We would like to thank everyone that entered the Carroll County Summer photo Contest.
We received many great photos and picking the best one was a challenge.
The fall/winter contest is now underway, so keep your shutters clicking and send your photos.
The fall/winter contest has concluded.  Thanks to everyone that entered.  Please check here soon
for the winning entries.

The winners of the summer contest are:
1st Place - Michelle Hook - Loves Park Illinois
2nd Place - Patti Kleopping - Lanark Illinois                 To view the wining photos, click here:
3rd Place - Paul Gonzalez - Lake Carroll Illinois

Carroll County Fall/Winter Photo Contest

Do you have some photos or video clips from around Carroll County?   We would like to give you the opportunity to share your images of Carroll county with others and offer some very nice gifts certificates including free gas cards and golfing.  Please read the contest rules below and then send an e-mail with your entry here: webmaster@gocarrollcounty.com

Please read the Contest rules below before submitting your entry.

Photo Eligibility
To enter, you must be at least 18 years of age. Carroll County Board members and their immediate family members are not eligible. Immediate family includes only spouses, parents and children. All photos must be in color and taken in Carroll County Illinois. 

Photographer/Copyright
Entries must be submitted by the original photographer. Do not submit a photo taken by someone other than yourself. You must be the sole owner of the copyright of any image submitted. Your submission of the photo and entry form is your guarantee that you are the author and copyright holder of the photo.

Photo Subject Restrictions
Photos must be appropriate for posting on a public government website. Obscene, provocative or otherwise questionable content will not be considered. Carroll County Hotel/Motel Board retains sole discretion as to what constitutes inappropriate content. Photos containing recognizable people must be submitted by regular mail and accompanied by a signed model release form.

Return of Photos
Photos, regardless of the medium, will not be returned. Please do not send your only copy of a photo.

Ownership/Use Rights
All images and video clips submitted will become the property of Carroll County Hotel/Motel board. By entering the contest, photographers agree to have their submitted photograph displayed on the gocarrollcounty.com website without any fee or other form of compensation, and agree that Carroll County may display winning photos in a "past winners" photo gallery and in the Carroll County "Monthly Newsletter", and may make and retain copies of the photograph for archival purposes. Posted photos will be subject to the Carroll County website photo use policy.  Entries will never be used by Carroll County for sale. In the event that ownership of any photograph submitted to Carroll County is contested in any manner, Carroll County retains the discretion to disqualify that photograph and discontinue use of the photograph.

How to Enter
Digital photos may be submitted by attaching your photo to an e-mail to: webmaster@gocarrollcounty.com. Please send your digital entries in either JPG or GIF formats.  Prints may be mailed along with completed entry forms to Carroll County (see further instructions below). E-mail entries must include your full name, daytime phone number and where you took the picture.  If you are mailing an entry, include your full name, daytime phone number and where you took the picture on a piece of paper.  Entries must be received by December 19, 2008.

Judging
Entries will be judged on the basis of creativity, photographic quality, and effectiveness in conveying the beauty and/or unique character of Carroll County Illinois. The Carroll County Hotel/Motel Board will judge the entries and all contest decisions are final. Entries that fail to comply with the Official Contest Rules will be disqualified. 

Winners
Judges will select a first and second place winning photo.  In addition, one or more "Picture Of The Month" winners may be selected with especially large numbers of entries, at the discretion of the judging panel. Winners will be notified after Thomson Melon Days on "Labor Day" weekend by phone and/or email.  . Winning photographs, along with the photographer's name and information about the photo, will be displayed on the www.gocarrollcounty.com website after the contest is over. No financial compensation is provided to winners.

Submitting Digital Images and Video Clips
Digital images should be submitted by attaching the image file to and e-mail to webmaster@gocarrollcounty.com. Images should be formatted to 72 dpi, no larger than 600 by 450 pixels and no smaller than 450 by 338 pixels. Images should be submitted in JPG (at high quality) or GIF format.  . Images must be in natural color. Black and white, sepia tone, and duotone images are not eligible. Digital images will not be returned.  Video clips should be around 30 seconds but not longer than one minute in length. 

Image Modifications:
Minor digital enhancement is permitted, but images that have been significantly modified or appear unnatural will be disqualified.

Not Permitted:

No borders or frames may be added to images.
No watermarks, signatures, or copyright notices may be added to images. All winning images will be displayed with the photographer's name.
Adding or replacing elements in an image is not permitted.
Artistic filters are not permitted.
Permitted Modifications:

Images may be cropped and rotated as necessary as long as the rectangular format is maintained and the size is within the specifications above.
Images may be resized as long as the aspect ratio is maintained
Red-eye removal and spot editing
One-step enhancement (such as "AutoFix", "QuickFix", "Auto Levels", etc.)
Use of filters to sharpen, soften, blur, despeckle, or remove noise.
Use of corrective functions to improve the natural appearance of the image, such as levels, contrast, brightness, curves, intensity, tone, hue, saturation, lightness, value, color balance, and tint.
Submitting Prints
Prints must be 4 x 6 inches or 5 x 7 inches and must be in color. Do not send negatives. Attach a label to the back of each print with your name and address. Do not write on the photo itself. If submitting multiple entries, number each print to match a corresponding entry form. Prints will not be returned.

Mail photograph along with your name, phone number and where the picture was taken to:

Carroll County Illinois Photo Contest
P.O. Box 217
Thomson, Illinois 61285

Additional Terms and Conditions
Carroll County reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel or suspend all or any portion of this contest without notice if factors beyond our control, including technical difficulties, disrupt or corrupt the fair or secure administration or operation of the contest. Void where prohibited. Carroll County is entitled to interpret these rules as needed and its decisions are final. We reserve the right to disqualify any entrant that the Carroll County Hotel/Motel Board has reason to believe is not the original work of entrant, or does not otherwise meet the contest rules. If a winner is disqualified or determined to be ineligible, an alternate winner will be selected using the same judging process/criteria described above. Alternate winners are subject to all requirements set forth in these Official Rules.

By participating in the contest, you agree to release and hold harmless Carroll County Illinois and its employees, officers, affiliates, agents, and advertising and promotional agencies from any and all damages, injuries, claims, causes of actions, or losses of any kind resulting from your participation in this contest, including infringement of intellectual property rights. Carroll County Illinois and its employees, officers, affiliates, agents, and advertising and promotional agencies assume no responsibility or liability for any damages, injuries, claims, causes of actions, or losses of any kind arising in whole or in part from this contest.