Our first competition night for the new year is January 21st. I thought I’d share with you how I make choices to submit.
With over 10,000 image files from 2014 alone (doesn’t count hundreds that were discarded! More need to GO!), I couldn’t possibly go through them all in the next 2 weeks. The decision process begins back when I upload files to my computer. As I edit and cull the bad ones I also mark the ones I like. I concentrate on these first; I edit them and I give them a rating. One of the best features of Adobe Lightroom, is the ease of assigning a rating. You can set it up any way you like; 1-5 stars, one of five colors, or simply flag it. A good rating doesn’t necessarily make it a competition worthy image. It just means I like the shot and think it might have potential. So over the year or so, I have quite a number of “good” images (roughly 2%). I’ve set up a Smart Collection in Lightroom that automatically compiles all the “good” images into a virtual folder. When competition time comes around I go to that folder to look for some to submit. I run through them looking for impact: clear subjects on uncluttered backgrounds, eye-catching color, unique subjects, eye-catching compositions or points of view. Now I look more closely. How’s the focus? How’s the histogram look? What might the judges pick on? Does it make a statement; is there an emotion conveyed; will it draw the viewer’s attention? Because they were taken maybe several months ago, I’m more emotionally distant from them now and can view them with fresh, critical eyes. I decide on a few. I come back another day to look again. With trepidation I make final decisions. Sometimes the judges agree and sometimes they don’t.
Another factor to consider is whether an image will be better as a print or projected. Will a print be good for club exhibits, fitting one of the categories? I try to imagine it blown up on the screen. Will that enhance the impact or emphasize minor flaws? Does it have general interest as fine art? I use these criteria to decide what to print and what to submit for digital projection.
With over 10,000 image files from 2014 alone (doesn’t count hundreds that were discarded! More need to GO!), I couldn’t possibly go through them all in the next 2 weeks. The decision process begins back when I upload files to my computer. As I edit and cull the bad ones I also mark the ones I like. I concentrate on these first; I edit them and I give them a rating. One of the best features of Adobe Lightroom, is the ease of assigning a rating. You can set it up any way you like; 1-5 stars, one of five colors, or simply flag it. A good rating doesn’t necessarily make it a competition worthy image. It just means I like the shot and think it might have potential. So over the year or so, I have quite a number of “good” images (roughly 2%). I’ve set up a Smart Collection in Lightroom that automatically compiles all the “good” images into a virtual folder. When competition time comes around I go to that folder to look for some to submit. I run through them looking for impact: clear subjects on uncluttered backgrounds, eye-catching color, unique subjects, eye-catching compositions or points of view. Now I look more closely. How’s the focus? How’s the histogram look? What might the judges pick on? Does it make a statement; is there an emotion conveyed; will it draw the viewer’s attention? Because they were taken maybe several months ago, I’m more emotionally distant from them now and can view them with fresh, critical eyes. I decide on a few. I come back another day to look again. With trepidation I make final decisions. Sometimes the judges agree and sometimes they don’t.
Another factor to consider is whether an image will be better as a print or projected. Will a print be good for club exhibits, fitting one of the categories? I try to imagine it blown up on the screen. Will that enhance the impact or emphasize minor flaws? Does it have general interest as fine art? I use these criteria to decide what to print and what to submit for digital projection.
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