Calling All Nature Lovers!

We’re excited to announce a fun photo challenge to celebrate summer at Shangri La Botanical Gardens! Capture the beauty of nature during your visit and submit your photography for a chance to be featured on our social media or marketing materials. Plan your visit! Extended Wellness Wednesday hours from 7AM-7PM offer the perfect opportunity for golden hour photography.

See registration details and entry form below.

Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center (“Shangri La”) is pleased to announce its first online first photo contest (“Contest”). The Contest will feature original photos taken by adult visitors to Shangri La Botanical Gardens. The Contest will be held June 21 through August 22, 2025.  The Contest is open to all nature lovers who want to show off photography skills they used while visiting Shangri La. Photos submitted must be taken while visiting Shangri La and must include only nature. Please ensure that no individuals are visible in any submitted photos.

The Contest will be judged by the public, as well as Shangri La Staff, in the categories listed below:               

People’s Choice – Photos will be judged by the public on Shangri La’s  social media sites, and the winner will be determined by the number of likes the photo receives across the social media sites.

Staff Pick – Photos will be judged and voted on by Shangri La staff, and three photos will be chosen for first, second, and third place recognition.

Director’s Choice – One photo will be selected by the Shangri La Executive Director for this award.

While no monetary prizes will be awarded, this is a fun opportunity to show off the gardens and your special eye for the beauty of Shangri La.

Important Dates and Information:

• All photos submitted must be taken by the Contestant/Photographer at Shangri La.
• All submitted photographs must be taken at Shangri La between June 21, 2025 and August 22, 2025.
• Completed submissions, including completed registration forms and photos, must be submitted and uploaded to the following web address shangrilagardens.org/photo-contest by August 25, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. Central Time.
• Photos submitted for the Contest will be judged for People’s Choice recognition on Shangri La’s social media sites, with the winner chosen by the number of likes the photo submission receives. The photograph with the highest number of likes will be the People’s Choice award recipient.
• Photos submitted will also be judged internally by Shangri La staff  for Staff Picks and Director’s Choice recognition.
• By submitting a photograph, the Contestant/Photographer is donating the photograph. All photos submitted, including copies, may be used for other purposes deemed appropriate by Shangri La, such as promotion of  Shangri La and other Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation (“Stark Foundation”) venues and their activities, in Shangri La educational materials, for documentary purposes, and otherwise.
• Winners will be notified by email on September 15, 2025 by 5:00 p.m. Central Time.  

   

For questions or information, please contact Marlene at  mcox@shangrilagardens.org.

Contest Rules

1. All photos submitted must be taken at Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center (“Shangri La”) by the Contestant/Photographer named above. All submitted photographs must be taken at Shangri La between June 21, 2025 and August 22, 2025 and must feature only nature, without people.
2. Submitted photos may not be another photographer’s work, nor include components of another photographer’s work (including, but not limited to, examples found on the internet through search engines, Pinterest, Instagram, etc.).
3. Photos that are found not be an original photo taken by the Contestant/Photographer or which were not taken within the parameters specified in No. 1 will be disqualified. Failure to cooperate in all inquiries relating to establishing compliance with Contest Rules will also cause disqualification.
4. Contestants/Photographers must be 18 or older and must be the sole creators and owners of the photo submitted.
5. Photos must be appropriate for an audience of all ages, including children. Excessively violent themes and  offensive, crude, or derogatory subjects or designs are not permitted. Photos that may reflect controversial, political, or religious themes are not permitted.
6. Shangri La reserves sole discretion to  reject or disqualify any submission that fails to satisfy Contest rules and to select the award winners.
7. Selection committee may choose to narrow down the number of photos, not all photos will be displayed. 
8. Photos will be publicly displayed online on Shangri La’s Facebook, Instagram, and other social media sites, with the Contestant/Photographer’s name, for the duration of the Contest and, thereafter, for a period of time determined by Shangri La.
9. A completed registration form, with the Contestant/Photographer’s signature, MUST accompany the photo submission.
10. A completed registration form and 300 dpi image in .jpg format must be submitted and uploaded to the following web address shangrilagardens.org/photo-contest by August 25, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. Central Time.
11. To participate in the Contest, Contestant/Photographer must agree to  the assignments and uses by Shangri La and the Stark Foundation described below, but retains the right to use the submitted image for Contestant/Photographer’s personal purposes concurrent with use by Shangri La and the Stark Foundation.

I confirm that I am the sole owner of the submitted photograph and all of its related rights and attributes and have the full right to make all agreements and assignments now made relating to participation in the Contest. By submitting my photograph and in exchange for participation on the Contest, I am donating the photograph to Shangri la Botanical Gardens and Nature Center and the Stark Foundation. I agree that the photograph I have submitted, including copies made from my submitted photograph by Shangri la Botanical Gardens and Nature Center or the Stark Foundation, may be used for other purposes deemed appropriate by Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center or the Stark Foundation, such as promotion of  Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center and/or other Stark Foundation venues and their activities, in educational materials, for documentary purposes, and otherwise in any format selected by Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center or the Stark Foundation and that I may not be credited as photographer in some future uses. By participating in the Contest, I agree that the submitted photo and my name may be displayed as long as Shangri la Botanical Gardens and Nature Center and/or the Stark Foundation deem appropriate and without limitation. I further agree that I am bound by all Contest rules and represent that I have complied with all such rules and will continue to do so. In consideration for acceptance of my photo submission in the Contest, I irrevocably agree that Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center and the Stark Foundation will have the perpetual worldwide and royalty-free right to use any photographic (including digital) images, video, or audio related to my participation in or submission of my photograph to the Contest, as well as the photo itself, for promotional, documentary, and/or educational purposes in any form, without compensation to me or my heirs or assigns or others claiming through me or on my behalf.  In support of the promises I have made in this Registration Form, I now assign to Shangri la Botanical Gardens and Nature Center and the Stark Foundation all rights pertaining to my submitted Photograph to the full extent necessary to effectuate and permit, without compensation to me or others now or in the future, all of my promises and all uses authorized by me.

Entry in the Contest constitutes agreement with all conditions described in the Contest Registration Form.

The Parties acknowledge and agree that this agreement and registration form may be executed by electronic signature, which shall be considered an original signature for all purposes and shall have the same force and effect as an original signature.  Without limitation, “electronic signature” shall include faxed or electronically scanned and transmitted versions of an original handwritten signature and electronic and digital signatures as defined by the Texas law.

I understand and agree to the Contest Rules and other requirements for submission for the 2025 Shangri La Photo Contest.