Summer is almost here, and that means it’s time for this year’s IBEW photo contest.
Last year’s winner, Vacaville, Calif., Local 1245’s Nicolas Rains, captured his coworkers on the job in extreme weather conditions, but you don’t need to find the extraordinary to win. Your IBEW sisters and brothers do extraordinary work every day – even on the most routine assignments.
Send us the photos that capture that spirit of excellence and togetherness, the foundations of what it means to be a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
The rules are unchanged from last year, so please remember that we’re only taking digital submissions through the website, ibew.org/photocontest, and make sure to send us high-resolution images.
The deadline is Oct. 1, and finalists will be announced in November.
Good luck!
Photo Contest Rules
- The contest is open to active or retired IBEW members only. The person submitting the photo must be the person who took the photograph. Members may enter up to five photos each.
- International officers and staff are not eligible.
- Photos can be submitted as digital files of at least 300 dpi, measuring 1,200 by 1,800 pixels at minimum, in color or black and white. Larger files of at least 2,200 pixels are encouraged.
- All submissions become property of the IBEW Media Department.
- Photo entries must have an IBEW theme of some sort, with IBEW members at work, engaged in a union-related activity or featuring subjects conveying images of the electrical industry or the union.
- If members are featured in the photo, they should be identified. If large groups are pictured, the name of the group or the purpose of the gathering (e.g., a safety committee, a linemen’s rodeo, a union meeting) can be submitted in place of individual names.
- Photos previously published in IBEW publications or on the website are not eligible for submission.
- Starting this year, entries must be submitted electronically via the Photo Contest App. Please contact the Media Department at media@ibew.org or 202-728-6102 with additional questions.
- Up to 15 finalists will be selected and posted on ibew.org for final judging by the public. The winners will be featured in a future issue of the Electrical Worker.
Photo Guidelines
Here are some guidelines that will help ensure that the photos you send in for the contest look as good to the rest of the world as they do to you:
- Pay close attention to pixel width and resolution. Generally, photos should not be less than 2,200 pixels wide at 300 dpi. Most computer programs have a "Properties" tab you can use to check pixel width and file size.
- Another good indication of image quality is file size. Typically, the file size should be listed in megabytes (MB). A file size listed in kilobytes (kb) is too small.
- Always err on the side of uploading a larger photo.
- Cameras also have adjustable settings for photo resolution. For print quality, camera settings should be set to an image size of 5 M (megapixels) or higher. If you're unsure about the settings, a good rule of thumb is to set the camera to the highest quality setting it allows.
- Cellphone photos may be acceptable, depending on the phone model. Newer model smartphones (iPhone, Android and Windows) usually produce files that are high enough in quality as long as the original file is selected when sending. Older smartphone photographs are generally lower in quality.