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2027 Calendar Photo Contest
Enter your best surveying photos in the 2027 RPLS.com Calendar Photo Contest. One cover and 12 months are up for grabs, with your name and location on the page.
The Calendar Photo Contest is back
Submit your best surveying photos by October 31 for a spot in the 2027 RPLS.com Wall Calendar.
We took a year off. Now the contest is back, and the 2027 calendar needs 13 photos from the people who actually work in the field. One Grand Prize winner gets the cover. Up to 11 more get a month of their own. Your name and location go right on the page.
What you can win
Grand Prize (1)
- Your photo on the cover of the 2027 calendar
- A printed copy of the calendar
- An RPLS.com keychain
- “Photographer” badge on your profile
- 1 year of RPLS.com membership
Honorable Mentions (up to 11)
- Your photo in a month of the 2027 calendar
- An RPLS.com keychain
- “Photographer” badge on your profile
Members’ Choice (1)
- The entry with the most votes from the community earns one of the 12 months, print specs permitting, plus the Honorable Mention prizes
Everyone who enters
- Your photo in the public gallery, where the community can see it and comment
Each photo selected is printed with your name and location. One prize per person.
Prize partners
We’re looking for a few good prize partners. Does your company serve surveyors? Chip in a prize for the winners and we’ll name you on this page and thank you in the winners announcement.
The kind of photos we’re looking for
General photos of a surveying theme, or taken at locations where you are surveying.
Some surveyors like to take “today’s office” photos, which are typically a view from the job site. They can be just about anything: a spectacular mountain view, a construction site, a high-rise, a monument in a beautiful spot, or wherever work takes you. Drone images are welcome.
One photo per entry. Enter as many photos as you like, and submit each one separately. That keeps the voting simple, and each photo gets its own caption.
Photo specs
- Orientation: Landscape (wider than tall)
- Best size: 3375 x 2625 pixels or larger (11.25 x 8.75 inches at 300 dpi)
- Smallest we can work with: About 2000 pixels on the long side. If yours wins, we may be able to enlarge it, but bigger is safer
- File type: JPG or PNG, up to 25 MB
- Yours: Your own original photo, no watermarks, no borders or text, no AI-generated images. Normal editing is fine.
Most phones clear the size easily at full resolution. Send the original, not a screenshot or a copy that came through a text message or social media.
How it works
- Submit. October 9 to 31. Enter as many photos as you like. The more the merrier.
- We review. Every entry is checked before it appears in the gallery, usually within a couple of days.
- Vote. November 1 to 8. Browse the gallery and pick your favorites. This is how the Members’ Choice winner is picked.
- Winners. We announce the Grand Prize winner, Honorable Mentions, and Members’ Choice winner on November 9. We have the final say, since photos have to fit the calendar layout.
- The calendar. The finished 2027 calendar goes on sale shortly after, and we’ll link to it here.
Before you submit
- People. The best entries have no people, or people who can’t be identified (backs turned, or too far away). If someone is recognizable, we need a signed media release from them to use the photo, and photos that don’t need releases get precedence. [Download the media release form (PDF)]
- Brand names. Logos and equipment are fine. We may edit them out, or leave them if they’re from a friend of the site.
- Permission. Make sure you’re allowed to be there and allowed to share the photo. Please skip anything showing confidential client information.
- Caption. Keep it short, under 60 characters. It prints under your photo. We may edit captions for spelling, grammar, and space.
- Credit. Use your name, a handle, or “Anonymous.” You’ll also give your city and state.
Be safe! You, your crew, and the project come first. Don’t put yourself in harm’s way or cause disruption for the sake of a photograph.
Official rules
- Who can enter. Anyone 18 or older with an RPLS.com account (free accounts count).
- Your photo. It must be your own original work, free of watermarks and copyright issues. AI-generated images are not allowed. Normal editing is fine.
- The subject. Surveying-related, or taken where you are surveying.
- People. Identifiable people need a signed media release for each one (see the form on this page). Photos that don’t need releases get precedence.
- Permission. You’re responsible for having permission to be at the location and to share the photo. No confidential client information.
- Your rights. You keep your copyright. By entering, you give RPLS.com a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use any entry, not just winners, on RPLS.com and our social channels, in the 2027 calendar, and to promote the contest and the calendar. That includes cropping, resizing, enhancing or enlarging the photo (including AI-assisted upscaling), editing the caption, and removing brand names. Photographers aren’t paid royalties on calendar sales.
- Review. Entries are reviewed before they’re shown. We may reject entries that break these rules or can’t be printed well, and we may ask for the original file.
- Selection. RPLS.com chooses the Grand Prize winner and Honorable Mentions, and our decisions are final. One prize per person.
- Deadline. Entries close at 11:59 pm Mountain Time on October 31, 2026. We may extend the deadline, or cancel the contest, if we don’t receive enough qualified entries.
- Removal. You can ask us to remove your photo from the gallery at any time. Once it’s printed in a calendar, it can’t be un-printed.
Questions
Can I enter more than once? Yes, as many photos as you like. One prize per person.
My photo is smaller than the spec. Can I still enter? If it’s at least about 2000 pixels on the long side, yes. We may be able to enlarge it if it’s chosen.
Can I stay anonymous? Yes. Enter “Anonymous” (or a handle) in the credit field. We’ll still ask for a city and state.
Can I enter a photo I’ve already shared on RPLS.com or social media? Yes, as long as it’s yours.
What if I don’t win? Your photo stays in the gallery for the community to enjoy. We may also use it elsewhere on RPLS.com, with your credit.
Ready?
Entries are open through Saturday, October 31 at 11:59 pm MT. It takes about 5 minutes, and you can enter one photo at a time.
Have these ready:
- Your photo: landscape, the biggest original file you have (3375 x 2625 px is the target), JPG or PNG, up to 25 MB
- A caption of 60 characters or fewer. It prints under your photo.
- How you’d like to be credited: your name, a handle, or Anonymous
- Where it was taken: city and state, or country if it’s outside the U.S.
- A signed release, only if someone in the photo can be identified. [Download the media release form (PDF)]
Review process
Your entry is reviewed before it appears in the gallery, so don’t worry if you don’t see it right away. You keep your copyright. Read the full rules
Account required
You need a free RPLS.com account to enter. [Login] or [join free], then come back to this page and the form will be here.
Become a prize partner
Does your company serve land surveyors? Put a prize in the 2027 RPLS.com Calendar Photo Contest and get in front of the people who take these photos, vote on them, and hang the calendar in their offices.
What you give
- A prize for the winners. A gift card, a piece of gear, swag, or a software license all work. Any size is welcome.
What you get
- Your logo and a link on this page, in the prize partner strip at the top
- A thank-you in the winners announcement on RPLS.com
- A thank-you on our social channels
How it works
- Tell us what you’d like to offer, and send your logo. Please reply by October 23 so we can list you before voting begins on November 1.
- We announce the winners on November 9.
- Ship the prize to us, or straight to the winner. We’ll send you the address.
