The Central West Astronomical Society is proud to announce the 2013 CWAS Astrophotography Awards judged by Dr David Malin - the "David Malin Awards". Click here to see the Conditions of Entry.

This year's competition continues to build on the experience of previous years to help make it the premier competition of its kind in Australia. The competition this year will have three sections of entry - General Section, Open Themed Section and a Junior Section (18 or younger). The general section is divided into five categories; Wide-field (camera shots), Deep Sky (telescope shots), Solar System Objects - Hi-Resolution (FOV < 30', ie. less than the diameter of the Sun's disk or Full Moon) and Wide Field (FOV > 30', ie. greater than the diameter of the Sun's disk or Full Moon) - and a category for Animated Sequences. The Junior Section will have one open category and entries can be of any astronomical subject.

The Competition Structure:

• General Section:
  • Wide-Field
  • Deep Sky
  • Solar System
  • Hi-Resolution (FOV < 30')
  • Wide-Field (FOV > 30')
  • Animated Sequences

• Junior Section (18 or younger) - One Open Category (can be of any astronomical subject)

• Open Themed Section - "People and Sky"

• The "David Malin Innovation Prize" may be awarded, at Dr Malin's discretion, for a striking astronomical image that shows exceptional imagination, innovation or an unusual approach in any of the categories.

• An additional prize, "The Photo Editor's Choice", will also be awarded. This will be judged by a major news organisation's photo editor or editors.

The Solar System category is divided into two subsections, reflecting the advances in imaging technology. The first is for high resolution images involving subjects that appear smaller than 30 arc-minutes, and the second is for wide-field shots for scenes greater than 30 arc-minutes.

Animated Sequences are intended to be moving images that can highlight concepts and events that might not be obvious or significant in stills. Astrophotographers are invited to submit animated sequences, produced as either time-lapse sequences or with other forms of video. They can be of any subject, provided there is a distinct astronomical link. Animated sequences must be in MOV, MPEG, AVI or MP4 formats and must not exceed two minutes in runtime.

The Open Themed Section is open to all astrophotographers. They are invited to compete together to see who can be the most creative in evoking the theme, which this year will be "People and Sky". Including people in night-time images is challenging but rewarding. Many photographers include people interacting with the night sky in their photographs, and this special section is intended to encourage the exploration of the emotional and human elements of astronomy. As always, the content must be dominated by an astronomical object (or objects). The images must be single exposures, not a composite, except for High Dynamic Range (HDR) and panoramic images. The intention is to encourage people with vision, imagination and creativity, using simple equipment, such as a tripod and ordinary camera, to make attractive images of people interacting with the night sky.

All still images must be submitted as digital files via a dedicated web site that can be accessed at this web address. For judging purposes, still images must be submitted as JPG files with the longest side having adimension of about 2,000 pixels. All images must be in Adobe 1998 RGB colour space and will be judged using a calibrated monitor. Similarly, winning images will be printed from the files as-received, so it would be prudent for entrants to calibrate their monitors if possible. It does make a difference. Click here for an example of a very detailed set of calibration procedures for all platforms. For Mac users, a useful monitor calibration program can be found under "Monitors" in System Preferences, and the ideal solution for monitor calibration is a stand-alone device such as the Spyderexpress.

Submission of entries will be accepted from Monday, 1 April 2013, and will close at mid-night on Saturday, 1 June 2013 (AEST). Entrants must register in advance. This can be done from 1 April from the Submit Entries link on this page.

Entry payments can be made by cheque, money order or direct deposit. For the entries to be accepted, the payments must be received by the deadline. Entry fees are $15 per entry.

The photographs will be judged by world-renowned astrophotographer, Dr David Malin. During the course of the judging process, Dr Malin may invite, at his discretion, the views of other distinguished international astronomers to aid him in his deliberations, with Dr Malin's decisions being final.

All entries will be judged without David being aware of the identity of the photographer, and to preserve anonymity, the submitted image files should not contain identifying metadata. The winners will be notified and presented with the "David Malin Awards" during a special ceremony held in Parkes in the presence of invited dignitaries on Saturday, 13 July 2013.

A selection of the finest astrophotographs received will be professionally printed and exhibited for the entire year at the CSIRO Parkes Observatory's Visitors Centre. In addition, a second set will tour the country in a travelling exhibition, organised by the Powerhouse Museum, to selected venues beginning with Sydney Observatory in August.

There is a limit of five (5) entries per category per photographer, but all photographs must have been taken no more than 2 years before the closing date of entry, and no re-entries from previous DMA competitions will be accepted. All entries must be submitted in electronic form via a dedicated submissions web site.

It is not just technical skill that Dr Malin will be looking for, but a memorable picture that reflects and captures the beauty, inspiration and interest of astronomy. All images will be judged by this criteria.

Canon Australia is supporting the competition with significant prizes for both the category winners and honorable mentions.

1. Entries will be accepted only from Australian residents of the COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA and its TERRITORIES.
For clarification, see the ATO website.

2. There will be three sections of entry - General, Junior (18 or younger) and an Open Themed section.

3. There will be five categories of entry for the General section; Wide-Field (camera shots), Deep Sky (telescope shots), Solar System - Hi-Resolution (FOV < 30', ie. less than the diameter of the Sun's disk or Full Moon), Solar System - Wide-Field (FOV > 30', greater than the diameter of the Sun's disk or Full Moon) and Animated Sequences.

4. The Junior section is for photographers 18 years old or younger and will have one open category (can be any type instrument or astronomical subject).

5. The Themed section is open to all astrophotographers regardless of background. The theme will differ from one year to the next. The theme for 2013 is "People and Sky".

6. An additional prize, "The David Malin Innovation Prize", may be awarded at Dr Malin's discretion, for a striking image that shows exceptional imagination, innovation or an unusual approach.

7. There is a limit of five (5) entries per category per photographer.

8. In the case of images with multiple authors, the instigator of the image will be considered to be the principal author and the one who "owns" the image. The principal author MUST have performed the majority of the work to produce the image. All authors MUST be identified and named in the entry form along with their contributions to the production of the image.

9. Entries that combine images from professional observatories, taken by professional astronomers, for purposes other than creating the entry in question (e.g. the Digital Sky Survey), will be disqualified.

10. Entries must be in digital form and will be accepted ONLY through submission via the dedicated web site at:
http://www.parkes.atnf.csiro.au/news_events/astrofest/DMA/

11. To preserve anonymity, the submitted image files should not contain identifying metadata.

12. For judging purposes, still images must be submitted as JPG files with the longest side having a dimension of about 2,000 pixels in Adobe 1998 colour space. Animated Sequences must be submitted in MOV, MPG, AVI or MP4 file formats and must not exceed two minutes in runtime.

13. All photographs must have been taken no more than 2 years before the closing date of entry, and no re-entries from previous DMA competitions will be accepted.

14. Entry fees are $15 per entry and should be paid by cheque, money order or direct deposit.

15. If entry payments are not received by the deadline, then the submitted entries will not be accepted for judging.

16. After notification, the winning images must be supplied on request as TIFF files in Adobe 1998 RGB colour space for professional printing. The longest side should have a dimension of about 4,950 pixels.

17. The winning entries will be exhibited for the entire year in the CSIRO Parkes Observatory's Visitors Centre. In addition, a second set of images will tour the country in a travelling exhibition, to selected venues.

18. Permission to reproduce entries for publication to promote the competition and exhibitions will be assumed as a condition of entry.

19. The competition judge reserves the right to reject any entry that, in the opinion of the judge, does not meet the conditions of entry or is unsuitable for public display. The judge's decisions will be final.

20. Submission of an entry implies acceptance of all the conditions of entry and the decisions of the competition judge.

21. Submissions close at mid-night on Saturday, 1 June 2013 (AEST). No entries will be accepted past this date.