Big South Fork Announces First Annual Photo Contest

News Release Date: January 5, 2015

Contact: Matt Hudson, 423-346-6294

Contact: Effie Houston, 423-569-9778

The National Park Service (NPS) invites photographers to submit entries for an exhibit at the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. The NPS is looking for striking digital images highlighting the spectacular views, historic sites, recreational opportunities, and diversity of life in the park. Images may show wildlife, plant life, natural landscapes, historic areas, weather, or people interacting with nature within the boundaries of the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. All photographs, except those submitted in the artistic category, should accurately reflect the subject matter and the scene as it appeared.

Photographs may be submitted into one of seven categories:
Action/Adventure (photographs of people participating in recreational activities)
Artistic (artistic compositions in nature both natural and manipulated in post processing)
Cultural (photographs that illustrate historic or culturally significant structures)
Flora &Fauna (animals in their natural habitat, including close-ups of invertebrates, or plants in their natural habitat, including close-ups of flowers, fungi, lichen, and algae)
Kentucky Landscapes (expansive and dramatic views of the land and its features within the Kentucky park boundaries)
Tennessee Landscapes (expansive and dramatic views of the land and its features within the Tennessee park boundaries)
Youth (entries in any category by photographers under 18 years of age).

Entries will be judged on technical excellence, originality, creativity, visual impact, and artistic merit. Judges' decisions are final. Selected images will be printed for an exhibition at the Bandy Creek Visitor Center that will open on Saturday, September 5, 2015. Selected images may also be displayed on the internet and other venues.

Contest is open to all photographers except NPS employees and their immediate families and household members. Each person can only submit three photos into the competition. All photos must be in a digital format. Entries must be received no later than Tuesday, July 21, 2015. Each entry must be accompanied by a completed entry form with all information clearly filled out. Entry forms may be downloaded from https://www.nps.gov/biso/photosmultimedia/biso-photo-contest.htm. Entries may be emailed to [e-mail] or dropped off at or mailed to the park headquarters at Big South Fork NRRA (Photo Exhibit), 4564 Leatherwood Road, Oneida, Tennessee37841.

For more information on the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, please call [phone].