The BYU Kennedy Center recently announced changes to the timeline and prize awarded for its annual photo contest.
The deadline to submit photos was originally Oct. 1. On Oct. 2, the Kennedy center posted on Instagram moving the deadline back to Nov. 1. This will allow an additional month's time for submissions.
The prize money value also increased by $500, now making an award of $1500 for the winner chosen by a panel of judges.
This photo contest has been held for more than 20 years and allows the Kennedy Center to portray the experiential learning that BYU students do while they study abroad.
Emma Olson, a student photographer working closely with the contest, mentioned that the need for more submissions allowed for the deadline to be moved back a month.
“We just want to encourage everyone to keep submitting,” Olson said.
These photos are important to the Kennedy Center because they represent the opportunities and growth that students are experiencing through BYU. Cory Leonard, assistant director of the Kennedy Center, expressed his appreciation for photography and its role in the organization.
“Photography is a visual embodiment of the student experience. It portrays the transformative experience of study abroad in a way that nothing else can,” Leonard said.
The monetary incentive to submit visual experiences to the competition comes from a belief in the worth of experiential learning, Leonard said.
“We offer generous cash prizes because we want to value good photography,” Leonard said.
Last year's winner, Anna Burton, remembers the moment she took her photo while abroad with BYU Jerusalem. In the chaos of a crowded temple, she witnessed a few women worshiping, Burton said.
“I looked over at these women and it was just a corner of quiet,” Burton said. “I remember thinking that I should be that affected.”
The photo contest judges are looking for pictures that “show just BYU getting out in the world and exploring new cultures,” Olson said.
“I think the best photographs for this contest are not the touristy photos,” Olson said. “It’s what can you show us that we haven’t seen before, what’s unique about where you traveled and your learning experience.”
This competition is available to all students who participated in any BYU international travel program from fall 2023 to summer 2024. Photographs should be “compelling” and “reveal learning,” the Kennedy Center website said.
It added that “the best photos will demonstrate global understanding and awareness."
Leonard shared the importance of sharing what students are learning abroad and the role study abroad programs play at BYU.
“At BYU, we like to say ‘the world is our campus,’” Leonard said. “We’re not there yet.”
The Kennedy Center is working to help the student body participate in that mission statement as a whole.
“Our goal is for every student to have access (to study abroad),” Leonard said.
Olson believes that just as any study abroad student can participate in the contest, photographs also do not need to be professional to tell a good story.
“I think sometimes the best photographs come from people who don’t have a photographic background because they’re just so much more authentic and raw, and in my opinion, that’s the best kind of photography,” Olson said. “It's important that we tell stories through photographs.”
Burton added her sentiment that photography is a common tool in today's world to catch memories. Everyone can participate in that practice, she said.
“The mindset of a photographer makes you look for and see the beauty around you, even if you’re taking pictures as you’re walking on campus,” Burton said.
Students interested in submitting a photo should visit the Kennedy Center website.