[Biggles]

Is it a normal requirement that entries in a photo competition must me mounted? I recently had all my entries effectively disqualified from a local town Arts & Photography competition because they were "unmounted, as per the rules". The rules were somewhat ambiguous, and appeared to be saying that Art entries could be framed, but Photographs "should be mounted only as the exhibit boards are not strong enough to support frames". My interpretation of that was that mounting was optional - e.g. the word "should" rather than "must".

Before registering my disappointment with the organisers I'd like to know if mounting is the norm, as I am new to the world of competitions.