Prestige and prizes await amateur photographers entering the 10th annual New Mexico Magazine Photo Contest, co-sponsored by Eloquent Light Photography Workshops, LLC. of Santa Fe.

The grand prize winner will receive a workshop from Eloquent Light Photography Workshops, valued at $1,679, as well as six-nights lodging at The Lodge at Santa Fe.

“We’re thrilled to be building on this successful tradition,” said Ethel Hess, Publisher of New Mexico Magazine. More than 350 photographers entered approximately 1,500 images in last year’s contest. “With entrants from across New Mexico and the nation, the contest not only highlights the legacy of New Mexico photography, but also celebrates the land and people we love.”

Co-sponsor Eloquent Light Photography Workshops is the brainchild of photographer/instructor Craig Varjabedian, known for his book, “Ghost Ranch and the Faraway Nearby” (UNM Press), which is the 2010 winner of the Western Heritage Award for Outstanding Photography Book, awarded by the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.

Additional prizes include gift certificates, software and equipment packages courtesy of Lowepro, Alien Skin Software, Manfrotto Distribution, ColorRight, X-rite, West Coast Imaging, Foliolink, the Lodge at Santa Fe, OnOne Software and University of New Mexico Press.

The top three photos in each of six categories, plus some honorable mentions, will be featured in the January 2011 issue of New Mexico Magazine. A slideshow of all winners and more will be on view at www.nmmagazine.com throughout 2011.

Winners will be juried by Craig Varjabedian, director of the Eloquent Light Photography Workshops; Fabian West, art director of New Mexico Magazine; and David Halpern, photographer, author, teacher, and 11-time National Parks Artist-in-Residence. The decisions of the judges’ decision are final.

The deadline for submissions is September 27, 2010. For rules and entry forms visit http://www.nmmagazine.com/imgs/exclusives/nmm_photocontestrules2010.pdf.

New Mexico Magazine is a division of the New Mexico Tourism Department. Founded in 1922, it is the nation’s first state magazine and third largest by circulation.