We do trust the people who enter the photos, that's not in doubt. They still have to get it right though, it's a competition and it has to be fair.

Back to topic please guys, otherwise it will put people off from entering at all.

It will all work fine if people make the entries in the prescribed way. That's the same for all competitions, although most of them will clearly say that no communication will be entered into regarding the competition.

The judge sets the theme, but there is an overriding purpose to the competitions that should be respected. This was arrived at by consensus. The judge them makes comments and declares a winner. If images are posted that don't fulfil the overall criteria, such as date taken, then they are removed by the Moderation Team as and when spotted. It's up to those who enter to make sure images are prepared correctly.

If more formal competitions were entered with images that didn't fulfil the criteria, then they would absolutely not succeed. No point sending prints to a projected image competition.

I don't think it's a good idea for the judge to be asking for particular images to be put in! There's another convention that's slipping - this thread is supposed to be started by the judge but as soon as entries start coming in the judge withdraws until the verdict is made.

The judge impartially judges and shouldn't have any input as we go along.

In a similar way nobody comments on the imsges in the competition area until after the judging, to avoid influencing the judging.

Hope that helps to clarify things.

The weekly images can be taken at any time. This has always been the case. Have a look in the Competitions section of the forum, where we are writing this now, and there are simple rules outlined. A week is too short a time to expect anyone to go out and shoot a new image.

The monthly evolved by demand - and in this case it must be shot within the month. That's the whole point of the competition, to set a theme and we go out and shoot it. EXIF data is required to show when the image was made, however, as long as the photographer gives the information that's fine too.

Well we have to have some rules and incorrect EXIF without explanation will result in a picture being removed. Some post images with no data attached and those are generally let go, but they should confirm that the image was taken within the time frame.

The alternative just means giving up and letting anything go, which didn't seem to be what people wanted.

What a great expression! Looks like the lens will be useful enough.

It could be separation between some of the elements, where the cement has failed. Sometimes it appears as a circle of white dots.

Is it an old lens?

Rehoused in Classified Ads!

Too late now Dave, but if I may make a suggestion just see who comes up yet with an offer. Somebody might. They can make up their own minds regarding what they read.

You may well feel angry, but best to just let it go and carry on?

Please stick to the buying/selling process in Classified Ads. We're not here to debate how much people paid for items they are selling, it's totally irrelevant.