Hong Kong Underwater Photo and Video Competition 2023

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"Hong Kong Underwater Photo and Video Competition 2023 " Results

"Hong Kong Underwater Photo and Video Competition 2023 " roving exhibition, public seminars and sharing forum

Roving exhibition of winning entries, public seminars and sharing forum will be held as follows

Roving exhibition:

Date:	December 9 to 13, 2023
Time:	10am to 5:30pm
Venue:	“OPCFHK Beauty of Biodiversity” Exhibition, Ocean Park Hong Kong

Date:	December 15 to 17, 2023
Time:	15 to 16: 12pm to 8pm 17: 12pm to 6pm
Venue:	Diving & Resort Travel Expo Hong Kong 2023 (Hall 3G, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre)

Date:	December 20, 2023 to January 11, 2024
Time:	Monday to Friday: 9:30am - 17:30pm Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays: 10am -7pm
Venue:	The Special Exhibitions and Events Gallery, Hong Kong Maritime Museum (Central Pier No. 8)
	- Free admission to the Gallery during the exhibition period

Date:	January 13 to 17, 2024
Time:	10am to 7pm
Venue:	Zone A, Level 1, D·PARK, Tsuen Wan, N.T.

Public seminars and sharing forum:

Date and time:	5:30pm to 6pm, December 15, 2023
Venue:	Diving & Resort Travel Expo Hong Kong 2023 (Hall 3G, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre)
Title:	Get to know underwater photography from Hong Kong
Speaker:	Mr. KWOK Tsz Ki (winner of HKUPVC 2023)
Language:	Cantonese

Date and time:	2:30pm to 4pm, December 23, 2023
Venue:	The Special Exhibitions and Events Gallery, Hong Kong Maritime Museum (Central Pier No. 8)
Title:	(1) Kaleidoscope of fishes: underwater photography on reef fishes in Hong Kong (2) Blackwater photography in Hong Kong: equipment, sites and examples of species
Speaker:	(1) Mr. YIU Wai Hong (winner of HKUPVC 2023) (2) Mr. LAU Pong Wing Atim (winner of HKUPVC 2023)
Language:	Cantonese

Date and time:	2:30pm to 3:30pm, December 30, 2023
Venue:	The Special Exhibitions and Events Gallery, Hong Kong Maritime Museum (Central Pier No. 8)
Title:	Sharing forum on photography and conservation
Speaker:	Miss Daphne WONG, Mr. KWOK Tsz Ki, Mr. YIU Wai Hong
Language:	Cantonese

Date and time:	10:30am to 11:30am, January 6, 2024
Venue:	The Special Exhibitions and Events Gallery, Hong Kong Maritime Museum (Central Pier No. 8)
Title:	Corals in Hong Kong: status after 2022 bleaching event, and conservation through active restoration and public engagement
Speaker:	Dr. Apple CHUI
Language:	Cantonese

For public seminars and sharing forum held in Hong Kong Maritime Museum, please register and enroll through the following link:

https://forms.office.com/r/nDfS415HS8

"Hong Kong Underwater Photo and Video Competition 2023 " Details

* Download Poster of Hong Kong Underwater Photo and Video Competition 2023

Aim
Hong Kong Underwater Photo and Video Competition 2023 is co-organised by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) and Hong Kong China Underwater Association (HKCUA). It aims to promote the beauty of underwater marine life and marine ecology in Hong Kong, and raise public awareness of the importance in conservation of our marine environment.

Groups
1. Open Group – Digital Photo Competition (Macro & Close-up Category, Standard & Wide Angle Category), and Digital Video Competition
2. Student Group – Digital Photo Competition

Contestants can only participate in either Open Group or Student Group.

Eligibility and Entry Requirement

Contestants must hold a diver’s certificate recognized by HKCUA and must be aged 15 or above.
Contestants of the Student Group must be full-time students.
All entries should showcase marine life or ecology in Hong Kong waters.
Digital photos and digital videos should be taken in Hong Kong waters from 1 October 2021 to 30 September 2023.
Entries must be the original photos or videos taken by the contestants; and prior to the submission, were not for sale, published or awarded in any other competitions.
The contestants shall not in any form disclose his/her identity on the entries.
Personnel being involved in the organising of the competition are not allowed to enter the competition.

Rules and Regulations

Open Group – Digital Photo Competition (Macro & Close-up Category, Standard & Wide Angle Category)

Contestants should be enrolled as individual. Each contestant may submit up to 10 photos for each category.
Entries must be original photos taken by the contestants. Except for minor adjustments such as full-frame optimisation of white balance, brightness, contrast, colour saturation, sharpening and cropping, no manipulation is allowed, for example, synthetic modification or colour-change by computer post-processing.
Once the entries are shortlisted, the original untouched file of the entries and a file with minor modification (for exhibition purpose) must be provided by the contestants in JPEG/RAW/TIFF format, resolution of which should not be less than 3200x2400 (4:3) or 3600x2400 (3:2). The minor modification is defined as no more than 10% optimisation of colour, exposure and/or cropping. Entries may be disqualified if the original untouched files cannot be provided.
Contestants are reminded to pre-set the date of the camera before shooting.

Open Group – Digital Video Competition

Contestants can be enrolled either as an individual or a team. Contestants should submit no more than three entries for the video competition.
Entries must be in 720i Standard-definition (SD) resolution or above. Edited video clips should not be longer than 1 min. Video entries should be in H.264/MPEG-4 format.
Accompanying music, if included in the video, should be royalty free and not infringe any copyrights.
Video editing will be allowed. However, computer graphics and animations should be minimised. At least 75% of the video should be taken underwater.

Student Group – Digital Photo Competition

No categories will be set for Student Group, and other requirements are the same as for Open Group – Digital Photo Competition. There is no Digital Video Competition for Student Group.

The organisers have the right to disqualify the entries that do not meet the above rules and regulations for the competition. Organisers also reserve the right to timely amend the rules and regulations of the competition without prior notice to the contestants.

Judging Criteria
Digital Photo: all entries will be scored by the judges on the basis of the shooting difficulty, the overall beauty and the expression of the message.

Digital Video: all entries will be scored by the judges on the basis of the theme, the creativity, the technical skill (visual impact, editing, background music), the expression of the message and the overall performance.

* If a contestant submitted a number of entries with similar content and composition, only the highest-scored entry may be awarded. Other similar entries will not be considered.

Judging Panel
Mr David Hsiung
Mr Alfred Li
Mr Raymond Man
Mr Denny Wong
Mr John Ng
Mr Ken Ching
Mr Ricky SHU SHU
Representatives of the organisers

Entries Submission
Method 1
Visit “Hong Kong Underwater Photo and Video Competition 2023 – Enrollment Page” to fill in the entry form, upload diving certificate, student card (only applicable to Student Group) and entries.

Method 2
Entries may also be submitted together with the electronic copy of the duly completed entry form, diving certificate and student card (only applicable to Student Group) by email at mar_con_biodiv@afcd.gov.hk. Video entries must be provided with a hyperlink to download the video. An acknowledgement e-mail will be sent to the contestants for successful submission.

Deadline
30 September 2023 (Saturday)

Awards

Open group
Champion, First Runner-up and Second Runner-up will be awarded in both Categories under Digital Photo Competition and in Digital Video Competition. In addition, up to 10 Outstanding Awards will be given in each Category of Digital Photo Competition. Up to 3 Special Prizes for Junior Underwater Photographers will be given in both Categories under Digital Photo Competition and in Digital Video Competition for outstanding entries taken by the contestants who have not received any awards from underwater photo or video competitions in Hong Kong or overseas. The prizes include trophies or certificates.

Student Group
Up to 3 Special Prize will be awarded for Student Underwater Photographer. The prizes include trophies or certificates.

Up to 2 Nudibranchs Special Awards and up to 2 Biodiversity Awards will be awarded for all entries to Digital Photo Competitions in both Open and Student Groups. The prizes include trophies or certificates.

Hong Kong China Underwater Association will select two of the best underwater photographers and a best underwater videographer among all winning entries. He or she will be eligible to represent Hong Kong to enter oversea competitions (The organisers reserve the right to make the final decision).

Each winner will be informed for the award on or before 30 November 2023. Champion of each category may be invited to introduce their awarded entries and share their tips in taking the entries in the prize presentation ceremony and subsequent public seminars or sharing session introducing the marine ecology of Hong Kong. The winning entries will be displayed for educational purpose.

Copyright
Contestants shall comply with the relevant Copyright Law. Entries in violation of copyright or related offenses, including but not limiting to being borrowed, reproduced, copied or counterfeited, will be disqualified. The offender shall bear their own legal liability. Any legal disputes are not related to the organisers.

The organisers reserve the rights including but not limited to exhibit, publicly display, distribute, reproduce, edit, print and publish the entries without prior notice to the contestants. No fees will be payable for any of the above uses.

Once the entries have been submitted for the competition, the contestant is assumed to recognise and accept the terms stated in this brochure.

Enquiries
Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department
Tel: 3468 5465
Fax: 3468 3014
E-mail: mar_con_biodiv@afcd.gov.hk
Website: http://www.afcd.gov.hk/

Hong Kong China Underwater Association
Tel: 2504 8154
Fax: 2577 5601
E-mail: enquiry@hkua.org.hk
Website: http://www.hkua.org.hk/