Russian Mineralogical Society (RMS) and Carl Zeiss St. Petersburg (the «Organizers») are sponsoring in 2008 the photo competition for the best image of a geological object taken with an optical, electron or other microscope, including atom force, ion, and spectroscopic microscopes (the «Competition»). The official title of the call is «MicroGeo 2008». Entry deadline is September 10, 2008.

1. GENERAL INFORMATION AND ELIGIBILITY

   The Competition is open to anyone who is the author and the copyright owner (the «Author») of the photographic work (the «Work»). Double authorship is possible, by which the first author is owner of sample of the studied geological material and the second author is the operator of equipment. Competition experts are NOT eligible to participate in the Competition. The Authors participating at the Competition can NOT take part in the Expertise of Works submitted for the Competition. Works that have earned any award, honorable mention or prize in any other commercially-sponsored competition are NOT eligible.
   The Organizers reserve the right to ask the confirmation of the authorship, e.g., to submit the image with the alternative view of the sample, the image in original (not processed) form, the detailed description of the recording parameters etc.
   Any non-Russian Author can submit up to three Works for the nomination PW2008 «The best photo by non-Russian authors». Citizens of the Russian Federation take part at special nominations announced in Russian version of the competition rules.

2. HOW TO ENTER/SUBMISSION OF PHOTOS

   In order to enter the competition, the online submission form must be completed. Before filling the competition form, the Author must register on the Russian Mineralogical Society website (http://www.minsoc.ru/registration.php) and submit using the registration form his/her personal contact data (including the valid personal email, postal address and phone number). After the registration, the password will be sent on the designated personal email address of the Author. Using the personal login and password, the Author must complete the photo competition online submission form at http://www.minsoc.ru/award/ (the link "On-line submission system").
   Besides the online registration, a printed copy of the Work in original size and professional quality must be sent to the Russian Mineralogical Society.
   Entry deadline is September 10, 2008.
   Russian Mineralogical Society contacts:
Address: 21st line 2; 199026 Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Phone/Fax: +7 (812) 328-86-40.
Email: rmominsoc.ru.
Web: www.minsoc.ru.

3. ENTRY SUBMISSION FORM

   All fields in the form listed below must be completed:
1) the original image  in JPEG format, suitable for printing in A4 or A3 quality;
2) small-size preview of the Work in JPEG format (max. 150 kb; e.g., 640*480 pixels, 16 Mio colors);
3) title of the Work reflecting its content or artistic message;
4) information about the co-authorship (if present);
5) short description of the scientific work and the specimen;
6) equipment and technics information (magnification or the field size, contrast mechanism, microscope, camera system, software, custom components, and other significant information);
7) official name of the laboratory/institution, where the photo was recorded.

4. MISCELLANEOUS

   The Author must consent to the use of his/her name and likeness, and the use of his/her Works, without additional compensation in any media or format for any purposes deemed appropriate by Organizers in the promotion of the MicroGeo 2008 competition. The Author must attest to the fact that these Works are his/her original work and that he/she owns the rights to his/her submitted images.
   Persons found tampering with or abusing any aspect of this Competition or the Organizers or Competition website, as solely determined by Organizers, will be disqualified and Organizers reserves its right to seek damages from any persons to the fullest extent of the law. By entering the Competition or participating in any Competition or prize-related activity, participants agree to release, discharge and hold harmless the Organizers, their respective officers, directors and employees, from any injury, claim, loss or damages of any kind that may arise out of participation in the Competition or out of the acceptance, use, misuse or possession of Prizes. By participating, you agree to these Official Rules and to the decisions of Organizers and the judges which are final and binding in all respects. Void where prohibited by law, rule or regulation. All federal, state and local laws and regulations apply. Each winner must sign an affidavit of eligibility and compliance with the rules and a publicity release within thirty (30) days after the attempted notification. Failure to do so will result in disqualification and the selection of an alternate winner. Unless prohibited by law, each winner consents to the use by the Organizers of the winner's name and images for publicity purposes, without additional compensation. All taxes, fees and surcharges on prizes won are the sole responsibility of the winner. Prizes are not transferable. This Competition is conducted in English and Russian (which will be given its everyday ordinary meaning) and any and all disputes will be resolved in the appropriate courts in the Russian Federation. Should there be a conflict between the laws of the Russian Federation and any other laws, the conflict will be resolved in favor of the laws of the Russian Federation.

5. COMPETITION JUDGING

   All eligible images will be judged by an independent panel of experts selected by Organizers based on the following criteria:
· technical merit (scientific topic, difficulty of imaging, photographic excellence);
· aesthetics (artistic beauty or impact of the image);
· relevancy of the investigation object or the work to Russia;
· technical quality of the image.

6. ANNOUNCEMENT OF WINNERS AND PRIZES

   Winners will be sent their prize-winning notification via electronic mail (e-mail), and notification will be confirmed by mail. 1st Prize: Carl Zeiss Binocular and a Honor Certificate. 1st to 6th Prizes: The Works will be printed in the Carl Zeiss Photo Calendar 2009.
   The awarding procedure will take place on the plenary session of the International conference «Fedorov Session 2008» (Russia, Saint Petersburg Mining Institute, 8-10.10.2008). The list of awarded and other applicants and proposals will be published on the RMS website (www.minsoc.ru). The list of awarded applicants will also be published in the RMS annual report 2008 in the scientific journal «Zapiski RMO» (Proceedings of the Russian Mineralogical Society).

7. CONTACTS

   The Rules are published on the website of the Russian Mineralogical Society http://www.minsoc.ru/microgeo2008/. Technical questions have to be referred to adminminsoc.ru.