Pull out your camera, review Lola Akinmade’s photography tips, and getting shooting… it’s contest time and the prizes are worth the effort!

National Geographic Traveler has teamed up with Photo District News to sponsor the World in Focus photography contest.

Open to amateurs and pros alike, the World in Focus contest is soliciting submissions for the following categories: travel portraits, outdoor scenes, sense of place, spontaneous moment, and photo essay.

The deadline is August 21, 2008, though photogs who don’t work well on a deadline can pay $10 to extend the deadline to September 8.

What’s in it for the winners? Check out the prize list:

Pro Prizes:

GRAND PRIZE: Free tuition for a 6-day professional photography workshop for one in Santa Fe, New Mexico; one Nikon D-80 Digital SLR (body only) or equivalent; Expedition Carbon Fiber Tripod NGET2; Expedition Hydrostatic Head NGEH1; Large Backpack NG5737; and a PDN PhotoServe portfolio.

EACH CATEGORY WINNER: One D-60 Kit (including 18-55mm VR lens); Tundra Photo/Video Tripod NGTT2; Med Shoulder Bag NG2475; PDN PhotoPlus Expo Gold Pass.

BONUS AWARD: Winning images will be featured in a special winners’ gallery in PDN’s February 2009 issue, as well as published online at www.pdnonline.com. Select winners will also be displayed at the World In Focus Gallery at PDN PhotoPlus Expo.

Amateur Prizes:

GRAND PRIZE: 15-day trip for two to Antarctica aboard the National Geographic Endeavour.

FIRST PRIZE: 5-day trip for two to The Cliffs Preserve in Patagonia, Chile.

SECOND PRIZE: 6-day cruise for two on a Maine Windjammer Schooner. Contributed by The Schooners American Eagle and Heritage.

THIRD PRIZE: 7-day Photography Workshop for one in Oaxaca, Mexico.

SEVEN MERIT PRIZES: Nikon Coolpix P60 Camera and a Bogen Prize Package, including a National Geographic Tundra Monopod, a National Geographic Tundra Tripod with 3-way head, and an Earth Explorer Medium Shoulder Bag.

BONUS AWARDS: Winning images will be featured in the January/February 2009 edition of National Geographic Traveler, and displayed at the World in Focus Gallery Exhibit at PhotoPlus Expo, to be held October 23-25, 2008 in New York. All winning images will also be featured on the World in Focus Contest website, and the National Geographic Traveler website. In addition, winners will receive a one-year subscription to Photo District News.

For more info and to enter online, visit: http://www.worldinfocuscontest.com/

Feature Photo: Leah (creative commons)
Photo: HckySo (creative commons)