2016 Official Contest Calendar
updated 12/5/15
Hello all and welcome to this year’s photo contests! I went through last year’s contests and removed some of the less popular contests, and replaced them with some of your suggestions. I’m looking forward to a great year of photo contests, so let’s get down to business!
Here is the calendar for 2016:
January
1/1-1/8 Poster’s Choice – Post your favorite Disney photo
1/9-1/15 Disney Transportation - Any photo of Disney transportation (Bus, boat, monorail, etc.) will be accepted
1/16-1/22 Epcot - Any photo taken at or of Epcot will be accepted
1/23-1/29 Cast Member Magic - Photos should be of cast members making “magic“
February
1/30-2/5 Parades - Any parade (current or former) at any Disney Park would be accepted
2/6-2/12 Park Icons - Photos must be focused on a Disney Park icon
2/13-2/19 The Little Things - This contest focuses on the little Disney details that are easily missed
2/20-2/16 Star Wars - Entries with a Star Wars theme will be accepted
March
2/27-3/4 Fire – Photos must include fire at a Disney Park or Resort
3/5-3/11 Favorite Souvenir – Show us your favorite souvenir from a Disney Park or Resort
3/12-3/18 Resorts - Any photo taken at a Disney hotel will be accepted
3/19-3/25 Black & White – Enter your black and white photo with a Disney theme
3/26-4/1 Signage – Any photo of signage at a Disney Park or Resort will be accepted.
April
4/2-4/8 Rainy Days at Disney – Post your favorite photo of rain at Disney
4/9-4/15 Postcard Shots - Post a photo you think looks like a postcard
4/16-4/22 Where Am I? – Post your photo taken in a Disney Park or Resort that will require some thought as to where it was taken
4/23-4/29 Future World – Enter your photo taken in or of the Future World section of Epcot
May
4/30-5/6 Meet & Greet - Any photo taken during a character meet and greet will be accepted
5/7-5/13 Flower & Garden - The plant life of the Disney parks and resorts
5/14-5/20 Land Of Extinction – Photos of things that are no longer there. Rides and attractions, signs, etc. that were once within a Disney Park or Resort will be accepted.
5/21-5/27 The Magic Kingdom - Any photo taken within a Magic Kingdom will be accepted
5/28-6/3 World Showcase - Any photo taken in World Showcase is acceptable
June
6/4-6/10 Oops – We have all taken that photo or two that just didn’t turn out as we had intended. Show us how yours turned out
6/11-6/17 Sunrise/Sunset - Any photo featuring a Disney sunrise or sunset will be accepted
6/18-6/24 Queue Line – Enter your photo of a Disney queue line
6/25-7/1 Disney Mountains - Photos must include any of the Disney mountains
July
7/2-7/8 The Red, White & Blue of Disney - Show us your photo of patriotism at Disney
7/9-7/15 Fireworks - Photos of fireworks will be accepted
7/16-7/22 Laughter - Share a photo that shows something you thought was funny or someone else’s reaction to something funny that was taken at a Disney park or resort or otherwise involves Disney. And if there’s a story involved, we would love to hear it!
7/23-7/29 Architecture - Any photo featuring the architectural elements of Disney will be accepted
August
7/30-8/5 Disney’s Hollywood Studios - Photos must be taken in and of Disney’s Hollywood Studios
8/6-8/12 The Muppets - Show us your favorite photo that features the Muppets
8/13-8/19 Asia at Animal Kingdom - Photos taken within the Asia area of Animal Kingdom will be accepted
8/20-8/26 Water - Any photo where water is the theme taken in a park or resort
8/27-9/2 Celebrations – Enter your photo of a celebration at Disney.
September
9/3-9/9 Pixar - Anything that includes something Pixar-related will be accepted
9/10-9/16 Color – Enter your photo that captures the colors of Disney
9/17-9/23 Quiet Time – There are lots of quiet spots at Disney. Show us your favorite.
9/24-9/30 Nighttime - Photos must be taken at night of anything Disney
October
10/1-10/7 Food & Drink - Photos can be of any food and/or drink anywhere on property
10/8-10/14 Fantasyland - Photos taken in and of any Fantasyland will be accepted
10/15-10/21 Disney Villains - Photos with any of the Disney Villains as the subject are acceptable
10/22-10/28 Haunted Mansions - Any photo where one of the Haunted Mansions (or Phantom Manor) is the focus will be accepted
10/29-11/4 Halloween - Any Halloween photo at a park or resort or even at home with a Disney subject will be accepted
November
11/5-11/11 Animal Kingdom - Photos taken in and of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park
11/12-11/18 Critters - This contest is for any live animal found in a Disney park
11/19-11/25 Park Entrances – Post your photo taken of a Disney Park from outside the turnstiles
11/26-12/2 Show Us Your Smiling Face - This is the one contest where you don’t have to be the one that took the photo. Let’s see what your friends and family took of you. Please no photopass shots. Mirror shots and selfies will also be accepted
December
12/3-12/9 Dark Rides – Enter your photo taken on a dark ride without breaking any park rules
12/10-12/16 Lights - Any photo of light at Disney is acceptable
12/17-12/30 Holidays – Enter your photo of Holidays at a Disney Park or Resort
Official Contest Rules
The rules will be very similar as previous years.
Contests will run from Saturday-Friday 11:59pm PACIFIC TIME, submissions after this time will not be included. An individual thread will be created for each contest.
One submission per member, per contest. Once you post your picture, you cannot replace it. You cannot re-use the same entry in multiple contests even if used in a different year. Obviously I cannot remember every picture posted in a contest so try your best to remember if you have entered a picture.
Pictures can be taken with any type of camera (film or digital).
Pictures can not be altered in any way, except to adjust size, crop, or add your own personal watermark. This is a photography contest, not a photo-editing contest.
Please resize pictures to be no larger than 1024x768 OR 768X1024
You may attach the photo to your post or upload it to your own personal site and link the photo. If you use your own site, you are responsible to ensure the photo is viewable at all times (and not subject to bandwidth limitations).
Pictures can be taken at any time for any contest for example, if you visited in April of 2002, you can use those pictures for any contest that interests you.
Pictures must be taken by the member submitting the entry, and not by a family member or by a cast member (meaning you physically have to take the entry. CM’s are of course allowed to enter their own photos) again, except for the one contest where it is allowed.
Voting will begin shortly after the contest end time.
If 10 or less people participated, 1 poll will be posted, and it will be open for 6 days.
If more than 10 entries exist, the entries will be divided into similar-sized groups, and will be listed in the order that they were submitted.
No breaking of park rules or common etiquette to take your pictures. (No accessing restricted areas, no flash photography on attractions which do not allow it....stuff like that)
The overall subject of the contest is "Disney". Although some contests are specific to areas of Walt Disney World, anything "Disney related" can be taken for other contests, including, but not limited to, other Disney parks. For contests like the "Fantasyland photo contest", any Disney park's Fantasyland would be accepted. Some contests allow photos not taken on Disney property and this is noted in the topic description.
If there are any changes to these rules those changes will be posted in this thread as well as at the beginning of each week’s contest after the change takes effect.
updated 12/5/15
Hello all and welcome to this year’s photo contests! I went through last year’s contests and removed some of the less popular contests, and replaced them with some of your suggestions. I’m looking forward to a great year of photo contests, so let’s get down to business!
Here is the calendar for 2016:
January
1/1-1/8 Poster’s Choice – Post your favorite Disney photo
1/9-1/15 Disney Transportation - Any photo of Disney transportation (Bus, boat, monorail, etc.) will be accepted
1/16-1/22 Epcot - Any photo taken at or of Epcot will be accepted
1/23-1/29 Cast Member Magic - Photos should be of cast members making “magic“
February
1/30-2/5 Parades - Any parade (current or former) at any Disney Park would be accepted
2/6-2/12 Park Icons - Photos must be focused on a Disney Park icon
2/13-2/19 The Little Things - This contest focuses on the little Disney details that are easily missed
2/20-2/16 Star Wars - Entries with a Star Wars theme will be accepted
March
2/27-3/4 Fire – Photos must include fire at a Disney Park or Resort
3/5-3/11 Favorite Souvenir – Show us your favorite souvenir from a Disney Park or Resort
3/12-3/18 Resorts - Any photo taken at a Disney hotel will be accepted
3/19-3/25 Black & White – Enter your black and white photo with a Disney theme
3/26-4/1 Signage – Any photo of signage at a Disney Park or Resort will be accepted.
April
4/2-4/8 Rainy Days at Disney – Post your favorite photo of rain at Disney
4/9-4/15 Postcard Shots - Post a photo you think looks like a postcard
4/16-4/22 Where Am I? – Post your photo taken in a Disney Park or Resort that will require some thought as to where it was taken
4/23-4/29 Future World – Enter your photo taken in or of the Future World section of Epcot
May
4/30-5/6 Meet & Greet - Any photo taken during a character meet and greet will be accepted
5/7-5/13 Flower & Garden - The plant life of the Disney parks and resorts
5/14-5/20 Land Of Extinction – Photos of things that are no longer there. Rides and attractions, signs, etc. that were once within a Disney Park or Resort will be accepted.
5/21-5/27 The Magic Kingdom - Any photo taken within a Magic Kingdom will be accepted
5/28-6/3 World Showcase - Any photo taken in World Showcase is acceptable
June
6/4-6/10 Oops – We have all taken that photo or two that just didn’t turn out as we had intended. Show us how yours turned out
6/11-6/17 Sunrise/Sunset - Any photo featuring a Disney sunrise or sunset will be accepted
6/18-6/24 Queue Line – Enter your photo of a Disney queue line
6/25-7/1 Disney Mountains - Photos must include any of the Disney mountains
July
7/2-7/8 The Red, White & Blue of Disney - Show us your photo of patriotism at Disney
7/9-7/15 Fireworks - Photos of fireworks will be accepted
7/16-7/22 Laughter - Share a photo that shows something you thought was funny or someone else’s reaction to something funny that was taken at a Disney park or resort or otherwise involves Disney. And if there’s a story involved, we would love to hear it!
7/23-7/29 Architecture - Any photo featuring the architectural elements of Disney will be accepted
August
7/30-8/5 Disney’s Hollywood Studios - Photos must be taken in and of Disney’s Hollywood Studios
8/6-8/12 The Muppets - Show us your favorite photo that features the Muppets
8/13-8/19 Asia at Animal Kingdom - Photos taken within the Asia area of Animal Kingdom will be accepted
8/20-8/26 Water - Any photo where water is the theme taken in a park or resort
8/27-9/2 Celebrations – Enter your photo of a celebration at Disney.
September
9/3-9/9 Pixar - Anything that includes something Pixar-related will be accepted
9/10-9/16 Color – Enter your photo that captures the colors of Disney
9/17-9/23 Quiet Time – There are lots of quiet spots at Disney. Show us your favorite.
9/24-9/30 Nighttime - Photos must be taken at night of anything Disney
October
10/1-10/7 Food & Drink - Photos can be of any food and/or drink anywhere on property
10/8-10/14 Fantasyland - Photos taken in and of any Fantasyland will be accepted
10/15-10/21 Disney Villains - Photos with any of the Disney Villains as the subject are acceptable
10/22-10/28 Haunted Mansions - Any photo where one of the Haunted Mansions (or Phantom Manor) is the focus will be accepted
10/29-11/4 Halloween - Any Halloween photo at a park or resort or even at home with a Disney subject will be accepted
November
11/5-11/11 Animal Kingdom - Photos taken in and of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park
11/12-11/18 Critters - This contest is for any live animal found in a Disney park
11/19-11/25 Park Entrances – Post your photo taken of a Disney Park from outside the turnstiles
11/26-12/2 Show Us Your Smiling Face - This is the one contest where you don’t have to be the one that took the photo. Let’s see what your friends and family took of you. Please no photopass shots. Mirror shots and selfies will also be accepted
December
12/3-12/9 Dark Rides – Enter your photo taken on a dark ride without breaking any park rules
12/10-12/16 Lights - Any photo of light at Disney is acceptable
12/17-12/30 Holidays – Enter your photo of Holidays at a Disney Park or Resort
Official Contest Rules
The rules will be very similar as previous years.
Contests will run from Saturday-Friday 11:59pm PACIFIC TIME, submissions after this time will not be included. An individual thread will be created for each contest.
One submission per member, per contest. Once you post your picture, you cannot replace it. You cannot re-use the same entry in multiple contests even if used in a different year. Obviously I cannot remember every picture posted in a contest so try your best to remember if you have entered a picture.
Pictures can be taken with any type of camera (film or digital).
Pictures can not be altered in any way, except to adjust size, crop, or add your own personal watermark. This is a photography contest, not a photo-editing contest.
Please resize pictures to be no larger than 1024x768 OR 768X1024
You may attach the photo to your post or upload it to your own personal site and link the photo. If you use your own site, you are responsible to ensure the photo is viewable at all times (and not subject to bandwidth limitations).
Pictures can be taken at any time for any contest for example, if you visited in April of 2002, you can use those pictures for any contest that interests you.
Pictures must be taken by the member submitting the entry, and not by a family member or by a cast member (meaning you physically have to take the entry. CM’s are of course allowed to enter their own photos) again, except for the one contest where it is allowed.
Voting will begin shortly after the contest end time.
If 10 or less people participated, 1 poll will be posted, and it will be open for 6 days.
If more than 10 entries exist, the entries will be divided into similar-sized groups, and will be listed in the order that they were submitted.
No breaking of park rules or common etiquette to take your pictures. (No accessing restricted areas, no flash photography on attractions which do not allow it....stuff like that)
The overall subject of the contest is "Disney". Although some contests are specific to areas of Walt Disney World, anything "Disney related" can be taken for other contests, including, but not limited to, other Disney parks. For contests like the "Fantasyland photo contest", any Disney park's Fantasyland would be accepted. Some contests allow photos not taken on Disney property and this is noted in the topic description.
If there are any changes to these rules those changes will be posted in this thread as well as at the beginning of each week’s contest after the change takes effect.
