This year's Air Cadet Photographic Competition is now open and a top snap could put you in the frame for a prize.

We are looking for the best images that depict life in the Air Cadet Organisation - the Air Training Corps.

Competition will be tough as cadets and staff from across the UK fight for the coveted trophies, the kudos of having their image published, potentially used for promotional material and also the chance of winning ACO goody bags filled with prizes!

The photographs will be judged by a panel including experienced Air Cadet Photographers, Aviation Photographer Geoff Lee and the Defence Photographic School at RAF Cosford, with results to be announced in late November, on the same day as the Media & Communications Awards (MACAs).

Once again, to try and help encourage entries, the rules of the competition have been kept as simple as possible:

Firstly, your image must come under one of the following two categories:

Class 1 - “The ACO and its people” – a single photograph where the main subject is a cadet or member of adult staff. Entries may be no more than three images.

Class 2 - “Aircraft” – a single photograph of an aircraft. Again, a maximum of three images per entry.

* Images must have been taken between 31 August 2010 and 1September 2011.

All entries should arrive by 17:00 on Friday 14 October 2011. Any entries sent after this date will not be accepted.

THINGS TO CONSIDER

Class 1 - The photographs should be viewed as possible public relations images and so consideration should be given to ensuring that ACO branding is clearly visible.

Class 2 - Simply an award winning picture of an aircraft, flying or static. It should take your breath away!

Both classes are open to cadets and volunteers and it must be your own work. The work of professional photographers will not be accepted.

HOW TO ENTER

Once you have selected the images which you plan to enter into the competition, complete the following form (Photographic Competition 2011 Entry Form – only one form required per entrant) and then you can enter one of two ways.

a. e-mail your images (of around 1MB) to mcaio@aircadets.org

or

b. send your entries on a CD with your name clearly marked (one disk per entrant) to:

Ashley Nettleton
Dep Hd Media Comms
HQ Air Cadets
Royal Air Force
Cranwell
Lincolnshire
NG34 8HB

Files should be saved as.jpg files (max size 1024 pixels across and 768 high) and a suggested naming convention would be:

2011-(YourName)-(Photocomp_Class1or2)-(ImageTitle)-U(Unclassified)

Example

2011-JoeBloggs-Class1-RedArrowsAtRIAT-U

Please Note: no CDs will be returned.

Closing date – Friday 14 October 2011.