2020 CONTEST SUBJECTS

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JANUARY

MASTERS

MULTI-COLORED ANIMAL – ANY LENS – An animal that has three or more colors, not including white or black. Submission deadline: January 4th

CHALLENGERS

DECORATOR CRABS – ANY LENS – Decorator crabs are several different species that use materials or other animals from their environment to cover their carapace for camouflage. NO hermit crabs. Submission deadline: January 4th

VIDEO

NO VIDEO CONTEST

FEBRUARY

MASTERS

GENERATIONS – ANY LENS – A juvenile and an adult of the same species in the photo. Age difference must be clearly apparent. Ex: Manatee & baby, skeleton shrimp with babies, anemone fish family. Juvenile must be hatched, eggs can be in the photo but don’t count as a generation. Submission deadline: February 1st

CHALLENGERS

HAPPY COUPLES – ANY LENS – Two of the same species posing together. Fish or critter. Submission deadline: February 1st

VIDEO

UNHAPPY COUPLES – Video of territorial disputes between two fish or creatures of the same species. No manipulating or stressing animals. No use of mirrors. 1 min. max. Submission deadline: February 1st

MARCH

MASTERS

CURVES – ANY LENS – Curvy subject or subject in a flowing curvy pose. Ex: A free-swimming flatworm or a curvy juvenile sweetlips in a flowing pose. Submission deadline: February 29th

CHALLENGERS

GEOMETRICS – ANY LENS – A fish or critter that resembles a geometric shape, or has a geometric pattern on it. Including, circle, square, rectangle, triangle, pentagon, hexagon, octagon. Submission deadline: February 29th

VIDEO

UNDERWATER DANCING – Video of animals doing a “dance” motion, set to music. 1 min. max Submission deadline: February 29th

APRIL

MASTERS

APRIL SHOWERS – ANY LENS – Photos involving rain- either a background that reminds you of rain, a split shot involving rain or a photo of the surface while it’s raining. Submission deadline: April 4th

CHALLENGERS

SEASCAPES W/A – WIDE ANGLE – A photo showing the beauty of a reef. May include fish or not. Submission deadline: April 4th

VIDEO

NO VIDEO CONTEST

PRINTABLE .PDF

For a printable version of this years contest subjects, click here:

2026 CONTEST SUBJECTS

VIDEO CONTEST RULES

Click here to view or print the video contest instructions:

VIDEO CONTEST INSTRUCTIONS

PHOTO CONTEST RULES & SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Photos must be taken underwater by the entrant. No aquarium or pool shots.

Each month the contest is divided into two categories – Masters and Challengers, each with different subjects to promote participation by all SFUPS members of all skill levels.

A maximum of 2 images per person may be submitted per meeting.

Read More…

NOTE:

If you are uncertain about what qualifies in a category, please consult a reputable guidebook such as Humann/DeLoach’s reef set. If still in doubt, contact Eleanor Hornberger well before the contest. She will be happy to clarify a potential submission to confirm if it fits the category.

MAY

MASTERS

MAY FLOWERS – ANY LENS – Sea critters that resemble flowers. Coral polyps, nudibranch gills, anything that feels floral to you. Submission deadline: May 2nd

CHALLENGERS

ANEMONES AND THEIR INHABITANTS – ANY LENS – Focus on the beauty of an anemone and also include at least one creature that lives in association with it. Submission deadline: May 2nd

VIDEO

ANEMONE LIFE – Video of any anemone around the world and the creatures associated with them. 1 min. max. Submission deadline: May 2nd

JUNE

MASTERS

WRECK INTERIORS W/A – WIDE ANGLE – Photographs of the interior of a wreck and its inhabitants. Must be clear that the photo was taken inside a wreck. Submission deadline: May 30th

CHALLENGERS

LOBSTERS – ANY LENS – Looking for creative photos of this ugly animal. Any lobster from around the world. NO squat lobsters. Submission deadline: May 30th

VIDEO

WRECKS – Wide Angle video in and around one or more wrecks. 1 min. max. Submission deadline: May 30th

JULY

MASTERS

CAUGHT IN THE ACT – ANY LENS – Spawning that is. Looking for images of actual spawning. Ex: Dragonets releasing eggs, a nudibranch actively laying eggs, corals releasing gametes, smoking sponges, brittle stars releasing eggs, etc. You must be able to see the creatures spawn being released in the photo. Mating photos that do not show the spawn do not count.. Submission deadline: July 4th

CHALLENGERS

THREE POINTS OF INTEREST W/A – WIDE ANGLE – Images should point the viewer to three clear and different points. Ex: Sponge, diver & boat on the surface. A goliath grouper, diver and wreck in the background. As a tip, the ocean floor or reef in the background does not generally count as a subject, however, a prominent sponge, sea fan or coral formation on the bottom could work well. A well-defined sunburst or sun ball can be considered a point of interest. Submission deadline: July 4th

VIDEO

NO VIDEO CONTEST

AUGUST

MASTERS

FISH ‘N HARD CORAL – ANY LENS – Best photo of fish that live in, sit on, or are normally found in association with hard corals. Live hard coral and at least one fish should be in the photo. Some Examples: Hawkfish sitting on a branching coral, school of damsels taking refuge in a branching hard coral, neon goby on a brain coral, Secretary blenny in a hole of a living hard coral, etc. Note: Sea fans and black coral trees are NOT hard corals. A group of fish sheltering under a ledge or staghorn do not fit the intent of this contest. Submission deadline: August 1st

CHALLENGERS

JUVENILE FISH – ANY LENS – Must be a fish that looks different as a juvenile than as an adult. Must be apparent that it is a larva or young fish. Submission deadline: August 1st

VIDEO

NO VIDEO CONTEST

SEPTEMBER

MASTERS

BLACK AND WHITE – ANY LENS – May be converted to black and white in post processing. Choose images that are highly graphic and translate well to B&W. Submission deadline: August 29th

CHALLENGERS

UNDERWATER LOL – ANY LENS – An image that is funny and makes you “laugh out loud”. Submission deadline: August 29th

VIDEO

LARGER THAN LIFE ANIMALS – Turtles, manatees, sharks, dolphin, goliath groupers, or any other “large” animal. Humans do not count as animals. 1 min. max. Submission deadline: August 29th

OCTOBER

MASTERS

MODEL/DIVER W/A – WIDE ANGLE – Photo with a model, could be full body or just part of the body, close or farther away. Submission deadline: October 3rd

CHALLENGERS

VERTICAL COMPOSITION – ANY LENS – Best photo with a pleasing vertical composition. NO horizontal images. May be cropped in post processing. Submission deadline: October 3rd

VIDEO

NO VIDEO CONTEST

NOVEMBER

MASTERS

FROGGIES – ANY LENS – Capture the beauty and personality of these strange looking fish. From anywhere around the world. Submission deadline: October 31st

CHALLENGERS

TURTLES – ANY LENS – Show off your best turtle photos. Submission deadline: October 31st

VIDEO

TELL ME A STORY – Show an animal doing what it normally does but present it in a unique way with narration (voice or written text) and music. Think “Wild Kingdom”. 2 min max. Submission deadline: October 31st

PRINTABLE .PDF

For a printable version of this years contest subjects, click here:

2026 CONTEST SUBJECTS

VIDEO CONTEST RULES

Click here to view or print the video contest instructions:

VIDEO CONTEST INSTRUCTIONS

PHOTO CONTEST RULES & SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Photos must be taken underwater by the entrant. No aquarium or pool shots.

Each month the contest is divided into two categories – Masters and Challengers, each with different subjects to promote participation by all SFUPS members of all skill levels.

A maximum of 2 images per person may be submitted per meeting.

Read More…

NOTE:

If you are uncertain about what qualifies in a category, please consult a reputable guidebook such as Humann/DeLoach’s reef set. If still in doubt, contact Eleanor Hornberger well before the contest. She will be happy to clarify a potential submission to confirm if it fits the category.