Revised: October 2009


The Welland Camera Club meets on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month from September to April at the Wesley United Church, First Avenue North, Welland, Ontario.  Click here to get a GOOGLE map

All meetings begin at 7:45 pm with refreshments (tea, coffee, and a snack) served after the meeting.

Members enjoy the following features:

• an excellent opportunity to improve one’s photographic technique.
• 6 monthly image competitions during the year
• 4 monthly print competitions during the year
  
• live image evaluations during the year
• shows that are entertaining, informative and instructional
• opportunities to discuss photographic equipment, techniques, ideas and problems with experienced photographers
• a variety of annual competitions in different media for different levels of ability and experience
• arranged outings and photo workshops.

Fees per year:

Single	$35.00
Couple	$60.00
Student	$20.00

If you are interested in finding out about our club and its activities, you are invited to attend a couple of meetings before you decide to join.

For more information, please contact:
Thomas Linton     905 262-0683 or email
Rodger Swinton    905 935-9654

ANNUAL COMPETITIONS  

1st Meeting in February
• Trumbowl Competition (Trumbowl Trophy)
• William Honsberger Competition. (William Honsberger Plaque)
    **These competitions are between the Welland Camera Club and the
    St. Catharines Photographic Club.
    The Welland Camera Club hosts these competitions on odd numbered years.
• The Prestwich-Welland Competition
    **This competition is between the Welland Camera Club and the
    Prestwich Co-Op Camera Club of Radcliffe, Greater Manchester in the UK.
    The Welland Camera Club hosts these competitions on odd numbered years.

1st Meeting in March
• W.C. Healey Competition (W.C. Healey Memorial Trophy)
• Madolyn Tait Essay Competitions
• Special Assignment Competition

1st Meeting in April
• Annual Nature Competition (Nature's Three Award)
• Stell Nature Competition (Stell Trophy)
• Joe Mocsan Image of the Year Competition
• Annual print competitions (submit entries)

Niagara Frontier Regional Camera Clubs (NFRCC)
• McKellar Competitions (Four entries during the season)
• Golden Horseshoe Competition (Held during the NFRCC Annual Convention.)
Notes:

• The word “image” refers to both slide and digital images. This term may also be used in some cases to include print images.
• Gold and Diamond division members will be referred to as Senior Members.

ANNUAL BANQUET IN MAY
Annual awards and trophies are distributed to those winners of competitions during the year;

• Madolyn Tait Essay Competitions
• Special Assignment Competition
• Joe Mocsan Image of The Year Competition
• The Annual Nature Competition
• Len Trumble Memorial Award given to the member who has the highest  aggregate score for images submitted in the “Len Trumble Competition”.
• Janice Healey Nature Print Award
• Dianne Payton Majumdar Annual Print Award
• Monochrome Print of the Year

LEN TRUMBLE COMPETITION
(Len Trumble Memorial Award)

• There are six digital image competitions during the camera club season. Entries are received at the first meeting in September, October, November, January, February, and March.
  
• Bronze and Silver members submit their digital images to the Competitions Director - Bronze and Silver.
  
• Senior members submit their digital images to the Competitions Director - Senior. 
  
• The main function of the competition is to give the club members an opportunity to have their images scored by advanced photographers.
  
• Image competition scores will be used for the Len Trumble Memorial Award that is given to the member achieving the highest total points for their entries during the year.
  

Rules:

1. New Bronze Division members may hand in their September entries with the October entries. This is the only time that this exception is made since new members may be unfamiliar with the monthly competitions.
   
2. The maker of the image must be a member of good standing of the Welland Camera Club.
   
3. A member may submit a total of 4 digital images.
   The program guide for the year lists the months and categories.
   
4. A member may enter no more than two entries in any one category.
   However, with respect to the “Photographer's Choice” category, the following must be adhered to:
   • Only one entry may be entered in this category each month, 
   • Except in March the designated category will be “Photographer's Choice”
      when four entries may be entered in this category.
   
   NOTE: Since judging is tempered by the category in which the image is entered, it is to a member's advantage to put the image in the category most suitable for it.
   
   
5. All of the categories selected for the coming year are self explanatory except "Nature". (“Nature” entries must meet the requirements under the section "WHAT CONSTITUTES A NATURE ENTRY?”)
   
   NOTE: The category “Nature - General” is an exception where zoology and botany images cannot be used.
   
6. For Digital Image Entries: - See the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES” .
   
7. For Slide Entries: - The maker must arrange to have their slide image digitized and then enter the digital image as per the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES”
   
8. All the entries will be shown at the next club meeting after having been judged. Titles and points awarded will be announced. In the case of an award winning entry, the maker's name will be announced and the maker will receive a ribbon.
   
9. Each competition is judged by an outside-the-club judge for
   Senior (Gold and Diamond) members.
   
   Bronze and Silver member images will be judged by a
   committee made up from existing Senior members.
   
   Each entry can be awarded a maximum of 30 points.
   

   12 to 15 points	POOR
   16 to 20 points	FAIR
   21 to 25 points	GOOD
   26 to 30 points	EXCELLENT

   
   
10. For a member to receive a ribbon their image must receive the following points;
    

    Bronze Division (Beginners)	20 points or more
    Silver Division (Intermediate)	22 points or more
    Gold Division (Advanced)	24 points or more
    Diamond Division (Expert)	26 points or more

    
    
    
    
11. Images taken at a club workshop where someone else has created the setup, lighting, etc. may not be entered into club competitions.
    Additionally, if an image is manipulated in the darkroom or digitally by an individual other than the person making the submission, that image may not be entered into club competitions.
    
12. Judging images is a subjective process and not all entries receive recognition. If the maker feels the judges erred in not giving a score sufficient to qualify for recognition, the member may reenter the image in a subsequent monthly competition.
    
13. An entry that has earned recognition (received a ribbon) in a monthly competition may not be reentered in subsequent monthly competition. It can, however, be used in any other competition. (It is requested that a “near duplicate” of a highly scored image not be entered again in a monthly competition.)
    
14. It is wise for members to develop a system of record keeping to know what entries have been entered into club competitions and how they scored.
    
    NOTE: In our club competitions, a winning entry may NOT be reentered in the same competition at a later date. In our competitions with other clubs, an image may NOT be reentered.
    
    NOTE: Up-to-date records will avoid an embarrassing situation. Please refer to specific club competitions in this booklet.
    

THE LEN TRUMBLE MEMORIAL AWARD

This award has been donated to the Welland Camera Club in memory of Len Tumble by Al Howey Jewelers of Fonthill, Ontario.

The award will be presented annually at the Annual Banquet of the Welland Camera Club to the member achieving the highest total points for their image entries into the
“Len Trumble Competition” during the year. All points will be totaled for images entered, not just for those that received recognition. The competition Chairpersons will determine the winner from image entry records.


Rules for Moving Up to the Next Division

1. From the Bronze Division to the Silver Division:
   A Bronze Division member may move up to the Silver Division upon receiving six - twenty-two (22) point awards in the Len Trumble Competition during any club year.
2. From the Silver Division to the Gold Division:
   A Silver Division member may move up to the Gold Division upon receiving
   eight - twenty-four (24) point awards in the Len Trumble Competition during any club year.
3. From the Gold Division to the Diamond Division:
   A Gold Division member may move up to the Diamond Division upon receiving
   ten - twenty-six (26) point awards in the Len Trumble Competition during any club year.

NOTE: Your combined awards from the Print Competition and the Len Trumble Competition are NOT used to accumulate the required awards to move up to the next division.

NOTE: Upon qualifying to move to a higher division, a member may elect to remain in their present division. However, upon again qualifying in any subsequent year, they must move up to the next division.

NOTE: If a member moves up to the next division and is not successful in the higher division, they may elect to return to the previous division at the completion of one year in the higher division. Beyond one year in the higher division, a member cannot elect to return to a lower division.


PRINT COMPETITION

There are four print competitions during the camera club season. Entries are received at the first meeting in October, November, February, and March.

Members submit their images to the Competitions Director – Non-Digital.

The main function of the competition is to give the club members an opportunity to have their prints scored by advanced photographers.

Image competition scores will be used for the “Annual Print Award” that is given to the member achieving the highest total points for their entries during the year.

Rules:

1. A member may submit a “total” of 4 prints in each of the four competitions.
   
2. New Bronze Division members may hand in their October entries with the November entries. This is the only time that this exception is made since new members may be unfamiliar with the club competitions.
   
3. The maker of the submission must be a member of good standing of the Welland Camera Club.
   
4. A member may enter no more than two entries in any one category. The categories are Photojournalism, Nature, and Photographer's Choice.
   
   
   Photojournalism: Entries need to tell a story or document an event as seen in a news media account, periodicals and may include documentary advertising, news spots, human interest, sports, etc.
   
   Nature: Entries need to meet the requirements under the section “WHAT CONSTITUTES A NATURE ENTRY?”
   
   
   NOTE: Since judging is tempered by the category in which the image is entered, it is to a member's advantage to put the image in the category most suitable for it.
   
5. Prints can be entered with a minimum size of 8 x 10 mounted, maximum size of 16 x 20 mounted. Panoramic prints must be a minimum of 8 inches on the small side and not exceed 320 square inches in size.
   
6. Attach one entry card per print; indicating the print title, maker's name, the category and the division (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond).
   
7. All the entries will be shown at the next club meeting after having been judged. Titles and points awarded will be announced. In the case of an award winning entry, the maker's name will be announced and the maker will receive a ribbon.
   
   Prints will be returned to the member at the first meeting of the following month. This will give the Print Competition Director time to record the points awarded to each image.
   
8. The judge(s) can award a maximum of 30 points each for a entry.
       12 to 15 points - POOR
       16 to 20 points - FAIR
       21 to 25 points - GOOD
       26 to 30 points - EXCELLENT
   
9. For a member to receive a ribbon their image must receive the following points;
       Bronze Division (Beginners)    -    20 points or more
       Silver Division (Intermediate)   -    22 points or more
       Gold Division (Advanced)        -    24 points or more
       Diamond Division (Expert)      -    26 points or more
   
10. Images taken at a club workshop (or external workshop) where someone else has created the setup, lighting, etc. may not be entered into club competitions.
    Additionally, if an image is manipulated in the darkroom or digitally by an individual other than the person making the submission, that image may not be entered into club competitions.
    
11. Judging images is a subjective process and not all entries receive recognition. If the maker feels the judges erred in not giving a score sufficient to qualify for recognition, the member may reenter the image in a subsequent monthly competition.
    
12. An entry that has earned recognition (received a ribbon) in a monthly competition may not be reentered in a subsequent monthly competition. It can, however, be used in any other competition. (It is requested that a “near duplicate” of a highly scored image not be entered again in a monthly competition.)
    
13. It is wise for members to develop a system of record keeping to know what entries have been entered into club competitions and how they scored.
    
    NOTE: In our club competitions, a winning entry may NOT be reentered in the same competition at a later date.
    
    In our competitions with other clubs, an image may NOT be reentered.
    
    NOTE: Up-to-date records will avoid an embarrassing situation.
    
    Please refer to specific club competitions in this booklet.

RULES FOR MOVING UP TO THE NEXT PRINT DIVISION

1. From the Bronze Division to the Silver Division:
   A Bronze Division member may move up to the Silver Division upon receiving four - twenty-two (22) point awards in the Print Competition during any club year.
   
2. From the Silver Division to the Gold Division:
   A Silver Division member may move up to the Gold Division upon receiving five - twenty-four (24) point awards in the Print Competition during any club year.
   
3. From the Gold Division to the Diamond Division:
   A Gold Division member may move up to the Diamond Division upon receiving seven - twenty-six (26) point awards in the Print Competition during any club year.
   
   NOTE: Your combined awards from the Len Trumble Competition and the Print Competition are NOT used to accumulate the required awards to move up to the next division.
   
   NOTE: Upon qualifying to move to a higher division, a member may elect to remain in their present division. However, upon again qualifying in any subsequent year, they must move up to the next division.
   
   NOTE: If a member moves up to the next division and is not successful in the higher division, they may elect to return to the previous division at the completion of one year in the higher division. Beyond one year in the higher division, a member cannot elect to return to a lower division.

THE WILLIAM HONSBERGER COMPETITION
(Wm. Honsberger Plaque)

This digital competition will be held annually on the same date as the Trumbowl Competition. The two competitions are hosted in February on alternate years by the Welland Camera Club and the St. Catharines Photographic Club. The Welland Camera Club is the host on odd numbered years.

The competition is open to any member in good standing in either the St. Catharines
Photographic Club or the Welland Camera Club.

Images are judged with a maximum score of 30. The highest score wins. In the event
of a tie the judges will choose a winning image.

Awards:

The winner will receive the William Honsberger Plaque, which is retained for one year.
Second and third place winners will be announced as Honourable Mentions.

The subject matter is landscapes and/or seascapes.

Seascape:

An image of a body of water either salt or fresh, such as an ocean, sea, lake or any deep, broad river. The water should be the predominant feature of the image and the rest of the image land and/or sky.

Landscape:

A image showing a land scene that is the predominant feature of the image and the rest of the image being water and/or sky.

Rules:

1. While the subject matter is NATURE, the hand of man (e.g. man or any man-made object such as a fence, boat, house, road, pet, cultivated flowers, etc.) may be included as long as these do not occupy more than ten per cent of the image area and are not a significant element of the composition.
   (William Honsberger requested this minor change in the definition.)
   
2. A close-up of a subject is not eligible.
   
3. The digital image must be shown as it was taken.
       a) You are permitted to crop the image, adjust
           the colour saturation, and adjust the exposure
           for best viewing.
       b) You are not permitted to clone any part of the
            image, use layers, or any other manipulation
            techniques other than those mentioned above.
       c) When taking the original image only a polarizer
            filter is permitted.
   
   NOTE: Images must be submitted to the Competitions Director - Bronze and Silver at least one week prior to the competition date to allow time to prepare the images for competition.
   
   See the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES”
   
   
4. Each entrant may submit a maximum of 2 digital images.
   Image files must be in the JPEG format, preferably in the sRGB colour space. Image files cannot exceed 1024 pixels in width and 768 pixels in height.
   Those submitting slides must have them digitized prior to the competition and enter them as a digital JPEG file.
   Digital files are to named as follows; w_ho_abc_title.jpg
   Where;  “abc” represents the the three initials of the maker and “title” is a distinguishing name for the image
   
   

THE TRUMBOWL COMPETITION
(The Trumbowl Trophy)

This digital competition will be held annually on the same date as the Honsberger Competition. Only Bronze and Silver member images are permitted. The two competitions are hosted in February on alternate years by the Welland Camera Club and the St. Catharines Photographic Club.
The Welland Camera Club is the host on odd numbered years. The host club will establish the competition date each year.
(Len Trumble established the competition. He also donated the trophy.)

Rules:

1. St. Catharines and Welland clubs will jointly decide the number of entrants before December.
   
2. Each club will submit 20 images with a maximum of 2 images from any one individual.
   
3. A club committee will select the images to be used.
   
4. Image files must be in the JPEG format, preferably in the sRGB colour space.
   
5. Image files cannot exceed 1024 pixels in width and 768 pixels in height
   
6. The subject matter is wide open.
   
7. The maker can use any techniques to improve the image.
   
8. The club with the highest total points wins the “Trumbowl Trophy”.
   
9. The winning club retains the trophy for one year.
   

THE PRESTWICH-WELLAND COMPETITION

The Prestwich Co-Op Camera Club is from Radcliffe, Greater Manchester in the UK. This digital competition will be held annually. The competition will be hosted in February on alternate years by the Welland Camera Club and the Prestwich Co-Op Camera Club. The Welland Camera Club is the host on odd numbered years. The host club will establish the competition date each year.

Rules:

1. Each club will submit 15 images with a maximum of 4 members submitting 2 images and the remaining images will be 1 image per individual.
   
2. A club committee will select the images to be used.
   
3. Image files must be in the JPEG format, preferably in the sRGB colour space.
   
4. Image files cannot exceed 1024 pixels in width and 768 pixels in height
   
5. The subject matter is wide open.
   
6. The maker can use any techniques to improve the image provided the original image was photographed by the maker. No part of the image may be from other images not taken by the maker.
   
7. The club with the highest total points wins the competition.

W. C. HEALEY MEMORIAL AWARD COMPETITION
(Donated by neighbours of W. C. Healey)

Rules:

1. Annual competition - preferably first meeting in March.
   
2. Divisions (Bronze, Silver, Gold and Diamond) will not be recognized.
   
3. Any digital submission may be used provided:
       a. it fits the categories.
       b. it has not previously been used in this competition.
       c. Those wishing to submit slide images must have them digitized first.
   
4. Each entrant will enter four (4) images, one in each of the following categories:
   a. People
   b. Land or Seascape *
   c. Nature
   d. Creative
   
   NOTE: The category ‘Land or Seascape’ is not limited to the definition of a Nature Landscape or Seascape.    
           (e.g. A city skyline is acceptable).
   
   
5. Four entries for each entrant will be judged and the score for each entrant totaled.
   
6. The entrant with the highest total score will be the winner.
   
7. In case of a tie, the judges will view the entries that are tied and select a winner.
   
8. The Welland Camera Club executive may award special event ribbons to the runners-up as they deem necessary or essential to the interest of the competition.
   

The winner shall retain the W. C. Healey Memorial Award for one year.

Each year the winner's name, inscribed on the uniform plates, shall be affixed to the base of the Award.

The rules are simple and basic. The categories are broad in scope and are not to be made complex or confining at the request of the donors of this award.

NOTE: Images must be submitted to the Competitions Director - Senior at least one week prior to the competition date to allow time to prepare the images for competition.

See the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES”


MADOLYN TAIT PHOTO ESSAY COMPETITIONS

The annual Madolyn Tait Photo Essay competition will be held in March on a date set by the Program Committee.

A “photo essay” is a image story which tells an integrated story about a subject accompanied by words and/or music and presented in a pleasing and understandable manner.

RULES for Individual and Team Essays:

1. This competition is open to slide and digital essays.
   
2. A maximum of thirty (30) images per image essay, including title images.
   
3. Any image not previously entered in a photo essay may be used.
   
4. Team Essay:
   a) Two (2) member team - not more than 60% of the images may be by one team member.
   b) Three (3) member team - not more than 40% of the images may be by one team member.
   
5. The total score will determine the first, second and third places.
   
6. Scoring:
   

The judges will be asked to score each essay out of 100 points as follows:

Photography	-  40 points
Continuity & Editing	-  30 points
General Appeal	-  20 points
Titles	-  10 points

SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT IMAGE COMPETITION

This competition is held in March.

Rules:

1. The subject will be selected by the Club executive for the next year and announced to the members at the Special Assignment competition, or soon after.
   
2. Each entrant may submit four (4) images depicting the subject for the year.
   
3. All images used must have been taken in the preceding twelve (12) months.
     (i.e. from the date of the previous year's Special Assignment Competition).
   
4. Two winning images will be selected as follows:
   a) The Top Special Assignment Image.
   b) Most Original Treatment of the special assignment topic.

Awards are given for;

   • Top image.
   • Most Original image.

NOTE: Images must be submitted to the Competitions Director - Bronze and Silver at least one week prior to the competition date to allow time to prepare the images for competition.

See the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES”



JOE MOCSAN IMAGE OF THE YEAR COMPETITION

The competition will be held annually during the first meeting in April. The Image of the Year will be judged in three divisions: Bronze, Silver and Senior.

Rules:

1. All images must have been entered in a competition during the current Camera Club season. This may be the regular Len Trumble Competition, NFRCC competitions, scheduled Welland Camera Club competitions, or other inter-Club competitions. Images MUST NOT be modified from the original entry.
   
2. Each member may submit a maximum of four (4) images.
   
3. Images in the “Annual Nature Competition” and the "Stell Nature Competition" are eligible for this competition.
   
4. Images taken at Club workshops where the photographer did not do the setup are NOT eligible.
   
5. The top image will be selected in each division.
   
6. From the three (3) top images (Bronze, Silver and Senior) is chosen the 
   "Image of the Year"

Awards:

“Image of the Year” - receives a Trophy.
First in each of the two (2) remaining divisions receive a ribbon.
Second in each division receive an Honourable Mention ribbon..

NOTE: Images must be submitted to the Competitions Director - Bronze and Silver at least one week prior to the competition date to allow time to prepare the images for competition.

See the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES”.




ANNUAL NATURE IMAGE COMPETITION
(Nature's Three Cup)

The Nature's Three Cup was donated by three avid nature photographers who were former members of our Club. They are Jack Davis, Alf Malcomson and Len Tumble. This competition will be held annually in April.

Rules:

1. Images must meet the requirements under the section “WHAT CONSTITUTES A NATURE ENTRY?”
   
2. Each competitor of good standing may submit four images with no more than two images entered in any one category (Zoology, Botany, General).
   
3. No image that has been a previous winner in any category in the Annual Nature Competition is eligible for entry in this competition again.
   
4. Images entered in this competition need not have been entered in any competition during the current club year.
   
5. Categories:
     a) Zoology - Insects, birds, animals (no domestic animals).
     b) Botany - Flowers, trees, fungi, etc. (no garden flowers).
     c) General - Landscapes, seascapes, astronomy, sunsets,
                       sunrises, geology, ecology, etc.
   

Judging:
Judging will be done within each of the three categories. Only first place in each category will be selected.

From these three top images (one from each category), one image will be chosen top Nature Image of the Year.

Awards:
Top Image: The Nature's Three Cup - which is retained for the following year.


Top Image in the Remaining Two Categories receive a plaque

NOTE: Images must be submitted to the Competitions Director - Senior at least one week prior to the competition date to allow time to prepare the images for competition.

See the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES”



THE STELL NATURE COMPETITION
(Stell Trophy)

This competition will be held annually in April for the Bronze and Silver Division workers of the Welland Camera Club. The trophy was donated by Dr. Bernard and
Mrs. Irene Stell, formerly of Buffalo, and was designed and made by Dr. Stell.

RULES:

1. 1.Four images must be submitted: one in each of the following categories:
   
   Botany
   Landscape
   Seascape
   Zoology
   
2. Digital images must be submitted at least one week prior to the Competitions Director - Senior  to allow for competition preparation. The competition will be held on the same evening as the Annual Nature Image Competition (Nature's Three Trophy) so that the same three judges can be utilized.
   
3. The “WHAT CONSTITUTES A NATURE ENTRY?” rules on nature photography will be followed. There is an exception in Zoology: Sea mammals, fish and other water life may be photographed in captivity, providing that the Hand of Man or his work is minimal and unobtrusive (no more than 10% of the image).
   
4. In the case of a tie score, the winner will be selected by re-judging the tied entries.
   
5. The award presentation will be made at the Annual Awards Banquet.
   
6. The Trophy will be retained by the winner from the time of the Annual Awards Banquet to the time of the judging of the next year's competition. This will give the Club time to have a new plate engraved with the new recipient's name and the year.
   
7. Encouragement: Any member competing for the Stell Nature Trophy should also submit different images for the Annual Nature Image Competition (Nature's Three Trophy). For each such Image submitted, one point is earned toward the final score for the four images entered in the Stell Nature Competition.
   
   

NOTE: Images must be submitted to the Competitions Director - Senior at least one week prior to the competition date to allow time to prepare the images for competition.

See the section “DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES”.

trl

DIGITAL IMAGE COMPETITION ENTRIES

Digital files may be submitted to the appropriate Competitions Director for any club competition by email, on a CD, or using a jump drive at least one week before the competition is scheduled to run. For the Len Trumble (Monthly Image) Competition this would be the 2nd Wednesday of each month in which a competition is held.

All submitted files must be in the JPEG (.jpg) format with a maximum resolution of 1024 pixels wide by 768 pixels high. Images in a vertical orientation shall not exceed 768 pixels on the vertical side. (All images submitted exceeding these constraints will be resized before sent for judging. This may result in the image being degraded to some degree.) For best colour, the digital files should be saved in the highest JPEG quality setting using the RGBs colour space.

Slide entries need to be digitized before being judged. Members wishing to enter slides into a competition must arrange for the slides to be digitizes and follow the guidelines in this document for making digital entries. Alternately, members may submit slides at least three weeks before the scheduled competition to give the Competition Director sufficient time to arrange for the slides to be digitized.

The naming of digital image files must use the following format. Start with the competitor’s initials (3 letters), followed by an underscore (“_”), followed by the file name.
     (e.g.   abc_image.jpg)

Additionally, a text based entry document must accompany all competition entries. (Use no formatting such as tabs, indents, or special characters when preparing this document.) It is best if a text editor, like the Windows based program called “Notepad”, is used to prepare this file.

An example of a suitable text based entry document for a fictitious Silver member named
John Q. Public is shown below;

Competition:            Len Trumble Competition
Reply email address:    jqp@internet.ca
Photographer's Name:    John Public
Photographer's Group:   Silver
Month:                  January

Image #1
      Category:       Fences
      Title:          Leaning Over
      File Name:      jqp_leaning_over.jpg
Image #2
      Category:       category
      Title:          title
      File Name:      jqp_file_name.jpg
Image #3
      Category:       category
      Title:          title
      File Name:      jqp_file_name .jpg
Image #4
      Category:       category
      Title:          title
      File Name:      jqp_file_name .jpg

A blank template of the above file can be downloaded from the Welland Camera Club website here.




THE JANICE HEALEY NATURE PRINT AWARD
(Donated by Janice Healey)

Rules:

1. Open to all groups – Bronze, Silver, and Senior. A maximum of 4 prints may be entered. The print can be in colour or monochromatic.
2. Minimum size 8 x 10, maximum size 16 x 20, mounted but not framed. Panoramic prints must not exceed 320 square inches in size with a maximum width of  30 inches or a maximum height of  24 inches including the mat.
3. The criteria will be the same for a nature print as a nature image. Refer to the “WHAT CONSTITUTES A NATURE ENTRY?” section in this handbook.

Awards:
   • First Prize will be a trophy and ribbon.
   • Second and Third place receive a ribbon.
   • Honourable Mention ribbons are given at the judge’s discretion.
 
Hand in prints at the first meeting in April to the Competitions Director – Non-Digital. Winners will be announced at the Annual Banquet.



THE DIANNE PAYTON MAJUMDAR ANNUAL PRINT AWARD
The trophy was donated by Chitta Majumdar in memory of his wife Dianne.

Rules:

1. Open to all groups - Bronze, Silver, and Senior.
2. Minimum size 8 x 10, maximum size 16 x 20, mounted but not framed. Panoramic prints must not exceed 320 square inches in size with a maximum width of  30 inches or a maximum height of  24 inches including the mat.
3. Four colour prints may be entered.

Awards:
  • The winner will receive the Dianne Payton Majumdar trophy,
         which is retained for the following year.
  • Second and Third place receive a ribbon.
  • Honourable Mention ribbons are given at the judge’s discretion.

Hand in prints at the first meeting in April to the Competitions Director – Non-Digital. Winners will be announced at the Annual Banquet.


MONOCHROME PRINT OF THE YEAR AWARD

Rules:

1. Open to all groups - Bronze, Silver, and Senior.
2. Minimum size 8 x 10, maximum size 16 x 20, mounted but not framed. Panoramic prints must not exceed 320 square inches in size with a maximum width of  30 inches or a maximum height of  24 inches including the mat.
3. Four monochrome prints may be entered.

Awards:
    • The winner will receive the a rosette ribbon.
    • Second and Third place receive a ribbon.
    • Honourable Mention ribbons are given at the judge’s discretion.

Hand in prints at the first meeting in April to the Competitions Director – Non-Digital. Winners will be announced at the Annual Banquet.



WHAT CONSTITUTES A NATURE ENTRY?

Everything in the world that is UNCHANGED BY MAN is nature. The subject matter of a Nature image should be restricted to some phase of natural history. Therefore, any form of animal, or plant life, or objects in the field of Geology, Meteorology, Astronomy, or Archeology are eligible. The image should not contain any humans or man-made objects unless of archaeological significance, or the natural habitat of the species and should then be limited to the minimum which is necessary for good composition and placement of the subject.  (e.g. Part of a Barn Owl's natural habitat is, of course, a barn. Thus a Barn Owl shown nesting, perched, etc. in a barn is acceptable).

Nature subjects fit into one of the following categories:

Zoology:	All forms of animal like; mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, insets, spiders or any aspect of their life such as dens, nests, eggs, tracks, discarded antlers, spider's webs, etc. (No pets or domestic animals)
Botany:	All forms of plant life; the whole or any part of trees, shrubs, wild flowers weeds, grasses, ferns, mosses, fungi, lichens, seeds, fruits, etc. (No domestic or garden flowers)
General:	Include all those natural history subjects not included in plant and animal life (Botany and Zoology). This would include: badlands, sand dunes, glaciers, geysers, waterfalls, weather conditions, lightning, clouds, fog, rainbows, sunsets, stars, moon, eclipses, landscapes, seascapes, astronomy, geology, ecology, etc. Also, subjects of archaeological significance such as pictographs, ancient ruins, relics, fossils, etc. NOTE: An exception to this category placement deals with "macro-photography" where an extreme close-up of a section of any flower (e.g. pistol, stamens, etc.) is acceptable as a subject in this category. This same “macro-photography” exception is applicable to domestic animals.
Landscape:	An image showing a land scene, which is the predominant feature of, the image and the rest of the image being water and/or sky.
Seascape:	An image of a body of water either salt or fresh, such as an ocean sea lake or any deep, broad river The water being the predominant feature of the image and the rest of the image being land and/or sky.

INELIGIBLE:
The following are NOT eligible nature subjects; domestic animals, pets, mounted specimens, cultivated plants (flower gardens), floral arrangements, or any image in which humans and man-made objects appear, unless of archaeological significance, or the natural habitat of the species.

NOTE: Images with obvious colour manipulation are not acceptable.


DIGITAL TREATMENT:
A photographer may perform minor digital enhancements, which improve the presentation of the image that could have been done at the time the image was taken, as well as those that are part of normal darkroom procedure, provided that it does not change the truth of the original nature story.

Increasing saturation (similar to polarizing), cropping, dodging, burning, adjusting levels, sharpening, or adjusting digital noise, flipping (the equivalent to reversing a slide) are acceptable practices.

Not permitted is digital manipulation such as adding, removing, rearranging, cloning parts of the image or changing the image from how it appeared in nature by changing colour, texture, or contrast. Any manipulation or modification to the original image is limited to “minor” retouching of blemishes and must not alter the content of the original scene.



JUDGING

For the Bronze and Silver divisions a single member of the executive would be responsible for collecting images, arranging a judging night, and managing the database for the year.

For the Senior (Gold and Diamond) division, a single member of the executive would be responsible for arranging judges capable of viewing and judging the images.

To improve scoring consistency all judges (internal and external) would be given a copy of the WCC Judging Guideline to help guide them to give a proper score.


WCC Judging Guideline for Digital Competitions

To improve consistency in the scoring of the images presented during competitions, The Welland Camera Club asks that you follow this simple guideline when issuing a score.

We all like some topics more than others, but please do not allow this to be a major decision in selecting a score. Please score each images out of 10 based on the following guideline.

NOTE: Images entered in a category must in some way fit that category. Those images that DO NOT meet the category need to be be penalized at least 2 points from what would have been its score.

Score Guidelines

2 or less  -  A score this low is reserved for images that should not be entered in any competition.
3 or 4  -  Scores in this range are DEFICIENT because the main subject is out of focus, the exposure is significantly under/over, or the image lacks composition.
Suggestions for improving one or more defects are requested.
5 or 6  -  Images in this range are considered AVERAGE. The image is mostly in focus and generally properly exposed. The image has the elements of good composition but may lack in the handling of the composition elements.  The effectiveness of the image is reduced because of mergers, distracting hot areas, improper cropping, the image is off colour, or the colour harmony is off.
Suggestions to improve the image are requested.
7 or 8  -  These scores are reserved for ABOVE AVERAGE images. All the main photographic elements exist. The image is properly focused, is properly exposed, has good composition, handles colour well, has no mergers, contains no distracting hot areas and does not have large areas of wasted space.
Suggestions for improvement and some hints where the photograph is lacking may be given. 
9 or10 -  Reserved for EXCEPTIONAL images that contain excellent lighting, NO technical flaws, and has visual impact. An image of this calibre should be expected to score well in any competition.

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