PHOTO REVIEWS & COMPETITIONS - Main
Photo Reviews
Photo Reviews provide members the opportunity to share their photos with each other and receive feedback on the merits of their photos. Participation in Photo Reviews is strongly encouraged because it enables members to see their photos through the eyes of others, a learning process that leads to improving one’s own seeing.
Review sessions are conducted monthly, excepting December and June, at the regular monthly meetings. Only dues-paying members may participate in Photo Reviews.
Assignment for the Year
Beginning with the 2010-2011 year, ORPC is instituting a feature called ‘Assignment for the Year’. This feature will be devoted to various topics on seeing photography as visual communication. The feature is made up of the following components.
- The assignment, a topic that all photographers should keep in mind over the course of the year
- before pressing their shutter releases,
- before post-processing their photos, and
- in selecting the photos they will submit for the monthly reviews.
- A tips mini-session with example photos that will be given at the beginning of each monthly review to assist members in carrying out the assignment.
- Posting of the tips with the example photos as a reference source on flickr®.
- Devoting the April or May monthly program to lessons learned from the assignment and Q&A’s about the assignment or other aspects of photography as visual communication.
The assignment for the 2010-2011 year is:
“All the elements in photos submitted for photo reviews should support, and not detract, from the overall image.”
The 2010-2011 tips mini-sessions will be devoted to “Things to Avoid” and will be kicked off at the October Photo Review.
Guidance for Photographers
Content of Photos Submitted for Photo Reviews
The content of photos submitted for monthly reviews is to conform to criteria specified by ORPC. Criteria will vary by month but will fall into one of the following categories.
- Content-specific: Reviews dedicated to showing photos that incorporate content specified by ORPC. Content areas with examples of each in parentheses include topical subjects (nature, architecture), themes (the color red, motion), techniques (multiple exposure, high definition resolution), events (field trips, festivals), and combinations from different content areas (frogs in red jackets, flags at night).
- Open: Reviews where content of photos submitted is left to the discretion of the submitters.
- Combination of Content-specific and Open: Reviews where ORPC specifies the number of content-specific and open photos that can be submitted by each submitter.
General Guidelines
- Photos submitted for the monthly reviews are to represent the photographers’ own best efforts in seeing, photographing and post-processing their photos.
- ORPC specifies the total number of photos that a member may submit for a monthly review, usually a total of 3 images per member. Go to the Monthly Activities menu on the web site, click on the submenu for the month of interest and look in the Photo Review section where the number of images that may be submitted will be posted.
- Images may be submitted as:
- prints to be viewed on the light box,
- digital files to be projected on the auditorium’s screen, or
- any combination of prints and digital files that do not exceed 3 images in total.
- Photos must have been taken within 18 months of the month in which they will be reviewed.
- Photos shown in a review cannot be submitted again for a review during the current or any subsequent program year. This does not preclude them from being entered in the Year-End Competition.
Guidelines for Preparing and Submitting Prints for Light Box Display
- All prints are to be mounted firmly on a stiff backing and may be matted.
- Framed prints will not be accepted.
- The longest edge of any image should be 1) at least 10 inches, but 2) no longer than 20 inches when mounted without a mat.
- The longest outer edge of the mat for a matted print cannot exceed 20 inches.
- Print your name and a title for the photo on the back of the backing media. Add an arrow to indicate display orientation if needed.
- At the monthly meeting, place the prints on the “prints” table that will located in front of the stage on the left side of the auditorium and sign them in on the signup sheet that will be on the table.
Guidelines for Preparing and Submitting Digital Image Files for Projection
By following these guidelines you will contribute greatly to how well your images will project on the screen in terms of quality, clarity and size. If you do not have a photo editing program and/or the knowledge to complete steps 3 through 5 below, you can still submit digital images “as is” in jpg/jpeg format for projection. Images so submitted will be expanded or reduced to the size that will be used for projecting all the images in the review which may degrade the quality and clarity of your images to some extent. Due to time constraints, presentation preparers will not resize the images following steps 3-5 below.
- Save the images to be submitted as copies of the originals in jpg/jpeg format changing the file names using the format [Photographer’s first and last name-Title of photo-Review month and year]. An example: John Doe-Buggy Ride-Oct 2010. Use the “Save As” command to create the copy, otherwise the JPEG Options box may not pop up for completing the next step.
- When the JPEG Options box comes up, set Image Option/Image Quality to 12 and Format Option to Baseline.
- Assign Adobe RGB (1998) as the profile (color) for the images if a different or no profile has been assigned to them.
- Size the images in a photo editor to be 1024 pixels wide at a resolution of 300 pixels per inch if the images are landscape oriented or 768 pixels wide at a resolution of 300 pixels per inch if the images are portrait oriented. Because these dimensions match those of the projector’s native resolution, images should project with a minimum loss of information.
- Sharpen the images after sizing them.
- Submit the image files by the deadline date (usually one week before the meeting date) by:
- Sending them as attachments to an email addressed to ORPCphotoreview@hotmail.com (Do not embed the files in the email itself.), or
- Copying them to a CD or USB memory stick and delivering it in an envelope with your name and contact information to the cubby of the member who will be preparing the month’s digital presentation. Go to the applicable month in the Monthly Activities menu on the web site where you will find the preparer’s name for that month in the Photo Review section.
Guidance for Preparers of the Digital Presentations
(Forthcoming)
OAK RUN PHOTOGRAPHY CLUB – 2009/2010 SEASON YEAR-END COMPETITION
HOW TO SUBMIT PHOTOS FOR THE YEAR-END COMPETITION:
OAK RUN PHOTOGRAPHY CLUB (ORPC) 2009-2010 YEAR-END PHOTO COMPETITION WINNERS |
Non-Creative - Intermediate Shelley Sizemore/Jim Collmer/Frazer Crane/ Ed Garrepy (Absent)
Non-Creative - Novice Gail Reilly/Nancy Frost/Olga Fernicola
Non-Creative - Advanced Carolee Carter/Mike Baker/Laurie Stamm
Creative – Advanced/Intermediate Mike Baker/Trinette Collmer
Special Achievement/People’s Choice Mike Florey/Nancy Frost/ Ed Garrepy (Absent)
| NON-CREATIVE -- NOVICE: | ||||
| (81 total points achievable) | ||||
| PLACE | TITLE | PHOTOGRAPHER | POINTS AWARDED | AWARD |
| 1st | Skiing In Powder Paradise | Gail Reilly | 67 | Ribbon |
| 2nd | Garden Surprise | Nancy Frost | 66 | Ribbon |
| 3rd | Cliff Swallows' Home Delivery | Gail Reilly | 65 | Ribbon |
| HM | Reflective Moment | Olga Fernicola | 64 | Ribbon |
| NON-CREATIVE -- INTERMEDIATE: | ||||
| PLACE | TITLE | PHOTOGRAPHER | POINTS AWARDED | AWARD |
| 1st | Sunken Garden | Shelley Sizemore | 72 | Ribbon |
| 2nd | Rainy Afternoon In Venice | Ed Garrepy | 69 | Ribbon |
| 3rd | Making The Final Entrance | Frazer Crane | 69 | Ribbon |
| HM | Forward Focus | Jim Collmer | 68 | Ribbon |
| NON-CREATIVE -- ADVANCED: | ||||
| PLACE | TITLE | PHOTOGRAPHER | POINTS AWARDED | AWARD |
| 1st | Storm In The Valley | Mike Baker | 80 | Ribbon |
| 2nd | Mountain Moss | Mike Baker | 77 | Ribbon |
| 3rd | Bailey's Irish Cream | Laurie Stamm | 72 | Ribbon |
| HM | Double Purrrr! | Carolee Carter | 71 | Ribbon |
| NON-CREATIVE -- SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS (PEOPLE'S CHOICE): | ||||
| TITLE | PHOTOGRAPHER | LEVEL | AWARD | |
| -- | Garden Surprise | Nancy Frost | NOVICE | Ribbon |
| -- | Rainy Afternoon In Venice | Ed Garrepy | INTERMEDIATE | Ribbon |
| -- | The Hay Is In The Barn | Mike Florey | ADVANCED | Ribbon |
| CREATIVE -- INTERMEDIATE: | ||||
| PLACE | TITLE | PHOTOGRAPHER | POINTS AWARDED | AWARD |
| 1st | Rainy Day In Tampa | Trinette Collmer | No Judging | Ribbon |
| CREATIVE -- ADVANCED: | ||||
| PLACE | TITLE | PHOTOGRAPHER | POINTS AWARDED | AWARD |
| 1st | Art In The Alley | Mike Baker | No Judging | Ribbon |
Submission Levels: There will be three (3) member submission levels – Novice, Intermediate and Advanced. The Novice category will be eliminated at competition time if there are no “new member” submissions.
Submission Categories: There will be a total of two (2) submission categories: Non-Creative and Creative. Area-of-Concentration photos can be submitted in either category. Only photos taken during the period of May 2009 to May 2010, may be submitted. Deadline for submitting entries will be at the May 10, 2010, meeting.
Number of Photo Submissions: A maximum of three (3) photos can be submitted in one or both categories.
Submission Format: The size of submitted photos should be no smaller than 8 x 10 and no larger than 16 x 20. Submitted photos should be mounted on some form of mounting board (e.g., plain board, foam board, core board, pre-cut mat, etc.). Therefore, the overall size of the photo and mounting board or mat should be no larger than 16 x 20. Please note that if photos are not mounted, they will not be accepted for the competition, and any photos that are submitted in a frame will also not be accepted. Please also note that if photos are submitted in protective coverings, the coverings will be removed for judging. Every effort will be taken to return the protective covering after the competition, but there is no guarantee.
Prizes/Awards: This year, only ribbons will be awarded for 1st Place, 2nd Place, 3rd Place and Honorable Mention in each category (no cash). As in previous years, members of the Club will have an opportunity to choose a “People’s Choice” Award (ribbon only) at the June 14th meeting. This year, two (2) "People's Choice" Awards will be chosen - one (1) for the Non-Creative category, and one (1) for the Creative category.
Judging: We will retain use of three “outside” judges, and the Gordon Battaile judging rules will be used. These rules consist of the following:
Gordon Battaile Judging Rules
Attributes of the Photo to Consider:
- Technical Quality – focus, exposure, et al
- Composition
- Subject Matter/Impact
- Avoid personal bias. If you don’t like snakes and, because of it, you give a lower score than for a barn or a flower (which you like), that would not be fair. Photos should be judged using photographic standards, whether you have an emotional positive or emotional negative response to the subject(s) of the photo.
- Analyze the photo rather than just respond to it. For example, this photo is effective because __________, or this photo is not effective because _________. Ask yourself why you are responding to the photo the way you are. Go beyond instant like or instant dislike.
- Judge each image as a whole. Consider the photo’s best, and worst, attributes.
- Be consistent.
- Use the following scale to quantify your judgment:
4 C’s Scale 2-9 (1 is disqualified)
2 - 3 points: awful
4 - 5 points: weak
6 - 7 points: strong
8 - 9 points: great
2008-2009 SEASON YEAR-END COMPETITION WINNERS!
Excellent photos were submitted for the Club’s year-end competition, and the judges had a difficult task to choose the winners in each category. The winners were:
Novice Category
No entries were submitted.
Intermediate Category
1st Place – Mandy Durocher for “Long-Tailed Skipper Butterfly”
2nd Place – Mandy Durocher for “Pretty Bird, Pretty Bird”
3rd Place – Laurie Stamm for “I Don’t Like Crackers”
Honorable Mention – Laurie Stamm for “Chow Time”
Advanced Category
1st Place – Mike Baker for “Blue Morpho Butterfly of Aruba”
2nd Place – Carolee Carter for “Abandoned Doors”
3rd Place – Mike Baker for “Waterfall in Shaw Park”
Honorable Mention – Mike Baker for “Old Stone Bridge”
People’s Choice Award
Art Holt for “Painted Sunset”
LAST SEASON’S (2007/2008) YEAR-END COMPETITION WINNERS!
Novice Category
1st Place – Trinette Collmer for “Tuscan Tranquility”
2nd Place – Trinette Collmer for “The Old Doll Shop”
3rd Place – Shelley Sizemore for “Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep”
Honorable Mention – Marge Mitchell for “Counting Flowers On The Wall”
Intermediate Category
1st Place – Carolee Carter for “Shaker Window”
2nd Place – Anne Tuzzeo for “Owl At Florida Aquarium”
3rd Place – John Jacobson for “Thousands Ooh-Ah”
Honorable Mention – John Jacobson for “Hummel Painter”
Advanced Category
1st Place – Walt Markowski for “Ybor City Mime”
2nd Place – NC Sizemore for “Autumn in Pennsylvania”
3rd Place – Bob Durocher for “Close Friends”
Honorable Mention – Bruce Heaton for “Shutters Of Ponte Vecchio”
A SPECIAL RECOGNITION/People’s Choice award was given to:
Jim Collmer for “Sunrise On Big Sur”
Please see the photos of the winners in this section of the website
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!
