Competition Rules from Sept 2010
All prints must be mounted to a size 40cm x 50cm. This makes them eligible to be accepted by the L & CPU for inclusion in the folios.
Names of photographers must not be entered on the prints or mounts. Each club member will be given a unique number when entering competitions. All that is required to be written on the back of the prints will be the title of the print, which section entered (i.e. mono or colour) and the member’s unique number only.
There will be three distinct types of competition this year,
- Open Print
- Print & Digital
- Open Digital
The Open print competitions
Standard Section The Open print competitions will allow 3 prints to be entered there will be only one combined competition i.e. no separate colour/mono competitions; there will be no restriction on the mix of colour or mono entries. Handing in for these competitions will be 1 week before the comp due date.
Advanced Section The Open print competitions will allow 3 prints to be entered there will be separate colour/mono competitions; 2 colour prints and 1 mono print or 2 mono prints and 1 colour print may be entered. Handing in for these competitions will be 1 week before the comp due date.
The Print and Digital Competitions
Standard Section The Print and Digital format will be used for the Natural History, Record and Portrait competitions and will allow 2 prints colour or mono & 1 digital image or 2 digital images & 1 colour or mono print, there will be separate print and digital competitions which will include both colour and mono images. Handing in for these competitions will be 1 week before the comp due date.
Advanced Section The Print and Digital format will be used for the Natural History, Record and Portrait competitions and will allow 2 prints colour or mono & 1 digital image or 2 digital images & 1 colour or mono print there will be separate colour and mono competitions for prints in the Record and Portrait sections only, Natural History prints will have a combined colour/mono competition. The digital competitions will include both colour and mono images. Handing in for these competitions will be 1 week before the comp due date.
The Open Digital Competitions
Advanced & Standard Sections The Open Digital competitions will allow 3 digital images to be entered. Handing in for these competitions will be 2 weeks before the comp due date.
For the Photographer of the Year Award the score from the best 2 images entered in the competition will be accumulated for this trophy.
1st place = 10 points
2nd place = 9 points
3rd place = 8 points
VHC = 7.5 points
HC = 7 points
C = 6.5 points
All other entries receive a score of 5 marks.
So if you achieve a 1st place and a HC as your best on the night then the total score accumulated for the Photograher of the Year will be 10 points for 1st place and 7 for HC giving a total of 17 points.
If you enter and have not achieved any placing or certificates and entered 2 or more images then you will have achieved a score of 10 points.
Digital images.
A digital image may not be an image already entered for the print section in the same competition. All digital images must be submitted the Monday before the competition night onto a CD or by email to D Mercer.
Digital entries need to be 1024 px width x 768 px height and saved as a jpeg form, to a minimum 72 dpi. Any background colour (for images that do not conform to those exact dimensions) must be either black or grey (Required for L & CPU)
Please note that the Competition Secretary may invite you to submit digital images to be used in external competitions. In this case, they will be required as psd, jpeg or tiff files sized to 1024px X 768px or 1400px x 1050px (depending on the competition) and saved onto a CD
General Advice.
All pictures entered into any competition must have been created from one or more original photographs taken by the author and must not contain any form of digital creation, other than that of the author. The copyright of all images must be owned by the entrant.
Photographs (prints/ digital) may be entered into Open competition and that same image can then be entered into a set competition, (i.e. Natural History, Record, Portrait etc.) but cannot be entered into any other open competition other than the Annual Exhibition.
Competition Definitions
Open
Any subject, style and category.
Pictorial (Annual Exhibition)
A Pictorial photograph is based on light and shade, pattern and lines etc and should make a pleasing composition.
Portrait
A portrait must attempt to capture and convey some characteristic or personality of the subject, as well as likeness. The image can be formal (Studio style) or informal (Candid) single or group and need not just be head and shoulders. Animal portraiture can be accepted but all images must be of living people or animals.
Natural History
A Natural History photograph shows some aspect of one or more species of the Natural World i.e. animals, birds or plant life in its own natural surroundings and habitat. Tame, domestic, circus, pets and farm animals, cultivated plants, anthropology and archaeology are not accepted.
Photographs of artificially produced hybrid plants or animals, mounted specimens, or obviously set arrangements are also not accepted.
Subjects photographed in wildlife or safari parks are acceptable, but not if they are obviously caged or penned. The presence of scientific bands (e.g. Ringed birds) on wild animals is acceptable.
The correct title must be given and preferably the latin name.
(L & CPU INTERPRETATION)
Images must be of an accurate representation of the species or subject matter. Creatures are expected to be alive and free in the wild and NOT DOMESTICATED OR IN ZOOS. If controlled conditions are used then this must be declared with the exception of macro and micro detail. Geology, weather, climatology and ecology are permissible but must be accurately titled to show their significance in the natural world. Derivations or any form of manipulation that alters the truth of the photographic statement are ineligible.
Record
A record entry must be of an inanimate subject e.g. statue, building, car etc. and can be a full feature or a close up, the full title of the subject must be given.
(If you have taken an image that is only a small part of a bigger image, example – Traction engine Wheel – then the full title of the subject should be given, e.g. Burrell Traction engine wheel, then add – detail, as this would indicate a close up).
Images should show the subject free of distortion, e.g. an image of a tall building might show converging verticals. This would be acceptable in an open or pictorial competition, but in a record competition the converging verticals should be corrected, if possible. Similarly, distortion caused by extreme close-up should be avoided.
Sport & Pastime (Annual Exhibition)
A picture can represent any type of pastime or sporting activity.
