Contests · Challenges · Group Activities
Version: 1.1
Effective: These Terms take effect on the date of their publication on the PPG platform and remain in force until superseded by the next revision published on the same page. The version in force at the time you submit, register, join or vote governs that participation.
Pixavince Photography Group (PPG)
This single document governs all three of PPG's online activities.
| Part | Applies to |
|---|---|
| PART A — Common Terms (Sections 1–17) | Every Contest, Challenge and Group Activity |
| PART B (Sections 18–22) | Contests only |
| PART C (Sections 23–26) | Challenges only |
| PART D (Sections 27–32) | Group Activities only |
| PART E (Section 33) | Declaration and acceptance |
Part A applies in full to whichever activity you take part in. Parts B, C and D set out only what is specific to that activity. Where a provision in Part B, C or D conflicts with Part A, the specific Part prevails for that activity alone.
Workshops are governed by a separate document at `pixavince-photography.club/terms/workshops`, because Workshops carry refund, cancellation and physical-safety terms that do not apply here. A Contest entry fee under Clause 18.4 is not a Workshop fee and is governed by this document alone.
These Terms & Conditions ("Terms") govern participation in all Contests, Challenges and Group Activities conducted through the Pixavince Photography Group platform at `pixavince-photography.club` (each, an "Activity").
Pixavince Photography Group ("PPG", "we", "us", "our") is operated by Pixavince Creations, having its registered office at Row House-6, Bhargav Wihar, S.No. 53/1, Near Dnyandeep School, Off Bangalore Bypass, Kudale Baug, Sinhagad Road, Pune, Maharashtra 411041, India.
By submitting to any Activity, by registering or joining a team, or by casting a vote, you confirm that you have read, understood and unconditionally accepted these Terms in their entirety.
Most Activities governed by this document are conducted free of charge. Some Contests carry a per-entry fee, which is stated on the Contest Page before you pay and is payable separately for each entry. Except to the extent set out in Section 14, PPG's liability in connection with any Activity is limited as provided in these Terms. If you do not agree to any part of these Terms, do not participate.
Sections 1 to 17 apply to every Contest, Challenge and Group Activity.
1.1 "Activity" means any Contest, Challenge or Group Activity conducted on the PPG platform.
1.2 "Activity Page" means the individual listing for an Activity, together with its stated theme, brief, eligibility, windows, limits, method of determining winners, points values and any Activity-specific rules.
1.3 "Submission" means any photograph, image, text, report or other material submitted by a Participant to an Activity, together with its title, caption and accompanying information.
1.4 "Participant" means a member who submits to, registers for or joins an Activity. "Voter" means any person who casts a vote in a Contest.
1.5 "Member" means a person holding a registered PPG account in ACTIVE status. "Membership Tier" means the Basic, Classic or Elite tier applicable to that account.
1.6 "Points" means reward points under the PPG Rewards & Points programme.
1.7 "Team" means a group of members registered together for a Group Activity, and "Team Leader" means the member holding that role under Part D.
1.8 Headings are for convenience only. The singular includes the plural and vice versa. "Including" means "including without limitation".
2.1 Structure. Part A applies to every Activity. Parts B, C and D apply respectively to Contests, Challenges and Group Activities. Where a provision of Part B, C or D conflicts with Part A, the specific Part prevails for that Activity alone.
2.2 Workshops excluded. Workshops are governed by the separate Workshop Terms & Conditions. Where an Activity is connected to a Workshop, both documents apply, each to its own subject matter.
2.3 Platform terms. These Terms operate in addition to the general PPG Website Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and Rewards & Points terms. In the event of conflict on a matter specific to an Activity, these Terms prevail.
2.4 Activity Page prevails on specifics. Where the Activity Page states a theme, brief, eligibility condition, limit, deadline, method, points value, editing restriction or any other Activity-specific rule, that stated position governs that Activity and prevails over any general statement in these Terms. These Terms supply the framework; the Activity Page supplies the specifics.
2.5 Entire agreement. These Terms, together with the Activity Page, constitute the entire agreement in respect of an Activity. No verbal assurance, message or statement by any person shall vary these Terms unless confirmed in writing by an authorised representative of Pixavince Creations.
2.5A Acceptance on registration. These Terms form part of the terms accepted by every member when they register a PPG account. Accepting the PPG Terms & Conditions at registration constitutes acceptance of this document and of the Workshop Terms & Conditions. Any further confirmation required at the point of submission, registration or joining a Team is a re-confirmation for the specific Activity concerned, and is additional to — not a substitute for — the acceptance given at registration.
2.6 Amendment. PPG may amend these Terms at any time. The version published on the platform on the date you submit, register or join governs that participation.
2.7 Language. In the event of any translation, the English version prevails.
3.1 Members only. Participation is open only to logged-in PPG members whose account is in ACTIVE status. Visibility of an Activity to non-members or to members of other tiers varies by Activity type and is dealt with in Parts B, C and D. Participation always requires an ACTIVE membership.
3.2 Tier restrictions. An Activity may be restricted to specified Membership Tiers or to a defined category of members, as stated on the Activity Page. Eligibility is assessed at the time of submission or registration, and a subsequent change in your tier does not affect a participation already accepted.
3.3 Age. Participants must be 18 years or above. A person below 18 may not participate, and a submission made by or on behalf of a person below 18 shall be disqualified.
3.4 Excluded persons. Members of the Pixavince Creations management, employees of Pixavince Creations, Faculty engaged for the Activity, and any judge appointed to it, together with their immediate family members, are not eligible to compete in that Activity. Such persons may participate in a non-competing capacity where PPG expressly invites them to do so.
3.5 Suspension. If your membership ceases to be ACTIVE at any time before results are declared, your participation stands withdrawn and you forfeit any Points, rank, placement or title arising from it.
3.6 One account. You may hold and use one PPG account only. Participating or voting through more than one account is a material breach.
3.7 No entitlement. Participation in one Activity confers no right, priority or entitlement in respect of any other. PPG is under no obligation to conduct any Activity, to conduct it at any frequency, or to conduct it on the same terms as any previous Activity.
4.1 Windows are absolute. Submissions, registrations and votes are accepted only during the window stated on the Activity Page. Windows open and close automatically at the stated times, and nothing will be accepted after a window closes for any reason whatsoever, including internet failure, device failure, file size, upload error, travel, illness or misreading of the deadline.
4.2 Time zone. All times stated on the platform are Indian Standard Time (IST). The platform's own clock at the moment of the action is conclusive.
4.3 Change of dates. PPG may extend, shorten or reschedule any window before it lapses. Once a window has lapsed it will not be reopened, and no extension will be granted to any individual Participant.
4.4 No obligation to notify. PPG is under no obligation to remind any member of an approaching deadline, to confirm that an upload or registration has succeeded, or to notify a Participant that a Submission has been rejected in moderation. Reminder emails, where sent, are a courtesy and their non-receipt is not a ground for any claim.
4.5 Your responsibility. It is your responsibility to check the Activity Page, to allow time for upload and moderation, and to keep the email address on your account current.
5.1 Submissions must comply with the file format, dimension, size, count and orientation requirements stated on the Activity Page or enforced by the upload facility. Files that do not comply may be rejected automatically.
5.2 Images are processed and stored by the platform in a converted and resized form. You accept that such processing may affect fine detail, colour and file size, and no claim shall lie in respect of it.
5.3 Watermarks, signatures, borders, logos, frames and any text identifying the photographer are not permitted on an image unless the Activity Page expressly allows them. PPG may reject such Submissions without notice.
5.4 You are responsible for retaining your own original files. PPG does not archive originals and accepts no responsibility for loss, corruption or deletion of any submitted file.
5.5 Any text you submit — title, caption, description, report or commentary — must be your own, must be in plain text, and must not contain code, markup, scripts, links to malicious content, or contact details soliciting business.
6.1 Sole authorship. By making a Submission you warrant that:
In a Group Activity, each of the above is warranted by the member who took the photograph, and the Team Leader additionally warrants that every image in the Team's Submission was taken by a confirmed member of that Team.
6.2 Presumption of breach. Where PPG has reasonable grounds to believe any warranty in Clause 6.1 is untrue, it may disqualify the Submission, and may do so at any stage including after results are declared, without being required to prove infringement conclusively.
6.3 Participant bears all consequence. You are solely and personally liable for any claim, demand, proceeding, penalty or loss arising from your Submission. PPG shall not be required to intervene, defend, represent or indemnify you in any such matter.
6.4 Prior use and prior publication. An image previously submitted to any other PPG Contest, Challenge or Group Activity is not eligible. An image published, exhibited or entered in an external competition is eligible unless the Activity Page states otherwise. There is no restriction on the date of capture unless the Activity Page states otherwise.
6.5 Permitted post-processing. Unless the Activity Page states otherwise, the following are permitted: cropping, straightening, exposure, contrast, colour and white balance adjustment, dodging and burning, noise reduction, sharpening, lens correction, spot removal of sensor dust, and conversion to monochrome.
The following are not permitted unless the Activity Page expressly allows them: addition or removal of any subject or significant element, compositing or blending of separate frames other than exposure bracketing and panoramic stitching where declared, sky replacement, replacement or substitution of any part of the scene, and any manipulation that materially misrepresents the scene as it was before the camera.
6.6 Artificial intelligence. Images generated or partially generated by any artificial intelligence or generative system are strictly prohibited.
Permitted: AI-assisted tools that perform only the adjustments allowed under Clause 6.5, operating on detail actually captured by your camera — for example AI noise reduction, AI masking and selection, AI subject or sky selection, AI lens correction and AI sharpening.
Prohibited: generative fill; generative expand or outpainting; AI sky replacement; AI addition, removal or relocation of any subject or element; AI style transfer; AI upscaling or "super-resolution" that invents detail not present in the capture; text-to-image and image-to-image generation of any kind; and any tool that synthesises pixels rather than adjusting captured ones.
The test: a permitted tool changes how captured detail is rendered. A prohibited tool creates detail that was never in front of the camera. Where a tool falls on both sides depending on how it is used, it is your responsibility to use it only within the permitted limb, and to be able to demonstrate this under Clause 6.7.
Where PPG has reasonable grounds to believe generative content is present, Clause 6.2 applies and the Submission may be disqualified at any stage. An Activity Page may relax this clause only by expressly permitting a stated generative technique; silence never operates as permission.
6.7 Production of the original file. On request by PPG at any stage, a Participant must produce the unedited original file, including its RAW file where the camera produced one, together with complete and unaltered EXIF metadata, within 3 days. Failure to produce it, production of a file inconsistent with the Submission, or production of a file with stripped or altered metadata shall result in immediate disqualification. In a Group Activity, the request may be made of the Team Leader, who is responsible for obtaining the file from the member concerned, and the whole Team is disqualified on failure.
6.8 Declaration on request. PPG may require a Participant to describe the circumstances of capture and the processing applied. A false or evasive declaration is itself a ground for disqualification.
7.1 Consent of persons depicted. Where a Submission depicts an identifiable person, you warrant that you have obtained that person's informed consent to the photograph being taken, submitted to the Activity, displayed on the PPG platform, and used by PPG under Section 12. Where the person depicted is below 18, you warrant that you have obtained the written consent of their parent or legal guardian.
7.2 Property and permissions. Where a Submission depicts private property, a protected monument, a restricted area, an artwork, an installation or any location requiring permission, you warrant that you had lawful access and any necessary permission at the time of capture.
7.3 Prohibited content. A Submission must not contain or depict: nudity, sexual or suggestive content; obscenity; content sexualising any person below 18; graphic violence, injury, death or cruelty; content promoting hatred or discrimination on grounds of religion, caste, region, language, gender, disability, sexual orientation or nationality; content offending religious sentiment; political propaganda; anything unlawful under Indian law; or anything intruding on a person's privacy or dignity, including photographs of persons in distress, at prayer, in medical settings or in private moments, taken without consent.
7.4 Wildlife and nature ethics. Where a Submission depicts wildlife, you warrant that:
7.5 Drone imagery. Where a Submission was captured by drone, you warrant that you held all registrations, licences and permissions required under the Drone Rules, 2021 and applicable DGCA and local directions, and that the flight was lawful. PPG bears no liability in respect of any drone-captured Submission.
7.6 Location sensitivity. PPG may require the location of a sensitive subject, including a nesting site or a rare species, to be withheld from public display.
7.7 Conduct. In connection with any Activity you shall not harass, abuse, threaten, defame, impersonate or discriminate against any other member, judge, model, subject or member of the public, whether on the platform, in any Activity communication channel, or on any external forum or social media.
7.8 Disqualification. Breach of this Section is a ground for immediate disqualification, forfeiture of Points and titles, and where appropriate, suspension or termination of membership and reporting to the relevant authority.
8.1 All Submissions are moderated. Every Submission is reviewed before it appears to other members or to the public. A Submission is displayed only once approved.
8.2 Discretion. PPG may reject any Submission that does not comply with these Terms or the Activity Page, that is off-theme, that is of unacceptable technical quality, or that PPG considers unsuitable for any reason. PPG is not obliged to give reasons for a rejection, and no correspondence, appeal or reconsideration shall be entertained.
8.3 Approval is not endorsement. Approval of a Submission in moderation is not confirmation of its compliance with Section 6 or Section 7, and does not preclude later disqualification.
8.4 Timing. Moderation is carried out within a reasonable time. PPG does not guarantee that a Submission will be approved before any particular point in a window, and no claim shall lie in respect of the timing of moderation or its effect on votes or visibility.
8.5 Resubmission. Whether a rejected Submission may be replaced, and within what limits, is dealt with in Parts B, C and D. Where replacement is permitted, it is permitted only within the applicable window.
9.1 Points are the sole award. Unless the Activity Page expressly states otherwise, the sole award in any Activity is Points, together with the recognition of the placement itself. No cash prize, equipment, voucher or article of value is offered.
9.2 Points are not currency. Points have no cash value, cannot be encashed, transferred or gifted, expire in accordance with the Rewards & Points terms, and may be adjusted or reversed by PPG where awarded in error or where a Submission is later disqualified. No claim shall lie in respect of Points.
9.3 Participation Points. Where an Activity awards participation Points, they are credited only in respect of Submissions approved in moderation, once per member per Activity, and are not awarded for rejected, withdrawn or disqualified Submissions.
9.4 Reversal. Where a Submission is rejected after Points have been credited, or is later disqualified, PPG shall reverse the Points credited in respect of it. Where your balance is insufficient at the time of reversal, the reversal may result in a reduced or negative adjustment as the platform provides.
9.5 Submissions curated by PPG. PPG may include images in an Activity gallery for display or illustrative purposes. Such images do not compete and earn no Points.
9.6 Any prize offered is subject to further terms. Where PPG exceptionally offers a prize other than Points, the prize is stated on the Activity Page, is non-transferable, non-exchangeable and not redeemable for cash, is subject to availability, may be substituted for one of equivalent value, and is subject to any tax, duty or statutory deduction, which the winner bears. Delivery risk and any warranty in respect of a physical prize rests with its manufacturer or supplier, not with PPG.
10.1 Grounds. PPG may disqualify any Submission, Participant or Team, at any stage, on any of the following grounds: breach of any warranty in Section 6; breach of Section 7; breach of the Activity Page rules; exceeding any stated limit; vote manipulation under Section 20; use of more than one account; false declaration; abusive or disruptive conduct in connection with the Activity; failure to meet a deadline where the Activity provides for it; or any conduct that brings, or is likely to bring, PPG into disrepute.
10.2 Disqualification after results. Disqualification may occur after results have been declared. In that event PPG may revise the results, reallocate placements, reverse Points already credited, withdraw any title or badge already displayed, and publish the corrected result. The revised result stands as the result of that Activity.
10.3 No reasons required. PPG is not obliged to disclose the evidence, methodology or reasoning on which a disqualification is based, and no appeal or reconsideration shall be entertained.
10.4 Wider consequences. Disqualification may be accompanied by forfeiture of accrued Points, exclusion from future Activities, and suspension or termination of membership under the platform terms.
10.5 Team consequences. In a Group Activity, disqualification operates against the whole Team as provided in Part D, irrespective of which member's act or omission caused it.
11.1 PPG's discretion. PPG may at any time and without liability alter the theme, brief, rules, dates, windows, limits, method of determining winners or points values of an Activity, suspend it, re-run it, or cancel it in whole or in part.
11.2 External factors. Without limiting Clause 11.1, PPG shall not be liable for any delay, suspension, curtailment or cancellation of an Activity, or for the loss of any Submission or vote, arising from any event beyond its reasonable control, including: platform, server, hosting, network or internet failure; cyber-attack, hacking or coordinated abuse; power failure; epidemic or pandemic; flood, earthquake, storm or other natural event; riot, civil commotion, bandh, curfew or public disorder; any governmental or statutory order; unavailability of a judge or administrator; or any act of God.
11.3 No compensation. No refund, compensation, damages, Points or alternative remedy shall be payable in respect of any matter arising under this Section. Where an Activity carries an entry fee, that fee is non-refundable under Clause 19.4 and nothing further is owed.
11.4 Availability not warranted. PPG does not warrant that the platform will be available at any particular time or that any Submission, registration or vote will be successfully received, stored or displayed. A Participant unable to submit for any reason has no claim of any kind.
12.1 You keep your copyright. Copyright in a Submission remains with its author. Nothing in these Terms transfers, assigns or exclusively licenses copyright to PPG.
12.2 Licence to PPG. By making a Submission you grant PPG a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, irrevocable, non-exclusive, sub-licensable and transferable licence to reproduce, display, publish, distribute, exhibit, resize, crop for layout, and communicate the Submission, in any medium now known or later devised, for the following purposes:
12.3 Team submissions. In a Group Activity, the licence in Clause 12.2 is granted by each member whose work forms part of the Team's Submission. The Team Leader warrants that each such member has agreed to it.
12.4 Credit. PPG will credit the author by name wherever reasonably practicable. An inadvertent omission of credit is not a breach of these Terms and gives rise to no claim.
12.5 No fee. The licence in Clause 12.2 is granted without any fee, royalty, further consent or notification, and survives the conclusion of the Activity, the disqualification of the Submission, and the termination of your membership.
12.6 No third-party commercial exploitation. PPG will not sell a Submission, license it to a third party for that party's own commercial use, or use it as advertising for any third party's goods or services, without the author's separate written consent. Use in PPG's own promotional material under Clause 12.2(c) is permitted and is not third-party commercial use.
12.7 Removal. PPG may remove any Submission from display at any time, without notice or reason. A Participant may request removal after the Activity concludes; PPG will consider such a request in good faith but is not obliged to accede to it, and Clause 12.2 continues to apply to material already published.
12.8 Your undertakings. You shall not use the PPG name, logo, Activity name or any badge to suggest an endorsement, placement, award or affiliation you did not receive. PPG Content — briefs, curricula, templates and material supplied by PPG — remains PPG's property and may not be reproduced or repurposed.
13.1 Display. You accept that an approved Submission, your display name, your placement and your Activity history are visible to other members, and in the case of Contests to the public, and may be indexed by search engines. The scope of visibility for each Activity type is set out in Parts B, C and D.
13.2 Metadata. Metadata embedded in a submitted file may be retained, stripped or displayed at PPG's discretion. Do not embed information you are unwilling to have processed.
13.3 Retention. Submissions, including rejected and non-winning Submissions, are retained for 90 days after results are declared, after which PPG may delete them. Winning Submissions may be retained indefinitely for archival and Hall of Fame purposes. PPG may archive an Activity, which removes its images from display permanently while retaining the record of results.
13.4 Privacy Policy. Personal data is processed in accordance with the PPG Privacy Policy at `pixavince-photography.club/privacy-policy` and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023. The Data Protection Officer is Vaishali Prabhune, contact@pixavince.com.
13.5 Other members' data. You shall not collect, store, publish or misuse the personal data or contact details of any other member obtained through an Activity or its communication channels.
14.1 Limit of liability. Most Activities governed by this document are conducted free of charge, and in respect of any such Activity, to the maximum extent permitted by law, PPG and Pixavince Creations bear no liability whatsoever, and the limit of their aggregate liability to any Participant, Team member or Voter is Nil. Where an Activity carries an entry fee, their aggregate liability to a Participant in respect of that Activity, on any basis whatsoever, shall not in any event exceed the total entry fees actually paid by that Participant for that Activity. Clauses 14.2 to 14.6 apply in either case.
14.2 Exclusions. Without limiting Clause 14.1, PPG shall not be liable for: loss, corruption, non-receipt, non-display or deletion of any Submission or vote; platform unavailability, error or downtime; any act or omission of a judge or administrator; any disqualification, whether of you or of another; any decision on moderation, voting, scoring, winner selection or results; any loss of Points, rank, title or recognition; any act or omission of another member, including a fellow Team member; any claim by a third party arising from a Submission; any indirect or consequential loss, including loss of opportunity, reputation, income or enjoyment; or any distress or disappointment arising from a result.
14.3 No claim in respect of Points. Points carry no monetary value and their award, non-award, reversal or forfeiture shall not found any claim.
14.4 Participation at own risk. Any activity undertaken in order to create a Submission — including travel, trekking, night photography, wildlife photography, drone operation, access to any location, and any meeting or outing arranged between Team members — is undertaken entirely at the Participant's own risk. PPG neither organises nor supervises such activity and bears no responsibility for any injury, illness, death, loss, damage, penalty or prosecution arising from it. Where members of a Team meet, travel or shoot together, they do so as individuals and not under PPG's arrangement, direction or supervision.
14.5 Statutory rights. Nothing in these Terms excludes any liability that cannot lawfully be excluded under the laws of India. Where any exclusion is held unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force.
14.6 Time bar. Any claim must be notified to PPG in writing within 7 days of the event giving rise to it, failing which it is deemed waived and absolutely barred.
15.1 You shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless PPG, Pixavince Creations, and their respective owners, partners, directors, employees, Faculty, judges, agents and volunteers against all claims, demands, proceedings, losses, damages, liabilities, fines, penalties, costs and expenses (including legal fees on a full indemnity basis) arising out of or in connection with:
15.2 This indemnity is continuing and survives the conclusion of the Activity and the termination of your membership.
16.1 Excluded matters. Matters excluded from the grievance process by these Terms — including moderation decisions, judging, scoring, vote voiding, winner selection, disqualification and results — are not open to grievance, appeal or review. This Section applies to other matters only.
16.2 Written grievance. A grievance must be submitted through the PPG contact form or to contact@pixavince.com within 7 days of the event, setting out full particulars and supporting evidence. PPG shall acknowledge within 7 working days and respond within 30 working days. Grievance Officer: Vaishali Prabhune, contact@pixavince.com.
16.3 Finality. In respect of all matters concerning the interpretation and application of these Terms and the conduct of any Activity, the decision of PPG shall be final, conclusive and binding on all Participants, Team members and Voters.
16.4 Disputes between members. PPG is not a party to, and will not adjudicate, any dispute between members, including disputes within a Team about contribution, credit, conduct or Points. PPG may take such administrative action as it considers appropriate for the orderly conduct of an Activity, and that action is final.
16.5 No public escalation. You agree to exhaust this process before making any public statement, social media post or review concerning a dispute. Publication of defamatory, false or misleading statements entitles PPG to pursue all available civil and criminal remedies.
16.6 Governing law. These Terms are governed by the laws of India.
16.7 Arbitration. Any dispute not resolved under this Section within 30 days of written notice shall be referred to arbitration by a sole arbitrator appointed by Pixavince Creations, under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. The seat and venue shall be Pune, Maharashtra, and the language English. The award shall be final and binding.
16.8 Jurisdiction. Subject to Clause 16.7, the courts at Pune, Maharashtra shall have exclusive jurisdiction. Claims must be brought individually; no class or representative proceeding is permitted.
17.1 Severability. If any provision is held invalid or unenforceable, it shall be severed or read down to the minimum extent necessary and the remainder continues in full force.
17.2 No waiver. No failure or delay by PPG in exercising any right operates as a waiver. A concession granted on one occasion creates no precedent or entitlement.
17.3 Survival. Sections 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 survive the conclusion of any Activity and the termination of your membership.
17.4 Assignment. You may not assign any right or obligation under these Terms. Pixavince Creations may assign to any successor entity.
17.5 Separate entity. Pixavince Photography Group is distinct from Pixavince Photography School (`pixavince.com`). Participation in a PPG Activity confers no right or benefit in respect of any offering of Pixavince Photography School.
17.6 Notices. Notices to PPG shall be sent to contact@pixavince.com. Notices to you shall be sent to the email registered on your PPG account and are deemed received on the day of sending.
Sections 18 to 22 apply to Contests, in addition to Part A.
18.1 A Contest is an individual photography competition in which approved entries are displayed publicly and winners are determined by public vote, by appointed judges, or by a weighted combination of the two, as stated on the Contest Page.
18.2 Public visibility. Contest galleries are publicly visible, including to persons who are not PPG members and to search engines. Entry requires an ACTIVE membership; viewing does not.
18.3 Entry limit. The maximum number of entries per member is stated on the Contest Page. Entries in excess of that limit will be rejected or, where detected later, disqualified.
18.4 Entry fee. A Contest may carry an entry fee. Where it does, the amount is stated in Indian Rupees on the Contest Page and is payable per entry: each entry within the stated entry limit is paid for separately, and no bundle, discount, membership-tier waiver or free allowance applies. Points cannot be used to pay an entry fee, in whole or in part, and no Points are earned on one. An entry is created only when payment is successfully received; an uploaded photograph for which payment was not completed creates no entry and occupies no entry slot. PPG may change the fee stated on a Contest Page at any time; a change does not alter the amount payable or paid on any entry already purchased.
19.1 Windows. A Contest has a submission window and, where public voting applies, a separate voting window. Both are stated on the Contest Page and operate under Section 4.
19.2 Withdrawal. An entry may be withdrawn by the Entrant at any time before the submission window closes. After the window closes an entry cannot be withdrawn, replaced, re-edited or re-titled. Withdrawal does not restore an entry slot unless PPG so permits.
19.3 Rejected entries. Where an entry is rejected in moderation, the Entrant may submit a replacement within the submission window, subject to the entry limit. No replacement is possible once the window has closed.
19.4 Payment, non-refundability and abandoned checkouts. An entry fee, once paid, is non-refundable, including where an entry is withdrawn, rejected in moderation, disqualified, or where the Contest is altered, suspended, re-run or cancelled under Section 11. Where PPG nonetheless elects to make a refund, it does so as a matter of discretion and outside these Terms, and no such election creates any entitlement. Where a checkout is begun and not completed, any entry slot it reserved is released automatically after a short interval and the uploaded file is deleted. Where a paid entry is rejected under Clause 19.3, a replacement entry is a fresh entry and the fee is payable again.
20.1 Voting arrangements. Where a Contest includes public voting, the voting window, the voting method and whether a login is required to vote are as stated on the Contest Page and configured for that Contest. Voting arrangements differ between Contests and no expectation arises from any previous Contest, and PPG may set a Contest to require a login to vote or to allow voting without one.
20.2 One vote per entry per voter. A Voter may cast one vote per entry, and may vote for more than one entry in the same Contest unless the Contest Page states otherwise.
20.3 Prohibited vote manipulation. The following are strictly prohibited:
Canvassing your own entry honestly among your own network — asking friends, family or followers to view and vote — is permitted, provided each of them votes once, personally and voluntarily.
20.4 Detection and voiding. PPG operates automated and manual controls to detect irregular voting. PPG may void any vote or set of votes it considers irregular, at any time and without notice, and is not obliged to disclose the basis of its assessment or the detection methods used. Voided votes are excluded from all counts and rankings.
20.5 Consequence for the Entrant. Where irregular voting is associated with an entry, PPG may disqualify that entry irrespective of whether the Entrant is shown to have participated in or known of the irregularity. An Entrant is responsible for the conduct of those who vote on their behalf.
20.6 Escalating consequences. In addition to voiding votes and disqualifying the entry, PPG may forfeit Points, withdraw titles already announced, bar the member from a stated number of future Activities, and suspend or terminate membership.
20.7 Counts are provisional. Vote counts displayed during a Contest are provisional. Final counts are those determined by PPG after voiding, and may be lower than those displayed earlier. No claim arises from a reduction in a displayed count.
20.8 Voters are bound. Any person who casts a vote accepts Part A and this Section, whether or not they hold a PPG account.
21.1 Method. Each Contest is judged by public vote alone, by appointed judges alone, or by a weighted combination, as stated on the Contest Page. The weighting, where applicable, is as configured for that Contest.
21.2 Judges. Judges are appointed by PPG at its sole discretion and score entries against criteria determined by PPG. Judges may be internal or external to PPG, and PPG is under no obligation to disclose their identity before or after the Contest. Judges do not hold accounts on the platform; their scores are recorded administratively on their behalf.
21.3 Scores are confidential. Individual judge scores, score sheets, deliberations, rankings below the announced positions and any judge's comments are confidential and will not be disclosed to any Entrant or to the public, in whole or in part.
21.4 No feedback. PPG does not provide feedback, critique, explanation or reasons in respect of any entry's placement or non-placement. No correspondence on judging shall be entertained.
21.5 Subjectivity acknowledged. You acknowledge that photographic assessment is inherently subjective, that reasonable judges may differ, and that no entry has any entitlement to any placement.
21.6 Decision is final. The result of every Contest, and every decision relating to scoring, ranking, eligibility, disqualification and the interpretation of these Terms, is final, conclusive and binding. No appeal, review, re-scoring or recount shall be entertained.
22.1 Declaration. Results are declared when PPG publishes them on the platform. Until published, no ranking, provisional standing or vote count constitutes a result.
22.2 Ties. Where two or more entries achieve the same score, they are ranked equally and the following position is adjusted accordingly. Points are awarded by reference to the rank achieved: where a rank is shared, each tied entry receives the Points attaching to that rank, and the immediately following rank number is skipped.
22.3 Where a Contest is not concluded. Where a Contest is cancelled before results are declared, no Points, ranking or title arises and no claim shall lie.
Sections 23 to 26 apply to Challenges, in addition to Part A.
23.1 A Challenge is a members-only photography assignment against a stated brief. There is no public voting and no panel of judges. Winners, if any, are selected by PPG directly.
23.2 Members-only visibility. Unlike Contests, a Challenge and its gallery are visible only to logged-in members who satisfy the Challenge's stated visibility tier. A member who does not satisfy that tier will not see the Challenge listed and will not be able to reach it by direct link.
23.3 One entry. A member may submit one photograph only to a Challenge.
23.4 No public display. Challenge entries and results are not displayed publicly and are not indexed by search engines. Winners are recognised within the member area only.
24.1 Window. Entries are accepted only within the submission window stated on the Challenge Page, under Section 4.
24.2 Rejection frees the slot. Where PPG rejects an entry in moderation, the rejected image is deleted, the entry slot is released, and the member may submit one replacement within the remaining window. A member is notified by email when their entry is rejected.
24.3 One replacement only. The replacement is subject to the same moderation. Nothing in this Section entitles a member to more than one replacement, and PPG may decline to accept a further submission.
24.4 Points on rejection. Where participation Points were credited on approval and the entry is subsequently rejected, those Points are reversed under Clause 9.4.
24.5 No withdrawal after close. After the submission window closes an entry cannot be withdrawn, replaced or altered.
25.1 Peer visibility. Whether members can see one another's entries while the submission window is open is a setting stated on the Challenge Page. Where it is not enabled, entries become visible to eligible members only once the window closes.
25.2 Automatic opening. Entries become visible to eligible members when the submission window closes or when PPG closes the Challenge early, whichever is earlier.
25.3 Your own entry. You can always see your own entry and its moderation status.
26.1 Selection by PPG. PPG selects up to three ranked winners from the approved entries, at its sole discretion, applying whatever considerations it thinks fit. There is no scoring, no scoresheet and no external panel. PPG may select fewer than three winners, or none at all.
26.2 No criteria published. PPG is not obliged to publish selection criteria, to explain any selection, or to give reasons for the non-selection of any entry. No feedback will be provided and no correspondence shall be entertained.
26.3 Announcement. Winners are announced when PPG publishes the result. Until then, no expectation of any placement arises.
26.4 Points. Participation Points, where offered, are credited on approval of an entry. Winner Points, where offered, are credited on announcement, in accordance with the placement awarded. Participation and winner Points may both be earned in the same Challenge.
26.5 After announcement. Once winners are announced, entries in that Challenge cannot be approved, rejected or removed except by way of disqualification under Section 10 or archival under Clause 13.3.
26.6 Decision is final. The selection of winners and every related decision is final, conclusive and binding, and is not open to grievance, appeal or review.
Sections 27 to 32 apply to Group Activities, in addition to Part A.
27.1 A Group Activity is a team-based photography assignment conducted in one or more stages, each with its own task and its own deadline.
27.2 Viewing and participating differ. A Group Activity is visible to every logged-in member regardless of tier. Participation is restricted to members satisfying the tier stated on the Activity Page. A member who may view but not participate will be shown that they are not eligible to register.
27.3 Teams, not individuals. All participation is through a Team. There is no individual entry. A member may belong to one Team only in any given Group Activity.
27.4 PPG does not arrange your team's activities. Any meeting, travel, outing or shoot undertaken by Team members in the course of a Group Activity is arranged privately between them, at their own risk, and is not organised, supervised or endorsed by PPG. Clause 14.4 applies in full.
28.1 Registration window. Teams may be formed and registered only within the registration window stated on the Activity Page.
28.2 Team Leader. The member who creates a Team is its Team Leader. A Team has exactly one Team Leader at all times. The Team Leader is responsible for the Team's registration, roster and submissions.
28.3 Team size. The minimum and maximum Team size is stated on the Activity Page. The Team Leader counts towards both.
28.4 Invitations. The Team Leader invites members by email address. An invited person must be an ACTIVE member satisfying the participation tier, and must not already belong to another Team in that Activity. An invitation to an ineligible person will be refused.
28.5 Confirmation. An invited member must confirm their participation through the link sent to them, within 7 days or by the close of the registration window, whichever is earlier. An unconfirmed invitation is not a membership of the Team and does not count towards the minimum size.
28.6 Minimum not met. Where a Team has fewer confirmed members than the minimum at the close of the registration window, the Team is automatically cancelled and its members are notified. No Points arise and no claim shall lie.
28.7 Admin approval. Where the Activity Page states that Teams require approval, a Team that meets the minimum enters a pending state at the close of registration and participates only once PPG approves it. PPG may reject a Team at its sole discretion and without reasons. Rejection is final and terminal, and the Team cannot be revived, re-formed or re-registered for that Activity.
28.8 Effect of cancellation or rejection. Where a Team is cancelled or rejected, its membership records are removed so that its members are free to form or join a Team in any future Activity. The Team's record and the reason are retained by PPG.
28.9 Eligibility fixed at registration. Participation eligibility is assessed at registration. A subsequent change in a member's tier does not remove them from a Team, nor does it entitle anyone to join one.
29.1 Leader's authority is time-limited. The Team Leader may manage the roster — inviting and removing members — only during the registration window. After the registration window closes the roster may be changed by PPG only.
29.2 Leader cannot remove a confirmed member. At no stage may a Team Leader remove a member who has confirmed. Requests to remove a confirmed member must be made to PPG, which will decide at its discretion.
29.3 PPG's authority. PPG may at any stage add a member to a Team, remove a member from a Team, or change which member holds the role of Team Leader, where it considers this necessary for the orderly conduct of the Activity. PPG's decision on any roster matter is final and is not open to grievance or appeal.
29.4 Dissolution. Where the last confirmed member of a Team is removed, the Team is dissolved and cancelled. No Points arise.
29.5 No audit trail. PPG does not maintain a historical record of roster composition. The roster displayed at any time is the current roster, and earlier stage work will be displayed alongside the current membership.
29.6 Leaving a Team. A confirmed member who wishes to leave a Team must ask PPG. There is no right to leave, and leaving does not entitle the member to join another Team in the same Activity.
30.1 Stages. A Group Activity has up to five stages. Each stage has its own task, its own reveal time and its own submission window, all stated on the Activity Page.
30.2 Task visibility. A stage's task is withheld until its stated reveal time. Once revealed it is visible to confirmed members of participating Teams. Once a stage's submission window closes, its task becomes visible to every logged-in member.
30.3 Only the Team Leader submits. A stage submission is made by the Team Leader alone. Other confirmed members may view it but cannot create, edit or delete it. This is a deliberate design: one member is accountable for each Team's submission.
30.4 Content of a submission. A stage submission may contain up to five photographs and accompanying plain text. A submission is treated as made if it contains at least one photograph or non-empty text. An empty submission does not count.
30.5 Editing and freezing. A stage submission may be edited by the Team Leader at any time until that stage's submission window closes. After it closes the submission is frozen and cannot be added to, edited or withdrawn.
30.6 Authorship within a Team. Every photograph in a Team's submission must have been taken by a confirmed member of that Team. The warranties in Section 6 apply to each image, and the Team Leader warrants compliance for the Team as a whole.
30.7 Publication on close. Each stage's submissions become visible to every logged-in member as soon as that stage's window closes, while later stages continue to run. You accept that your Team's work for a completed stage will be visible to other Teams still competing.
31.1 Every stage must be completed. A Team must make a submission in every stage of the Activity.
31.2 Missing a stage disqualifies the Team. Failure to submit in any stage by its deadline disqualifies the Team from the entire Activity, including stages it has already completed. This is automatic and applies irrespective of the reason for the failure, including illness, travel, connectivity, device failure, a member's unavailability, or a disagreement within the Team.
31.3 All-or-nothing. A disqualified Team receives no participation Points and no winner Points, even where it completed earlier stages to a high standard.
31.4 One member's default is the Team's default. Every member of a Team accepts that the acts and omissions of the Team Leader and of every other member bind the whole Team, and that they may lose the benefit of their own work through another member's failure. PPG will not adjudicate between members and will not apportion responsibility.
31.5 Stages closed before approval. Where a Team is approved after a stage's window has already closed, that stage does not count against it.
31.6 Disqualification by PPG. PPG may in addition disqualify a Team under Section 10 for any breach of these Terms by any member of it.
31.7 Published work stays published. A disqualified Team's submissions for stages already published remain visible, marked as disqualified.
31.8 Deadlines that have lapsed cannot be moved. PPG may extend a stage deadline before it lapses, and doing so relieves every Team equally. Once a deadline has lapsed it cannot be altered, and a disqualification arising from it is permanent.
32.1 Judging is offline. Assessment of a Group Activity is carried out offline by PPG. There is no scoring system, no scoresheet and no published criteria. PPG selects up to three winning Teams overall.
32.2 Overall winners only. Winners are determined on the Activity as a whole, having regard to a Team's work across all stages. There are no per-stage winners.
32.3 Remarks. PPG may publish a short remark on each winning Team and an overall summary of the Activity. It is under no obligation to comment on any non-winning Team, and no feedback will be provided.
32.4 Timing of results. Results become visible only when PPG has prepared them and the declaration time stated on the Activity Page has arrived. Until then, nothing constitutes a result.
32.5 Points to every confirmed member. Where a Team earns participation or winner Points, each confirmed member of that Team receives the full amount. Points are not divided between members and are not weighted by contribution.
32.6 Disqualified Teams earn nothing. Clause 31.3 applies. No member of a disqualified Team receives any Points.
32.7 Decision is final. The selection of winning Teams and every related decision is final, conclusive and binding, and is not open to grievance, appeal or review.
By participating in any PPG Contest, Challenge or Group Activity, I confirm and declare that:
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