2025 photography contest

 2025 marks the 8th year that the Marlboro County Museum has hosted a photography contest to celebrate the beauty and culture of our community as well as the talent of local photographers. 

We have been very pleased to see this contest grow over the years. In an effort to keep it fresh and interesting, we are making some changes for 2025. These will be the categories for this year’s contest:

· Marlboro County Landmarks: In the past, we’ve celebrated “Historic Places.” This time, we’re expanding the category to include places and things that may or may not be historic, but are still iconic and help us identify that we are “home.” 

· Marlboro County Life: Still on the roster from previous years. Show us a scene that captures the essence of living in Marlboro County: a tractor in a field, a t-ball game, a line at a food truck.

· Landscapes: “Nature” has always been our most popular category, so we’re splitting it into two. 

· Birds, Bugs & Blooms: The other “Nature” category. 

· Pets: You’ve asked, and we’re answering. It takes patience and a good eye to capture that perfect photo of your pet.

· Spotlight: This year’s “Spotlight” will be Lake Paul Wallace. We all want it back in all its glory, but there are opportunities to take amazing photos showing it in its current condition.

As always, we will have both Adult and Youth contests, which will be judged separately.

In the Adult contest, we will award cash prizes to the top two photos in each category, as well as “Best of the Best” and “Audience Choice” bonuses.

Because our youth participation has been so low in the past, we will not name winners in each separate category, only the top two photos overall. However, youth photographers are encouraged to enter in as many categories as they wish.

New this year will be an additional recognition: Our judges will select one photo from the “Marlboro County Landmarks” contest to be turned into a jigsaw puzzle for sale in the museum gift shop.

Another change is that our annual wall calendar will feature 12 photos from the “Marlboro County Landmarks” and “Marlboro County Life” contests. So even if your photo doesn’t win a prize, you still have a chance to be part of the calendar!

Following are the contest rules. Please read carefully. Entries that do not follow the rules will be disqualified.

-Limit of ONE photo per category. Participants may submit in any or all categories, but only one per category.

-Each photo submission must include the name, address, phone number, and email of the photographer, along with the category in which the photo is being submitted, the title of the photo if there is one, and the location and date it was taken.

-For youth photographers, submissions must include the above contact information for a parent or guardian, as well as the age and grade level of the photographer. Submission implies parental or guardian consent.

-Photos must be high resolution for printing. If your photo resolution is less than 300 DPI, it will be disqualified from the calendar and jigsaw puzzle opportunities.

-Only minimal editing such as cropping will be accepted. If a photo is obviously edited heavily, it will be disqualified.

-The deadline for submission is Monday, October 20, at 5 p.m. 

-Email submissions with the required information to: lmcqueen@marlborocounty.sc.gov .