My first competition
 

I entered an image into an internal competition of a local camera club which I have just joined.

The two judges made good comments on most of the 60 shots and were pretty uniform in their voting (it was a ladies v gents comp so all scores to count). I did not score too well and I don't really know why but it is all a matter of opinion so that didn't bother me.

I learnt a lot from the comments, perhaps the most striking points being to ensure that a shot has equi-distance from the edge on all four sides of the image (perhaps that was the judges hobby horse but it did make sense when he pointed it out). The other point was to look around the view finder (or image) and ensure that there are no distractions at the edges of the images.

The one aspect that I did not like was a shot of a hump-backed whale diving into the water, tail in the air. "Straight out of National Geographic" was one of the comments. Fine, it was a good shot but then they slated the image on technical grounds and still gave it almost top marks. Very much a matter of style over content. I have echoed my view here before that it is impossible to take a bad photograph if you are half way up Everest with fantastic scenery all around and I felt tonight that a dramatic shot was given better marks because of the difficulty most of us would have of getting a shot like that rather than for it's technical or compositional merit.

Just a few thoughts of how I saw the evening. Happy to take other peoples views on the matter

John

You've come up with some valid points there.
I've not got too much experience of camera clubs, or photographic clubs. From what I remember of the time I went to a local one when I was 16-17, it wasn't too good. Much being made of the cameras being used to 'validate' a photograph.
I think sometimes we can get too hung up on the 'rules' of photography. Straight horizons, law of thirds, proportional balance and all the laa dee da. Sometimes I think some might even be missing shots whilst they recollect how they should be pointing their cameras. Reminds me of the time I had a conversation with a tutor at uni saying that I didn't agree with hime saying there's a 'specific' way to hold an SLR camera...e.g if I'm up a ladder I'd rather have one hand on that ladder thanks very much!
It's true that some guidelines are taken as rules cast in stone by photographers and judges alike, where I think they should be things to be treated as a guide to starters then become almost as intuition, either conciously or otherwise.
I am often a frustrated photographer, in terms of, I often have an idea of a particular shot 'ideal', which then doesn't happen, maybe. I then end up with an image which I thought was crap, or one I was pleasantly suprised with, but I can't recall an occasion where I've not bothered taking the shot because it didn't 'conform' .
In the age of digital, I feel quite strongly that people should be encouraged to try new ideas and not worry too much about, or be interupted by judges ego's. There's quite a few more mediocre photos around now, but there's more great ones about now too.
It's quite nice to have a story behind a shot, how it was done etc. HOWEVER, if the story turns into a reason of how difficult a shot was to get, almost to the point of explaining why it wasn't sharp/grainy/poor composition etc it doesn't work, unless it's a shot specifically illustrating a 'nearly-but not quite' technique (I've had my fair share). I also tried this tactic ONCE years ago with some cricket shots at the Mercury picture desk. Unfortunately, it doesn't work! lol
Photographs are so subjective that a judges job (and photographer when considering the entry) is made almost impossible. I have a guideline in the back of my mind now with some (but not all) shots I take which is "would I pay money for this picture". If the answer is "No", I then ask "what makes it special". If the answer to that is "a personal memory" I wont subject it to anyone else.
I guess there's loads people can add to this.
You started a good thread here....I think this one could run 'til next christmas!! :)

John, would I be correct in thinking it was the LPS?

Judges are funny beasts, because it is all down to how that particular individual 'sees' the pictures. I've got one image which bombed when my first judge scored it, then many months later it was voted one of the best pictures of the year!

I would say it is worth persevering with though, as you can learn a lot from the more experienced members and I find the club nights and competitions make me think more about my images. What makes a good picture will always be a hotly debated topic, but I personally think the club circuit helps develop a photographer.

the only club competition i've entered i did pretty poorly, but when i read the comments sheet it seemed mainly because i hadn't used an slr to take the photo.

i never could understand why your entire club status seemed to hinge on what kit you had

You would indeed be correct.

That is a powerful statement but if followed then it would truly reduce the number of photographs shown that is for sure

LOL :)
I'm full of powerful statements....and hot air sometimes. Take them all with a pinch of salt! ;)


...like I said, there are occasions I don't follow this!....

I like this thread so here's my h'apence worth. Back in the days when a half penny was still legal tender I belonged to a couple of clubs, Manchester Photographic and Bury Photographic. I found certain members very helpful - one really showed me how to go about in the dark-room and taught me loads about developing and printing. He it was who encouraged me to join in the various critique rounds we held, and also to enter the club and international competitions. I got accepted at the Salons of Warsaw, Spectrum and Southport International. I don't think any of them still run as they used to. Some judges were awful and if you entered a print or slide that was their particular field (and you got to know what they liked by watching their lecture tours) - it was bound to win no matter its merits, because they liked that subject. Others - concentrated on the image - the impact of the photo, then they added or subtracted marks for difficulty of shot, technical excellence of shot, aesthetics of mount and presentation - The things that are considered if you present a panel for an LRPS, ARPS or FRPS - (Licentiate, Associate or Fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society). This was assumed to be the goal and gold standard of most club members in those days. These I found were the best judges and most gave useful criticism which they would discuss with you - if you asked. There were of course, every shade and variety of judge in between - from the awful, ignorant and self-opinionated to the trying hard, failing miserably - to men and women who's own mastery and competence shone like a beacon of inspiration. It is very difficult to be a judge in any competition because who here takes awful pictures, and if we do take a dud - do we hold it up to be judged in the first place?

I agree it is very difficult to judge and make a decision between a group of photographs that are all good and have excellent points. I was not really criticising the judges, more making a comment on how subjective it all is and how personal pre-conceptions and likes and dislikes become inter-twined with the judgemental process.

I hope to improve as I go on but I am sure it will be a long road, with many potholes along the way.

Talking and looking at each others photographs has always got to be a good thing. There's loads of feedback good judges can give to encourage and nurture talent. I hate to imagine poor judges coming out with opinion which might slash a newbies confidence to bits.....i bet it happens tho.
A take plenty of duds Andy. I showed some to another photographer the other week .....I think he preferred my duds to the ones i thought were good!!! ooops :(

What matters is making images that have your desired impact on your audience. You choose the audience, you decide the effect you want the image to have. How you go about that will vary according to the subject, the audience and your own preferences.
Thus, if you want to please a judge, you need to research what their previous likes and dislikes were. If it's a commercial project - your audience is the purchaser, and the impact should be part of the brief you are working to. For something personal, the audience is yourself, so if it pleases you, then it's a successful image.
I find the most useful resource in developing an aesthetic sense is my own reaction to other images - whether photographic or other media. When I started taking landscape photography more seriously, I spent a long time looking at other images that I liked, and then reducing them to line sketches of the compositional elements to try to understand what worked for me. Then I went back to my own images and looked at my successes and failures in the same way. This approach has helped me improve my compositional eye no end, and has increased my 'hit rate' quite considerably.