Blurb launches international online photography book competition

27/03/08

Blurb, the creative publishing service, is launching the Photography.Book.Now (PBN) International Salon and Symposium to help photographers create their own coffee table books and achieve international recognition for their work. Entries are invited from now and the closing date is 14th July 2008. The winner will take $25,000 and a trip to San Francisco as the grand prize. Presented by Blurb, the competition sponsors also include: Livebooks, Flickr, SmugMug, American Photo, Photo District News (PDN), and JPG Magazine.
Entries will be accepted in two categories, General and Themed.

The General category celebrates the diversity of the photographic medium and gives entrants the creative freedom to produce the book of their choice.

The Themed category invites any topic, concept or collection of work that demonstrates how photography can create a narrative in book form.

Don’t have a pre-made book? Make one for free at www.blurb.com and then submit your entry either in hardback or online!

World-renowned photographer and photography book expert Darius Himes will lead a panel of editors, publishers, curators and photographers who will jury the PBN competition.

An important part of PBN is bringing the photographic community together. There will be an awards ceremony in San Francisco where the grand prize and top category winners will be honoured on 12th September 2008. There will also be meet-ups in San Francisco, New York, London and Cologne, where attendees can hang out with industry peers, judges and friends.

PBN includes a travelling salon showcasing the competition’s winning books, and a half-day symposium featuring panels and presentations exploring the modern photography book movement.

'Most photographers, whether photography is their day job or they wish that it could be, want to see their work published,' said Eileen Gittins, Blurb’s founder and CEO.

'To affordably make a book of one’s own photography, with complete creative control, is a liberating, exciting, highly personal and satisfying experience. That’s what Photography.Book.Now should inspire: Photographers can now make the coffee table books they’ve always wanted, with a real chance to gain worldwide recognition and win a tremendous prize.'

Entry details and other important dates:
Click here for complete entry guidelines, rules and submission details are available online.
Deadline: 14th July 2008
Winner and honorary mentions publicly announced on or around 18th September 2008
San Francisco Awards Ceremony: Friday 12th September
London meet up date: Friday 10th October