Dubois County Museum Opens Third Annual Amateur Photo Contest

Eighty-seven photographers submitted entries to the Dubois County Museum's second annual contest last year, competing across adult and youth divisions for cash prizes. The museum at 2704 N. Newton Street in Jasper opened the third edition of the contest on March 31, again under the theme that has anchored both previous contests: "Your Favorite Photo."

The theme is deliberately open. Accepted subjects have ranged across flowers, animals, landscapes, macro images, and portraits, in color or black and white. Prior contests organized entries into three age divisions: Children ages 5 to 12, Youth ages 13 to 19, and Adults 20 and over. Finalist photos go on display inside the museum, where visitors vote to determine the Public Choice Award. A separate Professional Choice Award is decided by judges from outside the museum.

In 2025, professional photographers B.C. Baggett and Kia Kalb served as the Professional Choice panelists, with winners announced on June 3 through local media and the museum's Facebook page. The 2024 inaugural contest produced the most dominant single performance in the contest's brief history: Jasper photographer Ordie Day took first place in the People's Choice adult division for his image "Big Boy" Train and first place in the Professional Judges adult division for a separate entry, "Country Crossing," sweeping both top awards in the same year.

The contest fits inside a museum that already anchors downtown Jasper's cultural draw. Indiana's largest county museum by item count, with more than 56,000 objects and annual visitation exceeding 12,000 visitors, the institution uses the contest's finalist display period to drive repeat foot traffic and generate local media coverage that extends the museum's visibility beyond its doors.

The prior two contests charged $5 per submitted photo, capped entries at three per person, required photos to be framed to 8-by-10 size, and permitted minor editing for cropping, sharpness, and color. Photos were not required to have been taken in the current year. Full rules, submission deadlines, and any entry fees specific to the 2026 contest are available directly from the museum.