Competition Judging Guidelines In an attempt to keep monthly judging as consistent as possible, CPS asks judges to adhere to the following policies and procedures. The goal of the monthly competition is to provide a measuring stick whereby members can judge their personal growth and achievement in photography. We expect all judges to be fair and impartial. We expect comments to be given in an encouraging, teaching manner--sparing members from sarcasm, humiliation or discouragement. Ribbons will be given for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and Honorable Mention in each medium. Judges are asked to announce the winners in reverse order. The competition committee will hand the ribbons to the judge for presentation to the winners. All judging is done verbally before the membership, You will usually be the only judge and will be asked to critique every entry. Entries shall remain anonymous to the judge. If a judge finds himself in a position where he can not judge fairly due to some personal relation with an entry or entrant, he should make that circumstance known to the competition chairman immediately. If he has seen an entry previously but can still judge impartially, he should proceed. Judges should use the following factors for his basis for judging: Composition-the selection and arrangement of subjects within the picture area. Impact-the overall appeal of/or interest caused by the image. Technique-the skill with which the photograph is produced and presented (sharpness, contrast, exposure, proper use of medium) Presentation-mounting, dust spotting and appearance of prints should not be the biggest factor in selection, but should be considered. The judge shall look over all entries in a medium before starting to judge in order to get a feel for the level of competition presented. Each entry shall be viewed by the membership at least once. Print Judging Method All print entries will be displayed along the front of the room. The judge should look over all entries carefully, mentally eliminating those that will not place in the winners list. Once the judge has silently viewed all entries, a print handler will place each entry onto an easel for individual viewing and commenting. After all prints have been viewed, the judge will turn down those entries which will not place (leaving those worth a second look standing). When he has narrowed down his selection to the top ten or so, he should review again, mentally choosing his winners. Then, he should continue elimination until he is left with the top four. At this point, he should ask the competition chairman for the ribbons. He should then choose the HM, 3rd, 2nd and 1st by placing ribbons on the print. The competition chairman shall call the names of the winners and the judge will hand the ribbons to the winners. ( If time and energy permit, entries may be moved to an easel in front of the membership for viewing during comment.) Because we must be out of the meeting room by 9:30pm, we must finish judging by 9:10 or 9:15 at the latest. That usually allows us about 20 minutes per medium to judge. It is not uncommon to have 20 or more slides, 30 or more color prints, and about 25 black and white prints. The competition chairman will announce how many are in each category and you should manage your time effectively. We ask that judges stay behind for a few minutes so that photographers can get a private critique or clarification if needed. Judges who own businesses directed toward photographers may leave promotional materials on the table in the back of the room, but are asked to refrain from making too many references to the business or service offered during the judging time itself. Remember that this is a big deal to our members! Treat it professionally. Tips: Don't eliminate entries totally because of your personal bias, i.e., I hate cats, etc. Judge on the merit of each entry--don't compare with your work or Ansel's. Be kind and gentle, but be truthful. If it's out of focus, say so. Don't encourage bad work because you're afraid of hurting feelings. Say something like, "if this were sharper, it would have more impact… needs more contrast... needs work in the camera composing stage... etc." Realize that many beginning photographers will place too much weight in what you say. A typical comment might sound like this, " this is a great shot. I like the composition that leads to the subject matter. I wish it were a little sharper, though. And, the horizon really needs to be level. If you could reprint this entry, I'd try to print it so that the horizon runs evenly through it." "This is a nice idea that almost works great! If you could re-shoot this and get a little more exposure, it would work." "This image meets all the rules of thirds. It is properly exposed, has great overall impact and the photographer is a good technician. There are no dust spots and it is well mounted. The overall presentation is excellent and the image is wonderful." Don't labor to find something good to say when it isn't there. Don't gush. Tell what you like or what could be improved. If it's beyond improvement, say something like, " I'd like to talk to this photographer after the competition, I have some ideas to make this better." Lightly touch on the needed improvements.