Local competitions are held on the second Monday of each month. Competition Judging Guidelines.

Entries & Competition Rules...

ELIGIBILITY TO PARTICIPATE - Dues must be paid in full in order to participate in our monthly competitions.

SKILL CLASS - All members compete on an equal basis.

NUMBER OF ENTRIES - Each member may enter a maximum of two (2) prints and/or slides in each Competition Subject.

PRESENTATION - Minimum print size is 5 X 7, the maximum print size is 16 X 20, including mat. Prints can be made by either the photographer or a professional lab. They can be made from negatives, transparancies, or a digital camera or scanner. Slides must be mounted in cardboard, plastic, or thin glass to fit in the projector. A thumb print on the lower left to indicate the direction of the slide should be clearly marked along with the member's name and image title. All entries must be marked on the back of the image with the maker's name and the image title.

ELIGIBLE IMAGES - Images submitted to the Assigned Subject must be taken within one year previous to the Competition date (ie: Images must be taken between December 22, 2002 and December 22, 2003 for a cometition date of December 22, 2003). In the "Open" subject, images may be of any age. The same image may not be entered in the same competition under different categories (ie: if an image is entered in "Open", the same image converted to black and white cannot be entered in "Black & White - Open" on the same night). Images may have been previously entered in a MCC competition, but once it wins an award it may no longer be submitted. Conventional film as well as digital entries are eligible. The images and all manipulations must be the original work of the entrant.

IMAGE APPROVAL - Images are subject to approval by the Print and Slide Committee members for adherance to subject and above stated guidelines.

DEADLINE - All entries must be entered by 7:20 P.M. for registration on the night of the competition.

REGIONAL COMPETITIONS - Regional and International competitions are conducted with the New England Camera Club Council and the Photographic Society of America (PSA). Some competitions are entered on a club level and many more are open to individual photographers. See the Events page for more information.

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What the judges are looking for...

From PP of A Master Photographer Harold Bovee, here's a list (in descending order of importance) of basic judging and critiquing criteria for photographs:

IMPACT - what you see first; first impression; strong feeling of power; holds your eye

CREATIVITY - use of imagination; orginality; freshness of approach; unusual cropping/use of subject matter; invention, design, feeling and imagination that lifts the work into the realm of art; could be abstract

STYLE - part that sets the work apart from others; different but consistent way of seeing; different approach; real, not contrived; experimental; individual

COMPOSITION - good placement of subject; successful arrangement; harmonious proportions; dynamic symmetry to place most important objects; good rhythm in repetition: color, spaces, moods, divisions of photograph

PRINT PRESENTATION - does presentation enhance photograph?; good cropping; good color for matting or mount; using something dynamic or very traditional; creative mounting

COLOR BALANCE - good technique; good selection of color for subject matter; using very interpretive color (maybe not normal); creative use of color (complementary colors, dark against light, strong against weak)

CENTER OF INTEREST - dominance of subject matter; grouping of subject and arrangement of objects so one center of interest prevails; subject holds the eye without distractions; moody or misty; strength and definition gives center of interest; secondary subjects don't overpower main subject

LIGHTING - good statement of light; good portrait lighting; dynamic lighting; pattern of light can enhance, create strong mood

SUBJECT MATTER - outstanding interpretation for subject matter; good camera angle; good selection of photographic model or object; contrast can be very creative in selection (old and young, warm and cool)

PRINT QUALITY - strong contrast; middle tones; good color balance; expressions and artistic lighting; simple statements are strongest; good angle on buildings; backgrounds in harmony with subject matter

TECHNIQUE - different technique for subject matter; technique is foundation of photography but knowledge of art principles very necessary; using creativity and abstraction can help; design brings abstract ideas into concrete form

STORY TELLING -  complete story within photograph; successful presentation; achievement of purpose; complete meeting at first glance; strong mood or emotion using strong complementary colors next to each other; strong mood builds emotional response challenging your imagination.

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