The photo contest aims to (1) promote tourist destinations, activities, and cuisine in the Philippines.

The contest is open to all novice and professional photography enthusiasts who can submit photos relevant to the two themes, with three (3) top prizes to be won.

Criteria for judging will be on the photos’ originality, composition, technical excellence, artistic merit and subject matter relevance to the theme.

Prizes in store for the winners are NT$20,000, NT$15,000 and NT$10,000 for the Grand Prize, 1st Runner Up and 2nd Runner Up, respectively.

Other entries who are picked to be the top 50 photos will receive certificates of recognition and will be displayed in the 2019 MECO photo exhibit.

MECHANICS

This Photo Contest is open to all professional and amateur photographers.

Officers, Employees, interns, or partners of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, as well as their immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings, and children) and household members of employees, are not eligible to enter.

By submitting an entry to the Photo Contest, entrants certify that their participation in this Photo Contest is not illegal or in violation of any law, regulation, treaty or administrative act, and that the laws of their governing jurisdiction of residence at the time of entry do not prohibit or restrict the receipt of any Prize under this Photo Contest.

PERIOD OF SUBMISSION OF ENTRIES

Submission of entries begins at 12:00am (GMT +8) of 11 October 2019 until 11:59pm (GMT +8) on 15 November 2019. Entries submitted before or after the Entry Period will not be eligible.  

ELIGIBILITY OF ENTRIES 

Photos have to be uploaded on Instagram following the 1x1 format with 1080 pixels including a detailed caption.  Caption information should include:

   •       Exact Location (City, State/Province, Country)

    •      Detailed caption of the photo and why the subject matter is related to #funanyday.

Hashtags to be used: #funanyday and  #mecophotocontest2019.

Users who enter the contest must be following the @mecostories Instagram account.

Submitted entries/files must have been shot/taken within the year of 2019

All photographs should accurately reflect the subject matter and the scene as it appeared. 

Entries may originate in any style — including, but not limited to digital, color transparencies, color prints, or black and white prints.

Previously published material for which non-exclusive rights were granted may be entered as long as the contestant still maintains the right to grant us a license for the use of the photo. Contestants must be able to disclose when and where the photo appeared previously upon request.

If the contestant chooses to include people as subject matter in their entries, he/she should be responsible for obtaining the necessary releases from the individuals depicted, and must be able to provide copies of those releases upon request.

The following submissions are ineligible:

    •  Photos that violate or infringe upon another person's rights, including but not limited to copyright and photographs of persons without the necessary consent required by law in your jurisdiction. MECO reserves the right to require entrants to submit evidence of the subject’s legal consent to be photographed for the submitted photographs, which may include a signed waiver from the subject. NOTE: Waiver requirements vary by jurisdiction, and the entrant is responsible for obtaining a legally enforceable waiver from any photographed subject.

    •      Photos that contain sexually explicit, nude, obscene, violent or other objectionable or inappropriate content.

    •      Images that involve the willful harassment of wildlife, or damage to the environment by the photographer.

    •      MECO shall determine entry eligibility in its sole and absolute discretion. 

Submissions may be watermarked if desired, but the watermark should be inconspicuous enough to not interfere with the judging of the photo.

A watermarked photo might not be honored by the competition (at the judges’ sole discretion) if the photographer is unable or unavailable to provide a pristine, watermark-free version of the image when asked.

Images that are sent via mail will not be accepted.

Contestants may submit an unlimited number of entries, but he/she may not use an agency or automated system to enter. MECO reserves the right to reject any additional entries or entries that do not comply with these Official Rules.

By entering, contestant indicate his/her unconditional agreement to, and acceptance of, these Official Rules and MECO’s decisions, which are final and binding. Contestants cannot avail of a prize unless you comply with all requirements in these Official Rules.

JUDGING

Photos will be judged on impact (20%), technical excellence (20%), composition (20%), artistic merit (20%) and subject matter relevance to the theme (20%).

Judging will be conducted by a panel of judges to be determined by the Manila Economic and Cultural Office.

The top 50 entries will be the ones with the most likes and engagements on their post/s.

The Panel will evaluate all valid entries and pick the three winners (1 first prize, 1st runner-up, 2nd runner-up) selected from among the 50 top picks.

The top 50 photos will be notified of their status and will appear on www.meco.org.tw. 

Owners of the top 50 photos will be requested to submit a hardcopy size on photo-paper of their winning entry. and a RAW + Jpeg format to validate their entry to this email address, mecophotocontest@gmail.com.                   

All judging decisions are final. Please do not contact MECO about the status of entries or judging.

The Manila Economic and Cultural Office will notify the winner via the contact information provided at the time of entry. 

REQUIREMENTS FROM WINNERS

Except where prohibited, a winner may be required to complete and return an affidavit of eligibility, including proof of age, and liability/publicity release within 14 days. If a contest winner fails to return these documents on time, an alternate winner may be selected in his/her place.

PRIZES

The following prizes are at stake:

The grand prize winner will receive:

            •          NT$20,000 cash

            •          A feature in MECO’s digital mediums.

The runner-up winner will receive: 

            •          NT$15,000

            •          A feature in MECO’s digital mediums.

The second runner-up winner will receive: 

            •          NT$10,000

            •          A feature in MECO’s digital mediums.  

The 50 Top Picks will receive:

            •        Certificates of Recognition

               ·     A feature in MECO’s digital mediums.

               ·       A loot bag and a slot in the exhibit

To the maximum extent permissible by law, all winners shall be responsible for paying any taxes and any and all other costs and expenses not listed above.

Any prize details not specified above will be determined by the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, in its sole discretion. A prize may not be transferred and must be accepted as awarded. A winner may not request cash or a substitute prize; however, MECO reserves the right to substitute a prize with another prize of equal or greater value if the prize is not available for any reason, as determined by MECO, in its sole discretion.

CONTESTANTS’ RIGHTS

Your photographs will help MECO promote the Philippines as a tourist destination and improve people-to-people relations with the Taiwanese.  

Thank you for helping to further our mission through your photography.

You will retain all rights to any photograph you submit -- including ownership if applicable.

If you submit a photograph to enter the Photo Contest, you grant the Manila Economic and Cultural Office a royalty-free, non-exclusive right to:

  •       Display the photograph on its digital platforms including but not limited to its website, Facebook and Instagram accounts. 

    •      Allow third-parties to share the photograph on social media.

    •      Use the photograph on the Internet and in Social Media in support of our mission.

    •      Use the photograph in MECO’s internal and external communications materials including but not limited to web sites and web publications, fact sheets, fund raising publications, advertising, multimedia, presentation and membership services, annual report.

   •      Provide the photograph to other individuals and organizations for MECO-related use in news stories, newsletters, reports, slide shows, displays, web pages, videos, membership premiums, and the like

     •      Use, in connection with the Photo Contest, your name, city and country of residence in promotions and other publications

    •      Retain a digital copy of the photograph that will be archived in the MECO photo library and accessible to MECO staff via the MECO internal online photo archive 

MECO will endeavor to credit all photographs with the caption "Person's Name" when the full name is available.

GENERAL CONDITIONS

In the event that the operation, security, or administration of the Photo Contest is impaired in any way, MECO may, in its sole discretion, either: (a) suspend the Photo Contest to address the impairment and then resume the Photo Contest; or (b) award the prize(s) from among the eligible entries received up to the time of the impairment. Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify and seek damages from any individual who tampers with the operation of the Photo Contest, violates these Official Rules, or acts in a disruptive or unsportsmanlike manner.

MECO’s failure to enforce any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that provision. Proof of sending any communication to MECO by mail shall not be deemed proof of receipt of that communication by MECO.

In the event of a dispute as to the owner of an entry, the authorized account holder of the e-mail address used to enter will be deemed to be the owner.

RELEASE AND LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY

By entering, you agree to release and hold harmless the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, Facebook, their respective parent, subsidiaries, affiliates, and each of their respective officers, directors, employees, and agents (the “Released Parties”) from and against any claim or cause of action arising out of participation in the Photo Contest or receipt or use of any prize, including, but not limited to: (a) unauthorized human intervention in the Photo Contest; (b) technical errors; (c) printing errors; (d) late or undelivered mail; (e) errors in the administration of the Photo Contest; or (f) injury or damage to persons or property. You waive the right to claim any attorneys’ fees and any damages whatsoever, including, but not limited to, punitive, consequential, direct, or indirect damages.

PRIVACY AND PUBLICITY

Any information submitted as part of the Photo Contest will be used in accordance with MECO’s Privacy Policy. The information you provide when you enter is provided to MECO, not to Facebook. Except where prohibited, the consent to MECO’s  use of your name in any list of winners (if applicable) and for promotional purposes in any media without further payment or consideration.

DISPUTES

Contestants shall agree that any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of, or connected with, the Photo Contest or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and exclusively by the appropriate court.

All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, contestants’ rights and obligations, or the rights and obligations of MECO in connection with the Photo Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with laws, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law.

QUESTIONS

Questions and inquiries about contest rules can be emailed to the email address mecophotocontest@gmail.com or through the @mecostories Instagram page.