The submission deadline is TUESDAY 12:00 am (Monday Midnight) one week prior to the monthly Monday meeting (1^st Monday of each month).

Late submission will disqualify the image(s), but they may be entered the following month as long as they meet the listed qualifications.

Images may be entered in one of three categories in the montly intra-club competition:

• Traditional
• Enhanced
• Monthly Topic

Detailed instructions for re-sizing image with Photoshop are available for download.
[Click here to download].

However, in simplest terms, your image once re-sized should fit in a box no wider than 1400 pixels and no higher than 1050 pixels. Therefore, if you have a portrait-oriented image like the one shown here, it will be less than 1400 wide and be limited by the height at 1050 pixels. Likewise, a panorama image will be limited to 1400 pixels wide and may be less than 1050 pixels high.

JPEG file size should not exceed 1 MB (megabyte). Note: Images may be any size, but may not project correctly if you do not follow these guidelines. Digital images may be digitally matted or framed, but this then becomes a part of the image to be judged and should be considered in the overall size of the image.  In Photoshop, the quality level should be set no higher than 10 when saving the image for competition.  The projector cannot show a higher quality level and file storage space is wasted. Images that do not meet these size requirements may be disqualified from competition.

If you have difficulty resizing your images, send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and we will help you.

Digital

Only Digital images may be entered in the monthly competition.  Special note for digital images: Adding a digital border, mat, or frame to improve its presentation does not change the classification of the image in any way and is permitted in all (Traditional, Enhanced and Monthly Topic) categories. Slides or prints must be converted to digital to enter. Digital images may have no added text.

In order to identify your entry the following naming convention is generated by the online Image Competition Submittal Form.

Note: When using the online form to enter your images into competition it is not necessary to name your file as described below. The online form will automatically rename your image after upload. Just name your file with only the title of your image.

1. Judging will be done normally by a three or more judge panel. (Note: Exceptions may apply when a guest with recognized qualifications agrees to judge the competition alone. It will be the responsibility of the president, or the competition chair at the direction of the president, to make this determination.)
2. Judges will normally be chosen from a pool of members that have volunteered to serve as judges and selection is the responsibility of the president or competition chair at the direction of the president.
3. General qualifications to judge are:
   
   1. Member in good standing or outside individual recognized to have the experience and judgment necessary.
   2. Active in the competition or recognized generally as qualified.
   3. Attained Advanced or Master level (Intermediate level will be allowed at the discretion of the president or competition chair.
   4. These qualifications may be partially waived by the president or competition chair at the direction of the president if in their opinion, a well qualified candidate would be excluded
4. Qualified individuals outside the club may also fill these positions.
5. Guest or club member speakers may be given the option to participate or decline in the judging and/or critiquing process.
6. The president or competition chair may ask only one judge to critique all the images, or alternate judges for each image.

Although judging is subjective, judges are asked to put their personal biases aside and score each photograph on its own merit. Although the audience and/or participants may disagree, all judging will be final.

Major considerations for evaluation of an image are:

Live judging:  Each judge will evaluate each photo on a scale of 9 points. The scores will added to reach a potential total of 27 points. In the event that a judge must decline to vote on an image, the average rule average of the other two judges scores will be added to provide potential total of 27 points.. (Note: Members of the judging panel may not judge their own image, their spouse’s image, or any other image they have prior knowledge about.)

Online judging: Each judge will score each photo on a 27 point scale and judge’s scores will be averaged.  If more than three judges are utilized, the highest and lowest scores will be thrown out and only the middle three scores will be averaged.

Images will be judged on:

Impact, creativity and technical attributes.  Some judges will obviously value some of these areas more than others.  As we are all different in our approach to photography, we are all different in what we value in a photograph.

If the two or more images receive the same highest point total, ties will be broken by the following method:

Live judging with the 9 point system:

Judges will re-judge the tie and determine a winner. The other image(s) will receive Award(s) of Merit.

Online judging with the 27 point system:

Scores will be averaged to one or more decimal points which should eliminate most ties.  Remaining ties will be broken either by rejudging or by the decision of the competition chair or the chairs designated committee member(s). As with live judging, the other image will receive an Award of Merit.

If two or more images tie for an award of merit, then all will be given an award of merit.  If an image is the only entry in a category, it must receive at least a score of 19 to receive Best of Show.  A score of 18 or below will receive an Award of Merit.

Best of Show winning images from the previous month will be featured on the main page of the website and in the next newsletter.  All Best of Show and Award of Merit images will also be added to the online club gallery.  All images will be shown with photographer name, award category and month/date of award.

Members may only enter images which were entered into competition in the same calendar year.

Best of Show and Award of Merit will be determined for each level in either Traditional or Enhanced categories. Traditional and Enhanced will be combined for Beginners. Additionally, an Overall Best of Show for levels Intermediate through Master will be selected from the Category Best of Show winners.

Entries in Traditional or Enhanced categories must be entered in the same category and level as originally entered.  However, entries from the Challenge and Monthly topic categories must also be entered in either the Traditional of Enhanced categories since the subject of these topics changes each month.

Beginners and Intermediates may enter up to two images; Advanced may enter up to three images and Masters up to four images, subject to the limitations stated in Rules for Entering Competition.

The images must be exactly the same as when previously entered.  No changes are allowed.