Contest Guidelines

• Only photographs of companion animals will be selected. Companion animals may include dogs, cats, rabbits, birds, hamsters, gerbils, ferrets, guinea pigs, rats, mice, chinchillas and horses. Please, no exotic animals. Photos with humans fully or partially in the frame will not be included in the calendar.
• Cats in outdoor environments must be on-leash.
• All animals must be depicted in a humane and dignified manner. No prong or choke collars, please.
• Only digital entries in jpeg (.jpg) or tiff (.tif) format will be considered. Photos must be 300 dpi and at least 2550 x 2550 pixels to be considered for the photo of the month or cover. Smaller photos may be entered, but will only be used for the collage pages. Absolutely no print photographs will be accepted.
• If your entry was taken by a professional photographer or commercial studio, you must mail a signed copyright release to the Wisconsin Humane Society, 4500 W. Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, WI 53208, Attn: Calendar Contest. Be sure to include your full name and the file name of the photo you sent along with the release.
• All entries must be received by the Wisconsin Humane Society no later than September 4, 2012 to be considered. The entry form will close at 11:59pm on 9/4/12.
• Photos become the property of WHS and may be used and/or altered for the 2013 calendar and for other fundraising efforts.
• You will be notified ONLY if your photo is chosen for the cover or as a Photo of the Month.
• Please note: due to the dimensions of the calendar, all photos will be cropped into a perfect square before they enter the judging process. Keep in mind that this may alter the composition of your photo.

Tips for Taking a Great Picture

• The animal should be in a neutral, humane setting looking at the camera, preferably at eye level.
• Don’t distract the focus of the picture, your animal, with a heavily cluttered background.
• If your animal is dark colored, take the photo in front of a lighter background.
• If your animal is light colored, take the photo in front of a darker background.
• Photos representing the changing seasons are desired.
• Natural light is better than flash. The more light, the more detail your camera will catch.
• It might take many photos to get the perfect shot, so start clicking!