Photo entries must be at least 1080 x 1080 pixels in size at original resolution.
  • Entries can be edited and altered including tonal changes and cropping. 
  • Winners must have complied with the rules and eligibility requirements listed above.
  • Winners will be notified via email or on social media and will have 5 days to respond before a runner-up is chosen.
  • Prizes will be shipped within Canada only and are not available to be sold or exchanged for cash.

Questions regarding the contest can be emailed to lakeblitz@livinglakescanada.ca with “Lake Biodiversity Photo Challenge” in the subject line.

Permissions 

By submitting your photo to the Lake Biodiversity Photo Challenge, you are granting Living Lakes Canada the unrestricted, royalty-free, perpetual right to use your photo for future educational, promotional and charitable purposes without any fee or other form of compensation, and without further notification or permission.

You will retain all rights and ownership to any photograph you submit.

Publicity

Except where prohibited by law, participants who are declared winners consent to Living Lakes Canada using the winner’s name for promotional purposes without further notification, permission, or payment. 

Cancellation

In the event that the photo challenge cannot run as planned, Living Lakes Canada reserves the right to cancel, modify, extend or suspend the challenge. 

Disclaimer and Liability 

Living Lakes Canada will not be responsible for any lost, delayed, misdirected, incomplete, or undeliverable entries. It is the sole responsibility of the entrant to ensure their photo(s) are properly submitted.

Living Lakes Canada does not accept liability for any loss or damage resulting directly or indirectly from your participation in the contest.

By participating in this contest, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless Living Lakes Canada their employees, directors, officers, members, affiliates, agents, judges and advertising and promotional agencies from any and all damages, injuries, claims, causes of actions or losses of any kind (including actual legal fees and expenses) arising from or related to: (a) your failure to comply with any of the rules or meet eligibility requirements; (b) any misrepresentation you make under these rules or otherwise to Living Lakes Canada; or (c) your participation in the Lake Biodiversity Photo Contest.

The Lake Biodiversity Photo Challenge is in no way sponsored or affiliated with Facebook or Instagram. You understand that you are providing your information to LLC and not to any social media platform. The information you provide will only be used for the administration of this challenge and in accordance with Living Lakes Canada privacy policies. 

Law

The Rules will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Province of British Columbia, Canada and the federal laws of Canada applicable in British Columbia.

Disputes

All disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with the contest, prizes or these rules will be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and exclusively by the appropriate court of the Province of British Columbia, Canada.