Competition Rules
COMPETITION RULES
SECTION 1 – RULES FOR COMPETITION RULES
a) Amendments, additions or deletions to the Competitions and Annual Competition Rules shall be made at a General meeting of the Club or by Executive decision of the Club Committee.
b) Contravention of the Rules may result in a loss of points, at the discretion of the Club Committee.
b) The Club Committee may withdraw and any member may request that the Club Committee considers the withdrawal of any entry that it/he/she considers fails to meet the rules of the competition for which it is submitted. Such disqualification may occur before or after the judging of the competition. After judging, any request for withdrawal is to be lodged verbally immediately on the day/evening after the competition followed in writing to the Club Committee within seven days. The member affected by a withdrawal may appeal in writing to the Club Committee with the President making a final and binding decision.
d) The above rules do not apply to inter-club DPI or print battles as these will have their own rules.
SECTION 2 - RULES FOR ALL COMPETITIONS
a) Material entered in any Internal competition or an Annual Competition should originate from an image(s) captured on a date NOT more than four years prior to the start of the current Club Year.
b) All images, either prints or digital images, must have been taken by the member making the entry and no copy of another author’s work will be permitted. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools to generate images is not permitted. The Club does not accept film transparencies as entries into any competition.
c) All images submitted MUST originate from a photograph taken with a camera, whether film or digital, or on a flatbed scanner. In any case of doubt, the Committee shall have the authority to disqualify the entry and nullify any points that might have been awarded, unless the author can provide the original image as proof.
d) A member may NOT enter, in the same internal competition or in any Annual Competition, two or more versions of the same or similar image (whether monochrome or colour print or digital file). If entries are made in error all but one, to be selected by the Committee, of the images will be disqualified and any points awarded will be nullified. For the avoidance of doubt, an image in an Annual Competition must not the same or similar images as previously entered in an Annual Competition.
e) Highly awarded images from competitions will be published on the website unless the author notifies the webmaster that they do not give permission. As the Club requires members to provide DPIs of print images to be sent to the club projectionist when entering the print competitions then the DPI of highly awarded prints from competitions will be published on the website unless the author notifies the webmaster that they do not give permission.
f) All print entries (colour or monochrome) should be with the Competition Secretary at least one week prior to the date of each internal competition, with the latest time and place to be fixed by the Competition Secretary at the start of the Club year.
g) All DPI, both for the DPI competition and the DPI of prints, must be sent to the Club Projectionist, CC'd to the Competition Secretary, at least 10 days prior to the date of each internal competition, with the latest time and place to be fixed by the Competition Secretary at the start of the Club year. The DPI will be sent by using WeTransfer (or similar file transfer software, NOT Dropbox).
h) Whilst every care will be taken to protect work from damage, work is entered at the owner’s risk.
SECTION 3 – PRESENTATION OF IMAGES IN ALL COMPETITIONS
3.1. PRINTS
a) Colour and Monochrome prints must be on rectangular mountboard measuring 40cm x 50cm and of thickness no more than 3mm, unless otherwise specified in a competition’s rules. The size of the image is the choice of the author and the image cane either surface mounted or cut out.
b) Prints must be firmly affixed to their mounts, which may be commercially produced if desired. Prints may be disqualified if it is liable to cause damage to other prints (e.g. Velcro pads, poor mounting, poor taping) or not adequately backed. One image only per mount can be accepted, unless the competition allows or states otherwise. This single print may contain material from more than one source but the result must be a cohesive, composite image and not a series of individual, separated pictures.
c) All prints must be identified on the reverse with the author’s name and a title. Repeating the title on the front of the print is optional.
d) All prints will be identified for entry into the Internal Competitions and/or the Annual Competition by the placing of the Club Label on the reverse of every print, prior to the judging, for means of identification. This may include the Catalogue number for the Annual Exhibition.
e) All prints will also have a DPI of the print, see below.
3.2. Digital Projected Images (DPI)
a) DPI must be entered in a standard jpeg format with a colour profile of sRGB. They may be of any resolution but will be projected at the resolution of the Club’s projector. The image must be no more than 1600 pixels wide and no more than 1200 pixels high. The author’s name and the title for the image must be included in the EXIF data for the image. Titles to be no longer that 24 characters including spaces.
b) The filename of the DPI shall be {author’s name} – {title} – {category} where category is either CP (for colour print), MP (for monochrome print, CD (for colour DPI) or MD (for monochrome DPI).
Please read how to prepare digital image for Club competitions in the HOW TO section click here.
c) DPI of entered prints are required so that the images can be projected alongside the submitted print for the benefit of the audience - the judge will be reminded to ignore the projected image in these cases.
SECTION 4 – RULES FOR INTERNAL COMPETITIONS
a) There will be four categories in the internal competitions which are Colour Prints, Monochrome Prints, Colour DPI and Monochrome DPI. A member may only enter one image in up to three out of the four categories for an internal competition.
b) Colour Prints and Monochrome Prints may be home or trade processed.
c) An image may be entered in up to TWO internal league competitions in any category provided it has NOT been awarded 20, 19 or 18 points by the Judge on its first appearance. Once awarded a 20, 19 or 18 it CANNOT be submitted again in any form (colour print, monochrome print, colour DPI or monochrome DPI). If an image scores below 18 it is noted that the two entries of the same image in different categories still counts as two entries overall. Images entered in internal competitions may, however, be entered into the Annual Competition regardless of score.
d) Judges will award points out of twenty for each image submitted. These points will be accumulated by individual members throughout the Club year thereby creating a league table. A 'no entry' to count as zero points.
A member may choose to enter an image for the judges comment only (and the judge will not award points in this case), The member must inform the Competition Secretary that the image is for the judge’s comment only when submitting the print or the DPI.
e) The subjects of the internal competitions shall be decided by the Club’s Committee, after the opinions of the membership have been sought by the Club’s Secretary.
f) The Club will accumulate the points awarded in each category ((colour print, monochrome print, colour DPI or monochrome DPI) in the form of a league for each category.
g) Currently the Club is operating a single league for each category for all members.
h) Should there be a tie for positions at the end of the season in a league for one category, then a count-back system of counts of score values will be used. (E.g. most 20s, etc).
If multiple leagues are used the following will apply
The Bresson and Bailey groups for existing photographers and the Snowdon group for those relatively new to photography and/or digital processing. The committee will have the right to withdraw the Snowdon class at any time if it is deemed necessary through the lack of those new to photography and/or digital processing as Club members.
For all internal competitions the judge will mark each image but will take into consideration that the author is in the Bresson, Bailey or Snowdon league, and be invited to offer supportive critique accordingly. The number in each group will depend on the membership at the time.
Members entering work in the Snowdon class are to submit work in that class until such time as he/she has been awarded a sufficiently high number of the top marks, awarded by the judges in one season, in the internal competitions only, with the decision on who should then work in the Bailey class to be agreed in committee and those concerned to be informed of the change by the Competition Secretary early after the start of the following season.
Similarly, members entering work in the Bailey class to submit work in that class until such time as he/she has been awarded a sufficiently high number of the top marks, awarded by the judges in one season, in the internal competitions only, with the decision on who should then work in the Bresson class to be agreed in committee and those concerned to be informed of the change by the Competition Secretary early after the start of the following season.
Membership of the Bresson class in one category of the internal competitions does not mean that the member is automatically moved to the Bresson class in other categories. This recognises the different artistic skills needed to ensure high standards of work in the Bresson class.
SECTION 5 – RULES FOR THE ANNUAL COMPETITION
a) There will be four categories in the Annual Competition which are Colour Prints, Monochrome Prints, Colour DPI and Monochrome DPI.
b) Entry into the Annual Competition assumes the image may be displayed in the Annual Exhibition. All entries to the Annual Competition and the Annual Exhibition are on an equal basis unless specifically stated by the Committee in advance of the Final Entry Date. However whilst nudes or semi-nudes images may be entered into the Annual Competition, they will not be displayed at the Annual Exhibition.
c) An image may be entered into ONE Annual Competition and ONE Annual Exhibition only. Images must not have been previously entered into a St Neots & District Camera Club Annual Competition, or be a near duplicate of a previous entry.
All prints must have a DPI submitted also – these are for display purposes only and are not sent to the judge.
d) There shall be a minimum of FIVE subject categories:-
e) In addition to the author, title and category in the filename or the DPI, the filename must be appended with the letter identifying the subject category, as:
{author’s name} – {title} – {category}/{subject category letter}
f) For the 2025 and subsequent Annual Competitions, the number of images that each member may enter in each category is: -
Monochrome Prints ---------------------10 prints
Colour prints ------------------------------10 prints
Colour DPI -------------------------------- 10 images
Monochrome DPI ------------------------10 images
g) The maximum total number of entries across the sections is 30.
h)The total number of accepted images by each member may be changed at the discretion of the committee. The maximum permitted entry in each category may be divided between the subject categories as the member wishes.
j)The Annual Competition judge will designate a First, Second and Third place image in each category and subject category. Judges will be invited to award Commendations to any number of deserving prints and DPI.
k) Each member entering the Annual Competition is be entitled to have a minimum of one image displayed, plus all ‘placed’ entries, with the remaining highest marked images to be displayed as space allows. (See 5b above).
l) Trophies will be awarded to those members judged to have satisfied the criteria listed under “Trophies”. All trophies will be held for one year and returned one month before the following Annual Exhibition.
m) There will be a small fee for each exhibit entered in the Annual Competition to cover judging fees and trophy engraving.
n) Submission of an entry is deemed to imply knowledge and acceptance of the rules.
p) The Club has adapted the PAGB Nature Rules with one exception (see below). The current (2024) PAGB Nature Rules are:
DEFINITION OF NATURE TO BE USED IN SNDCC ANNUAL
COMPETITION 2025 ONWARDS
Nature photography is restricted to the use of the photographic process to depict all branches of natural history, except anthropology and archaeology, in such a fashion that a well-informed person will be able to identify the subject material and certify its honest presentation. The story telling value of a Nature photograph must be weighed more than the pictorial quality while maintaining high technical quality. Scientific bands, scientific tags or radio collars on wild animals are permissible.
Photographs of human created hybrid plants, cultivated plants, feral animals, domestic animals, or mounted specimens are ineligible, as is any form of manipulation that alters the truth of the photographic statement. Processing of the captured image, by cropping, exposure adjustment, colour correction, noise minimisation, dodging/burning, HDR, focus stacking and sharpening, is allowed. Cloning of image defects and minor distractions, including overlapping elements, are permitted when these do not distort the truth of the photographic statement.
Images entered as Nature can include images taken with the subjects in controlled conditions, such as zoos, game farms, botanical gardens, aquariums and any enclosure where the subjects are totally dependent on man for food.
Access to biological subjects may be restricted. By entering an SNDCC Annual Competition, photographers warrant that they have followed relevant codes of practices and hold any necessary licences.
Wildlife Images entered in Wildlife sections are further defined as one or more extant zoological or botanical organisms free and unrestrained in a natural or adopted habitat. Photographs of zoo or game farm animals, or of any extant zoological or botanical species taken under controlled conditions are not eligible in Wildlife sections. Wildlife is not limited to animals, birds and insects. Marine subjects and botanical subjects (including fungi and algae) taken in the wild are suitable wildlife subjects, as are carcasses of extant species. Wildlife images may be entered in Nature sections.
SECTION 6 – RULES FOR OTHER ANNUAL COMPETITIONS
Panel competition
a)This competition is open to all members on an equal basis. It is divided into four categories for monochrome prints, colour prints, monochrome DPI and colour DPI. Each Panel must consist of three individual images. The set of three images are to have an obvious and connecting theme of the author’s own choice. Please note, a print panel consisting of mixed colour and monochrome images is permitted but must be entered as a colour print panel. In the same way, a DPI panel consisting of mixed colour and monochrome images is permitted but must be entered as a colour DPI panel.
b) A member may enter up to three Panels, but only one Panel in any one category. The decision over which category(ies) to enter is entirely up to the author. The winning entries are to be decided by an external judge.
c) Prints in a panel are to be on three individual boards, mounted as for all competitions. In addition to the author’s name and Panel title, must be an indication of how they are to be displayed as viewed by the judge – left, centre and right.
d) For both DPI entries and for DPI of prints, three, individually saved, DPI are required as entered for all club competitions. After the author's name and the Panel title the file name must indicate how they are to be displayed i.e. left, centre and right. A fourth DPI is to be included showing how the panel of three is to be displayed when projected. No further information is required.
Five Image Panel Print Competition
e)This competition is open to all members on an equal basis. It is for prints only mounted on one 40cm by 50cm board. Each five image panel consists of five images, displayed individually, using cuts-outs or surface mounted as desired. All images on one sheet of paper is acceptable.
f) The five images to have a theme of the author’s choice plus an appropriate title, which can be placed on the front. The five images can be a mix of colour and monochrome images. A member may enter up to three panels in this competition.
g) Each Panel to be presented without the author’s name
h) The panel to be judged by the members.
SECTION 7 - TROPHIES
a)For the internal competitions, trophies are awarded, for each of the category (colour print, monochrome print, colour DPI, monochrome DPI), to the member who achieves the highest total number of points in that category.
b) For the Annual Competition a number of trophies are awarded which may be changed at the discretion of the committee.
Ethel Lewcock Rosebowl -------------------- Best Nature Entry in the Exhibition
Founder`s Cup ---------------------------------- Best of the Presidents Selection in the Exhibition
Peter Day Award (Shield) -------------------- Most Creative Entry in the Exhibition
A New Cup, to be named------------ Best Landscape Entry in the Exhibition
Budd Colour Cup ------------------------------- Best Colour Digital Entry in the Exhibition
A New Cup, to be named : ----------Best Monochrome Digital Entry in the Exhibition.
Freeman Cup ----------------------------------- Best Mono Print in the Exhibition
Evelyn Day Cup -------------------------------- Best Colour Print in the Exhibition
Budd Challenge Cup -------------------------- Highest Points Mono Prints in the Exhibition
President's Cup -------------------------------- Highest Points Colour Prints in Exhibition
Diamond Anniversary Cup ------------------ Highest Points Colour Digital entries in Exhibition
A New Cup, to be named --------- Highest Points Monochrome Digital entries in the Exhibition.
c) Cliff Clifford Cup is awarded annually to the club member whom it has been decided has made an outstanding contribution to the life and work of the club during that year. Members vote at the end of each season and the Trophy is presented at the AGM.
d) Trophies for the internal competitions are normally presented at the AGM, whilst those for the Annual Competition are normally presented at the meeting where the judge for the Annual Competition presents their feedback on images.
e) Trophies of the internal competitions must be returned to the Club one month before the AGM, whilst those for the Annual Competition must be returned one month before the Annual Exhibition
(Last Update: 06-Apr-2025)