CONTEST UPDATE: Well, this is it, folks! We’ve reached the contest deadline, as of Nov 22 at 11:59 P.M. and all entries are in! Thanks so much for entering our birthday contest, and sharing all your great stories and awe-inspiring photos with us. You’ve done all the hard work. And now, it’s the 500px team’s turn to browse through and review all your submissions and pick out the winners. The judges are comprised of the 500px marketing team and our CPO/co-founder.

We’ve received more than 2,000 amazing entries. Since we didn’t expect such a huge number of contest entries, we will be extending the judging period for a week to go through all your entries! Thanks for your patience, as we go through each entry, your photos, and stories. We are truly excited to read and see about your 500px experiences. Note: We will only be reviewing contest entries that have been submitted before November 22 at 11:59 P.M. (contest deadline)

Winners will now be announced on Sunday, November 30 on 500px ISO, so be on the lookout for that. We will also be launching a special surprise for all of you on November 30 to be published along with the winners’ announcement.

Each of the winners will also be contacted via the email addresses on their 500px account, so make sure to update your email details on your Settings page: https://500px.com/settings

Thanks again for participating for the contest. Seeing this group fill up with so much entries made our 5th birthday awesome!


Confetti drop moment—today is our birthday and we just turned 5 years old!

500px has come a long way from our early days as a two-man, self-funded website created by Evgeny Tchebotarev and Oleg Gutsol to what it is now: the home of the world’s best photography, powered by an inspiring community of photographers and photo enthusiasts.

500px wouldn’t be here today without your endless support and enthusiasm. And while there are no words to thank you enough, we hope you’ll enjoy this announcement.

BIRTHDAY GIFTS FROM US TO YOU
To celebrate, we’d like to give away some great gifts through a month-long contest we cooked up. We’re giving away a cool Sony Alpha a7 Mirrorless camera, a Lytro ILLUM camera, a GoPo HERO4 SILVER camera, an Adorama gift card, 500px merchandise, 500px Awesome accounts, and exposure in our social media pages and 500px ISO blog.

So we’re inviting you to join our birthday contest, and take a walk down memory lane with us. We want to hear all about the memories you’ve made over the years as a photographer and 500px community member!

This contest is open to all 500px users worldwide.

Scroll down for our CONTEST RULES, plus screenshots:
You must use Groups to submit your entries.

1. Join 500px ISO Group.

2. Start a discussion on 500px ISO Group.

3. In the discussion, upload a collection of 5-10 of your own photos that best describe your most memorable experiences on 500px, whether it’s the first few photos you uploaded after you signed up, the first friend you made on 500px, the first photo that went popular, your recent 500px Photo Walk you attended, etc.

Your collection must have at least 5 photos.

You can do this through the buttons at the bottom of the page. You can choose to either Upload photos from your computer or selecting photos from your 500px library:

Upload a collection of photos

Below is an example of a contest entry:

Screen Shot 2014-10-31 at 7.02.24 PM

Screen Shot 2014-10-31 at 7.04.03 PM

You may submit old photos, or go out and take new ones. We totally encourage you to be as creative as you want. You can even reenact these experiences with models and take new photos!

4. Make sure to describe each photo in your collection the best way you can. Feel free to write the descriptions in your own style, whether it’s funny or sentimental.

Screen Shot 2014-10-31 at 7.08.43 PM

5. You must only use your own photos.

6. When you are done, hit the Publish button. You’ll find this button at the bottom of the page:

Screen Shot 2014-10-31 at 7.10.38 PM

7. Your published collection counts as your contest entry. You must only submit 1 collection, so make it a good one.

8. Encourage your friends to upvote your discussions, and share your collection in your own social media pages. It increases the chances of your entry getting surfaced to the top, and your chances of winning the Community Pick prize. Below is a screenshot that displays where you can track your upvotes:

Screen Shot 2014-10-31 at 7.19.42 PM

Extra credit: Upload the photos in your collection to your 500px account and tag them #500pxBirthday5.

Got questions on how to use Groups? Email help@500px.com!

CONTEST DEADLINE: November 22 at 11:59 P.M. US Pacific Time

CONTEST JUDGING:
On November 23, 500px co-founder Evgeny Tchebotarev and the editorial team will go through all the entries to select the Grand Prize winner, and 1st, 2nd, 3rd Runner-ups.

We also have a Community Pick winner, which is all up to you to decide! The Community Pick Winner is determined by the collection that gets the most Upvotes in the Group. So remember to share your contest entry on social media, and ask your friends and followers to vote for your entry.

Winners will be announced on November 30, end of day on 500px ISO and our social media pages.

CONTEST PRIZES

The Grand Prize Winner is determined and judged by the 500px team.
The Grand Prize Winner gets…

Sony Alpha a7
* Sony Alpha a7 Mirrorless camera with full-frame lens
* One-year Awesome account
* Personalized 500px trophy
* 500px Editor status for one week, with ability to curate our Editors’ Choice page
* An exclusive interview feature and photo collection published on 500px ISO
* Exposure and shoutouts on 500px’s social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram)

The 1st Runner-up is determined and judged by the 500px team.
1st Runner-up Winner gets…

Lytro ILLUM
LYTRO_black
* Lytro ILLUM camera, sponsored by Lytro
Lytro is changing the way images are captured and stories are told. The company’s second-generation light field camera, LYTRO ILLUM, allows users to explore depth across a scene and create “Living Pictures” in which the point of perspective can be changed, 3D images can be captured, and animations can be created. Visit www.lytro.com
* One-year Awesome account
* Personalized 500px trophy
* An exclusive interview feature and photo collection published on 500px ISO
* Exposure and shoutouts on 500px’s social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram)

The 2nd Runner-up is determined and judged by the 500px team.
2nd Runner-up Winner gets…

GoPro HERO4
* GoPro HERO4 SILVER camera
* Six-month Awesome account
* Personalized 500px trophy
* Photo collection published on 500px ISO
* Exposure and shoutouts on 500px’s social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram)

The 3rd Runner-up is determined and judged by the 500px team.
3rd Runner-up Winner gets…

Adorama_more
* $250 Adorama.com Gift Card, sponsored by Adorama
Adorama has everything you need to help you capture, enjoy, and share life’s moments. Cameras & gear, computers & phones, photo printing & rentals, and an exceptional learning center for amateurs and pros. Come see them in NY or online: adorama.com
* Personalized 500px trophy
* Six-month Awesome account
* Photo collection published on 500px ISO
* Have a new photo featured on 500px’s social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, Google+) everyday for 2 straight weeks

The Community Pick Winner is determined by the entry that gets the most Upvotes in 500px ISO Group.
Community Pick Winner gets…

* 500px swag bag full of stickers, shirts, and other merch
* One-year Awesome account

Good luck! We hope you’ll have fun with this contest, rekindle old memories, and make new ones through the power of photography. Thanks for spending our birthday with us, and we promise to make this an even more epic year for you.

If you have any questions about the contest, feel free to send us an email at iso.submissions@500px.com or leave a comment for us in this thread on 500px ISO Group. We’ll respond to them as fast and the best as we can.