“We’ve had people win that have taken the picture in the backyard, but some people are semi-professional or professional photographers that submit photos as well,” Frey said. “It’s a range of skill levels, we encourage anybody of any skill level to submit photos because you never know, you might win.”

The contest used to take place only in the summer but was extended into the fall so that MSU students could participate. Though contest rules state that photos could be taken anywhere in East Lansing, Frey said a tip to win would be to take photos outside of campus. 

“We like to get a range of photos,” Frey said. “We always get a number of photos on campus. MSU’s campus is beautiful so that’s great, but we would love more photos taken actually in the East Lansing community whether it’s out at events or just in the Downtown because we get so many photos on campus the photos that are taken in East Lansing kind of stand out because there aren’t so many of them.” 

Winners will receive gift card prizes, the highest being a $150 Meijer gift card, and will be featured in marketing materials such as the community calendar and shared on the city’s Facebook page. 

“We thought it would just be a fun way to engage the community in a contest while showing us what they love about East Lansing,” Frey said. “We use the photos in our annual report calendar so that was the ultimate goal, to get some photos taken by the community that we could showcase in the calendar.” 

The Communications Department will narrow the submissions down to a group of finalists, then the winners will be chosen by a select group of staff members across departments, including art festival coordinators with expertise.

“We’re always really impressed by the photos that get submitted,” Frey said. “I think those that have pride in this community, that shows through in their  

Photos can be submitted online here.