Competition Rules - External

Effective from 6th September 2021

DPS reserves the right to reject any entry which does not meet the following requirements×

IMAGES MUST BE JPG IN sRGB COLOUR SPACE.

NOTE WE ARE NOW USING THE SPF/PAGB RECOMMENDED MAXIMUM IMAGE SIZE OF 1600 x 1200 PIXELS.

These dimensions are 1600 in maximum width and 1200 in maximum height.

Only images captured in 3:4 landscape format can be resized proportionately down to exactly 1600 x 1200.
An image captured in 2:3 landscape format resized proportionately down to 1600 wide will be only 1066 high.

Images captured in 4:3 portrait format can be resized proportionately down to 900 x 1200.
An image captured in 3:2 portrait format resized proportionately down to 1200 high will be only 800 wide (800 x 1200)

Square format images can be submitted at 1200 x 1200

Images cropped “free hand” in software are often of irregular proportions. In this case the maximum width for submission is 1600 and the maximum height is 1200.

General Conditions of Entry – all competitions

  • All images must be entirely the work of the photographer. This includes all camera work and image editing either in a darkroom or on computer. Printing of images may, however, be carried out by a third party which may be either an individual or a commercial organisation. By virtue of submitting an entry, the entrant certifies the work as their own.
  • The Council have the right to withdraw from a competition any image considered for any reason to be unsuitable. As a general guide, the club meetings are open to the public, therefore images unsuitable for public display should not be submitted.
  • Entrants must be fully paid up members of the Society.
  • Entries should be submitted by the close of the Society meeting indicated as “a hand in night” in the syllabus. Submissions after this time may be accepted by the Competition Secretary at his/her discretion, and his/her decision will be final.
  • Any judge who is a member of Dundee Photographic Society will not be eligible to enter any category of the competition that he/she is judging
  • DPS accepts no responsibility for loss of, or damage to, any photograph entered.
  • DPS reserves the right to copy prints and retain digital images submitted to society competitions, for society purposes e.g. projection on competition nights, and for publication on the DPS website. Credit will be given accordingly. Authors will retain copyright of work.

The society may also seek the author’s consent to retain prints and digital images from club competitions as possible entries to SPF and PAGB competitions and local exhibitions.

Please note that whilst there are many similarities between the rules for these competitions, there are also some small but important differences (particularly in file naming requirements) and you are advised to read carefully the rules for each competition entered.

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1) Elena Mae Competition

  1. Entries must consist of a set of 6 digital images. There is no restriction on the subject matter depicted in each digital image, nor is it necessary to link the set by theme or approach.
  2. Images will be marked out of 20 and the winner will be the entrant with the highest aggregate score.

How to submit your entry – Elena Mae Competition

All entries for the Projected digital image categories  should be made via the digital image upload system.

File naming convention for Elena Mae:

  1. DPS NUMBER (as shown on the member’s syllabus card),  No spaces, using 3 digits  e.g. DPS007, DPS015, DPS123
  2. Underscore (_) as Separator
  3. CATEGORY:
    For Elena Mae Competition insert X for Category, as  there is no need to indicate M, C or P.
  4. Underscore (_) as Separator
  5. TITLE: Spaces allowed, e.g. _Charlie Chaplin
  6. Example for Elena Mae competition: DPS007_X_Mountain Hare.jpg
  7. For External Competitions there is no need for Division (Div1,2,3) info in the file name.
    Failure to correctly name a file may result in its exclusion from the competition.

2) The Viking Studios Print Portfolio Competition

  1. The portfolio, which may be in monochrome or colour, must consist of four images which must be linked by theme or approach. There is no restriction of subject matter.
  2. A hanging plan must also be provided. This must take the form of a single digital image which includes all four individual images, on a background of either solid black or white.
  3. The hanging plan can be any combination that our display boards would normally support, e.g. 2×2, 4×1, 1×4, 1x2x1 etc. 

For Example:

Hanging Plan Example

How to submit your entry – Viking Studios

All four images and the hanging plan image must be submitted using the digital image upload system. 

File naming convention for Viking Portfolio:

    1. DPS NUMBER (as shown on the member’s syllabus card),  No spaces, using 3 digits  e.g. DPS007, DPS015, DPS123
    2. Underscore (_) as Separator
    3. CATEGORY:
      For Viking Portfolio Competition insert V for Category, as  there is no need to indicate M, C or P.
    4. Underscore (_) as Separator
    5. TITLE: Spaces allowed, e.g. _Charlie Chaplin
    6. Each image in the pane must have a unique title.
    7. For the hanging plan image, use the title ‘Hanging Plan’
    8. Example for Viking Portfolio competition:

DPS007_V_ImageA.jpg, DPS007_V_ImageB.jpg, DPS007_V_ImageC.jpg, DPS007_V_ImageD.jpg, DPS007_V_Hanging Plan.jpg

For External Competitions there is no need for Division (Div1,2,3) info in the file name.
Failure to correctly name a file may result in its exclusion from the competition.

Monochrome and Colour Prints

  1. All prints should be mounted suitably on card. The overall size, including mount, must not exceed 500mm x 400mm. There is no minimum size for this competition. Brief technical details may be given on the back of prints and a title should be given for ease of identification.
  2. Entrants must provide the following information on the back of each print entered:DPS number (as shown on the member’s syllabus) and title. Failure to give this information will result in exclusion from the competition. Entrants must not indicate their names. Labels relating to awards from previous external competitions/salons should be removed or covered up.

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3) Photographer of the Year Competition

Sponsored by Dundee City Council, this annual competition is organised by DPS and is open to DPS members and the public.

How to submit your entry – Photographer of the Year Competition

Download and follow the instructions on the entry form available from Dundee Council.

Certificates and Prizes are awarded to First, Second and Third placed images in each category of Mono print, Colour print and Digital Projected image.

The following trophies will be awarded:

  • Dundee Corporation Trophy: awarded to the entry of  three images which best portray Dundee.
  • Robert Saunders Trophy: Best projected digital image taken in a Dundee Park.
  • Fred Duncan Trophy: The best aggregate score.
  • An Entry Form must be completed by all entrants (whether DPS Members or Non-Members). On this form images are identified for entry into the various categories of the competition

4) Digital Audio Visual Competition

The Abertay Award – Sponsored by Joan I. Roy

  • The competition is open to individual members of Dundee Photographic Society. The subject is open. Entries may take any form but must be recognisable as an audio- visual presentation, employing pre-recorded soundtrack and digital photography.
  • The winner will receive The Abertay Award, which he/she will hold for one year, or until the date of any subsequent competition, whichever is the earlier. It must then be returned to DPS.

How to submit your entry – Digital Audio Visual Competition

  1. Entries will be projected using the DPS digital projector and laptop computer using Microsoft Windows. The entry is to be submitted using a file transfer system, such as WeTransfer to the External Competitions Secretary email at External.DPSCouncil@gmail.com.  Entry via a USB Stick is also permitted. The AV must be an executable program (.exe),  that is, a program that will run on the laptop with a single click and no extra software. Also acceptable are complete video files such as .avi or .mov that will run without further add-ons. The cursor should not be visible.
    DPS now has software which will enable sequences prepared on Mac to be submitted.
    Further technical information will be supplied, on request by the External Competition Secretary. You may wish to send a test output for testing on club equipment prior to submitting your entry.
  2. Sequences should be no longer than eight minutes from sound or visual commencement to conclusion. Up to two sequences may be entered by any one member. Each sequence entered should contain a title, but the author’s name should not be shown. Title, entrant’s DPS number and duration of the sequences should be clearly identified in the file name and/ or USB Stick.
    Each sequence entered must be submitted on a separate USB Stick (where USB stick is used).
  3. All entries should be transferred or handed in at the club meeting three weeks prior to the evening of the competition. Late entries will not be accepted.
  4. Every effort will be made to show all sequences on the evening of the competition. However, depending on the number of entries and the timings involved, it may be necessary for the judge to make a pre- selection. Entrants will be informed beforehand should this take place.
  5. All images used must be the original work of the author. Each entrant is responsible for ensuring that his/her sequences do not contravene the laws of copyright.
  6. On the evening of the competition, comments will be made by the judge on all sequences shown. The judge’s decision is final.

The trophy will be held by the winner for twelve months. It remains the property of DPS and must be returned at the end of the twelve- month period to any DPS Council member, unless the return of the trophy is requested earlier by the Council.

Resizing Images in Lightroom
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swsmhDC6UA8&feature=youtu.be

Resizing Images in Photoshop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82OQdF_Ry1E&feature=youtu.be

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