1. Submissions are open from Friday, September 2, 2022, till Friday, September 23, 2022.
2. The contest will close at 11:59 PM (IST ) on Friday, September 23, 2022.
3. Submissions can be made only via the contest website: www.oceanblue.shop
4. Write to us at [email protected] for any queries or issues. Before you write to us, please refer to our FAQ section. We are sure you will find quick answers to some common queries.
5. You must follow the OCEAN BLUE SHOP Instagram page @theoceanblueshop
6. You must follow our Partner Instagram pages at @purpleoctopus.in and @diveindia
7. There are 5 categories for adult participants (above 17 years):
   • Habitats
   • Behaviour
   • Conservation
   • Macro
   • Artistic/Creative
8. One can upload One photo per category, and a total of five photographs, at one per category. Participants are not obliged to upload a photo for every category.
9. The organisers will be allowed to use all the photographs submitted to the contest in the promotion of the contest. Selected photographs from the submitted entries will also be shared across all social media channels of the organiser. For any other form of usage, the organisers will contact the photographer for permissions.
10. The sponsor for the contest will have the right to use the photographs or any other data shared by the participant for one year and may engage the winning photographer for promotional activities.
11. The winning images and selected images from the final shortlist can be used on the organiser’s social media pages, and that of the sponsors. 
12. The decision of the jury is final and binding. 
13. The jury reserves the right to reject any entries that are missing the requirements.
14. The prizes given to the finalists cannot be returned/exchanged for any other items.
15. The participants must provide the organisers any identification, paperwork or invoices that may be required to get their award . 
16. Participants must be from India only.
17. Photos that are submitted can be taken anywhere in the world.
18. If a participant has to make changes to the submission, they can edit the submission. The link to access this will be sent to your email id when you submit for the first time.
19.  Black and White photos are allowed in any of the theme categories.

1. Photographs that are submitted must have been taken in the last 5 years. The photographs can be shot anywhere in the world.
2. We only accept digital photographs, in JPEG format, RGB mode, with a maximum of 1920 pixels (on the longer side). Recommended sizes are 1600x900px in landscape and 900x1600px in portrait modes.
3. The photograph size should not exceed 2MB.
4. A range of 72-100 dpi is recommended, to ensure that the images are under 2MB in size.
5. Photographs with borders, frames, watermarks or signatures will be disqualified.
6. Participants should not include their name in the caption, filename or on the image itself.
7. Cropping is allowed as long as the original message/content of the photograph is not altered drastically.
8. Stitching of images is allowed only if the resulting image is a panoramic one, and this must be declared in the caption.
9. Black and white images can be submitted in any category.
10. Basic retouching (brightness, saturation, sharpening, contrast and white balance) of images is acceptable as long as the photograph retains its original form. Any image that appears drastically different from its RAW version will be disqualified.
11. Once shortlisted, participants will be contacted to provide the accompanying RAW file. All information regarding post-processing of the image must be shared on request. If the image was not shot in a RAW format, the original, unprocessed JPEG file will need to be shared.
12. The jury may request the participant to share a series of RAW images – shot immediately before and after the shortlisted image – to establish authenticity. If the participant fails to provide these images upon request, the image will be disqualified.
13. Each photograph will have to be accompanied by a relevant title and a detailed description.

1. Participants must be mindful of the welfare of the animals they are photographing and ensure that no harm, injury or distress is caused to the animal or to the habitat in an attempt to secure the image.
2. Participants are not permitted to submit images of aquariums fishes.
3. Images of captive animals will not be accepted unless the said image has been shot with a specific purpose to portray issues regarding the treatment of the species.
4. Images where the photographer’s actions or presence has adversely affected the animal’s behaviour or put the animal in danger, will not be permitted and could be disqualified at the jury’s discretion.
5. Participants must not deceive the viewer or attempt to disguise and/or misrepresent the reality of the natural scene.
6. Participants are responsible for ensuring full compliance with any applicable national or international legislation and for securing any relevant permits that may be required in the process of photography.
7. If the organisers suspect that an entry has been achieved through cruel or unethical practices, the entry will be disqualified.
8. Information supplied in the caption must be complete, true and accurate.
9. The organising team, sponsors, and partners are not allowed to participate in the contest.
10. Any breach of the ethical standards listed here will be considered a breach of the rules.

1. The jury, comprising a group of renowned professionals in the fields of photography, publishing, wildlife, research and conservation, will select the winning images using the following criteria:
   • Creativity
   • Originality
   • Composition
   • Technical, Ethical and Artistic Considerations
2. During the course of judging, the jury reserves the right to move entries from one category to another, where they consider it appropriate and applicable.
3. The jury reserves the right to declare a tie in any of the prizes or change the number of prizes being awarded or not award any entry in a category.
4. The organisers have the right to disqualify participants who approach the jury members in a deliberate attempt to influence or lobby, by discussing judging processes, enquiring details or requesting feedback prior to the announcement of results.
5. Once the contest is closed for submissions, participants will only hear from the organisers if their image/s are shortlisted.
6. Participants shortlisted for the final round of judging are contacted by the organisers in strict confidence. The participant shall not publicise this information in personal or public social networks. The organisers and jury have the right to withdraw a shortlisted image under such circumstances.
7. The final results will only be revealed on the Ocean Blue Shop Instagram Page

There will be one OVERALL WINNER.

There will be ONE FINALIST

There will be THREE HONORARY MENTIONS.

All Winners, finalists, and mentions will get exclusive gear/awards.

What should I write in the caption?

The caption should ideally ‘explain’ the photograph to the viewer. A simple trick to write a good caption is to describe the WHO-WHAT-WHY-WHERE-WHEN of the scene you have photographed. 

Can I submit black and white images?

Yes, black and white images can be submitted in any category.

Photos after upload seem to lose colour and brightness and the thumbnail preview looks different. Should I be concerned?

The photos you have uploaded are saved in their original form, without any changes or edits, directly in our database. What you see as thumbnails on the site are just low-resolution previews of the same images. The judges will not be looking at these previews, they will only be looking at the original files you submitted, that are now saved in our database.

My image is very heavy in size and I don’t know how to reduce it to under 2MB.

Have you tried the ‘Save For Web’ option on Photoshop and Lightroom? You will also find tutorials online.

Will you inform me in advance if I have won a prize?

While you won’t find out exactly what you have won, you will be informed if you are among the winners.

Will I hear from you if my image is not shortlisted?

Due to the large volume of submissions we receive, we are unable to notify participants individually if their images haven’t been shortlisted.