PPSC’s Annual State Print Competition will be held on Saturday, February 9, 2019 in Columbia, SC
Digital entries only. Registration opens Monday, January 7, 2019. Entry deadline is February 7, 2019 at 5:00pm.
Enter at PrintCompetition.com – you’ll need to sign up for an account in order to enter.
PRINT COMPETITION IS ALMOST HERE!
YOU ONLY HAVE
TO GET YOUR IMAGES SUBMITTED!
PPSC’s Annual State Print Competition will be held on Saturday, February 9, 2019 in Columbia, SC
Digital entries only. Registration opens Monday, January 7, 2019. Entry deadline is February 7, 2019 at 5:00pm.
Enter at PrintCompetition.com – you’ll need to sign up for an account in order to enter.
THE JUDGING PROCESS
THE JUDGING PROCESS
During an annual event at least three judges, approved by the PPSC Image Salon Chairperson, will assemble in a controlled environment and examine each accepted entry individually. Digital images will be displayed on an approved calibrated display. Each judge will give a score and an average score will be announced. At this point a judge may challenge the score and declare a reason why he/she believes the image should score higher or lower. The image will be re-scored. Images receiving a score of 80 or higher are considered “deserving of a merit.”
In some cases, judges may discuss an image and will often point out specific reasons for the scores. Images receiving a 79 or 80 will be automatically called back near the end of the competition and a final determination will be made as to whether or not the score should remain or if they should be re-scored, thus changing their status as a merit image.
RULES AND GUIDELINES
THE RULES AND GUIDELINES
PLEASE REVIEW CAREFULLY
1.1. The purpose of this competition is to allow photographers to enter digital files, and/or digital albums to be judged against a standard of excellence using the 12 Elements of a Merit Image (they are listed at the end of this document).
1.2. Entrants can enter either or both of the two categories of competition, e.g. Photographic Open and Master Artist.
1.3. You do NOT have to be a PPSC Member to enter.
1.4. You DO have to be a PPSC member to win awards
1.5. All entrants must register at www.printcompetition.com. After registering, you enter your entries/images into the PPSC Competition.
1.6. Entrants may only submit digital files for judging. These digital files/images may be captured electronically with a digital camera or through traditional photographic processes and scanned.
1.7. No changes to your entry are permitted once the entry deadline has passed. No refunds will be issued after the entry fee is paid.
1.8. Through this competition, PPSC members are also eligible to achieve PPSC exhibition merits toward degrees.
1.9. Entries with a score of 80 or above in a previous Annual PPSC or PPA photographic competition are not eligible.
1.10. Digital Overlays, i.e. “Digital Mats” are permitted.
1.11. Entering images produced during a class or under the supervision of an instructor are NOT allowed.
2.1. Deadlines
2.1.1. Entries open January 7, 2019.
2.1.2. Entries close February 7, 2019 at 5pm.
2.2. Entry Fees:
2.2.1. $15/image
2.2.2. $15/album
2.2.3. Recorded Critiques – $39/Entrant for all entries by an Entrant
2.3. A maximum of eight (8) entries per entrant will be allowed.
3.1. Files must be sized so the longest dimension is 4000 pixels. Each file must contain an embedded color profile of either sRGB or Adobe RGB1998 and be saved at a JPEG quality setting of 10, High, or 100%. In most cases, total file size should not exceed 3.5 MB. Larger files will be accepted when necessary so long are they are JPEG/10.
3.2. Each entry must have a Title. “No Title” is not allowed.
3.3. Files must be named “Image Title”.jpg.
4.1. All page/spread files must have the longest file dimension at 4000 pixels, have an embedded color profile of either sRGB or Adobe RGB1998 and saved at a JPEG quality setting of 10.
4.2. Each page/spread file may contain as many images as you desire.
4.3. An entry shall contain a minimum of 5 page/spread files up to 36 page/spread files.
4.4. Files are to be numbered in viewing order using two digits, i.e. 01 jpg, 02 jpg, 03 jpg, etc.
4.5. All individual files must be compressed into a single ZIP file. ZIP file must be named: Album Title.zip (e.g. Summer Wedding.zip).
4.6. Studio identification or entrant’s name cannot appear on any file within the album entry.
4.7. Each entrant must use the same title when entering a multi‐maker album.
5.1. Entrant must have captured and created the original exposure or exposures.
5.2. All processing, manipulation or rendering, was done by the entrant or under their direct supervision.
5.3. The entrant has obtained and has access to all necessary releases (model or property) and agrees to hold PPSC harmless against all claims and liabilities arising out of PPSC’s display, publication and promotion or other use of each image submitted to PPSC.
5.4. The entrant’s name shall not appear anywhere in or on the face of the entry.
5.5. A maximum of eight (8) entries may be submitted per entrant.
5.6. No entry will be eligible if it has been made under the supervision of an instructor or as a class assignment. All images submitted must be self-directed. Images created in an educational environment under direct supervision from an instructor are ineligible.
5.7. Any entry that has been created from an existing photograph, portrait, graphic or any other artwork produced by another person is a violation of the competition rules and will not be judged, accepted or displayed. If an entry, in the good-faith opinion of the PPSC Competition Committee, violates copyright, trademark or any other applicable law, that entry shall be disqualified.
5.8. No two entries shall be of the same subject unless that subject appears in completely different clothing AND in a completely different background/backdrop; i.e. a bride during the engagement shoot and the same bride during the wedding ceremony.
5.9. Only digital files and digital albums are acceptable.
5.10. Once an image has been awarded an exhibition merit at any Annual PPSC Competition or in any category of PPA competition, it may not be entered again in any other category, at any time, by any entrant. No image that receives a merit may be entered more than once under any condition, including any image from a merited album.
6.1. Portrait
6.1.1. Children
6.1.2. Groups
6.1.3. Men
6.1.4. Pets & Animals
6.1.5. Seniors
6.1.6. Women
6.1.7. Wedding Portraits
6.1.8. Wedding Other
6.2. Illustrative/commercial (Consists of commercial/industrial images, scenics, pictorials, digital paintings and similar subject matter. Portraits and weddings are not appropriate for this category.)
6.2.1. Commercial
6.2.2. Scenic/Pictorial
6.2.3. Digital paintings
6.3. Albums (albums consist of time‐sensitive social events, such as weddings, bar mitzvahs, etc. NON‐EVENT albums consist of portrait and storytelling albums.)
6.3.1. Event Albums
6.3.2. Non-event Album
7.1. Entries may be reproduced from existing photographs, portraits, graphics or any other artwork so long as the entrant is prepared to provide appropriate written documentation indicating permission for usage. This documentation may be requested by PPSC before, during or after the competition. If an entry, in the good-faith opinion of the PPSC Competition Committee, violates copyright, trademark or any other applicable law and cannot be proven otherwise, that entry shall be disqualified and merits revoked, if issued.
7.2. All processing, manipulation, artwork or rendering must be done by the entrant.
7.3. The entrant’s name shall not appear anywhere in or on the face of the entry.
7.4. A maximum of eight (8) entries may be submitted per entrant.
7.5. No entry will be eligible if it has been made under the supervision of an instructor or as a class assignment. All images submitted must be self-directed. Images created in an educational environment under direct supervision from an instructor are ineligible.
7.6. No two entries shall be of the same subject unless that subject appears in completely different clothing AND in a completely different background/backdrop; i.e. a bride during the engagement shoot and the same bride during the wedding ceremony.
7.7. Entries are limited to digital files.
7.8. Once an image has been scored 80 or more in any Annual PPSC or PPA competition, it may not be entered again in any other category, at any time, by any entrant. No image that receives a merit may be entered more than once under any condition, including any image from a merited album.
7.9. Entries in the Artist category may include any subject and must have guide images.
7.10. Guide images, must be included on the submitted digital canvas or mounted/included on the face of the image.
7.11. Entrants do not need to be PPSC members to compete, and can enter this Artist Competition. Only PPSC members can earn merits toward PPSC degrees.
8.1. Digital Images will be judged on an NEC Spectraview 30” Wide Gamut Monitor
8.2. Monitor Settings, D65, 120 cd/m2, 2.20 gamma
9.1. A selection of awards will be presented based on the number of entries in each category scoring 80 or above.
9.2. Awards will be based on the decision of the judges.
9.3. A “case” for award purposes shall be the highest scoring four (4) entries from an entrant.
9.4. For Awards, the entrants will be divided into two categories
9.4.1. Master Photographers (PPA Degree)
9.4.2. Open Photographers (any entrant not having a Masters Degree from PPA)
10.1. 95-100 – Exceptional
10.2. 90-94 – Superior
10.3. 85-89 – Excellent
10.4. 80-84 – Deserving a Merit
10.5. 75-79 – Above Average
10.6. 70-74 – Average
10.7. 65-69 – Below Exhibition Standards
12 ELEMENTS OF A MERIT PRINT
12 ELEMENTS OF A MERIT PRINT
The Photographic Exhibitions Committee (PEC) of PPA uses the 12 elements below as the “gold standard” to define a merit image. PEC trains judges to be mindful of these elements when judging images to the PPA merit level.
The Photographic Exhibitions Committee (PEC) of PPA uses the 12 elements below as the “gold standard” to define a merit image. PEC trains judges to be mindful of these elements when judging images to the PPA merit level.
Presentation
Presentation affects an image by giving it a finished look. The mats and borders used, either physical or digital, should support and enhance the image, not distract from it.
Creativity
The original, fresh, and external expression of the imagination of the maker by using the medium to convey an idea, message or thought.
Subject Matter
Subject matter should always be appropriate to the story being told in an image.
Technique
The approach used to create the image. Printing, lighting, posing, capture, presentation media, and more are part of the technique applied to an image.
Center of Interest
The point or points on the image where the maker wants the viewer to stop as they view the image. There can be primary and secondary centers of interest. Occasionally there will be no specific center of interest, when the entire scene collectively serves as the center of interest.
Composition
Important to the design of an image, bringing all of the visual elements together in concert to express the purpose of the image. Proper composition holds the viewer in the image and prompts the viewer to look where the creator intends. Effective composition can be pleasing or disturbing, depending on the intent of the image maker.
Color Balance
Color Balance supplies harmony to an image. An image in which the tones work together, effectively supporting the image, can enhance its emotional appeal. Color balance is not always harmonious and can be used to evoke diverse feelings for effect.
Style
Style is defined in a number of ways as it applies to a creative image. It might be defined by a specific genre or simply be recognizable as the characteristics of how a specific artist applies light to a subject. It can impact an image in a positive manner when the subject matter and the style are appropriate for each other, or it can have a negative effect when they are at odds.
Technical excellence
The quality of the image itself as it is presented for viewing. Retouching, manipulation, sharpness, exposure, printing, mounting, and correct color are some items that speak to the qualities of the physical print.
Impact
The sense one gets upon viewing an image for the first time. Compelling images evoke laughter, sadness, anger, pride, wonder or another intense emotion. There can be impact in any of these twelve elements.
Lighting
The use and control of light, refers to how dimension, shape and roundness are defined in an image. Whether the light applied to an image is manmade or natural, proper use of it should enhance an image.
Story Telling
Story Telling refers to the image’s ability to evoke imagination. One beautiful thing about art is that each viewer might collect his own message or read her own story in an image.