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On Print CompetitionArticles about AzPPA and PPA Print Competition - How and Why You Should Participate • PRINT COMPETITION: “To Enter or Not To Enter…That is the Question! by Dale Holladay PRINT COMPETITION: “To Enter or Not To Enter…That is the Question!” AHHHH, print competition! Even the words cause my palms to sweat. Having entered print competitions over the past 30+ years, I feel that I am sufficiently qualified in writing about the subject. One large shelf in the basement of our studio is filled with all of the prints that Janice and I (and now Kristen,) have entered in print competitions over the years, most of which are NOT merit prints. Janice and I have often commented on the fact that it would be nice to have all of the money back that we have spent on competition prints and entry fees of those that did not merit. We conservatively estimate that we could travel around the world with the money spent. I had one print case that cost us over $600 back in the mid ‘80’s, all four of which scored miserably. So much for the “good ole days”. But the big question is, “Knowing what we know now, would we do it again?” The answer is, “We most certainly would!” “But, we would probably do it differently.” The purpose of this article is to help you NOT make the same mistakes that we have made. Going back to the title of this article, “To Enter or Not to Enter”, this is the first choice that you have to make. In Janice and my experience, the stress, expense and inconvenience of entering print competition has been worth it. I can honestly say that if we had not entered that first print competition so many years ago, we would not be where we are today in photography. My first experience with print competition occurred when we first joined APPA (now AzPPA) back in 1975. The convention was held that year in a small hotel across the street from Arizona State University. Entering the print competition was sort of an afterthought-spur of the moment decision. Having never seen a print competition before, we had no idea what to expect or what was required. I had this full length portrait of a bride that I had taken which (of course) I thought was GREAT! It was on display on the wall of our studio. It had no special printing or competition treatment at all. I just yanked it out of the frame and took it with us to the convention. As we entered the room and witnessed the competition proceed, I was nervous with anticipation. After several prints went by my print came up and I suddenly realized what a mistake I had made. The judges were “kind” when they gave it a score of 62. The lowest score that I have ever seen in an Arizona Print competition to date, and remember I have witnessed 35 AzPPA print competitions! I wanted to crawl into a hole. This brings us to the next choice that you have…and this is the most important choice in your career as a photographer pertaining to print competition. I could have chosen to take offense to the judge’s scoring and comments or I could choose to learn from them. Now keep in mind that I am a proud man and taking criticism is not easy for me. I could have taken my print and left in a huff mumbling to myself that those judges were idiots. OR, I could LEARN from this experience and find out what I needed to do to get a print to hang with an 80 or better. Obviously, I swallowed my pride and chose the later. And to quote the famous author, Robert Frost, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” So instead of blaming others for the lack of my success on this print, I pulled each judge aside and asked them why my print scored as it did. Looking back I feel sorry for those judges, because there was NOTHING of redeeming value in that print, yet they were kind and told me what I should do in the future. Even with their advice and help it took me 7 more years of entering prints before I got my first print merit, and 12 more years before I received my APPLE degree. I still have that first competition print with the small “62” written on the back of it. I look at it occasionally, just to remind me “where we came from”. I remember when I was struggling to figure out the “secret” to successful print competition, I asked a friend of mine in New Mexico that was very successful in print competition what the “secret” is. His reply did not help much then, but now it makes perfect sense to me, “There is no secret, but when you figure out what it takes to make a merit print, you will know it and be able to recognize it, and be better able to duplicate it.” I believe any of you reading this that have been successful in print competition, know what he means by this. So, with all of this “experience” what can I share with you to assist you in your quest for the illusive merit print? Let me present a list, in no particular order, that should help you: There are several other things that could be mentioned here, but this should give you a good start. Remember that NO ONE has all the answers. There are Masters of Photography out there that fail to hang a single print. There are those that can manage to hang “4 for 4” every year. I fall into the category of being “thankful” when I hang a print or two. In fact, in this last 8x10 competition, only 2 of my prints were merit quality. I hope that this has been helpful. My wife and I would be happy to review any of your work that you are considering for competition, as I am sure that most of the Masters of Photography in our association would be willing to do. Keep in mind, it is not easy for us to critique your work and not be totally honest for the reasons explained above. Good luck on your quest for the “illusive” print merit. Print Comp Question and the Reply Dear AZPPA, HI Pete, Print Competition = Green Merits Too! The Power of Image Presentation The Fear of Image Competition Let me let you in on a little secret: when it comes to image competition, no one is immune to the stomach-clenching feeling you get when one of your images comes up to be judged. Many new competitors think that only they feel this way. Not true! Rest assured that even the most experienced, award-winning photographic competitor feels just like you do. If you can get past the “winning” aspect of competition and understand what it can do for you as an artist and businessperson, you will see it in a whole new light. Competing can get you past the fear of selling. After all, if you can put your images in front of a panel of qualified, trained judges, selling to your clients should be a piece of cake. Get ready for the 2010 International Competition – deadline April 29, 2010 (more information will be available soon at PPA.com’s Competitions page). Check with your affiliate association for upcoming image competition entry deadlines and rules. Send questions about regional or international competitions to Jim Dingwell jdingwell@ppa.com Print Critique Or How to Expose Yourself in Public Without Being Noticed AZPPA's biannual print critique is a stripped down version of a print competition without the cost, drama, or embarrassment. This anonymous mini contest gives members the unique opportunity to float their work out in front of a team of accomplished master photographers allowing them to receive useful feedback on the readiness of their work for formal print competition ('printcomp'). This twice-yearly opportunity (coming up soon in April, and again in November) provides a venue for you to exhibit your prints under competition lighting standards, and be judged semi formally. All this without revealing your identity. First timers usually appreciate the anonymity until they gain confidence to enter a formal competition such as the printcomp at our annual convention in January. Experienced entrants may choose to try out a new style or test the water with an experimental technique before committing to a larger mounted print. Just like in printcomp, judges are evaluating images according to the 12 elements: 1) impact, 2) … Truthfully, I can never remember the other 11 without referring to a list! But with good reason: if an image does not immediately strike the judges and leave a lasting impact, the other 11 are by definition of less importance. The 12 elements are ordered from 1-12 more or less in order of importance. Unlike our state printcomp, prints are not scored on a 1-100 scale, with 100 representing a perfect print, 80 and above deserving of a merit, and less than 70 being below competition standards. Instead, the judges use a 'thumbs up, thumbs-down' method to indicate whether an image is likely to do well at printcomp, or not. This is much the same way as some regional and national competitions are judged. A majority of the judges must give your prints a ‘thumbs-up’ in order for your image to be considered worthy of a merit point. Also unlike a formal printcomp, we have no print mounting requirements, and allow only one size. This ensures uniformity of presentation, and all images are given equal weight as far as size, shape and feel are concerned. Indeed, if you print your image on 8 ½ x 11" paper and don't trim it to 8x10", or present it proudly mounted on a board or mat, we may politely ask you to resubmit at the next critique. This is partly to help the print handlers manage a large number of prints during the rapid fire judging and review process, as well as to discourage entrants from spending too much money unnecessarily on their entries. We want this to be a fair competition, but above all a unique learning experience. If you're investing more than a few dollars printing your images, you're probably spending too much! The only exception will be for album entries, which must follow the same guidelines as for state or national competition. For the complete rules of print critique, please follow this link: http://www.arizonappa.com/downloads.html In order for print critique to serve its primary purpose as a learning experience for entrants, which is why we have it as a program twice a year, and not just another opportunity to compete, we do request that entrants be present at print critiques to hear what the judges have to say about their images. Indeed, this is the most beneficial aspect of print critique, listening to the judges debate and comment on your images in an unbiased and unhindered way. Although the critique is anonymous, given that the judges are addressing you, we think you should be here to hear it! That said, we do recognize members who have participated over a period of time and who have consistently impressed the judges with the quality of their work. The ‘Distinguished Photographer’s Award’ is awarded when the member has accumulated 25 merits. I am often asked whether an image should be inset and stroked or not. This is a common practice in formal printcomps, and considered by some to be an essential part of competition presentation. In much the same way as a mat and frame finishes a print, a border and pinstripe can really accentuate a beautiful image. But remember, if your image is below competition standards, a fancy border is unlikely to sway the judges from a thumbs-down to a thumbs-up position! Additionally, because of the small print size, an excessively wide border will render your image too small to be judged effectively (especially for technical qualities such as noise and focus). So like everything else, it comes down to personal preference and artistic impression. Which brings me back to the list where print presentation is #5: 1. Impact On the night of the print critique, prints are checked in, the maker and title recorded, and all entrants are asked to sign a copyright release (for the benefit of your association). Your properly formatted CD of images is loaded in to the display computer, and the prints and the electronic images are randomized. It is a real challenge to maintain the synchronization between the prints which are judged, and the images which are for the audience only, which is why we ask that the electronic image submission guidelines for formatting and sizing are adhered to. To keep the check-in process running smoothly, we require that your electronic images be on CD only. USB drives, email or carrier pigeon are not acceptable. Competition prints are typically printed 10-15% darker than regular prints so that lighter areas do not wash-out under the bright lights (f/16, 1s, ISO100). You can ask your lab to do this for you, or ask one of our master photographers for the Photoshop secret sauce. Although in a formal printcomp, an image must be assigned to a category (Portrait, Commercial, Illustrative, Wedding, Event Album, Non Event Album), for print critique, all images are judged equally. So don’t worry too much if you can’t decide which category to choose, the judges might even have some suggestions. During judging, as with a conventional print competition, the images are randomized (to prevent a series of images from the same maker coming up together). The prints are also kept hidden from view until it is their turn in the spotlight- this is to maximize the impact factor! At the end of the judging process, all prints will be re-reviewed and this is when the judges will give comments, so have a pen and paper handy! Finally, when the evening is over, please come find and collect your prints from the pile. Although we take care of your prints before they are judged, all the additional handling of your prints can leave them in a un-presentable condition, so here’s another reason we don’t want you to spend too much to produce them. And unless you absolutely must have your CD back, they will go to a very good cause as a 1st grade school project! We hope you will be inspired and confident to enter our next Print Critique on April 2nd.
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