What’s your personal connection to the land and natural spaces and places in Colorado? How do you express that connection through photography? If you wrote a letter about your photo, what would it say?
We’re collecting compelling photos + short essays about YOUR connection with Colorado.
We'll celebrate photographers at a gallery and reception at the American Mountaineering Center in Golden, Colorado on September 1, 2022.
We look forward to seeing what Colorado looks like from your perspective!
Read on for details about submission categories, deadlines and technical specifications, as well as the submission form.
Thank you, sponsors!
Thank you, sponsors!
Key Dates
Submission deadline:
July 8, 2022
Awards notifications:
Late July 2022
Celebratory reception and
gallery exhibit:
September 1, 2022
Eligibility
You must currently reside in Colorado.
You must have the rights to and
own the photo.
TEchnical requirements
No cell phone photos, please.
How to submit:
In order to be displayed in our online gallery without being stretched or distorted, photographs must be submitted via our online form to the following specifications:
File type: .jpg, .gif or .png
Image width: 1500-2500 pixels wide
File size: under 10MB
If you’re selected as a finalist:
Finalists must be prepared to submit a digital file that can be blown up to approximately 24x36 in print and from sensors larger than 20 megapixels. Keep It Colorado reserves the right to disqualify incomplete entries and/or participants who are unable to submit, upon request, a high-resolution photograph of high enough quality for print.
In addition:
High-quality scans of non-digital photographs are acceptable. Digital photographs should be taken at the highest resolution possible.
Acceptable alterations:
Minor adjustments, including the removal of sensor dust or scratches on scans of negatives, dodging and burning, sharpening, contrast, toning, slight color adjustment, conversion to grayscale and cropping.
Unacceptable alterations:
The addition or subtraction of objects, and image composites, stitched panoramas and collages.
Copyright and attribution:
The photographer holds all copyrights to their work. Keep It Colorado does not and will not seek to gain copyright over photos submitted. Further, Keep It Colorado agrees to attribute the photographer by name when displaying photos.
Submission categories
Photography expertise category (choose one):
Amateur: You are a hobbyist photographer.
Professional: You get paid for your photography services.
Content category (choose one per submission; you may submit up to two photos total; each photo must be submitted with a separate application):
Born and Raised: You are among the rare folks who really are from Colorado. The very air in Colorado courses through your veins. You have a perspective about this state that only folks from here could understand. (You may also submit in this category if you were born in Colorado, left for a while and returned.)
Fell in Love - and Stayed: You hail from elsewhere. Maybe you visited here, made a pitstop en route to somewhere else, or moved here “temporarily” to check out the scene. You loved it so much you vowed to never leave. And now you’re proud to say you’re a Coloradan.
Indigenous Ties: You are an Indigenous person. You may have unique insights to native plants or animal species, sacred sites, or history and culture. What does Colorado look like through your lens? We welcome you to showcase your connection to Colorado.
Workin’ It: You enjoy getting your hands dirty and doing your part to nurture and protect the land we all love and rely on - from working lands to open space trails. You work the soil, plant new life, or wield a shovel when duty calls. You embody an ethic of taking care of the land that takes care of you.
Judging and selection Criteria
Compelling photographic demonstration of your connection to land, water or wildlife in Colorado.
Compelling written explanation of how the photo demonstrates your emotional connection to Colorado (can be an essay, poem or caption; minimum 7 words /maximum 700 words).
Diversity of perspectives and ideas about connections and relationships with Colorado.
Diversity of geographic regions represented across Colorado.
Incentives
#1 Keep It Colorado Gold (grand slam - 8 prize winners)
Recognition at our Sept. 1 Fall Reception in Golden, Colorado
Large metal-printed display of your photo and your essay at the American Mountaineering Center in Golden for a limited time
Inclusion of your photo and your essay in a special gallery on Keep It Colorado’s website
Recognition in a news release and across our social channels
Small cash reward (To be fully transparent… cash reward will be <$200 unless we can wrangle up some amazing sponsorships!)
A cash donation in your name to a Colorado nonprofit land trust of your choosing
Keep It Colorado-branded ceramic campfire mug and stitched baseball cap
Option to list a sales price with your photo and distribute your business card at our Fall Reception
#2 Keep It Colorado Green (staff picks - 5 prize winners)
Recognition at our Sept. 1 Fall Reception in Golden, Colorado
Metal-printed display of your photo and your essay at the American Mountaineering Center in Golden for a limited time
Inclusion of your photo and your essay in a special gallery on Keep It Colorado’s website
Recognition in a news release and across our social channels
Keep It Colorado-branded ceramic campfire mug and stitched baseball cap
#3 Keep It Colorado Blue (honorable mentions)
Inclusion of your photo and your essay in a special gallery on Keep It Colorado’s website
