Rules & Resources

RESOURCES

Descriptions of Select Subjects

• 2023 – 2024 Season
• 2024 – 2025 Season

COMPETITION RULES

The Twin City Camera Club holds a digital image competition each month of the year except July and August. The competition year begins in September and ends in June. Any member in good standing may compete in all competitions.

Jump to Section

• Classes
• Competition Class Requirements
• Monthly Subjects
• Entries
• Digital Images: How to Prepare Them
• Digital Images: Identification and Submission
• Reentering
• Judging
• Annual Competition and Awards
• Authority

CLASSES

Members may compete in two divisions:

1. Black and white digital images
2. Color digital images

In these 2 divisions, there are three classes: B, A, and AA.

Competition Class requirements

All members compete in their assigned class until reaching the class requirement (in any of the two divisions) for advancement.

Members will remain in class B until reaching sixty-five (65) points in either the color or black and white category in a competition season. After reaching this level, they will automatically be placed in class A for the next competition season.

Members will remain in class A until reaching 125 points in either the color or black and white category in a competition season. After reaching this level, they will automatically be placed in class AA for the next competition season.

Members will remain in class AA after reaching 125 points in either the color or black and white category in a competition season. After reaching this level, they will remain in class AA on a permanent basis.  

Exception: Members have the option to submit a written request to the TCCC Board for a change in class placement.

MONTHLY SUBJECTS

Entries may be submitted in either the select or open category. Each category is judged separately. 

The select subject must be prominently displayed and the primary focus of the digital image, so that an ordinary person would recognize it as such. Be sure to read the descriptions so that all entries comply with the requirements of the select subjects. 

The open category is exactly as the word implies – a digital image surrounding any subject.  

Photos containing nudity or graphic violence are not eligible for competition. The Board reserves the right to restrict specific subject matter. Our meetings are open to the public and we occasionally have younger generations as our guests.

ENTRIES

Entries may not be completely created within the computer and must be based on actual photos taken by the creator.

Any member in good standing may enter up to, but not more than eight (8) digital images in any monthly competition. Digital images may be in color or black and white. You cannot have more than four (4) color digital images, or more than four (4) black and white digital images entered in a monthly competition. 

Members may not enter the same image as a black and white digital image and/or a color digital image in the same or future TCCC monthly competitions.

Entries may be in open and/or select subject categories in any ratio.

• Example: 2 in open category with 6 in select subject category, or 3 in open category with 5 in select subject category, or 4 in open category with 4 in select subject category.

Photo enhancements, sandwiching, montage, and other derivations are acceptable. 

Any photo can be disqualified from the competition by the competition chairperson(s) for not meeting any rule or requirement. Additionally, a digital image can be moved from select to open if it is determined that it doesn’t meet the select subject criteria. Questionable images or images partially meeting the select subject criteria will be permitted to stay in the select subject category and will be left for the judges to determine the relevancy of the image through their scores.

Black and white images must be a grayscale image or a grayscale image plus a fully toned color as a tint. Fully toned means that a tint is applied across the entire image such as sepia or cyan (or any color).

• Example: Monotone, Duotone, Tritone, Quadtone. 

If a digital image is black and white and one or more elements are in color, the image would be considered a color image for competition purposes. For instance, this could be an image of a face that is black and white where only the lips are red or a black and white beach scene with an umbrella showing in color.

Digital images which are photographic copies of paintings, drawings, or another photographer’s work are ineligible; these items may be included in a composite of the maker’s creation.

DIGITAL IMAGES: How to Prepare Them

• Digital images can be from any source: negatives, transparencies, drones, digital cameras, cell phones, or scanners.
• The aspect ratio of the 75” 4K UHD TV used for display is 16:9, or 3840 pixels wide by 2160 pixels high. 
• The digital image must not exceed 3840 pixels wide by 2160 pixels high. Within the 3840 x 2160 format, you can use any part of the space for your image. You may enter a vertical, horizontal, square, circle, diamond, or any other shape format into the competition.
• Digital image entries submitted that exceed 3840 x 2160 format and/or the three (3) MB file size will not be allowed in the competition.
• Competition images must be submitted via the competition submittal form provided on the TCCC web site.
• Images must be submitted no later than Monday at midnight, one week before the competition. 
• If you have questions on how to submit your digital images, review the video walkthrough of how to fill out the form.
• Digital image entries can be submitted weeks or even months before the competitions so that any sizing issues or other problems can be resolved before the due date.
• Any images containing the maker’s name, copyrights, or titles visible on the digital image during judging will be disqualified.

DIGITAL IMAGES: Identification & SUBMISSION OF ENTRIES

First, save the image with the photo title followed by the photographer’s name:

• Example: Red Car – John Doe.jpg
  • Do not include extra dashes (–), dots (.), underscoring (_), incorrect and/or missing capitalization, or incorrect spacing.
  • Do not include a number or symbol before your file name.
    • Not Acceptable: 2Red Car – John Doe.jpg 
    • Acceptable: Red Car 2 – John Doe.jpg

Then, upload your entries using the form under Submit Competition Photos located under the Members Only tab. It is very important that your entry form is filled in completely before submitting, as follows:

• Name
• Email Address
• Competition Month
• Class AA, A, B
• Black and White Image Entries
  • # of entries (can be 0 to 4) but cannot exceed 4 digital images for black and white)
  • Choose select or open class.  (Click the down arrow then choose select or open)
  • The # of black and white images you specified above will automatically generate the number of boxes you need for each black and white digital image. Enter one digital image name in each box. The digital image name in this box should only be the image title – it should not have your name added at the end.
• Color Image Entries
  • # of color entries (can be 0 to 4 but cannot exceed 4 color digital images)
  • Choose select or open class (click the down arrow, then choose select or open)
  • The # of color images you specified above will automatically generate the number of boxes you need for each color digital image. Enter one digital image name in each box. The digital image name in this box should only be the image title – it should not have your name added at the end.
• It is very important before you upload all your digital images, please verify that your Image Name – Photographer Name.JPG appears as the name of your digital image file before you upload the file.
  • Example: Red Car – John Doe.jpg
• Submit (Click Submit only if all your files are properly named as follows: Image name – Photographer Name.JPG.
  • If a digital image file is not named correctly, click the X on the right side of your digital image file to remove the incorrectly named file. Then, go to where your digital image file resides on your computer and rename it correctly as stated above. Finally, re-upload the digital image you renamed.

You should then receive a confirmation email that your digital images have been received. If you do not receive confirmation you may need to check your spam email folder. Make sure your email is correct at the top of the form.

If you do not receive an email confirmation or are having problems submitting your competition photos, please email the competition chairperson. The chairperson email address is: digital@twincitycameraclub.com. For additional resources, visit the Facebook group page and review the Competition Q&A Chat.

RE-ENTERING

Members may re-enter any digital image in the competition providing it has not received an acceptance or honor in any previous TCCC competition.

JUDGING

Members attending competition events will judge entries using the Ombea Response360 voting system. Each member will have an assigned voting pad they will retrieve from the back of the clubhouse room before the start of each competition. Members will apply the following judging criteria when voting on an image:

• Impact, Interest, and Creativity: Subjects or elements tell an easily understood story and evoke feelings or emotions. It’s unique, appealing, or thought-provoking.
•  Composition and Framing: The placement of the subject and visual elements have a role and add interest. It has balance, proportion, perspective, and good use of space.
•  Technique and Technical Quality: Focus, lighting, and exposure are paramount. There is good use of color or black and white shading, neatness, clarity, and an appropriate background.

Members are allowed to vote for all images, including their own. They will score each photo using a scoring system between 1 and 3. The scores are defined as:

• 3 – Honor: This is an outstanding or exemplary photograph. It easily stands out as impactful, eye-catching, and well above average. There are no noticeable technical flaws, and it’s considered strong across all three criteria.
•  2 – Accepted: This is a very good photograph with potential outstanding qualities; however, there are areas of improvement.
•  1 – Not Accepted: This photograph offers good qualities, but doesn’t meet standards in one or more judging criteria. Members should be prepared to share specific improvements to increase the image’s rating.

The voting will remain open for up to 15 seconds, and each member will cast their vote using their designated voting pad. Once the member selects their option, they will see the LED indicator light blink green. If a member initially enters their vote incorrectly, they may choose their corrected option, and the voting system will record the last vote applied. Once the vote is closed, the LED indicator light on the voting pad will blink red if an attempt to cast a vote is performed.

Once members vote for an entry, votes are automatically recorded, and the score with the most votes will determine if the photo is not accepted, accepted, or accepted with honor. In the event of a tie between an aggregate score of 1 (out) and 2 (acceptance), the higher score will be recorded and the entry will be considered as accepted. If the tie is between an aggregate score of 2 (acceptance) and 3 (honor), the lower score will be recorded and the entry will be considered as accepted.

Accepted and honor entries will be announced by name immediately following the vote results, while entries not accepted will not be mentioned by name.

Annual Competition & Awards

Any digital image that receives an acceptance or honor during each monthly competition within the current season is eligible to be entered into the annual competition held in June. Digital images are maintained by the Digital chairperson. There will be three awards: first place, second place, and third place.

To submit your entries for consideration for the annual competition, you’ll use the Annual Competition Submittal form. Select your name from the member name dropdown, enter in your email address, and then select your current class level. Next, select up to 10 entries from the current season found under the Black & White Image category section and Color Image category section. Once you’ve chosen your entries, select submit.

Monthly competition points earned are accumulated until the end of the competition year when awards are given to the three top-point winners in each category. A minimum of 45 points must be earned to be eligible for a top three award. The competition statistics sheet will list the current point standings after each month’s competition. These can be found on the TCCC web page under the Members Only tab, and they are also posted our Facebook page. 

Points are earned as follows:

Two points are given in each division for entering any monthly competition.

AUTHORITY

The Board of Directors has the power to make any changes to these competition rules when deemed necessary.

Revision Date: September 10, 2023,  CRIF 09-13-22.