PNY Technologies, Inc. announced that they will donate $100,000 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as part of the 2008 Thanks and Giving campaign to help find cures for pediatric cancer and other deadly diseases.  PNY also unveiled a family photo contest to raise additional money for the hospital.

St. Jude, located in Memphis, Tenn., is the only pediatric cancer research and treatment facility where no child is ever turned away because of the family’s inability to pay.  With an average of 5,400 patient visits annually and research findings shared with doctors and scientists worldwide, the hospital depends on corporate and public contributions for it to thrive. 

PNY is encouraging parents and customers to donate through its “Let Our Memory Capture Your Memories” photo contest by including donation and contest information in specially marked packages of select SD memory cards and USB flash drives. Parents can submit a favorite photo of their child to the contest and encourage their friends and family to vote for the photo. The program runs through January 31, 2009.  PNY will donate $20,000 to St. Jude in the winner’s name.

“PNY is extremely proud to join St. Jude in its efforts to improve the lives of so many families around the world.  We’re also very thankful for the healthy children in our lives and believe supporting this outstanding organization is a great way for us to help further their cause,” said Tony Gomez, vice president of sales and marketing for PNY.  “Our goal is to raise another $50,000 for St. Jude through the family photo contest.  It is also a fun way for parents to share the wonderful childhood memories they have captured on PNY SD cards and USB flash drives.”

Grand prize winner
The top 10 photos receiving the most votes will be submitted to a panel of judges who will select
the Grand Prize Winner. PNY will donate $20,000 to St. Jude in the winner’s name.
The winner will receive a PNY prize package valued at $500.

Competition Link / Set Reminder

CANON NEW BABY PHOTO CONTEST

The Canon New Baby Photo Contest is open to non-professional photographers who are resident in the United States. You can enter up to six photos of your baby.

The submission deadline: May 31, 2008 at 11:59 p.m. ET

Judging Criteria:
-  Appearance of Baby as shown in the Photo (25%)
-  Overall personality of Baby as expressed in the Photo (25%); and
-  Quality of Photo (50%)

Prizes:
ONE GRAND PRIZE: $10,000 in the form of a check that winner can apply towards the education of the Baby.
THREE FIRST PRIZES: A Canon EOS® 40D Digital SLR Camera and a Canon SELPHY® ES2 Compact Photo Printer. Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”): $1,700.
THREE SECOND PRIZES: A Canon PowerShot® Digital ELPH Camera and a $200 Gift Certificate to Babies R’ Us. ARV: $550.
TEN THIRD PRIZES: A Canon PIXMA® MP970 Photo All-In-One and $100 Gift Certificate to Babies R’ Us. ARV: $400.

Copyright: “All Photos will become the exclusive property of Sponsor, and none will be acknowledged or returned. Sponsor shall have the right, but not the obligation, to edit, adapt and publish any or all of the Photos, and may use them in any media whatsoever, including, but not limited to the Internet, without attribution or compensation to the entrant, the Baby, either of their successors or assigns, or any other entity. ENTERING A PHOTO IN THIS CONTEST CONSTITUTES ENTRANT’S IRREVOCABLE ASSIGNMENT, CONVEYANCE AND TRANSFERENCE TO SPONSOR OF ANY AND ALL RIGHT, TITLE AND INTEREST IN THE PHOTO INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ALL COPYRIGHTS.”

Competition Link / Set Reminder

HELLO! magazine has launched their inaugural Young Photographers Award as part of their 20th Anniversary celebrations this year.

The award is open to photography students between the ages of 18 to 30 years, and has been devised and developed in conjunction with Nikon and Getty Images Gallery.

“Launched on 7th May 1988, HELLO! was the first celebrity magazine in the UK and is often credited with single-handedly creating the celebrity magazine market, and has remained a dominant force in an increasingly competitive and fast-moving sector. Synonymous with glamour, style and sophistication, HELLO! is passionate about photography, and this is reflected in the quality of our award-winning photo shoots. In celebrating our milestone anniversary, it seems entirely fitting to offer aspiring young photographers the chance to showcase their work and to win that critical first commission. Demand for quality photographic work has never been greater as our culture becomes increasingly dominated by visual imagery.”

Judges:
Judging the Award will be a panel of top photographers, comprising Lorenzo Agius, Mike Daines, Dave Hogan, Penny Lancaster Stewart, Terry O’Neill, Christopher Simon Sykes, Aidan Sullivan, John Swannell, Mark Thompson and former HELLO! editor Ronnie Whelan.

The categories for the competition are as follows:
AT HOME/INTERIORS: An at home/location shoot that conveys the subject’s personality.
REPORTAGE: An open brief to tell a news/feature story, capturing intimate, enlightening and powerful moments.
WEDDINGS & CELEBRATIONS: A well-lit and original study that captures the essence of a special day, whether a wedding, birthday or other milestone event.
BABIES & PARENTHOOD: An intimate and unique study of babies up to 12 months, highlighting the interaction between baby and parent(s).
FASHION: HELLO! is glamour and style! The challenge here is to produce images that reflect the very essence of individual style.

Closing Dates:
Work must be submitted by noon on Friday 27th June 2008.

How to Enter:
Entrants must first register on HELLO’s website. Once registration has been activated, each applicant will be invited to upload up to three complete digital entries per category. Please submit jpegs of no more than 5MB. Each photograph must be accompanied by an explanation detailing when, where and why the photograph was taken in no more than 50 words.

The Prizes:
There will be a winner and a runner-up in each of the five categories. An overall winner and runner-up will then be decided by the judges. The winner will be the entrant whose photograph in the opinion of the judges demonstrates the greatest flair, technique and originality. The judges may also, at their discretion, nominate highly commended entries.
The winner will receive £5000 and have a commissioned shoot published in HELLO! magazine. The runner-up will receive £2500 and have a two day internship with a leading Getty Images photographer in the area of his/her choice i.e. News, Sport, Entertainment or Creative photography. In addition all the category winners will receive a Nikon D40 kit, and the category runners-up will each receive a Nikon Coolpix P60.
The judges will present the prizes at an exhibition of the winning entries at Getty Images Gallery at the end of September 2008.

Copyright:
Entrants will retain copyright in their submitted entries; however, by entering, all entrants give HML, GIG and NUK a worldwide royalty free perpetual licence to edit, publish and use all or segments of each entry in any and all media (including print and online) for publicity and news purposes relating to this competition and to the publicity and promotion of this competition in future years. In particular, all entrants license HML the right to publish their entry on HMC and in print. Where an image is used, the photographer will be credited. Publication of any entry does not necessarily mean that the entrant has won a prize and no consideration shall be due or payable, or compensation awarded, in the event of publication without any prize being awarded.

Competition Link / Set Reminder