Questions

• What type of books can I enter?
• How do I enter?
• Who can enter?
• Where do I send the books I want to enter?
• I haven't self-published a photography book yet. How do I do it?
• What are the judging criteria? How will you select the winners?
• Who are the jurors?
• What are the prizes?
• Can I submit books featuring my art or writing?
• Will the books that I enter be returned to me?
• Can I just email you digital files of my book?
• Can you explain the categories a bit more?
• Can I enter multiple books and categories?
• Where will my book(s) be shown? How will my book(s) be used?
• Why should I enter this competition?
• What is the salon? Where will it be?
• What is the symposium? Where will it be?
• What is the awards ceremony? Where will it be?
• Will there be any parties?
• How do I contact the people responsible for the Photography.Book.Now International Salon & Symposium?
• How much does it cost to attend the symposium?
• Are there student discounts?
• Are there different categories for professionals and amateurs?
• What rights does Blurb have to my books?
• I am using Adobe InDesign to layout my book. How do I send it to you?
• Do you publish a color profile that I can use to calibrate?
• What is your contact information?
• Can I call you on the telephone?
• Can I drop off my entry at your office?
• I need help making my book. How do I contact you?

What type of books can I enter?

Enter as many of your own self-published photography books as you like. However, this competition is not for books published by commercial publishers, or hand-made books.

How do I enter?

If you have already made your photography book through Blurb, simply follow the Blurb-specific directions on our Entry page. This can be done completely online, no need to send us a physical copy of your book.

If you have self-published your photography book outside of Blurb, you’ll need to send us three physical copies of each book you enter for judging purposes. Here is the PDF entry form.

If you need to make a photography book in order to enter, we recommend starting at Blurb.

Who can enter?

Anyone who abides by the Photography.Book.Now Rules can enter their own self-published photography books.

Where do I send the books I want to enter?

If you have already made your photography book through Blurb, simply follow the Blurb-specific directions on our Entry page. This can be done completely online, no need to send us physical copies of your books.

If you’ve already self-published a photography book outside of Blurb, simply download the PDF available on the Entry page and follow the instructions on where to send your entry form, fee, and books. But remember, this competition is not for books published by commercial publishers, or books made by hand.

I haven't self-published a photography book yet. How do I do it?

If you need to make a photography book in order to enter, we recommend starting at Blurb. Blurb provides everything to create, share, market, and sell professional-quality books.

What are the judging criteria? How will you select the winners?

A panel of judges will be tasked with evaluating the best of the best. Books will be judged in their entirety: the whole, which is more than just a sum of the parts. Additionally, judges will look to excellence in these six categories:

• Cover Design
• Strength of the photography
• Subject matter of the book
• Page layouts
• Editing and sequencing
• Emotional impact of the overall book

Judging will begin after the July 14, 2008 submissions deadline. Winners will be announced in early September 2008.

Who are the jurors?

The official list of judges will soon be announced.

What are the prizes?

The Grand Prize is $25,000 to finish – or start – any project you want. There will be two Category Winners, Two 1st Runners Up, Two 2nd Runners Up and 10 books per category will receive Honorable Mention.

Can I submit books featuring my art or writing?

Sorry, but no. Photography.Book.Now is a photography book competition. Your photographs may be accompanied by text, but the book content must principally be photography.

Will the books that I enter be returned to me?

Due to the reach and complexity of the Photography.Book.Now competition, we will not be able to return any book entries.

Can I just email you digital files of my book?

Sorry, but no. We can only accept printed books.

That said, if you published your book(s) using Blurb, you can enter the competition completely online without having to print and ship us anything. Should your book(s) make it into the final stages of the competition, we’ll print your books for the jurors to review in hand.

Can you explain the categories a bit more?

Can I enter multiple books and categories?

You can enter as many books as you’d like in either of our two competition categories, but the entry fee is $35 per entry.

Where will my book(s) be shown? How will my book(s) be used?

We want to show off your best work. Submissions will be featured in the Blurb Bookstore and winning books will go on exhibit at Photography.Book.Now events in San Francisco, New York, London, and Cologne. For more information, go to the Rules.

Why should I enter this competition?

Publishing a photography book used to be attainable only by the famous and the few. That was then. This is Photography.Book.Now.

Everything has changed. Now we all have the power to publish. The Internet and print-on-demand technology give you complete creative control to make the book you want to make.

The Photography.Book.Now International Salon and Symposium celebrates the modern book movement and inspires photographers of all stripes to get their work out there in books. Be a part of the movement. Get involved. Enter the competition. You could win $25,000, a trip to San Francisco, and a chance to be discovered on a global level.

What is the salon? Where will it be?

The Photography.Book.Now International Salon and Symposium includes a traveling salon showcasing the winners of the book competition. Think of it as an exhibit featuring photography books. Exhibited books will be on view at the San Francisco awards ceremony, at each of the international meet-ups in London, New York City, and Cologne, and at the Photography.Book.Now symposia in San Francisco, London and New York. See the full calendar here.

What is the symposium? Where will it be?

The symposium includes a half-day program of panels and presentations, exploring the modern photography book movement. You’ll hear working photographers talk about how they use books to advance their careers and art, listen to industry practitioners discuss how to curate and design books, and learn how to market a successful book. This educational program presents noted photographers, educators, and industry leaders to motivate and inspire. See the full calendar here.

What is the awards ceremony? Where will it be?

On Friday, September 12, 2008, the Grand Prize and top Category winners will be honored at an evening awards ceremony in San Francisco. Everyone who entered the competition is welcome to attend.

Will there be any parties?

Absolutely. And you’re invited. Our awards ceremony in San Francisco kicks things off on Friday, September 12, 2008, and Meet-ups in London, New York City, and Cologne are opportunities to mix it up with your peers, mentors, gallery owners, publishers, educators, press, and industry insiders. There will be food and drinks for all.

How do I contact the people responsible for the Photography.Book.Now International Salon & Symposium?

Send us an email.

How much does it cost to attend the symposium?

Nothing. Thanks to the support of our very generous sponsors, every Photography.Book.Now event, including the awards ceremony, the salon, meet-ups, and the symposium, is free.

Are there student discounts?

There are no fees to attend any of the Photography.Book.Now events. Additionally, we have made every attempt to keep the entry fees low – so low that they don’t even come close to covering our costs – so, regrettably, there are no discounts available on the entry fees.

Are there different categories for professionals and amateurs?

There are no separate judging categories for professionals and amateurs. Photography.Book.Now features two categories, Themed and General, and each is open to anyone who meets the submission criteria Rules. We’re interested in your best photography books. Amateur or professional, we invite you to enter.

What rights does Blurb have to my books?

Blurb reserves the right to use the winning books for promotional marketing purposes. We have no right to “sell’ your work nor in any way do we have any copyright or any other rights to your books. Please go to the [rules] for more information. Winning books will travel with the salon and be exhibited in San Francisco, New York, London, and Cologne. Your book(s) will also appear in the Photography.Book.Now section of the Blurb Bookstore if you made them through Blurb and entered them in this competition. If you have submitted physical books via another self-published approach, your books unfortunately will not appear in the online Blurb Bookstore.

I am using Adobe InDesign to layout my book. How do I send it to you?

If you’re using Blurb to publish your book, here’s a blog post explaining how to import your custom files into Blurb BookSmart, our free bookmaking software. From there, you can upload and order your book, and enter it into the competition.

Do you publish a color profile that I can use to calibrate?

If you’re using Blurb to publish your book, you can find color profile information in Blurb’s FAQs, Blog, and in the Forums.

What is your contact information?

Please contact us via email. If you want to physically mail us your photography book entry, just follow the directions on our Entry page.

Can I call you on the telephone?

Unfortunately, no. We encourage you to review our FAQs. If you still have a question, please send us an email.

Can I drop off my entry at your office?

Sorry, but we won’t accept any entries dropped off in person. In order to enter the competition, you must follow the directions specified on our Entry page.

I need help making my book. How do I contact you?

If you are using Blurb to make your book and have a technical question, please review Blurb's FAQ section first. If your question is still not answered please email Blurb's awesome customer support people here.

Of course we can’t make your book for you, that part is completely up to you. (You can imagine why we can’t help entrants with their books, right?)