The Festival Project

One of the special things about D.C. is the variety of festivals, and June is a great month for them. We love to see local photographers covering the festivals, so we hope that you will participate in this documentary project.

It’s simple – take a photo during the month of June at a festival, and send it to us. You can photograph performers, revelers, floats, or anything else that inspires you.

Why participate?

Well, aside from the fun:

  • One photograph will be selected as the winner, judged by a panel of independent judges, and the photographer will receive a $100 gift certificate (your choice of Adorama, B&H, or Amazon). We’ll also feature an interview with the winner on a post on this site. The winner will be announced by July 10th.
  • All the photographs submitted will be published on this site, along with credit and links to your social media or portfolio sites.

This event is part of Click D.C., which celebrates photography in D.C. during the month of June.

Rules and conditions
  • The photograph must be taken between June 1 and June 30, 2019.
  • The photograph must be taken within the boundaries of D.C. (not the greater Metro area).
  • The photograph must be taken at a festival – see the list below of the major festivals – other festivals are also possible, provided they are festivals that are open to the public and are non-recurring events (so no photos of the concerts that are weekly events in local parks, for example).
  • You retain full copyright, but give this site (The Uncommon District) the right to publish the photo on this site, with credit given.
  • Images may be edited in any style, but we are looking for images that realistically represent D.C., so no composites or fictional elements added.
  • You warrant that the photo is your original work, and that it is in compliance with all laws (privacy laws, copyright applicable to any elements shown in the photo, and any other applicable laws).
  • We reserve the right to not publish any photo that is overtly partisan or has content not suitable for viewing by all ages.
How to submit
  • .You may submit a maximum of 4 photos, but no more than 1 photo per festival (so go to lots of different festivals!).
  • Photos should be jpegs, with minimum dimensions of 1,200 pixels on the long side.
  • Submissions may be made at any time from June 1 until midnight July 2nd

Images should be emailed to vlpickering@gmail.com and include:

  • Your name and email.
  • The date the photo was taken, and the name of the festival.
  • Up to 2 links of your choice to your social media or portfolio sites. These links will appear in addition to your credit by the photo.

June Festivals

This is a list of some of the major festivals in D.C. – you may discover other ones.

See the photos that have already been submitted to the project