Competition Help!

Hello lovely people!

I am about to enter my first photography competition (with a bit of trepidation!) and I need a bit of help!

It is only a small competition run by my local council with whom I did a beginners photography course. It states in the entry form to enter a price should anyone wish to buy your work. If I am lucky enough that someone would like to buy my photographs how much should I sell them for? I'm only just starting out so I don't know how much to ask for!

I also have to title my work - are there any hard and fast rules I need to follow?

Many thanks
Kirsty

Hi, Kirsty!.. Re prices for your pics - it depends on how you produce them (self-printed, store, etc). If the exercise is a non-profit thing, I'd guess that is self-explanatory. Maybe it's also wise to sign your photos when you sell them, to reduce any chance of plaigiarism. Maybe look around on the internet and local stores to guage the pricing thing?

As for titles - avoid uninspiring titles, such as titling a photo of a bunch of flowers as "flowers", or "a bunch of flowers". A bit of "tangential" thinking is probably a good idea, so try calling the "flowers" photo something along the lines of "blooming lovely" (corny, I know, but you get the idea?).

Best of luck!.. Oh - and I'm sure we'd all love to see some of your work here too!

Hi Steven!

Thanks for the advice! I showed the pictures to some friends and have got some ideas! I'm trying to think of some quirky witty titles and I'm still open to suggestions !

As for pricing, if I'm lucky enough that someone would like to buy them I'm sure I'll work something out!

These are my pictures.


Loeb at Rallye Deutschland




Menin Gate Ypres




Butterflies taken at Boos in Germany

Kirsty - I like number one, although I think perhaps a slightly closer crop, and perhaps clone out the cars in the top-right background??..

Number 2 might shift if you place prints in a simple frame.

No.3 - slightly overexposed?.. Maybe more popular as a greetings card of some description, or perhaps a useful background as a flier for a church's Summer Fete??..

Thanks for the feedback!

I hadn't really noticed the cars in the background of number 1! I'm starting an editing course in a few weeks so I might play about with it later on. I took number 3 on a really sunny day, so it probably is a bit washed out! Still, it's nice to show my pictures off a bit and get some feedback as I am just starting out and I've never really shown them to many people before apart from family!

Thanks again!

Number 3 is slightly over-exposed, but not burned out anywhere, so this is easily recoverable and would look great with more saturated colours. It is my favourite of the three by far and the composition is gorgeous.

Number 2 requires some persective corection and seems a little tilted to the left? Definitely not one for a competition IMHO.

I can't really comment on number one as car photos are not really my bag, some of the other members are far better quyalified than I am to make observations on this one!

Hope this helps.

Best wishes
David

Thanks for the comments David, as a beginner I'm always grateful for comments and feedback to help me improve!

I've submitted them already, but I have played around with the saturation on number 3 so maybe if it gets another airing it will look much better! The composition is a result of some serious cropping as originally it was in landscape format.

Was number 2 not one for a competition in your opinion because of the perspective problems? I did spend ages trying to make sure it was straight, because you're right it does look like it's tilting a bit. I took it at a slight angle rather than head on because I wanted to get the buildings through the arch. But I am still learning so I don't expect to get it right first time!!

I almost entered this one, but it was taken on a little point and shoot compact camera and not on a DSLR and not really in the spirit of the competition as it was for students who had completed DSLR courses!



Autumnal Amsterdam

Hi Kirsty

Regarding number two, I just don't think it has the impact or originality to score high marks in a competition. It also looks quite soft to me, I'm not sure if this is a focussing issue, or something else?

I hope I'm not being too harsh here, but I think it's better to give honest feedback.

The image you have posted above is head and shoulders above number two, it's sharper, better composed etc. and would look great in black and white too. It would be even better if the water was still (clearer reflections), but that's not under your control!

It would be good for some of the more experienced photographers on here to offer comments and advice too, as that is how we all learn.

Best wishes
David

On my monitor #3 looks just fine and what you'd expect for a bright sunny day. It's very good and my personal preference of the three. I too have had similar comments about my Q pictures so it may just be down to monitor brightness.

The other two are OK, albeit #2 is a bit soft. Which DSLR and lens combo do you use?

John

Number 3 is the standout photo for me. If you shot it in Raw, or DNG it would be fairly easy to give it a tad more punch and correct the over-exposure (which is minimal imho).

The Amsterdam one would benefit from warming up slightly and looks decidedly wintery to me, no autumnal.

No, you're not being too harsh David, honest feedback is what it's all about. I came so close to entering that Amsterdam picture, if only I could have entered 4 pictures!!

Thank you John and Gwyn for your kind comments too. The Amsterdam picture is very bright and punchy on the monitor of my Mac, but maybe it does need a bit more tweaking.

John they were all taken on a Pentax Kx. Number 1 was taken with a Sigma 70-300mm zoom lens and numbers 2 and 3 where taken with a Pentax 18-55 kit lens. The Amsterdam picture was taken using a Nikon Coolpix point and shoot camera.

Thank you all again for your comments, it's very much appreciated!

The K-x is a great camera Kirsty, rather underrated, as is the kit lens. Both are capable of stunning results, as shown by your image of the Small Tortoishshells. The Amsterdam image is a great result for a compact.

I hope you do well in the competition and look forward to seeing some more of your images.

Regards
David

Thank you David, what a lovely comment!

Yes, I love my Kx, I've also recently acquired a K7 which I bought from someone on the forum which now I'm getting to grips with I also really like!

Having had a peak at your website, I think I know why you like number 3! Your wildlife pictures are really good - definitely something to aspire too!

Just thought I'd let you all know, I came second with photo number 3, the Butterflies. Really chuffed as it's my first competition! Won a voucher for framing - so it's going on the wall as my first achievement!

Wow!!... Congrats, Kirsty!!