Competition rules & details 2024-2025
Updated 9 September 2024
INTERNAL COMPETITIONS
Full competition dates can be found detailed on the 2024–25 season programme.
COMPETITION LEAGUES
For 2024–25, there are two competition leagues: Print and Digital, each featuring four competitions (two open, two themed) for the season. Note we no longer operate 'Premier' and 'Club' class distinctions.
COMPETITION THEMES
Of the eight internal competitions this season, split across two format types/leagues (Print and Digital), four will be themed according to the results of the membership vote at the end of last season:
Decay (Digital) – Hand-in date 22nd November 2024 for competition on 6th December
Vintage & Retro (Print) – Hand-in date 24th January 2024 for competition on 21st February
Quiet Street (Digital) – Hand-in date 14th March for competition on 28th March
Seasons (Print) – Hand-in date 28th March for competition on 11th April
It is left to the photographer to interpret each theme as they see fit, there will be no further guidance. Competition Judges will be informed that themes are as ‘wide’ as photographers decide and that they should critique the images for their 'photographic merit'.
All competitions will be held at Beckington Memorial Hall, unless otherwise stated.
Full details regarding image preparation and submission, as well as useful downloadable guides, can be found below.
Full competition dates can be found detailed on the 2024–25 season programme.
COMPETITION LEAGUES
For 2024–25, there are two competition leagues: Print and Digital, each featuring four competitions (two open, two themed) for the season. Note we no longer operate 'Premier' and 'Club' class distinctions.
COMPETITION THEMES
Of the eight internal competitions this season, split across two format types/leagues (Print and Digital), four will be themed according to the results of the membership vote at the end of last season:
Decay (Digital) – Hand-in date 22nd November 2024 for competition on 6th December
Vintage & Retro (Print) – Hand-in date 24th January 2024 for competition on 21st February
Quiet Street (Digital) – Hand-in date 14th March for competition on 28th March
Seasons (Print) – Hand-in date 28th March for competition on 11th April
It is left to the photographer to interpret each theme as they see fit, there will be no further guidance. Competition Judges will be informed that themes are as ‘wide’ as photographers decide and that they should critique the images for their 'photographic merit'.
All competitions will be held at Beckington Memorial Hall, unless otherwise stated.
Full details regarding image preparation and submission, as well as useful downloadable guides, can be found below.
PRINT
Prints must be A4 size or greater and may be mounted in the normal way, i.e. by cutting the mount and attaching the photo at the rear, or by pasting the print to the front of the mount without cutting.
All prints to be mounted using board (500mm x 400mm) and submitted to the Print Secretary on or before the hand-in date.
The Club purchases boards in bulk – members can buy these by contacting David Chedgy ([email protected]). A Print Entry label (downloadable below) must be attached to the back of each mount showing:
Members are requested to supply digital versions of the high-scoring (13 and above) images to the Print Secretary ([email protected]) immediately after the competition for publication on the FWP site.
DIGITAL
Internal Digital competition images must be submitted by email to the Digital Secretary ([email protected]) on or before the hand-in date, no entries will be accepted after midnight on the hand-in date.
The name of the competition should be written in the 'subject' line of the email. Entries will receive an acknowledgement, if you do not receive an acknowledgement your entry has not been received. Entries on CD, memory stick, etc, are not accepted.
Important note: Images must be highest quality JPGs, not greater than 1600 pixels wide by 1200 pixels high. In portrait and square format, images must not exceed 1200 pixels in height.
The club projector uses the sRGB colour space, hence you should save your images using the sRGB colour profile. Other profiles may result in incorrect display of the image.
Format for naming the image file (downloadable guidance below): The title of the image (may contain capital letters and spaces), underscore (not hyphen), and membership number.
GENERAL
Members may enter 1 or 2 photographs for each internal competition. Only paid-up members of the club can enter internal competitions. Scoring system:
These high scoring images will also be forwarded to the Battles secretary for consideration for entering inter-club battles and, occasionally, other external competitions. Please inform the relevant competition secretary if you do not wish your images to be considered for ‘Club Battles’ or external competitions. If you are a member of another club and would prefer to enter for them against FWP, you may not use any images previously entered in FWP competitions.
In the case of external digital competitions, images must be emailed to the Battles Secretary ([email protected]), as detailed for each Battle – separate instructions will be issued accordingly.
NOTES
In the unlikely event that images/prints submitted for competitions are lost and not included in the competition:
At the end of the season the competitor’s scores will be totalled and their average score added to their end-of-year score. For late entry of digital images, this rule will only apply if it can be proved they had been submitted by the deadline.
In all cases, the original image(s) must have been taken using a photographic process and be the sole copyright of the Entrant.
All photographic processes and techniques are eligible (subject to any competition-specific rules that may apply) providing that the photographer owns the copyright to all elements of the picture. Any modification of the original image(s) must be made by the photographer or under their personal direction.
The use of clip-art, computer generated elements, downloaded textures, third-party decorative borders, or elements from any other photographer's image is not permitted. Images or image elements generated by any software tool are not permitted. This includes but is not restricted to backgrounds, textures, skies, props and other embellishments. Any creative, shaped or textured brushes must be created by the photographer.
Software tools that replace or remove an image element or extend an image such as content-aware fill, healing, patching or object removal are only permitted where the source for the inserted image data is wholly contained within the base image(s). It is the photographer’s responsibility to ensure that the tools they use do not draw image content from outside the photographer’s own work.
Technology that enhances an existing image without drawing on image data from outside that image (e.g., AI De-noise, AI Scaling, AI Sharpening) is acceptable. In general, the output image viewed at full-screen should look nearly identical to the original.
Guidance on the use of image creation and processing tools (sometimes labelled as “AI”):
Generative AI is not photographic and is therefore not permitted. Generative AI draws on data from outside the existing image and uses algorithms to create new content. AI-based generative fill, scene extension, patching or object removal is not permitted. Any adjustments must use tools that draw data only from within the existing image(s).
Prints must be A4 size or greater and may be mounted in the normal way, i.e. by cutting the mount and attaching the photo at the rear, or by pasting the print to the front of the mount without cutting.
All prints to be mounted using board (500mm x 400mm) and submitted to the Print Secretary on or before the hand-in date.
The Club purchases boards in bulk – members can buy these by contacting David Chedgy ([email protected]). A Print Entry label (downloadable below) must be attached to the back of each mount showing:
- Competition title and date
- Title of the print
- Entrant’s FWP membership number (e.g. 131, 144)
- All Labels (downloadable below) to be attached to the top right of the mount, viewed from the rear.
Members are requested to supply digital versions of the high-scoring (13 and above) images to the Print Secretary ([email protected]) immediately after the competition for publication on the FWP site.
DIGITAL
Internal Digital competition images must be submitted by email to the Digital Secretary ([email protected]) on or before the hand-in date, no entries will be accepted after midnight on the hand-in date.
The name of the competition should be written in the 'subject' line of the email. Entries will receive an acknowledgement, if you do not receive an acknowledgement your entry has not been received. Entries on CD, memory stick, etc, are not accepted.
Important note: Images must be highest quality JPGs, not greater than 1600 pixels wide by 1200 pixels high. In portrait and square format, images must not exceed 1200 pixels in height.
The club projector uses the sRGB colour space, hence you should save your images using the sRGB colour profile. Other profiles may result in incorrect display of the image.
Format for naming the image file (downloadable guidance below): The title of the image (may contain capital letters and spaces), underscore (not hyphen), and membership number.
- Example: A Beautiful Morning_144
GENERAL
Members may enter 1 or 2 photographs for each internal competition. Only paid-up members of the club can enter internal competitions. Scoring system:
- Every entry will receive a score from the judge, ranging from 15 (highest) down to 6 (lowest)
- The judge may award the same score to as many images as they wish
- Both images will be scored, but only the higher score, for each member, will be registered in the league tables for the year
- Images which gain 15, 14 or 13 points in internal competitions cannot be re-entered for future internal competitions (excluding the Best of the Best competition)
- After each internal competition, relevant scores will be entered in the league tables and, together with all images scoring 13 and above, will be posted on the FWP website
- At the end of the season there will be awards for members placed 1st, 2nd & 3rd in their respective league
- From the whole club, the member who has gained the highest points will become the club ‘Photographer of the Year’. In the event of a points tie, the member with the most 15 point scores will be declared the overall winner (we will countback to 14, 13, 12 point scores if needed).
These high scoring images will also be forwarded to the Battles secretary for consideration for entering inter-club battles and, occasionally, other external competitions. Please inform the relevant competition secretary if you do not wish your images to be considered for ‘Club Battles’ or external competitions. If you are a member of another club and would prefer to enter for them against FWP, you may not use any images previously entered in FWP competitions.
In the case of external digital competitions, images must be emailed to the Battles Secretary ([email protected]), as detailed for each Battle – separate instructions will be issued accordingly.
NOTES
In the unlikely event that images/prints submitted for competitions are lost and not included in the competition:
At the end of the season the competitor’s scores will be totalled and their average score added to their end-of-year score. For late entry of digital images, this rule will only apply if it can be proved they had been submitted by the deadline.
In all cases, the original image(s) must have been taken using a photographic process and be the sole copyright of the Entrant.
All photographic processes and techniques are eligible (subject to any competition-specific rules that may apply) providing that the photographer owns the copyright to all elements of the picture. Any modification of the original image(s) must be made by the photographer or under their personal direction.
The use of clip-art, computer generated elements, downloaded textures, third-party decorative borders, or elements from any other photographer's image is not permitted. Images or image elements generated by any software tool are not permitted. This includes but is not restricted to backgrounds, textures, skies, props and other embellishments. Any creative, shaped or textured brushes must be created by the photographer.
Software tools that replace or remove an image element or extend an image such as content-aware fill, healing, patching or object removal are only permitted where the source for the inserted image data is wholly contained within the base image(s). It is the photographer’s responsibility to ensure that the tools they use do not draw image content from outside the photographer’s own work.
Technology that enhances an existing image without drawing on image data from outside that image (e.g., AI De-noise, AI Scaling, AI Sharpening) is acceptable. In general, the output image viewed at full-screen should look nearly identical to the original.
Guidance on the use of image creation and processing tools (sometimes labelled as “AI”):
Generative AI is not photographic and is therefore not permitted. Generative AI draws on data from outside the existing image and uses algorithms to create new content. AI-based generative fill, scene extension, patching or object removal is not permitted. Any adjustments must use tools that draw data only from within the existing image(s).
USEFUL CONTACTS
Digital Competition Secretary: Tim Horrox ([email protected])
Print Competition Secretary: Terry Morrow ([email protected])
Battles Secretary [currently vacant] ([email protected])
Digital Competition Secretary: Tim Horrox ([email protected])
Print Competition Secretary: Terry Morrow ([email protected])
Battles Secretary [currently vacant] ([email protected])
USEFUL DOWNLOADS
Image preparation – Instructions for preparing your images for internal competitions can be downloaded here. (At-a-glance guidance on sizing and naming can also be found below [disregard any mention of 'Premier' and 'Club' class/group distinction, however – such grouping is no longer active].)
Image border – For specific instruction on how to apply a border to a dark image, you'll want this PDF.
Print entry labels – a sheet of labels for internal print competition entries can be found here (disregard any mention of 'class' reference – member number only is now required).
Image preparation – Instructions for preparing your images for internal competitions can be downloaded here. (At-a-glance guidance on sizing and naming can also be found below [disregard any mention of 'Premier' and 'Club' class/group distinction, however – such grouping is no longer active].)
Image border – For specific instruction on how to apply a border to a dark image, you'll want this PDF.
Print entry labels – a sheet of labels for internal print competition entries can be found here (disregard any mention of 'class' reference – member number only is now required).
USEFUL DEFINITIONS
Definition of Monochrome
Definition coordinated by FIAP / PSA / RPS (2004) and used by PAGB
A black and white work fitting from the very dark grey (black) to the very clear grey (white) is a monochrome work with the various shades of grey.
A black and white work toned entirely in a single colour will remain a monochrome work able to stand in the black and white category; such a work can be reproduced in black and white in the catalogue of a salon under FIAP Patronage.
On the other hand a black and white work modified by a partial toning or by the addition of one colour becomes a colour work (polychrome) to stand in the colour category; such a work requires colour reproduction in the catalogue of a salon under FIAP Patronage.
Definition of Nature
(NB: definition revised 2020)
(PAGB Nature Photography Definition, May 2020 – See http://www.thepagb.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/nature_eligibillity.pdf )
Nature means Images where living organisms are the primary subject matter. The story telling value of an Image will normally be weighed more than the pictorial quality.Version 2.2 August 2020 2 of 10
Nature includes:
Images taken with subjects in controlled conditions such as zoos, game parks, botanic gardens, aquariums and enclosures where the subjects are dependent on man for food. Scientific bands, tags or collars are permissible.
Nature excludes:
Images where the subjects are obviously domestic animals or plants. > Images where an obviously artistic treatment has been applied.
Processing of the captured image, by cropping, exposure adjustment, colour correction, noise minimisation, dodging/burning, HDR, focus stacking and sharpening, is permitted, as is cloning of image defects and minor distractions including overlapping elements.
An Image appearing to meet these criteria will be accepted as Nature. The Judges will normally assume that any Image presented to them is eligible.
Access to some biological subjects may be restricted. Where that is relevant, then Photographers warrant that they have followed relevant codes of practices and hold any necessary licences.
Guidance Notes:
Note that images already meeting the separate FIAP Definition of Nature will satisfy this less restrictive definition.
Artistic Nature, meaning photographs which started as Nature, but which have been creatively modified to show a purely pictorial image, do not meet the Nature definition. They should be entered in one of the other Classes as appropriate, and do not count towards any Nature quota restriction.
It is not feasible to investigate adherence to the Nature definition when receiving multiple entries at an Event. Entrants should therefore expect the Organiser to consider that if an image looks like a Nature image, then it will be treated as a Nature image, even if the entrant suggests excessive manipulation. Entrants should plan their entries accordingly.
It is not desirable to have an Image excluded at short notice, before or after judging, when there is no facility for discussion. In a Nature Event or Category, the Selectors should assume that any Image presented to them does meet the PAGB Nature definition.
After judging, the Organisers have discretion to review eligibility, including calling for the original file of the image, and this is likely for any awards.
Definition of Monochrome
Definition coordinated by FIAP / PSA / RPS (2004) and used by PAGB
A black and white work fitting from the very dark grey (black) to the very clear grey (white) is a monochrome work with the various shades of grey.
A black and white work toned entirely in a single colour will remain a monochrome work able to stand in the black and white category; such a work can be reproduced in black and white in the catalogue of a salon under FIAP Patronage.
On the other hand a black and white work modified by a partial toning or by the addition of one colour becomes a colour work (polychrome) to stand in the colour category; such a work requires colour reproduction in the catalogue of a salon under FIAP Patronage.
Definition of Nature
(NB: definition revised 2020)
(PAGB Nature Photography Definition, May 2020 – See http://www.thepagb.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/nature_eligibillity.pdf )
Nature means Images where living organisms are the primary subject matter. The story telling value of an Image will normally be weighed more than the pictorial quality.Version 2.2 August 2020 2 of 10
Nature includes:
Images taken with subjects in controlled conditions such as zoos, game parks, botanic gardens, aquariums and enclosures where the subjects are dependent on man for food. Scientific bands, tags or collars are permissible.
Nature excludes:
Images where the subjects are obviously domestic animals or plants. > Images where an obviously artistic treatment has been applied.
Processing of the captured image, by cropping, exposure adjustment, colour correction, noise minimisation, dodging/burning, HDR, focus stacking and sharpening, is permitted, as is cloning of image defects and minor distractions including overlapping elements.
An Image appearing to meet these criteria will be accepted as Nature. The Judges will normally assume that any Image presented to them is eligible.
Access to some biological subjects may be restricted. Where that is relevant, then Photographers warrant that they have followed relevant codes of practices and hold any necessary licences.
Guidance Notes:
Note that images already meeting the separate FIAP Definition of Nature will satisfy this less restrictive definition.
Artistic Nature, meaning photographs which started as Nature, but which have been creatively modified to show a purely pictorial image, do not meet the Nature definition. They should be entered in one of the other Classes as appropriate, and do not count towards any Nature quota restriction.
It is not feasible to investigate adherence to the Nature definition when receiving multiple entries at an Event. Entrants should therefore expect the Organiser to consider that if an image looks like a Nature image, then it will be treated as a Nature image, even if the entrant suggests excessive manipulation. Entrants should plan their entries accordingly.
It is not desirable to have an Image excluded at short notice, before or after judging, when there is no facility for discussion. In a Nature Event or Category, the Selectors should assume that any Image presented to them does meet the PAGB Nature definition.
After judging, the Organisers have discretion to review eligibility, including calling for the original file of the image, and this is likely for any awards.
