ORGANIZED BY :
N.C.C. Management & Development Co., Ltd.

SUPPORTED BY :


MAIN OBJECTIVE :
1. To support the diving tourism industry.
2. To promote the beauty of underwater tourist attractions.
3. To open up the platform for amateur and professional photographers to showcase their photographic masterpieces from underwater images.
4. To raise awareness of marine life and environmental conservation.

CONTEST COMMITTEE :
• Mr. Vinid Rangpueng
• Mr. Nat Sumanatemeya
• Mr. Baramee Temboonkiat
• Mr. Polpich Komson
• Mr. Waran Suwanno

CONTEST CATEGORY :
1. Underwater Animal Portrait

- Underwater photos that focus primarily on the subject (marine animals).

2. Underwater Animal in their Environment

- Marine life photos in their natural habitats, showing the relationship between animals and/or the natural ecosystem.

3. Human & Underwater Nature

- Photos with people in the picture showing the presence of humans in the sea.

4. Talay Thai Award

- Special prize for photos submitted for the contest that were taken in Thailand, conveying the beauty and importance of Thai marine conservation.

(All camera types are allowed for every category of photo contest.)

CONTEST MATERIAL :
The image file size should not be less than 1,980 x 1,080 pixels with 200 dpi resolution, and in .jpg or .tiff format only.

SCORING CRITERIA :
1. Composition - Photo element setting (20%)
2. Technique - Photo shooting technique (20%)
3. Story - Photo storytelling (20%)
4. Lighting - The use of light elements in photography (20%)
5. Impact - Photo attractiveness (20%)

RULES & REGULATIONS :
1. All categories of photography contests at Thailand Dive Expo 2025 are open to photographers of all levels.
2. The committee and those involved in organizing this photo contest are not allowed to submit photos to the contest.
3. Contestants must be photographers of the submitted photos. It is strictly forbidden to submit photos taken by others or to submit photos on behalf of others.
4. Qualified images for this contest should not contain any copyright, logo, sign or watermark.
5. One contestant can submit photos in all categories (a maximum of 5 photos per category). However, if a submitted photo wins more than one category, the contestant will be awarded only the highest prize.
6. Photos submitted to the contest must be creative or conservation-focused and must not have a negative impact on marine animals and ecosystem.
7. Photos submitted to the contest must not have previously won awards in any other photo contests before the submission deadline. This includes photos with similar composition, photo sets taken at the same time, image composition changes (even slightly), image color changes to black and white and new image cropping. Qualified images are subject to the final consideration of the committee.
8. Photography of restricted areas or specific marine lives must comply with and receive approval by local laws as well as rules and regulations. The contestants are requested to submit licenses of the tour operator and yourself as a compulsory documentation for this contest. Failure to do so and/or fraud documents will lead to immediate disqualification.
9. The submitted photos must have been taken within the past 5 years from the closing date of application (must be taken after 22 April 2020).
10. Contestants must submit the original image (the image before any editing under the specified rules) along with the submitted image (in separate folders clearly labeled "Original Image"). In the event that the judging panel has any questions, they may request to view the original image.
11. Photo retouching

ALLOWED
1) Color temperature, brightness, contrast, dodge and burn, sharpening, saturation changes, tonal Adjustments and color balance.
2) Removal of backscatter, but not other elements.
3) Cropping of images is allowed, but the cropped image must not exceed 40% of the original file size. The file size of the cropped image must not be less than 3,000 x 4,000 pixels.
4) Any image editing beyond what is mentioned above is subject to the discretion of the judging panel.

NOT ALLOWED
1) Prohibition of Image Manipulation: It is strictly forbidden to delete, edit, or paste parts of other images into the same image.
2) No Double Exposures: The use of double exposures is not permitted.
3) AI-Powered Editing Restrictions: Image editing using AI programs to add or remove any image elements is prohibited. Any images found to have violated this rule will be immediately disqualified from the competition.

12. Winning images become the property of N.C.C. Management & Development Co., Ltd., as the organizer of “Thailand Dive Expo”. However, the copyright belongs to their respective photographers. The Organizer reserves the right to publish, and has authority to grant uses of those photos in printed and online/social media, including those of the alliances and supporters of this expo with objectives and benefits to promote its corporate image and marketing communication without any copyright fees to the photographers. The Organizer will inform the photographers of proposes, and give credit titles to them for use of the selected photos.
13. The submitted photos must be taken underwater only. Split shots (images that capture both above and below the water surface in the same frame) are allowed. However, images taken from the air (drones) and images taken above the water's surface are not eligible for submission.
14. By submitting photos to this contest, contestants acknowledge that they understand and agree to comply with the rules and regulations outlined above.
15. The decisions of the judging panel are considered final.
16. In the event that a contestant has a complaint regarding the judging decisions, the contestant may submit a petition within 3 days of the result announcement.