Competitions are just one of a number of events and activities that the club runs to help members improve their photography by providing critique and feedback. The club runs a number of internal competitions and participates in several external competitions. Others activities that support feedback include:​

• You are the Judge (YATJ)

• Thee Image Appreciation Circle (IAC)

• Critique Evenings, etc

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Competitions are open to fully paid up Club Members only. The main benefit to people submitting their photos is to obtain an independent appraisal of their work and learn how to improve their photography. As such, a ‘competition’ does not need to be entered for competitive reasons: you can enter simply to obtain some useful feedback about your work. Photos are assessed by an external judge recommended by the Chiltern Association of Camera Clubs (CACC). Judges will be experienced photographers who have received specific training, organised by the CACC, to ensure that common criteria are used.

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Over the years there has been a move to shift away from the more traditional approach of critically appraising photographs from a purely technical perspective, to one where they are evaluated more about impact and the story they tell, and judges are aiming to provide constructive feedback to help people improve their photographs.

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These two short articles should help you understand the judging process better. 

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Internal Club Competitions

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This season there will be the following internal competitions, as laid out in the program of events:​

• 2 x No Set Subject (NSS) competitions

• 2 x Set Subject competitions (Reflections & Decay)

• One annual Architecture / Travel & Portfolio competition     

  • Architecture this year - single print only 

  • The Portfolio is a single DPI comprising 4 images

• One End of Year competition

  • The only competition when you can resubmit an image, so it's a "best of" the year event

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For NSS competitions, you can enter any photograph on any theme you wish.

For set subject competitions your photos should be your interpretation of the topic

​Judges will award a score for each picture typically up to a maximum of 20. Scores will accumulate throughout the season and count towards some of the end of season prizes.​

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There are three classes of submission in each competition:

• Colour Prints

• Monochrome Prints

• Digital Projected Images (DPI)

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You can submit a maximum of two entries for each of these three classes, up to a maximum of 5 entries in total.

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​​​​​​DPI Competition Submissions 

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Digital images are more formally known as "Digital Projected Images" (DPIs). DPI files submitted must conform to the following:

• Format: JPEG (JPEG 1 / ISO/IEC 10918)

• Maximum file size: 5MB

• Image ratio: Any

• Image resolution: Any

The recommend image ratio is 16:9

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Your DPI image must be emailed to: wpc.competitions@gmail.com by midnight on the Sunday preceding the competition, using the following filename format:

          <your name>_<photo title>.jpg   (e.g. John Smith_Reflections.jpg)

 

No late entries will be allowed unless by prior agreement.

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​Prints Competition Submissions 

Prints for competition submission must be mounted onto stiff card with a maximum dimension of 50cm x 40cm. The club recommends that all prints be that size as it has very much become a standard amongst photographers. 

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You can buy mounts that are already pre-cut within aperture window, or by cutting your own aperture, then attaching the image using framing tape. If you're buying pre-cut then a range of aperture sizes are available but the most popular tend to be 15"x10" (3:2) and 16"x12" (4:3), both from an aesthetics viewpoint and an ease of matching to popular print sizes. if you're cutting your own then you can more closely match a particular style or size that you want. Please refer to the Print Mounting Guide for information. Or you can fix the image directly to the front of the card using glue or double-sided tape, not This is much less popular as an option.

Your name and the title of the print must be shown clearly in the top left-hand corner on the back of the mount.

Prints must be brought to the club on the Thursday one week prior to the competition night.

No late entries will be allowed unless by prior arrangement.

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Submitting your pictures to the Image Bank
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Each season the club maintains an image bank the has the pictures that have been successful in internal competitions but also have that have been voted on to represent the club. Maintaining this image bank is important for the club: once in the image bank, with the owners permission, it can be displayed on the website and used in external competitions. the process is exactly the same as the competitions but it is a different email address:

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Anyone submitting a print must also send a digital version before the competition takes place to wpcimagebank@gmail.com using the following filename format:

​      <your name>_<photo title>.jpg   (e.g. John Smith_Reflections.jpg)

 

The resolution and size must match those for DPI entries (as above)

Should any member not desire that their image be used in external competitions, they must advise the Committee when it is sent to the Image Bank.

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The Use of AI in Internal Competitions 

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AI is becoming common in photo editing software. For the purpose of our competition rules, the use of AI has been broken down into two distinct categories:

  

1) Editing tools that use AI/machine learning technologies to edit and transform photos.

The use of software for editing images, such as cloning, compositing, sky replacement, blurring, etc. are accepted forms of image post-processing, as these are methods that were originally used in the darkroom. The introduction of AI/machine learning-assisted editing tools is an extension of these techniques; therefore, the use of these tools will be permitted to edit and post-process competition images. It must be noted that this does not supersede the requirement that ALL assets used within an image should be the author’s own work and that all assets used in an image must have been captured by optical means by the author.

 

 2) Software that creates computer-generated images or partial images from scratch.

The use of AI to create computer-generated image, often referred to as Generative AI, is not permitted. Images entered into club competition must be the author’s own work, created solely using assets captured by optical means, and the copyright is owned by the author.

 

The committee has the right to request a digital copy of an image, complete with the associated Metadata, before accepting an image for inclusion within a competition.

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Ownership and Copyright
 

All elements of the work submitted for competitions or exhibitions must be the work of the Author. All assets used in an image must have been captured by optical means by the author, and the copyright of all elements of a picture must be owned by the Author. For the avoidance of doubt, use of images from any other source, including, but not limited to, websites, royalty-free image banks and clipart, are not permitted. By entry of an image for a competition, members are deemed to grant a licence to WPC to use the image on the website, social media and other forms of publicity relating to the club.

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External competitions 

 

The club participates in the following external competitions :​

• Chiltern Challenge 

• Intimate Landscapes 

• VIPC (with a Spanish club)

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