The Ocean City Museum Society will be the premier organization dedicated to preserving, educating, and researching the history of coastal Worcester County, Maryland.

Whether snapping a photo of the sunset or the entire family, there is no better place than Ocean City, Maryland, to capture stunning and memorable images. The Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum's Louis Parsons III Memorial Annual Photo Contest honors the life and legacy of dedicated museum board member and photographer Lou Parsons.

The competition features three of Lou's favorite categories: the beach, boardwalk, and sunset. The contest is open to all novice and professional photographers (16 and over). Each category winner will be awarded $250.00, and the grand prize winner will take home $500.00. Also, this year, we will be including a People's Choice vote! This allows friends and family to vote on their favorite photos. The winner of people's choice will take home a gift basket valued at $100.00! Read below to learn more about how the people's choice vote works.

• The entry period will be from April 1, 2024 to September 1, 2024
• Select "Enter Contest" to the right and select your category
• The entry fee is $5.00
• You can enter as many times as you want (It will be a $5.00 fee for each entry)
• Category Winners and the People's Choice Winner will be announced on (TBD)

• Terry Plowman, Publisher of Delaware Beach Life
• John Sisson, President of the Art League of Ocean City
• Zachary Garmoe,  Environmental Scientist and Photographer based on the Delmarva Peninsula

Images will be judged based on technical excellence, originality, composition, impact, artistic merit, and subject matter


A winner will be announced for each category along with a grand prize winner:

• Ocean City/Assateague Bay Sunsets: $250
• Ocean City Boardwalk: $250
• Ocean City Beach: $250
• The Grand Prize Winner will win an additional $250 for a total prize of $500

This year we are excited to include a People's Choice vote!

How it works: Anyone can vote on any photo entries, which can be viewed on our GoGo Photo Contest page. Votes are $1 each, and you can vote as many times as you want! All votes are tax deductible. The winner of the People's Choice will receive a gift basket of museum merchandise valued at $100.00. (The photo with the most votes across all categories will be the People's Choice winning photo.)

Voting ends on October 1, 2024

The People's Choice winner will be announced on (TBD)


To donate to the Louis Parsons III Memorial Contest, visit DONATION.

The Ocean City Museum Society and Lou's family and friends appreciate your generosity and support.

Louis S. Parsons, III (1958-2021) Lou was a beloved member of the Ocean City Museum Society Board. He was taken from us much too soon, and we wanted to do something to honor his memory. Lou was a prodigious photographer, and some of his favorite subjects were sunsets, the Boardwalk, and our spectacular beach. So it seemed a very easy leap to put together a photography contest in his name.

Jeff Williams is the former publisher of Oceana Magazine and was a good friend of Lou's. They spent many fun filled times in Ocean City and Paris. Jeff always admired Lou's photographic talents and has donated the prize money along with his corporate sponsor, Associa, for this annual contest.