2 N D  PAGCOR NATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION 

2nd PAGCOR NATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST

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MECHANICS O F THE
2 N D  PAGCOR NATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION

CONTEST THEME
  The  2nd PAGCOR  National  Photography  Competition  will  adopt  the  theme
“ONLY IN THE PHILIPPINES”.

  Entries must strictly adhere to the competition theme. Participants should
submit photos and images taken anywhere in the Philippines. The photos should
depict only positive  things and images, places, icons,  food, culture, celebrations,
etc.  that  are  uniquely  Filipino  or  which  can  only  be  found,  discovered  and
experienced in  the Philippines. PAGCOR  reserves  the right  to exclude any entry
which, in its sole discretion, does not adhere to the competition theme.
CONTEST DURATION
  PAGCOR  will  accept  entries  to  the  2nd  PAGCOR  National  Photography
Competition from January 22, 2014 until May 9, 2014 only.
WHO CAN JOIN
• Participants must be at least 18 years old at the time of the first official
announcement of the contest (i.e. December 24, 2013).

• The contest is open to all Filipino nationals.

• The contest is also open to foreign nationals provided that they present a valid
passport and Philippine address where they stay during the contest period.

• PAGCOR employees including their relatives up to the fourth degree of affinity
or consanguinity are disqualified from joining the competition.
CATEGORIES
The competition has two categories:

1) CONVENTIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY. This category includes photos taken using
all  types of  traditional or conventional cameras like Single Lens Reflex  (SLR)
or Digital SLR, compact cameras and the like.
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2) MOBILE PHOTOGRAPHY. This category covers photos taken using apps in all
types of mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.
SUBMISSION OF ENTRIES
1) Each participant is allowed  to submit a MAXIMUM OF TWO ENTRIES ONLY.
That means  that a  participant can  submit  two entries under one category  or
he/she  can  submit  one  entry  each  under  the  conventional  and  mobile
categories.

2) Entries  to  be  submitted  in  both  the  Conventional  and  Mobile  Photography
categories  must  be in  full  color.  Photos in  Black  and White  or Sepia  are  not
allowed.
3) Contest  participants  must  register  online  at  the  official  website  of  PAGCOR
(www.pagcor.ph)  and  fill  out  the  2ndPAGCOR  National  Photography
Competition  online  registration/entry  form.  PLEASE  NOTE  THAT  PAGCOR
WILL ONLY ACCEPT ENTRIES SUBMITTED ONLINE THROUGH THE PAGCOR
WEBSITE.  THOSE  THAT  WILL  BE  SUBMITTED  THROUGH  OTHER  MEANS
WILL  AUTOMATICALLY BE DISQUALIFIED.

4) Please  note  that  PAGCOR’s  online  registration  automatically  limits  the
submission  of  entries  per  participant  to  TWO.  Therefore,  participants  must
make  sure  that  they  will  only  submit  their  FINAL  PHOTO  ENTRY/ENTRIES
when registering and submitting their photo/s online.

MOREOVER,  A  PARTICIPANT  IS  NOT  ALLOWED  TO  USE  MULTIPLE  E‐MAIL
ADDRESSES  IN  SENDING  THEIR  ENTRIES.  A  PARTICIPANT  WHO  SUBMITS
HIS/HER  ENTRIES  USING  MULTIPLE  OR  DIFFERENT  E‐MAIL  ADDRESSES
WILL  BE  DISQUALIFIED FROM THE COMPETITION.

5) The  entry  to  be  submitted  should  be  an  image/photo  with  a  corresponding
“photo  title” and  “photo caption”. The caption must indicate  the place where
the image was taken, and must have an accurate description of what the photo
is about.

Deadline  for  the  online  submission  of  entries  is  on  May  9,  2014  (Friday)  at
11:59  p.m.  The  submission  portal  will  automatically  close  and  reject  any
entries that will be submitted after the set deadline.

6) Please  note  that  sorting  of  the  regional  entries shall be strictly residency­
based. This means  that  when  sending  entries,  the  contest  participants must
correctly send their photos under the regional group where they are residents 3 | Page

of(for example,  residents of Metro Manila should send their entries under the
Metro Manila  group, those living in the Visayas must  only send their  entries
under Visayas, and so on.)

7) Proof  of  residency  is  necessary.  Participants  will  be  required  to  send  to
PAGCOR a scanned copy of their proof of residency in JPEG format when they
register online for the photo contest. These include any government‐issued ID
indicating  the  contestant’s  address,  a  certification  of  residency  from  the
barangay, and other similar documents.

8) PAGCOR’s  screening  committee  will  automatically  remove  and  disqualify
photos/entries that are sent to the wrong regional group.

9) Since  the  competition  limits  the  age  of  participants  to  at  least  18  years  old,
proof of age such as an NSO authenticated birth certificate will be required by
PAGCOR  once  the participant qualifies in  the grand  finals  of  the  2nd National
Photography Competition.

10) The contest participant is responsible for securing – prior to submission of
the entry ‐ a formal consent from concerned parties if the image contains any
material  or  element  that  is  not  the  participant’s  property,  or if  any  person
appears  in  the  photo(i.e.  subjects  of  the  photo).  For  minors  that  are
photographed  in  the  submitted  entry,  the  contest  participant  must  obtain  a
written  consent  from  the  minor’s  parents/legal  guardians.  PAGCOR  should
not ‐in any way ‐be  held  responsible  for  the  contest  participant’s inability  to
secure the necessary permission or consent for their submitted entries.
PHOTO/IMAGE REQUIREMENTS
1) Photographs should be in digital format/file. PAGCOR will not accept print or
film  submissions  for  the initial  screening  of  the entries. Only  photos/images
submitted via online will be accepted.

2) Photographs to be submitted should have no watermark. There should be no
identifying mark on the images to eliminate any bias during the screening and
judging of the submitted photos.

3) For the Conventional Photography category, all digital files must be 300 dpi, in
JPEG or JPG format, and at least 1,600 pixels on one side (whether image is
vertical or horizontal).

For the Mobile Photography category, the image quality must be set to BEST 4 | Page

mode.

4) Photographs  to  be  submitted  to  the  2ndPAGCOR  National  Photography
competition should be taken starting on December 24, 2013, official launch of
the photo contest.

5) The following photographs or images are disqualified:

o Photographs that have been previously submitted or have won in any local
or international photography contest.

o Photographs that violate a person’s rights including, but not limited to
copyright and privacy.

o Photographs that contain obscene, sexually explicit, offensive or any other
objectionable or inappropriate content.

o Photographs bearing images of public officials.

o For  entries  submitted  under  the  Conventional  category,  PAGCOR  will
disqualify  photos  that  are  digitally  enhanced  or  altered  for  creative
purposes.  Altered  images  refer  to  photographs  manipulated  and  applied
with  special  effects (colorizing, toning, collage, photo composites, stitched
panoramas,  high  dynamic  range  or  HDR  images,  etc.).  Only  minor
adjustments  acceptable  to  PAGCOR  in  the  color,  sharpness,  contrast  or
digital equivalents are allowed.

For  entries  submitted  under  the  Mobile  category,  PAGCOR  prohibits  the
alteration of images using a desktop or laptop.

PAGCOR  reserves  the  right  to  disqualify  any  photograph  or  image  at  any
time for any cause.
OTHER UNDERTAKINGS OF THE CONTEST PARTICIPANTS
  By participating in  the 2ndPAGCOR National Photography Competition, the
contestant acknowledges and attests that:

• The submitted image is a single work of original material created and taken
solely by the participant;

• The  photograph  does  not  infringe  on  the  copyrights,  trademarks, 5 | Page

intellectual property rights of any person or entity, and that no other party has
any right, title, claim, or interest in the photograph.
SCREENING OF ENTRIES/PHOTOGRAPHS
CRITERIA FOR JUDGING
  The entries in both the Conventional and Mobile categories shall be judged
based on the following criteria:
• Adherence to theme/Content
• Creativity and Originality
• Photographic Quality
• Visual Impact
  The decision  of  the judges in  the  regional  screenings and grand  finals are
final and not appealable.
REGIONAL SCREENING
1) The  2ndPAGCOR  National  Photography  Competition  will  have  four  regional
screenings (Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao and Metro Manila) in May 2014(dates to
be announced later).

2) For regional screenings, PAGCOR will invite an esteemed panel of judges to be
composed  of  renowned  professional  photographers,  visual  artists,  and
PAGCOR officials. Venue of the regional screening will be announced at a later
date.

3) For  each  regional  screening,  the  panel  of  judges  shall  select  the  top  five  (5)
entries  for  the  Conventional  Category and  top  five  (5) entries for  the Mobile
Category  that  will  eventually  move  on  to  the  grand  finals  of  the  2ndPAGCOR
National Photography Competition.

4) Following is the breakdown of the number of top qualifiers per region:

Region  Conventional Category  Mobile Category
Luzon  Five (5)  Five (5)
Visayas  Five (5)  Five (5)
Mindanao  Five (5)  Five (5)
Metro Manila  Five (5) Five (5)
TOTAL  20 grand finalists  20 grand finalists
5) All  the  grand  finalists  under  the  Conventional  and  Mobile  categories  will  be
formally notified by PAGCOR via phone call and e‐mail.  6 | Page

GRAND FINALS
1) Final  judging  day  is  on  June  6,  2014  while  the  formal  announcement  of
winners will be on June 13, 2014. The venue where the judging will be staged
shall  be announced at a later  date. PAGCOR also has  the  option to mount an
exhibit of all the photo entries of the grand finalists depending on the venue.

2) PAGCOR  will  handle  and  shoulder  the  printing  and  framing  of  the  photo
entries of the grand finalists.

3) During the final judging, the panel of judges will select the following number of
grand winners:

Category   Number of Grand
Winners
Conventional  Twelve (12)
Mobile  Twelve (12)

4) The  criteria  to  be  used  by  the  jury  in  selecting  the  grand  winners  for  the
Conventional and Mobile categories are as follows:

• Adherence to theme/Content
• Creativity and Originality
• Photographic Quality
• Visual Impact
PRIZES AT STAKE
Following are the prizes at stake for each category:

Category   Prizes for Grand Winners
Conventional  P 75,000 each plus trophy
Mobile  P30,000 each plus trophy
Category  Consolation Prizes for Non‐
winning grand finalists
Conventional  P20,000 each plus certificate
of merit
Mobile  P 5,000 each plus certificate
of merit
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SPECIAL PRIZES:

a. “Most Popular Photo”
‐ This  photo  shall  be  selected  from  the  roster  of  the  grand  finalists  for
each category. There will be  one winner  for  the Conventional category
and one winner for Mobile category
‐ Selection of winner shall be done via online voting through the PAGCOR
Facebook page.
‐ The  two winners  of  this  special  prize will each  receive  P5,000.00  cash
prize plus certificate of recognition.

OTHER CONTEST PROVISIONS/CONDITIONS
• PAGCOR shall have  the exclusive use of  the photo entries of  the 24 Grand
Winners  (i.e.  12  from  Conventional  and  12  from  Mobile  categories)in
perpetuity  for  the  agency’s  various  collaterals  and  communication
materials  including  but  not  limited  to  the  PAGCOR  2015  calendar.  This
means  that  the  Grand Winner/Photo  Owner  of  the  winning  entry  cannot
resell or make use of his/her photo  for other purposes except  for his/her
official portfolio.

• The photos of  the 16 consolation prizes  (8  from Conventional and 8  from
Mobile) shall be exclusively used by PAGCOR for a period of two (2) years.

• Only PAGCOR shall have the sole right to use, produce or reproduce, make
imitative works of the winning photos and those of the other grand finalists
during the period indicated above for its various communication materials.
PAGCOR can also make use of the said photos for whatever purpose it may
deem  fit  without  further  compensation  to  the  artist,  his/her  heirs  and
assignees.

• PAGCOR assumes  no  responsibility  for any  transmission error  or delay in
the  e‐mail  submission  of  the  entries.  The  agency  cannot  also  be  held
responsible for any theft, deletion and/or alteration that might be made on
the entries/entry forms that will be submitted online.

• By  submitting  their  entries  to  the  2ndPAGCOR  National  Photography
Competition, all  contest  participants agree  to  release,  discharge, and  hold
PAGCOR  and  its  employees,  officers,  directors,  and  representatives
harmless  from  any  claims,  losses,  and  damages  arising  out  of  their
participation in this contest. 8 | Page


• PAGCOR has the right to verify the validity and originality of any submitted
photo  entry  and/or  details  about  the  contest  participant (including the
contestant’s  identity  and  address).  PAGCOR  also  reserves  the  right  to
disqualify  any  contest  participant  who  submits  an  entry  that  is  not  in
accordance with the contest’s Official Rules or who tampers with the entry
process.

• By  joining  this  competition,  the  contest  participants  agree  that  their
personal data may be used by PAGCOR  for purposes of announcing to  the
general public updates on the outcome of the regional screening and grand
finals,  as  well  as  for  other  PR  and  communication  materials  of  the
corporation.  The  contest  participants  also  agree  that  PAGCOR may  opt  to
upload in its official website a gallery of photos  that will be submitted  for
this contest.  
For  more  information  about  the  2ndPAGCOR  National  Photography  Contest,
please call  the Corporate Communications Department at Tel. Nos. 353‐8392 or
visit our website at www.pagcor.ph.

You may also follow us in Facebook (www.facebook.com/pagcor.ph) and Twitter
(www.twitter.com/pagcorph).