Competitions are held every month except December. The final competition of the year (in April) is 'Image of the Year', based on images submitted in that year's previous competitions. Normally competitions alternate between PDI and prints but while we are unable to meet in person due to Covid restrictions, all competitions will be in PDI format only until further notice. Images must be submitted via email to the competition secretary. There is always an open section and a themed section and members are able to enter up to 4 images per competition. All images are viewed and judged in advance, which allows for greater dialogue on the evening between judge, author & audience (unlike judging on the evening, when to do so would risk revealing the author before the image was scored).

Ten images in each section (themed and open) are held back (shown as TT or C in the winners' galleries) and from these, 1st, 2nd and 3rd places are awarded. The judge can then award as many or as few 'Highly Commended' [HC] from the remaining 7 top ten images as they think deserve them.

We do not award cups or certificates at the end of the season but to encourage participants and provide a degree of recognition, we apply an informal scoring system, giving 1 point for every image entered, 2 for a top ten place, 3 for HC then 4,5 and 6 for 3rd, 2nd and 1st. It may be an informal process but it does add to the excitement/tension/interest as the season progresses!

Open - Any subject. This is an option in each competition.
Themed – See definitions for each month below.



Competition Rules

General

1.	All entrants must be paid up members of Wellington and District Camera Club.
2.	Members can enter a maximum of four images per competition, divided between Themed (T) and/or Open (O) classes as they wish. If necessary, due to high numbers of entries, the 4th image may be removed.
3.	Entries not fitting the themed definition will be moved to the open category.
4.	Entries must be emailed in by the deadline set by the competitons secretary and shown in the programme unless an extension to this date is agreed.
5.	Should any member have difficulty producing entries according to the rules, it is perfectly in order to enlist help from other members.
6.	For guidance, all images submitted should have been taken within five years of the competition.

Projected Digital Images (PDI)

7.	Entries may be submitted on a memory card/stick labelled with entrant’s name or via email to the competition secretary.
8.	Images should be submitted as high quality jpgs in sRGB and should not exceed 1600 pixels wide or 1200 pixels in height. Note that Dicentra will resize larger sizes and will convert other formats to sRGB but, as this may affect the quality of the image, it is recommended that the above size and format be used to begin with.
9.	Each image filename must be in the format: 01, 02, 03 or 04{space}Title{space}T or O. For example, ‘01 My Favourite Image T’
	To be clear
	...the number can be 1 or 2 digits.
	...there must be one space between the number and the Title
	...the Title you use will be exactly what the judge sees. Please check your spelling and typing.
	...there must be one space between the Title and the T or O that denotes the class of entry.
	...the T or O class must be a single letter T or O. No extra letters, spaces, brackets, etc.
10.	Images with filenames that do not conform to the above format will not import into Dicentra and may therefore be excluded from the competition.

Prints

11.	Must be on mounts no larger than 500mm x 400mm and no smaller than 210mm x 297mm (A4).
12.	Each print must be labelled on the back with 01, 02, 03 or 04 followed by the Title followed by T or O. Membership numbers, names or other identifying marks should not be used. For example, ‘01 My Favourite Image T’
13.	Mounted prints that are insecurely constructed (e.g. loose adhesive materials, insecure backings, etc.) and likely to damage other prints will not be accepted into competitions.
14.	A PDI version of the print must be submitted at the same time. The PDI filename must have the same title as the print version but does not need to adhere to the strict filename format specified for PDI competitions.
15.	Only the printed image will be judged; the PDI will only be used to display the entry to the audience during the competition. It should therefore be of similar quality and appropriate size (e.g. 1600 x 1200) to best represent the print version.

Re-submission

16.	Entries awarded a 1st, 2nd or 3rd place in a competition may not be re-used in a future competition. This includes entries that are very nearly identical to the original entry or a colour to monotone (or vice versa) conversion of the original.
17.	Entries that don’t achieve a 1st, 2nd or 3rd place may be entered again in a future competition.