Lenz has a new set of contests happening – and if you’ve been paying attention, the benefits are getting a lot bigger…

For those not in the know, Lenzr is a free to submit photo contest (actually, a bunch of photo contests). You visit their site, pick a contest, and take the appropriate photo. You win (and win big – just see below); plus, you get not only the fun of a nice prize, but acknowledgment from your peers that you can really ‘click’!

Here’s some details about the contests running right now:

What does a Sony Laptop computer and construction have in common? If you’ve taken the ideal construction photo, then the laptop is yours! This contest, called Construction Sights, is all about interesting construction projects. So if it grabs you, share the photo so others can get caught up as well. This contest is sponsored, appropriately enough, by a company that makes its fair share of interesting construction sites – Nuden, which specializes in Ottawa roofing and windows (but of course they do many other things, like doors and siding).

With the contest Best Office Staff Party, no doubt there will be lots of photos of charades, karaoke, and Twister – because office parties are ALWAYS tame affairs. However, in the off chance you get a picture or two of a really FUN office party, then this is the contest to show them. Again, the best pic gets you a Sony laptop. And if you don’t have enough staff where you work for a decent office party? Fortunately for you, the sponsors of this contest just happen to provide I.T. Staff and other high tech personnel for the Toronto area – and as we all know, Geeks really know how to party!

Remember when you were a kid and learned to count? Everything was a chance to practice your number skills. And now you get a second chance to revisit that time of youth with this contest, A Counting Exercise. Just take a photo of repeating patterns that could be counted. Pickets in a fence? Cars in a row? If it can be counted, then it’s an entrant – but of course your winning photo will have that extra “something special” in order to win the Sony laptop grand prize! This contest is sponsored by Cunningham Accountants, Toronto Accountants who know the web well – for service you can ‘count on’ (wow, I’m surprised they never used that as a tagline)!

Have you ever seen a beam of light that was so strong it looked solid? Maybe something coming through a cloud after a rainstorm? Then grab your camera, because that is the type of photo they want for this contest, Shafts of Sunlight. And if you get the best of the best, your reward is appropriate – a Sony DSCH70 Camera so you can use to take even better photos! The contest sponsor fits right in with the topic, too: they encounter a lot of sun in their workday, since they create spectacular sunrooms for houses and cottages in Ontario (plus, they’re known for efficiency and high quality).

I’m sure it’s a coincidence, but these contests all fit in well with summer – office parties, outdoor construction, and sunlight. Oh yeah, AND the accounting contest – because you’ll need to use them on ‘account’ of all the fun you’re having taking pictures this summer! (Sorry about that, but it’s late at night when I wrote this!)

And as I’ve mentioned before, these contests are a great way to get your photos into the public eye. I have a friend who takes pictures – and contests like this are fantastic for exposure that doesn’t otherwise come his way. And once you’ve won for your outstanding photo, then you’ve got bragging rights – after all, who doesn’t want to call themselves an “award winning photographer”?

And it’s only a single click away – so get started people…

The title? I wanted to start ‘it was a dark and stormy night’, but that’s been taken. But what I did do was combine Lenzr’s four contests this month into a single title line – not a contest, but fun nonetheless (try it yourself after you’ve looked over the contest themes below).

What’s Lenzr? Regular readers of my blog know of Rob C’s photo contest site, and (hopefully) have even entered into it. The prizes are great, the exposure for a budding photo bug is great, and it’s a chance to get feedback from your peers.

Of course, each theme relates to INTERESTING pictures – the kind of photos that make you say “mmmh” – and still stick in your brain a day later.

In my case – and I’m no great shakes as a photographer – I have two tricks which make photos jump out: unusual angles and high saturation. Tweaking with these can often add interest to my pics.

But likely you have your tricks to make photos pop – and you can use them during this month’s contests:

This year has already been incredible weather-wise, with floods, tornadoes, and tsunamis. The contest Weather The Storm is for photos that reflect that. Weather is powerful, and a pic or two of extreme weather has a way of humbling us. Get a great shot, and let others feel that same power. Not surprisingly, the contest sponsors (who are offering a digital camera) are experts at extreme weather, since they provide commercial roofing.

Best Cottage Moments is the contest for photos of cottage life – family and friends gathering by the lake for the good life. The goal? Show how great cottage life is (and by the way, the sponsor’s website shows Muskoka cottage locations, showing how really good the good life can be). Winners get a camera – a great incentive to go out and click some more!

What’s In The Fridge? $500 dollars worth of groceries, if you’re the winner of this contest. The goal is to make your fridge the best possible, as jazzed up as possible: colorful arrangements, mouth watering food shots, and more. The sponsor of course works with food – easy to use printable coupons ideal for food shopping (and getting supplies for your photo shoot).

How long have you caught yourself staring at Shiny Metal Surfaces? They ARE mesmerizing, and the subject of this contest, by the company that makes shiny objects, metal panels that enhance and improve any building. If you’ve tried to work with chrome surfaces then you know how finicky a good shot can be – and a GREAT shot is a challenge. Give it a try and get a chance a a new camera.

So get your camera and give it a workout and get a reputation as a creative photographer by entering these contests, running from April 1st until May 15th. And if you win? Well, at the very least you’re now an ‘award winning photographer’. Heck, you might even qualify as a professional photographer – so start shooting and expand your resume!

Rob Campbell’s Lenzr site is a source of great contests for budding photographers. As I’ve mentioned many times on this blog, it’s an ideal way to get noticed for your photography, and get a reputation – plus the prizes don’t hurt!

This time, there’s a total of nine contests – the most I’ve seen at once on Lenzr – and the prizes are getting better and better.

Here then are the contests…

…oh, and by the way, like previous contests, I saw a pattern, even if no one else did – check the end to see if you saw it, too…

The Nine For February and March

Reflections in Pools. It’s easy to shoot a picture – but what of a reflected picture? This contest is about reflected images from pools or other water, a real challenge in February in Canada! But just as in the contest, the time to think about pools of water is now, not in the summer. Like an air conditioner, a pool is something you don’t wait until summer to get, and so appropriately enough the sponsors, ProGreen, a Toronto custom design and installation firm for swimming pools, remind you to plan ahead. And the prize? Also appropriately, an Olympus underwater camera, to get even more water shots!

Soapy Foam and Bubbles. Bubbles are a favorite of children everywhere, and blowing bubbles a familiar pastime. For this contest, you need to shoot a great picture of bubbles – something that impresses children and adults (and judges) alike. The prize for that high-quality bubble pic? A Sony Vaio laptop – no small prize. The contest, appropriately enough, is sponsored by a company involved in bubbles (as in foam): Amvic, which distributes a rigid foam insulation that’s especially designed as an easy solution for construction projects.

People Dancing. It makes sense that this contest is sponsored by a Downtown Toronto Dance Class studio, doesn’t it? And the contest theme is couples dancing – any way, any style – but of course with that little ‘something’ that will set your photo apart! And for the winner: keeping in the dance theme, the prize is 2 pairs of dancing shoes from Danceology’s Marla Silva – quality footwear for quality dance classes!

Unlikely Marriage. Like apples and oranges, some things just don’t seem to belong together. Your job for this contest is to take those opposites and turn them into a great photo. And like your photo, the sponsors of this contest also try hard to make things compatible. As Marriage Counselors, their goal via their NEXT relationship program is to make even ‘apples and oranges’ share something in common! Win at this, and you’ll be paired up with your own apple – an Apple iPad – and I expect you’ll stay joined together for a long, long time…

Beautiful Factories. Manufacturing is the cornerstone of our industrial way of life – and your challenge for this contest is to make the utilitarian dramatic and beautiful. Assembly lines, brick buildings, robot assemblers – the photographer with an eye will find something interesting in any of these settings. Prize is an Apple iPad, appropriate for the sponsor, Solarsoft, a manufacturing software firm, which makes programs that manage manufacturing, so everything is on time and as cost-effective as possible.

Making Green Power. Ontario’s MicroFIT program is making it easier for the individual to produce (and sell) electricity, and this contest focuses on that Green energy production. Shoot solar cells, windmills, or any other non-polluting source of energy to enter the contest. Winner gets a solar energy kit, with rechargeable power cells, ideal for travel or camping, courtesy of SolarLine, a supporter of the Ontario MicroFIT program.

On Stage at Home. This contest is based on some word play: you take photos of a staged event, like a play or other performance indoors. Meanwhile, the sponsor stages houses, making them look appropriate for visitors and potential buyers (and incidentally increasing the perceived value of any home). Staging at home, home stager – either way you read it, your photo can win you an animal skin rug (imitation, of course), courtesy of Stirling Home Studio.

Up Against The Wall. Your job for this contest is a photo of something happening ‘up against a wall’. The wall is an accessory to the production, and your photo will highlight that. The prize is a Sony Viao laptop, courtesy of Amvic System, which are very interested in walls of their own: their Construction Wall Systems, consisting of a hollow building block of foam, makes it quick and easy to assemble and pour a well-insulation concrete/foam wall in no time, with minimal emissions, and minimal fuss.

Best Patio In Canada. Who hasn’t enjoyed some beer or food outdoors, say on a restaurant patio? So which patio ‘does it’ for you? This contest celebrates patios with a great photo. And speaking of patios, the sponsor should know: Velago offers high quality patio furniture, but at clearance prices.

Any Connection?

The contests are great, and the prizes make it well worth entering. So get your camera out and get snapping!

Now you may be wondering what the connections are that I mentioned earlier. Of course, these contests are independent of each other, and the sponsors and prizes aren’t related at all; but it did seem kind of like the contests were paired up in theme (and one trio of course for good measure):

• With a water based theme, I thought ‘Reflections in Pools’ and ‘Soapy Foam and Bubbles’ paired well together.
• Couple related contests included ‘People Dancing’ and ‘Unlikely Marriage’ – after all, for both it takes ‘two to tango’!
• ‘Beautiful Factories’ and ‘Making Green Power’ – there doesn’t seem at first to be a connection, but after all, what’s a beautiful factory, if not one that makes the best use of green power, and keeps environmental emissions low?
• And the trio? When I looked at the ‘On Stage at Home’ contest, I immediately thought, where will they perform? Of course, ‘Up Against The Wall’ or on the ‘Best Patio In Canada’! (OK, I admit that last connection is a bit of a groaner…)

But the real connection for each contest is this: They can be found on the Lenzr.com website, and they run for the next month or so. Voting goes from March 15th until the 25th, and then judging of the finalists/awarding of the winner is March 31st/April 1st. So enter early, enter often – and let your photos be seen by thousands!