Open categories

Nature (including landscapes)
The Built Environment (including architecture)

Amateur categories

Nature (including landscapes)
The Built Environment (including architecture)

*note: People, abstract/creative, B&W and vertical panoramic images can be entered in any category

-The competition is now open for all professional and amateur photographers with a combined prize pool of over US $25,000 in cash and prizes! Category winners in the Open competition will compete for the overall title of The Epson International Pano Awards Photographer of the Year 2012. Category winners in the Amateur competition will compete for the title of The Epson International Pano Awards Amateur Photographer of the Year 2012.

Regular entries close Friday 20th of April 2012. There will be a late entry period until Saturday 28th April 2012. Late entry fees will apply.

The Open and Amateur competitions share the same entry process.
You can choose which of the competitions you would like to enter in the Image Upload section after you have created your entry account.
(The VR/360 competition has a separate entry process - please enter via the Homepage)
Note that once payment is made your entries will be finalised and cannot be changed. You may however login at any time to add more entries until close of competition.

Please prepare your images for the Open and Amateur competitions as follows prior to entering;
sRGB, 3000 Pixels on the longest side (minimum ratio 2:1, therefore not more than 1500 pixels on the shortest side), 300 dpi, saved as a jpeg at a setting of 10 or higher.
Please include your own name in each file name.
Images are judged on calibrated monitors. Please ensure your own monitor is calibrated prior to entering your images.

A summary of some important rules;

Entries in the Nature categories must be predominantly of natural subjects, although some man made objects within image are accepted. An example of this would be a jetty or a building within a landscape.
Entries in the Built Environment categories must be predominantly of man-made subjects, although some natural subjects within the image are accepted. An example of this would be a park within a city environment.
All images must be panoramic format, defined for this competition as a minimum 2:1 ratio (long side:short side). See Wikipedia for information regarding this definition. Images not complying with the minimum ratio rule will be given the lowest average score.
360 degree images are exempt from the minimum 2:1 ratio rule.
Entrants are not encouraged to crop single shot 35mm files to fit the minimum ratio. If your entry is selected for the exhibition at PMA and is a cropped 35mm file, it may not be included due to quality and file size. Cropping from medium and large format is acceptable, however stitching and single captures from dedicated panoramic cameras are preferred. If you wish to crop from a single capture 35mm image, please ensure it originates from a high quality file (eg RAW) and quality DSLR camera.
Winning and high scoring entrants must be able to supply a high res file of their entry suitable for exhibition printing, within 7 days of judging completion.
The EPSON International Pano Awards recognizes that you retain full ownership of the copyright in each entry. Our sponsors, including Epson do NOT assume rights of use. Images are used for display of winning and highest scoring images, and promotion of the competition ONLY.
Images may be from single capture or stitching software, film or digital capture, but must be 100% photographic in origin.
VR/immersive/360 degree panoramic images are most welcome in the Open or Amateur competitions, however they must be entered as a 'flat' jpeg file if entered in Open or Amateur (not as formats such as .swf or Quicktime VR).
An Amateur is defined for this competition as someone who earns less than USD$20,000 per year from photography as an occupation. Amateurs may enter the Open or Amateur competitions.
A Professional is defined for this competition as someone who earns greater than USD$20,000 per year from photography as an occupation. Professionals may only enter the Open competition.
There is no restriction on the date of origin of entries, or on the number of entries per entrant.
*note: People, abstract/creative, B&W and vertical panoramic images can be entered in any category, with the exception of the VR/360 competition which does not accept vertical images.
Amateur and non-professionals may enter an identical image into the Amateur and Open competitions if they wish, as they are judged as separate competitions.