PHOTOGRAPHING EL BARRIO

By [Reid Spagna] Attention shutterbugs: El Museo del Barrio is sponsoring a photography contest through Aug. 22 aimed to attract visitors north of East 96th Street. The Latino cultural institution at 1230 Fifth Ave. has launched the competition â??El Barrio Today with other local organizations to encourage New Yorkers to travel out of their neighborhood and visit Spanish Harlem. Photo partners include the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone, Hope Community, Inc., and Esperanza del Barrio. â??The contest will show the many faces and colors of the neighborhood, said Cassandra Oliveras, marketing manager at El Museo. â??We find that a lot of people walk through our doors and say, â??I can"t believe how things have changed." We hope to encourage them to come back and visit. Each participant may submit up to three photographs to the contest"s album on Flickr, the website that hosts users" pictures. The photos may be lightly edited using Photoshop, and must be â??geotagged on Flickr, which adds coordinates to a photograph to prove authenticity. Photos must be taken in Spanish Harlem, which is north of East 96th Street to the Harlem River between the East River and Fifth Avenue. When the contest ends, a panel of local artists, curators and community leaders will review the submissions and select 25 semi-finalists for excellence in four categories: relevance, clarity, composition and â??Wow-Factor. â??The photographs will be judged in terms of cultural relevance and the rich history of the neighborhood, Oliveras explained. The 25 photographs will be displayed at El Museo from mid-September through early January; visitors can vote online for their three favorite shots through mid-October. The three winners will receive free museum membership for one year, gift certificates to the museum store and cash prizes of up to $250. For more information, visit [www.elmuseo.org](http://www.elmuseo.org).