Toronto Photography Meetup Group

But...by the end of the day:



and



Booya.

You're last shot is amazing.... and contest worthy. I'd definately score it fairly high if I were judging.

Hey, Thanks! I've never entered a competition! /gets me thinking.

daniel

for sure..... not sure if you belong to any of the formal camera clubs in the GTA... but this would do well in a club competition. At least, that is my opinion. But I am only one person.

Nope, don't belong to any clubs (don't even know of any)... but the fact that you pointed this out makes me want to find a club.

check out: http://www.gtccc.ca/

and more importantly: http://www.gtccc.ca/memberclubs.html

Contests just don't make sense to me.

they are not for everyone, and the outcome is always so subjective to the judges that are deciding on the winners.

What is the point of them then, if they are so subjective?

Participating in contests have helped me to be a better photographer. As I have seen over the years the kind of images that win and place in the top scoring images. It has helped me to strive for quality and not quantity in my shooting, and has improved the overall level of my work. I recently entered a club contest and placed first in one of the categories. I can remember many contests where I came up with nothing or only an honourable mention, and the feeling if dissapointment was definately there, but I think it helped to make me stronger, and strive to submit only my best work.

Like I said - contests are not for everyone, I know a lot of folks that don't have the time of day for them, and that's ok.

I don't see them as being any different than the challenges here on the board

The sequence of photos are great! Hilarious.

Except they're being judged by a group of people instead of the masses.

Why do you use a contest to self-improve? Why not just ask people for critique?

Well, judges are supposed to be non-biased. Although that is not always the case, but that is why most contests have more than one judge - usually 3.

Ha, nice one tfg. Did the wave actually hit you?

Great outcome on the bottom 2 shots!

And unlike the masses the judges at GTCCC camera clubs have received training, either from GTCCC (Greater Toronto Council of Camera Clubs) or from CAPA (Canadian Association of Photographic Art).

For instance at a recent DPR Challenge one person questioned how can some people score an image a 1(bottom) and others a 5(top).

In all my years of assisting at competitions I've never seen a variance of more than 3 (on a 10 point scale, that would be 1.5 on the DPR scale)...that's the difference in that "the masses" don't know how to judge a photograph properly...they use their emotions instead of what makes a good photo.




People online and friends/family are the worst people to ask for critique...they will say, "nice picture". Check out this link, "How The Internet Is Killing Good Photography":
http://xtremecamera.com/blog/?p=49

The downside of doing camera club competitions is you start producing "camera club art"...you produce images just to please the judges or get points, rather than being pleasing, creative, or innovative.

I turned and jumped as high in the air as I could. Below the knees = completely soaked. Above the knee - all dry.

To the OP, great last shot ... would like to see a large rez version of it.

As for the whole contest debate. I can see both sides of the coin of it being both usefull and pointless.

On the pointless side, we are looking to improve photography for ourselves, find our voice so to speak, and see how our own work grows when measured against ... well, our own work. Go from having "lucky shots" to process that is more planned out and well executed.

On the usefull side, for those of us that are looking to make money from it, there is certain amount of self perspective that needs to be overlooked to allow an appeal to a large audience ... finding your market, but also becoming more marketable. This is where we can use the whole contest thing to grow, getting an eye for what may hook people into viewing the rest of our photos of which we create based on our own style.

Other than that, I'd sure like to win prizes

@ itsaphoto

larger resolution:
http://imgur.com/Oh0wS.jpg

+1

After a certain point you should go your own way, until then reliable feedback is important.

I'd always thought that was the point of photography ? If it was all about rule of thirds etc. , wouldn't it become a technical exercise then ? Having the mechanical chops is fine but if the photographs don't bring anything else to the table, what's the point ? What makes a good photo can and will be debated long after I've run out of film.

@Taylor
If you're trying to build up a cv with a view to applying for grants, then yes, contests are important. I'm not sure local camera club contests would be the map I'd be following. One would need to be looking beyond our borders and enter internationally respected competitions as well. World Press would be an obvious one, for example.

Nice sequences, hope your camera is ok.

Nice shots. I really like the last one. Getting soaked with cold surf, not fun!

If you're supposed to be objective while judging, then how can you let emotion affect your decision? I'm sure there are other aspects of a photograph other than technical and emotion that we, as untrained and inexperienced viewers of art (and more like consumers of imagery) don't appreciate.

As Ken has said, there's no point in debating the merits of the content of a photograph. But at least internationally renowned or established photo editors or art curators have a more educated opinion about photography than we do.

tfg. very nice photograph. The processing is excellent. It perfectly accentuates the bleakness that truly was that day.

where are these shots taken?

Contests, shmontests.

They appeal to a photographer's ego and or/insecurities. I believe that we should share our work if we are proud of it. But pitting individual shots against each other in some sort of judging contest is pointless, almost laughable. A contest rife with personal subjectivity and all for what? No judge has a clue of the situation the photographer had to contend with to get the shot. Or what amount of post processing was required to get that 'look'. How you can pick between a duotone, HDR or unprocessed version of the same subject is beyond me.
Just take your photos for whatever reasons you pursue the art form. No need to get a jury of 3 or 5 to decide if yours are better than others. And how can they? Various people have prejudices against photos for a various number of reasons: over-processed, not sharp, selectively colored, HDR, oversaturated, too grainy....ect.
If you REALLY want feedback on your images than asking for C&C is a better option. The feedback is useful (sometimes not) bit there IS feedback. Entering a contest provides no feedback other than which photos are deemed better/not better than yours. A contest doesn't tell you how your photo could have been improved upon. All it does it hold the judge's values/subjectivity aloft and makes you strive for and follow their ideals. Are you shooting for yourself or for others? For self-assurance, or self-vindication? for public acclamation?
Mind you if there is some lucre to be won, then a contest can have a benefit.
So I participate in contests only to get my work out there. To get it viewed by others and to see what others are doing. Those goals can be better acheived by other means. The whole judging process itself is pointless. I don't think contests are a good tool for self-improvement. There's much better tools.

Nevel Beach in Toronto.

Thanks for all the positive feedback, was a truly fun day!

At the end of the day, all opinions are just opinions regardless of judges job titles. A degree doesn't make you a great photographer either. The goal is to get as much exposure as possible and as much feedback as possible. If the same comments come up several times then there is probably some merit to it and you should make a note of it.

Nearly all photographers want to be successful artists. That means learning how to reach people and move them through imagery. Contest feedback helps to hone those skills and make you a more effective communicator. That being said, not everyone is comfortable being picked apart under the scrutiny of judges

The difference is in some you can actually win prizes and save some money on buying it yourself. It's not crucial for a pro, but very much so for a student