The Quinebaug Valley Photography Club
Contest Night
The Quinebaug Valley Photography Club schedules contest nights the first Thursday of every month throughout the season. On contest night, members and visitors learn to recognize the elements, which make up a pleasing picture.
Members and visitors alike are invited to submit their pictures for evaluation and competition before a judge who has been selected for his or her expertise and experience with award winning pictures. Often our judges travel considerable distance to get to our meetings (one judge traveled 100 miles one way to get to our meeting). Before awarding ribbons, our judges explain what they like about each picture, and offer remedies for what they don’t like.
After the contest is over, some of our members will retake pictures and incorporate suggestions offered by the judge, while others are stimulated with new and exciting picture ideas.
Contest Rules as of 8/11/09
1) Our regularly scheduled contests are open to members and visitors alike. However, our Contest of the Year in which the ribbon-winning pictures during the season compete against each other is open only to members.
NEW effective 9/3/2009
2) An individual may enter up to 2 images in each of the following categories:
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Color Print
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Black & White Print
c) Creative Print
d) Projected Image Digital*
e) Black & White Digital
f) Creative Digital
g) Theme Digital (if you have a theme print it can be converted for this competition)
Because of time constraints, we will alternate digital and print competitions monthly. September will host Color Prints, Black & White and Creative Prints. October we will host Digital competitions…Projected Image, Black & White, Creative & Theme. November, back to prints…December will be digital…and so on for the balance of the year.
3) Digital images in categories d and e are allowed normal enhancements. The picture material must remain essentially as the maker saw it. The use of a software filter is allowed if that same filter could be placed before a camera lens. Any creative manipulations should be entered in the Creative Category. This would include the use of Photoshop artistic filters, Flaming Pear, NIK, etc.
4) All print entries shall have a picture area that is a minimum of 4 x 6 and no larger than 16 x 20. All entries must be matted and/or mounted. The maximum size of the presentation, including the matte or mount shall be no larger than 16×20.
5) Winning pictures may not be re-entered in any regular contest night competition. However, it is expected that these pictures will be entered in our Contest of the Year, and in competitions with other clubs
6) The entrant must be the maker of the picture, but the maker is not required to do his or her own developing or printing.
7) Each picture submitted must have the following information on the back of the picture or its mount:
a) The makers first and last name (please don’t abbreviate or use initials).
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A title that is different than any other picture you own. The title often distinguishes the subject matter such as “Mary” or “Goldenrod”. The title should never be reused on another picture. If you have two pictures of Mary, you can call one “Mary #1 and the other “Mary #2”, etc. We encourage members to use titles on “Nature” pictures that identifies the subject because NECCC would like to see it done that way, in their contests
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The class in which it is entered
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The date it is entered
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Prints in which the subject matter does not make clear which direction is up, should have an arrow on the back with the word “up”.
f) Digital entries must be submitted to the digital competition coordinator no later
than 3 days prior to the competition either by disk or by email.
g) Digital entries must be labeled as follows:
Example: ProjectedImage$Latraverse,Lois$AfternoonSun.jpg
PI$LastName,FirstName$title.jpg
BW$LastName,FirstName$title.jpg = BW is Black & White
CR$LastName,FirstName$title.jpg = CR is Creative
Themetitle$Lname,Fname$title.jpg ie Spiral$Lname,Fname$title.jpg
Prints are to be mounted on a matte board, foam core, or similar type mount.
NEW
9) In each contest a point value will be awarded for First Place, Second Place, Third Place, and Honorable Mention and for each entry. If only one picture is submitted in a contest, it will get the First Place. If only two pictures are entered in a contest, the better of the two will get First Place and no second place will be awarded. If three pictures are entered, only First and Second Place will be awarded. If four pictures are entered, First, Second, and Third Place will be awarded. If five or more pictures are entered, all four awards will be issued.
10) Placement points in a contest: 1st place = 5 points
2nd place = 4 points
3rd place = 3 points
HM = 2 point
Entry = 1 point
11) **At the conclusion of the year, points will be totaled and ribbons will be issued to those members who have scored the highest in each category. A President’s Award will be given to the most improved photographer. The members will vote their choice for “Best In Show” at the Banquet and a separate award will be made to the winnter.
12) All winning entries (with the exception of Theme) during the club year will be eligible for the annual End of Year Contest to be judged by a panel of 3 judges.
13) Effective August 11, 2009
*Slides have been eliminated as a category. NECCC also eliminated slides as a category as only a few clubs have slide shooters.
**Details of the point system and how the points will apply to year end winners will be announced in the near future.
