Competition nights

Members are invited to submit images to our competition nights. A competition night is evaluated by a guest photographer or judge who is able to award points to submitted images.

Subject/theme

The subject for each competition is in the Schedule. This will either be a set theme (e.g. “Summer” or “The Colour Red”) or be an “Open Night” where an image on any subject can be entered. The purpose of having subject/themes and open nights is for our members to have fun by enjoying their photography, encouraging to share their experiences, learn new skills and to challenge and grow their creativity.

Evaluation by judge/guest photographer

An invited experienced judge or guest photographer will evaluate and critique the images presented on the night, and interact with our club members by discussing their images with them. They will use their skills and knowledge to talk about each image with their own reactions, emotions and questions and will invite our IWPS members to participate in a group discussion in order to achieve a meaningful dialogue about the images under review.

The feedback on competition nights will help and inspire not only the individual photographer but also the wider IWPS membership.

IWPS has two categories for critique and competition nights: digital and print. All members are eligible to enter a maximum of four (4) images for digital and six (6) images for print that address the the theme of the critique, making a maximum of ten (10) images per member per month.

Awards

Competition nights will have two types of award:

The judge is able to allocate awards to the images based on their qualities. IWPS uses three levels of award: Acceptance, Credit and Merit.
Members Choice Award: members will be given a ballot card at the beginning of the meeting to record their three (3) favourite digital images and three (3) favourite prints – six (6) images in total.

Award point system

Merit (4 points), Credit (3 points) and Acceptance (2 points).
The Members Choice Award will award four (4) points for a Gold, three (3) points for a Silver and two (2) points for a Bronze – these awards are tallied up by an executive committee member from the members ballot cards collected that night.

Entry

Digital entries should be emailed to the Competition Secretary no later than the Sunday night prior to the club meeting, print entries can be brought along on the night. Remember to check the competition rules below for information about the sizes of photos allowed, and the file naming and sizing guide. This applies to images submitted for both competitions and critiques.

How to submit your work

There is a template available for download to produce the labels required on the back of each print entry submitted. This comes in two versions:

PDF Labels Template, for those who prefer to hand write the details on the labels.
MS Word Labels Template, for those who prefer to print the details on the labels.

There is also a template available for download to create the Entry Form required for all entries submitted. This also comes in two versions:

PDF Entry Form, for those who prefer to hand write the entry details on the form.
MS Word Entry Form for those who prefer to print the entry details on the form (your Competition Secretary prefers this approach!).

End of year awards

These awards recognise the creative excellence and participation throughout the year.

The annual category winners are announced at our end of year Christmas dinner in December. These awards are decided by the total number of awarded points received by each member in each category throughout the year.

Top Shot of the Year: this night of image excellence is held in November where all images awarded a Merit are eligible for entry. IWPS will have a special invited guest photographer to critique/evaluate and award the ‘Top Shot of the Year’, while IWPS members will vote for the ‘Members Choice Award of the Year’.

The following competition rules should be understood by all members when preparing to enter club competitions or critiques.

IWPS Competition Rules

Number of Entries

Members are allowed to enter a total of six (6) prints and four (4) images in the digital projected image section.

Prints

Shall measure not more than 20″ (51 cm) x 16″ (40.5 cm), including the mount.
In the case of a panorama an area equal to 20″ (51 cm) x 16″ (40.5 cm) in any configuration.

Required Documentation

Members are required to write their name and image title on the rear of their print (we have a label template for printing on Avery DL14 adhesive labels may be downloaded from ‘How to Submit’ above).
Additionally, members must complete an Entry form, which can be downloaded from ‘How to Submit’ above, and completed to match the information on the rear of the print. This entry form must be submitted to the Competition Secretary on the night of the meeting, along with your print(s), between 7:00pm-7:30pm.

Digital Images

For information on naming and preparing images for the digital competition go to Naming and Sizing Digital Images

Sizing and formatting

Digital images will not exceed 2Mb in size.
The pixel dimension shall not exceed 1920 pixels in width and 1200 pixels in height. (Note: You cannot switch these dimensions to be 1920 pixels in height and 1200 pixels in width)
The image resolution will be 72 pixels/inch.
The colour profile shall be sRGB.
All images must be saved/presented in the JPEG format.

Naming of files

All digital images submitted must be named and numbered using the following naming convention:
<Two Digit Number> <Name Surname> – <Image Title>
01 Hank Azzopardi – Title
The two digit number will change depending on how many digital entries you have on any particular month.
If you choose to submit your entry form with your digital images please ensure your name is part of the digital entry form file name.

Required Documentation

Members shall lodge their entries with the person nominated by the Competition Secretary (iwps [dot] digital [at] gmail [dot] com) by midnight of the preceding Sunday to a Wednesday night critique.
Members are required to complete an Entry form, which can be downloaded from the ‘How to Submit’ section above, and submit it to the Competition Secretary on the night of the meeting.

General Rules

There will be a Monthly Critique or Competition Night which will include digital and printed images, either in colour or monochrome.
To enter a Competition Night a person must be a financial member.
There shall be only one grade of members in the competition.
The Competition Secretary shall determine if a print or digital image is suitable for display and complies with the stated subject definition of the competition.
A print or digital image that receives a Merit, Credit or Acceptance award shall NOT be allowed entry into any future Competition Night. Only entry in the club ‘Top Shot Award Night’ will be accepted.
A print or digital image that has been given any award, shall not be entered in any future competition in any other form. On the rear of the print, or the mat on which it is mounted, there shall be a record of: the name of the author; the image title; the date on which it was submitted for competition; any award it received.
A member must reveal to the Competition Secretary the competition history of any image if requested.

Scoring and Awards

The judge/guest photographer of the competition night may award an image a Merit, Credit or Acceptance based on their qualities.
The number of awards given shall be at the discretion of the judge/guest photographer.
IWPS uses three (3) levels of award: Merit (4 points), Credit (3 points) and Acceptance (2 points).
During the monthly competition members shall be able to vote for the Members Choice Award in each category of print and digital images. This will award four (4) points for a Gold, three (3) points for a Silver and two (2) points for a Bronze – these awards are tallied up by an executive committee member from the members ballot cards collected that night.