Print Competitions

Print competitions are officially held on the 3rd Monday of the month but are subject to change due to scheduling conflicts. Be sure to double check the Calendar for updates.

Members are allowed to enter up to a maximum of 6 prints total as follows:

• 2 prints maximum Color Print
• 2 prints maximum Monochrome Print
• 2 prints maximum Assignment Print (color and/or monochrome)

Print competitions are divided into two divisions:

Color Prints - any color image printed by the photographer using any available process or commercially printed; hand colored images; digital prints including manipulation. Clip art is not allowed.

Monochrome Prints - printed by the photographer using any available process; prints that are B&W with shades of gray and up to 1 additional color; prints that are "toned" (1 color) with up to one additional color; hand colored with only 1 color; digital prints including manipulation. Clip art is not allowed.

All divisions include digital images. Any size image up to 16x20 inches is acceptable. All prints must be mounted on 16x20 inch mount boards. Overmats are acceptable but are not counted in the judging process.

The back of the mount board should contain the title at the top middle. A Motor City Camera Club sticker must be placed on the upper left-hand corner. This sticker is available at the print night meeting, or you can use the finished Word template here that uses Avery 8463 stickers. The sticker contains the following information:

• Camera Club
• Entire Title of print
• Maker's name
• Maker's class (Beginner, Advanced, Salon, Star, Galaxy)
• Division (General, Monochrome or Assignment)

There are no restrictions on entering Nature subjects in General print competitions. They may also be entered in Assignment print competitions if they meet the requirements of the assignment.

After judging and awarding, the prints are then eligible for further competitions in the GDCCC monthly inter-club competitions. In this case the print director may hold prints from club competitions for future use in these council competitions.

All prints must be submitted for competition by 7:15 the evening of the competition.

Digital Projection Division (DPD)

• Your DPD images are due the last Monday of each month prior to DPD competition. Consult the MCCC Calendar for DPD submission due dates
• Use the DPD rules below to size and name your files
• No image can be more than 768 pixels high or wide
• Send your images to the email account mcccdpd@yahoo.com
• Failure to follow the rules causes unneeded work for volunteers and may result in your files not being presented in competitions

Click CURRENT DPD RULES for a printable PDF version of the DPD Rules and Guidelines.

For other DPD questions, contact the DPD Director, Susan Browne with any questions (susan@susanbrownephotography.com)

 

DPD Competition Rules and Guidelines  

Definition
A “Digital Projection image” is a computer file that was created via capture through a digital camera; or film based camera where the negative or transparency was scanned. The initial image must have been captured by the photographer as well as any subsequent images that may be added to the composition.

The competition schedule is as follows:

• Last Monday of each month all DPD submission are due for the following month
• 1st Monday of each month is the scheduled DPD Competition
• All 1st Monday competitions are subject to change when necessary with proper notification to membership via email, phone or mail - check Calendar for any changes

Number of Entries Allowed:   

• the number of DPD entries allowed is a total of 6 images
• a maximum of 2 will be allowed in any of the following single categories

• Monochrome General (MG) (including nature or creative)  
• Color General (CG) – non manipulated
• Nature (NA) (non manipulated images excluding monochrome)
• Color Creative (CC) (all manipulated images excluding monochrome)
• Assignment Monochrome General (AMG)
• Assignment Color General (ACG)
• Assignment Color Creative (ACC)
  • NOTE: All Assignment images will be judged together 

Classes:   In the Motor City Camera Club all makers newly submitting in Digital Image Competition are classified at Beginner (BE) regardless of their rank in in Print division. Those with a large number of wins are in the Advanced (AD) classsification. Check the Move-Ups page on the Standings page to see your class.

Size of image:  100 dpi resolution and maximum length of the image’s longest side is 768 pixels

Titling your images (files):  All images must have the following info in the correct order with proper spaces or an underscore between each segment:

Division_Class_Club_MakersLastName_MakersFirstName_title of image.jpg 

Example: CG_BE_MCC_Browne_Susan_my greatest image.jpg

 

Submitting

All entries must be emailed to the MCCC DPD director at mcccdpd@yahoo.com no later than midnight on the last Monday of each month along with a note advising the Digital Projection Director how many files of each division are attached. Images can be sent or given to the director on a CD for submission but within the deadline. 

How to Size your image: (in Photoshop or Photoshop elements)

1. get your image into Photoshop
2. go to your tools and open “image”
3. go to “resize”
4. RESIZE IN THIS ORDER ONLY (you must change resolution first):
   • change your resolution to: 100 dpi
   • change the  longest side of your image  to: 768 pixel
   • click on  “OK”
5. Save your image by going to “Save AS”
6. Give your file a title in the format described above

7. Make sure you are saving as a .jpg
• sRGB is recommended
• Save as JPG File Format. (Use compression of 10 to 12)
• Do not use any special characters or periods in the filename, except hyphen or underscore in the “Title of image” section of the filename. Especially watch out for “/” and “\” in dates and the “#” that’s often used for numbering. Those characters are used by the PC and the digital projection software for special purposes and may cause the image file to not be displayed.

 

DPD Division Rules

Monochrome General (MG)

Images that are black and white with shades of gray and up to 1 additional color are acceptable.

Images that are “toned” (1 color) with up to 1 additional color are acceptable.

Color General (CG)

Any color digital image except those images in which a wild animal, bird or insect fills more than one-third (1/3) of the frame and there are no factors that prevent that image from being accepted in the Nature Digital Projection Division. Those color digital images that are NOT acceptable in the Nature Digital Projection Division may be acceptable as Color General Digital Projection images. Some forms of manipulation (see below), manual or digital, that alters the truth of the photographic statement are not allowed.

The photographer may perform enhancements and modifications that improve the presentation of the image that could have been done at the time the image was taken but that does not change the truth of the original story.

Cropping and horizontal flipping (equivalent to reversing a slide), straightening, keystone, noise removal, dodging and burning, exposure adjustment, color balance, color correction, white balance, saturation, and sharpening, “HDR” (High Dynamic Range), are examples of acceptable modifications.

Adding elements to your images, combining separate images or rearranging and/or cloning elements in your image, removing major elements from your image other than by cropping, are not acceptable and will lead to disqualification of your image.

Nature (NA)

Any color digital image that contains "Nature", where "Nature" is defined as, Nature in all its forms, including the many facets of Botany, Geology, and Zoology.  Human elements, if present, should be unobtrusive and enhance the nature story.  Those depicting cultivated plants, domestic animals or pets, still-life studies, mounted specimens, museum pieces or groupings, or similar subjects are NOT eligible. The presence of scientific bands on wild animals is acceptable. Zoo shots and Game Farm shots are eligible provided the artificial habitat is not apparent in the image.  Photographs of artificially produced hybrid plants or animals, mounted specimens, or obviously set arrangements, are ineligible, as are some forms of manipulation manual or digital (see below) that alters the truth of the photographic statement.

The photographer may perform enhancements and modifications that improve the presentation of the image that could have been done at the time the image was taken but that does not change the truth of the original nature story.

Cropping and horizontal flipping (equivalent to reversing a slide), straightening, keystone, noise removal, dodging and burning, exposure adjustment, color balance, color correction, white balance, saturation, and sharpening, “HDR” (High Dynamic Range), are examples of acceptable modifications.

Adding elements to your images, combining separate images or rearranging and/or cloning elements in your image, removing major elements from your image other than by cropping, are not acceptable and will lead to disqualification of your image.

Color Creative (CC)

Anything Goes. Any color/nature digital image that contains "Any Subject", that is not eligible in another category. This includes images where all or part of the image is manipulated, created, edited, fixed, duplicated, or imported from another image (see below). All the components of the image must be original work created by the photographer and all manipulation must have been performed by the photographer.

Cropping and horizontal flipping (equivalent to reversing a slide), straightening, keystone, noise removal, dodging and burning, exposure adjustment, color removal, adding one color, white balance, saturation, and sharpening, “HDR” (High Dynamic Range), are examples of acceptable modifications.  Images are not limited to only these modifications.

Adding elements to your images combining separate images or rearranging and/or cloning elements in your image, removing major elements from your image, are examples of acceptable modifications.

Non-GDCCC (Greater Detroit Camera Club Council) members:

DPD competition at Motor City Camera Club is open to any digital photographer that is interested in entering in such competitions. Attending meetings is not required to compete.  Membership dues of $45.00 are required for the season starting in September and running through May.

Club membership dues must be paid before any competition is entered.  The $45.00 dues can be mailed to:  MCCC c/o John Slocum, 4291 Wabeek  Lake Dr., Bloomfield, MI  48302.  Any questions regarding your dues you can call John at 248.539.0227.

 

GDCCC club members:

In order to help other GDCCC club members shooting digital images, Motor City Camera Club would like to invite members of any GDCCC Camera Club to compete in our DPD competition. This invitation is only if your club does not presently have DPD competition. DPD is growing and we understand that many clubs can not or will not be having DPD competitions due to the costs. We hope that by opening up our competition, members can maintain their membership to their own clubs and still compete in DPD.

The Cost for any Council Camera Club member will be $10. for the season. (MCCC membership dues are $45.) This $10 DPD membership fee will entitle the DPD member full MCCC awards, privileges and judging opportunities regarding DPD competition only.

All DPD competitions are entered via email and winners will be posted each month on our web site.

 

GDCCC Competitions:

The Greater Detroit Camera Club Council (GDCCC) is a federation of 9 local camera clubs.  It conducts 7 competitions a year in each category (Digiyal Projection, B&W Prints, Color Prints, Color Slides, 2 1/4 Slides, and Nature Slides).

MCCC members are given the opportunity to compete against winners from all federated clubs.  As the federated clubs hold their monthly competitions, their past winners are entered at the GDCCC level.  This is the best of the best!  Achieving recognition at this level will motivate you, give you self satisfaction, and increase your confidence as a photographer

MCCC directors of each division select the best work from our club to enter in these competitions.

Advancement/standings for GDCCC competitions are different than those for MCCC competitions.  It is common for a MCCC member to be a one division within MCCC competitions, and yet another at the GDCCC level.

The GDCCC competition levels are as follows:  Beginner, Advanced, Salon, Star, and Galaxy.   Placement in these classes are based on the number of points an individual has accrued in council competitions.

Membership in MCCC means automatic membership in GDCCC.  There are no further dues. 

Note:  GDCCC hosts International Salon events annually which require entry fees, but there is no obligation to enter this competition.