NEW YORK, Dec. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Wedding & Portrait Photographers International (WPPI) announces today that submissions are now being accepted for its esteemed annual Awards of Excellence 16x20 Print and Album Competitions. Also announced today, Professional Photographer Ken Sklute has been appointed Consulting Director, WPPI Print and Album Competitions, and will oversee the competition rules, submissions, judging and the Awards of Excellence ceremony during the WPPI Conference and Expo.

Ken Sklute has been honored as one of Canon's Explorers of Light, a designation shared by only 60 top photographers worldwide. During his 38-year photographic career, Ken has been named Photographer of the Year a total of 32 times between Arizona, New York, and California. Ken spends much of his time teaching and lecturing both Nationally and Internationally.

"Today's professional photographers, especially portrait and wedding photographers, are storytellers who capture emotional moments in time and communicate them through their images and videos," said WPPI Consulting Director, Ken Sklute. "The annual WPPI Print and Album Competitions provide inspiration to all who view the exceptional entries each year while the Awards presentation offers public recognition to those photographers whose work represents the best of the best."

Photographers are welcome to submit their 16x20-inch Print entries for consideration into the following categories:

Wedding Division – Bride and Groom Together (Wedding Day); Bride and Groom Together (other than Wedding Day); Bride or Groom Alone (Wedding Day); Bride or Groom Alone (other than Wedding Day); Bridal Party; Engagement; and Wedding Details.

Portrait Division – Children; High School; Senior; Individual; Group; Animals/Pets; and Glamour/Boudoir.

Commercial Division – Scientific/Individual; Illustrative/Editorial; Advertising/Fashion; and Landscape/Nature.

Photojournalism Division – Wedding and Non-Wedding.

Composite Division – An entry comprised of multiple images or layers to create a single image.

For more information and to enter the WPPI 2013 Award of Excellence 16x20 Print Competition visit: www.wppi16x20.com .

Photographers are also encouraged to submit a series of digital images presented as a story for consideration in the WPPI Award of Excellence Album Competition. The categories are as follows:

Event/Informal Division 
Engagement Division 
Wedding – Multiple Photographers Division 
Wedding – Single Photographers Division 
Videography Division

For more information on the Album Competition visit: www.wppialbum.com

The Grand Award for any given division of 16x20 Print and Album Competitions will receive a $2,000 cash prize (U.S. dollars), complimentary Full Conference Pass for WPPI 2014 Conference and Expo, and complimentary entry into next year's Awards of Excellence Print Competition (10 print maximum). Grand Award, First, Second and Third Place winners will receive custom-designed, engraved crystal awards.

Entry fees are $40 for WPPI Members; $60 for non-members. Return postage fees are separate and based on geographic location for the option of having prints returned. The deadline to register image/s online is January 25, 2013. All prints and albums must be received at WPPI headquarters by February 1, 2013. Judging will take place on March 9-10, 2013 and is open to all WPPI 2013 Full Conference attendees.

All WPPI 2013 classes, events and the expo will take place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV, from March 7-14, 2013. WPPI is the biggest event in the world for wedding and portrait photographers. Last year, nearly 16,000 registered attendees and over 180 speakers from throughout the United States as well as from 46 foreign countries as far away as Latin America, Australia and Russia gathered in Las Vegas, NV for WPPI. Attending professional photographers and those looking to begin their career in photography were able to learn from the best and see the latest and greatest products from 330 exhibitors that participated in the expo.

Registration (Http://registration3.experientevent.com/ShowWPP131/?flowcode=ATT) for WPPI 2013 is open now. The early bird registration rate for access to the WPPI 2013 Conference and Expo is $199 for WPPI members and $379 for non-members through December 14, 2012. On December 15, 2012 registration rates increase to regular prices online; $275 for WPPI members and $399 for non-members. These rates include one (1) free guest, all Platform classes, special events and a 3-day pass to the biggest photography expo for wedding and portrait photographers.

For more information about WPPI 2013 and all of its workshops and events, please visit: www.wppionline.com.

About WPPI

Wedding & Portrait Photographers International (WPPI), a division of Nielsen Photo Group, is an international membership organization that serves the educational and business needs of wedding and portrait photographers. WPPI is a professional organization that exists to help its 3,500 active member photographers by providing them with exclusive information, programs and professional services to assist with their photographic artistry and business needs. WPPI routinely supplies its members with new benefits and valuable industry information enabling them to succeed in today's active photo market business. WPPI membership gives photographers the resources they need to succeed and the tools they require to build and develop a strong personal support network.

In 2012, WPPI completed its 32nd annual Conference and Expo, featuring 330 exhibitors in its convention space at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. The annual WPPI 2013 Conference and Expo is set to take place next year at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV, from March 7-14, 2013. For more information visit: www.wppionline.com.

SOURCE WPPI 2013