Competition entry predicament.

[hot-fuzz]

Hello all,

Being a new season in the Camera Club and all that, i thought i would at least try and put some entries in. Having experienced a few rounds it has become clear to me that an "expertly taken" shot doesnt always do well.
The judges sometimes seem to pick shots that are classically good using the set rules for a good photo. Ones that seem different but are just as good dont do as well and that really frustrates me, especially as you cant disagree with them (think of, bats, photoshopping of a heron and model photos).

So heres my predicament.
Do i go for a shot that i know will score well, or do i go for a shot that i want to submit?

This shot i took sometime ago and i love it, simply because it makes me laugh and annoyed at the same time, but i know it wont do well as its not go a foreground, middle and background (though the rule of thirds can be applied here i guess)

Or what about this shot. This bench is where me, the missus and the boy went down to the seaside for the first time, so memories for me, and it does have leading lines, BUT its just a bench, so probably wont do well (oh and OK, the sky is blown out)

Or this, its got something in the foreground, middle and the sky? Not my favourtie shot but will "probably" score more than the 2 above, though i havent edited it to what i would like as yet.

Finally, again a shot i really like, but not sure it would do well in the competition as it doesnt follow some set rules (person looking out of shot, but on the thirds again).
I took this on the Guildford Meet a few months ago, so its an old shot.

Isnt the point of a competition to submit a good shot to get points and feedback with the eventual goal to win at the end of the season?
Well if that is the case then sod the ethics of it and submit shots that will do well rather than ones i like (playing devils advocate)

Hmmmm....

[Gordon @ Convergent AV]

Well we are all in the same boat. After the print thing last week I was considering just entering shots that were "by the rules". I think your reasoning is correct by the way...

The last two are both stronger "club" photo's although I love the first....

Gordon

[Spooky]

I do things differently, no surprise there. I dont add anything that the "judges" are looking for instead enter a pic that I like but feel isnt my strength so I get the critique to improve on it.
Enter a pic YOU like, not one you think everyone else would. Is it really important that its judged poorly score wise but people that veiw it enjoy the image?
Just my tupance worth lol.

[hot-fuzz]

Originally Posted by Spooky

I do things differently, no surprise there. I dont add anything that the "judges" are looking for instead enter a pic that I like but feel isnt my strength so I get the critique to improve on it.
Enter a pic YOU like, not one you think everyone else would. Is it really important that its judged poorly score wise but people that veiw it enjoy the image?
Just my tupance worth lol.

As i said before i play devils advocate, so isnt that why you enter a competition .... to win? Or is it to get advice on a shot you like, but then again that advice comes from someone who may not like like, not a panel of people.

[onefivenine]

That Guildford meet shot is really good in my opinion - it conjures up all sorts of thoughts about the grave and the cyclist. Powerful image.
Pity your club judges would mark it down, but like you said if it's not going to earn points there is no point in submitting it.

[stevegreen]

The last one without a shadow of a doubt is the best one, the first a close second and the middle two don't really grab me.

[richard plumb]

Only you can decide what you want from entering the competition. Playing devil's advocate back, if you think the Judges will use certain rules to mark and they don't fit with how you like to shoot, then why enter at all? They'll either mark you down which may affect your own opinion of your shooting, or they'll offer critique which you'll ignore.


Personally I like the first and last shots. The last one is lovely but perhaps would benefit from the cyclist having a little more space to look into. If his head was turned slightly to the left looking at the landscape we can see it might work better. Still a nice powerful image though.

[hot-fuzz]

i will probably enter one of each, one for the judges (or not as the case may be) and one for me, but might give it an amusing title.

[Tobers]

The last is definitely the best, with some mood & feeling to it. #1 is next most likely to score well, being a good observational shot with strong colour and a humour element. #2 and #3 aren't very strong (6.5 score candidates) but I know you've got loads more cracking stuff in your back pocket you can bring out.

[Ian_S]

Personally I prefer places like this as I find there's much less preconception if that's the right word, and people are a bit more open.

However, taking a photo that looks great on screen and then turning it into a print is an artform in itself IMO, and that's rather hard to do on the internet. There's little that's more frustrating than having what you're sure is a great picture, but being completely unable to translate it into print. But we all love a challenge right?

[hot-fuzz]

I was thinking of entering the last one, and the middle 2 were just there to show that some shots may observe "the rules" than others, and which ones would score over which ones i like.

Im not particularly happy with #2, though thought if the sky was better woudl give the judge more to talk about than #1.

Anyway, im still going through potential shots, maybe even slip one or 2 in from teh London trip as the only recent ones ive done that are any good are of Weddings, and not sure if i can enter them

[Gordon @ Convergent AV]

Ian,

Spaced K is looking to enter these images as digital projected files so the printing isn't an issue. I know what yu mean about it being an art....you can see the trouble I had last week from my thread about my printing woes.
I spent 10 minutes at lunchtime looking at prospective images to see what looked good on my projector.....it's amazing how some images suit a big screen and some print.

Looking forward to seeing what you come up with Spaced!

[hot-fuzz]

OK, well the scores were in.

I submitted #1 and #4.

#1 got 8 / 10 - a moment shot
and
#4 got a 7.5 / 10 - bloke doesnt stand out and the cross is too hidden against the background.

Not sure how to feel about that considering some of the shots on display !!!