A picture might be worth a thousand words, but senior Charles Augustine hopes his photo might be worth $12,000.

Instrumental retailer Music and Arts invited students from all over the country to submit an original photo via Facebook for their “Share Your Passion” contest celebrating 60 years of business. The entries, along with a 200-character caption, are meant to capture the “essence of music and why it’s so meaningful,” according to their website.

Fans can vote once every 24 hours from April 2 to April 15. After the polls close, the company will announce eight finalists who will be in the running for the grand prize: $10,000 of Yamaha instruments for the winner’s school, two thousand dollars towards an instrument of his or her choice, and a year of free music lessons. A panel of judges will select the winner May 1.

The submissions will be judged on the creativity and originality of the caption and photo as well as the emotional appeal.

In his photo, Augustine strums an acoustic six-string fretless bass. This is an unusual combination because most basses are electric with four strings. The lighting is exaggerated to highlight the natural look of the unique instrument, Augustine said. His head is bent in order to emphasize the necessity of focusing inwardly when creating music.

“You can’t focus on your personal artistry if you’re busy staring at whoever is watching,” Augustine said.

Although he displayed an interest for music at a young age, it wasn’t until he moved to Costa Rica in 2008 that he really began to cultivate his style. Augustine founded Clockwork in Action, a one man band that layers multiple recordings of drums, guitar, piano and bass.

During his years as a musician, he has developed his own philosophy about the nature of music that he summarizes in his caption. According to Augustine, art is akin to energy; it can be neither created nor destroyed. Artists are able to harness this energy and create something tangible.

“Artists are not people who have art inside of them,” he said. “Artists are people who can see the beauty in nature and can express it physically and thoughtfully.”

In the face of ongoing budget cuts, the music department finds it difficult to keep up with the required maintenance and replacement of instruments. The prize money would be a much needed gift, music teacher Terry Alvey said.

“I was tickled,” she said. “I already went onto the website and voted a million times.”

At his last school, Augustine released an album to raise money for a community recording studio and musician hangout. Though he will have spent only a year at Whitman, Augustine still wants to leave a mark.

With over a thousand votes for his picture putting him in the lead, he is already well on his way.

“I quickly realized this is the perfect opportunity to complete my year-long task of donating significantly to the music program,” Augustine said.