Jaycees Photographer of the Year Contest 2009-2010

Junior Chamber International Panjim brings before you an exclusive contest for all those who are creatively inclined.
Over the last few years, we have started noticing a trend; it started slowly but has steadily gained momentum. Now expressions are more vibrant through photos! Yes as the oft quoted saying goes, “A picture does, often speak a thousand words”. It is our endeavour to appreciate and encourage such creativity and through our contest, you can win yourself some great prizes. Every month Jaycees Panjim will award 3 of the best pictures uploaded onto our platform. The contest will reward the best in creative, original photography talent.So grab your camera and set out on a photographic journey! Capture fascinating moments in everyday life or even an aspect of your city that you love the most. Whether it is a breathtaking moment from your travels around the world or a picture taken in your backyard, if your picture speaks a thousand words you could be a winner! The primary motto of this contest is to appreciate the vast talent of the creative minds.

We are pleased to announce the Jaycees Photographer of the Year Contest which will run from march 2009 to february 2010. The contest comprises of 12 themes, one each for a month. The participants will have to send their entries online.
The pressnote sent to all Local newspapers is reproduced below:
Jaycees Panaji introduces 1st online Photo Contest in association with heartbeatgoa.com. Every month 3 of the best pictures will be uploaded on the website for all to see. The competition is open for all individuals across the planet aged 18 years and above. There is no entry fee. The selected entries will be published in an upcoming Goan magazine and on the web. There will be an Amazing prize for the Grand Prize Winner who will be crowned, “ Jaycees-Photographer of the year 2009-2010”. The competition runs from March 2009 to February 2010. The Grand Prize winner will be overall winner among the 12 winners. Images could be either digital or scanned film image (min 300 dpi). The images should be sent to jayceespanjim@gmail.com. The topic for March is “ Nature at its best”. Contest ends 31st march, midnight. The winning entries will be selected by popular vote and by Judges. For further details, write to the above email or visit juliusdare2do.blogspot.com

Theme for March 2009:"Nature at its best"
BRIEF: what we are looking for is how well you have captured the harmonious relation between nature and its surrounding environs.
Your photos could also include how people help in preseving nature thus making this planet a beautiful place to be. Send us your intepretations of the theme.

How to submit your images:
Images can be shot digital or on film cameras. The scanned images should be minimum 300dpi . There is no upper limit for sending the images. The images should conform to the theme. The images should be appropriately resized, not to exceed 1 mb in size. The images have to be appropriately labelled i.e. S.No-Caption-Name of sender. For eg: in case you are sending two images. Then, the images can be labelled as follows. 01-Nice sunset-John fernandes
02-Beautiful waters-John Fernandes etc.

Where to send: The images can be sent at jayceespanjim@gmail.com
Rules and Regulations:
1) The images submitted should not have been previously published in any media or otherwise.

2) Photographs may be either captured in film or digital media. But all submissions are to be made online. Photographers who use film may scan their photographs and submit them online.

3)Photographs can be edited in a digital image editing program to the extent that only minor image adjustment is permitted, such as cropping, sharpening, contrast, and levels. The photo must not be otherwise greatly manipulated.

4)Objects should not be added or removed in order to enhance the shot.
No composite images. However, images with multiple exposures allowed.

5) All entries for this month’s competition should reach jayceespanjim@gmail.com by 11.59pm on 31st March 2009.

6) You will be asked to provide us with the original camera file/ negative/ transparency if you win the competition. No responsibility is accepted for ineligible entries or entries made fraudulently.

7) The copyright of the image lies with the photographer. Jaycees reserve the right to use the image with due credit to the photographer.

8) Your entry must be entirely your own original work, not defame anybody nor breach any copyright. In case you win a prize, you will be asked to certify that the images are your own in writing.

9) There should not be any content which is socially objectionable

10) All photographs will be judged on the basis of content, composition, sensitivity and style (see tips for photography below). We’re looking for creativity and that certain x-factor which makes a photo extraordinary.

11)The judges' decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

12) Panjim Jaycees and their sponsor partners and their relatives are not eligible to participate.

13) No prizes will be awarded if the entries are below the required standard.

Tips for a great image:
Photography Tips

How To Select Your Images
The judging panel will bring together the talents of professionals working in many different areas of photography. There are, of course, photographers but also picture editors, picture buyers, photojournalists, digital imaging experts, printers, retouchers and lecturers in photography.

We also include at least one lay judge who will be assessing images purely on their WOW factor. Each judge has their own approach to judging and each may look for slightly different things but this diversity of talents on the judging panel gives a balance to the judging process.
They do, though, all have two things in common; a love of photography and an eye for a great image.

Here is a list of things that one can keep in mind of them, in no particular order of importance:

Sharp focus

Use of light

Viewpoint

Accurate exposure with good balance between shadow and
highlight detail

Strong composition

Creativity

Originality

Good colour balance and tonal range

Use of colour

Use of depth of field and shutter speed

Use of shape and form

Themes linking the images Subtlety

Thoughtful picture selection

Following the brief

Dynamism or movement

Interpretation of the category theme

Atmosphere Engagement

An interesting subject Capturing the moment That WOW factor

Editing and selecting your own photographs is difficult but choosing the right images for each category is crucial to winning a prize. Think about your selection carefully and if in doubt, ask someone else's opinion.

It is important to pay attention to the technical attributes of your images. They MUST be in sharp focus, correctly exposed with good shadow and highlight details where required and properly colour balanced if they are to stand any chance of competing for a prize.

Focus: It doesn't matter how good an image is, if it isn't in focus it won't win. If your original transparency, negative or digital file is sharp then make sure that any prints that you make to enter are good quality and equally sharp. You're wasting your time and money producing a poor print from a good quality original, and with high quality printing so readily available either from a photo lab or your own desktop there is no excuse for doing so. There's a difference between `out of focus' and blur caused by a combination of movement and a slow shutter speed

Exposure: Unless you are trying to achieve a special effect, exposure should be well balanced with good detail in both shadow and highlight areas. It is very easy to spot a badly exposed image and the judges will be looking for this.

Colour Balance: With good film or digital cameras, and readily available filters, there is no excuse for submitting badly colour balanced images.

Composition is a key element of every great photograph. It is a major part of the impact which an image has when viewed so pay attention to this when you're taking a photograph. Occasionally it's not possible to achieve the strongest composition in camera
Composition: The rule of thirds exists for good reason but it's a guide not a hard and fast rule. In many cases the strongest composition can be achieved by following it, but knowing when and how to break it can be the difference between a good and a great photograph.

Cropping: This is effectively a second chance to strengthen the composition of your images. Not every photograph can be taken with the strongest composition so crop your images carefully where the best composition has not been achieved in camera, or simply isn't the same shape as the full frame mage. Good composition and careful cropping are vital tools in achieving maximum impact from an image.

Category Themes: Each category in the competition has a theme and these are designed to cover different aspects of photography from landscapes to people, from luxury to adventure and so on. These categories change each year. The clues to what the judges are looking for are all there in the category descriptions.

Follow the brief: If there's one difference between the amateur and professional entries, it's that the pros tend to be better at selecting the images.
If you can, shoot your images to fit the brief. Don't just choose random images that are good either.
Be creative with your image selection - choose different and original images.
Portraits are another good example. We see lot of sombre, expressionless portraits. Some are very powerful, but most would be much more interesting had the photographers engaged with their subjects or their cultures.

Best, not favourite: This section should put you well on the way to choosing your images for this year's entry but take time to really assess your images when you're compiling your entry. Many people choose their favourite images not their best ones. This is easily done because particular photographs carry memories with them. For example it was taken just before the most glorious sunset, or the meal that evening was incredible, or your partner told you they love you. That's fantastic but these memories probably aren't in your photograph even though you attach them to it when you look at a particular image. The judges don't have the benefit of these experiences when they assess your entry and, in the cold light of day, they may be your favourite but not your best photographs.

A good tip, if you're not sure about a particular image, is to ask someone else's opinion. It could be the difference between winning and coming nowhere.