I'm confused!! But yes, exactly. I must be suffering a worse hangover than I imagined. Please ignore me!

 

Being the original poster I'll try to clarify my comments as folk have veered off course with their replies.
About 20 years ago I was an amateur and still am, but was stunned to have a photograph feature in AP magazine. I then tried APOY and with similar entrants to my own amateurishness I stood a chance and even came third once. I recall thinking that APOY was a unique competition which truly showed amateur photographs which revealed people developing their skills. AP must of decided at some point to leave this amateurishness behind and go for high end images which are unattainable by amateurs and thoroughly disheartening.
AP needs to get back on track and stop selecting high end images most of which are from international entrants who are trawling the web for photographic competitions and prizes.
As Gordon Brown once said "British Jobs For British People" well it's time to give us back our "AP for British People".
Otherwise rename the mag to PP. Professional Photographer.
In addition, once a person has won APOY they should abstain from entering for 3 years as seeing the same old names popping up month after month year after year is soul destroying.
Folk that can achieve such consistency have no place in an an amateur mag and should progress onward to the higher end mags where they will have to up their game. Just as beginners have to up their game and learn to reach an amateur status.

 

Weird. Just weird. "Don't give the prize to the best photographs, 'cos I'm not good enough to compete." I can't get over just how weird this attitude is.

 

Damn... I must be in that category as I've had two (or is is three) 'placed images' over the past couple of years.

 

And the marathon should be shortened because I can't run that far. As you say - quite extraordinary.

MickLL

 

If the foreigners are excluded (even those in the EU?), what difference would it make? There are actually some very good Welsh photographers you know.

Graeme

 

Time to bring on the Handicapper General!

 

Indeed.

How about a competition for images taken with an unloaded film camera, or with a digital camera provided the lens cap remains on throughout the exposure?

Blind judges, or at least blind drunk, might help too ...

Insert whatever irony smiley you prefer at this point. But you really shouldn't need it.

 

As a professional photographer I'm excluded but if I have one hand tied behind my back would I be allowed to enter. And I could close one eye, oh I already do that.
How about only entering photos taken on a weekend as its unfare to people who work mon to fri. Or exclude sharp and in focus images as it puts people off entering with bad eyesight.

It's a competition. The best photos have to win, it's the whole point.

This post did make me laugh though. Really a special photo comp for crap photographers. lol

 

I originaly said "We could do with a competition for us lesser mortals where we have a better chance of winning even if the standard is lower. At least we'd be encouraged then."

What I was trying to say was that APOY seems to be for advanced photographers and maybe there is room for a competition for intermediate photographers too? Maybe as a qualifier for APOY thus offering encouragement to a wider range of photographers. That was my real point, that it is easy to be discouraged.

As for APOY being open to everyone worldwide, that is a commercial decision I guess and of no consequence to individuals surely?

 

Sure. If you want to be discouraged, you will be.

If you're really competitive, you'll always look to the next higher division (if there is one) ...

There are a lot of footballers who play for local teams and manage to enjoy themselves despite knowing that they're nowhere near as good as the Premier League teams. Surely that's the point - enjoying yourself.

I can enjoy myself photographically without achieving anything like the standard consistently shown by the APOY winners. Quite honestly I don't care a foetid dingo's kidney if I never win a competition.

 

Re: Readers Losing Interest In APOY A true story

My club once held a competition for the worst print.

It was a great evening and a lot of fun was had by all.

MickLL

 

Inspired by this thread, I have written to the IOC complaining about the unrealistic thresholds for qualifying for the Rhythmic Gymnastics events in the forthcoming 2012 games.

Assuming that they respond by lowering their standards to permit me to join in with a reasonable chance of winning, I should be easy to spot on TV. I'll be the flabby, unfit, uncoordinated, inflexible old chap in a purple sequinned leotard who has obvious challenges in climbing onto the performance area. All the other contestants are, at present, women.

I'll also be wearing a smile.

 

.....at least one smile!

Graeme

 

As someone who has never entered a photographic competition I'm of the same opinion.

However, to use your analogy, I think the OP would quite like the "league" type of situation where, if you win division 2 you then enter division 1 etc. I think even footballers would get upset if they had no chance of winning anything at all during a season.

 

Surely then it is because since digital became mainstream photography is more popular that ever. Back then you would have been shooting on film and the number of camera makers was lower than today's or few models.

Plus technology has boosted exposure handling etc. 20 years ago myself I would have been using a all manual camera and shooting on slide which I found more of a challenge but more control for me. Today if you get the exposure wrong you know about it that instant not the next day or a week later when the shots drop through the letterbox.

So in theory there should be no excuse to not nail the exposure on every shot. Then it comes down to make DOF and shutter speed choices which affect the composition.

We know from Mark Jacobs post that the APOY is 'blind' viewed ie no info about the shot just the shot. But camera performance can affect composition surely ie noise etc. So pitching a D3s against high end bridge say like a H20EXR the image from the D3s is going to be noise free in most conditions so the composition is going to be clearer. After all 20 years ago film noise was used as a composition effect.

A good example is the low-light round in the competition. In order to get say a particular composition you might need to go into high ISO. Now clearly a D3s or 5DMKII is going to have no problem with that. But a bridge will. Everything else would be nearly identical ie focal length, shutter speed, position, focal length etc but the noise on the shot is going to be there on the bridge camera shot. Do you ignore that as a judge? If you use NR that is still going to show up. Especially if the image is presented in a high res way.

In fact I don't know if Mark Jacob is allowed to answer these questions. How are the digital images presented?

Are they displayed in a room on a large res monitor/projector with no zoom control by the judges bit like judging at camera clubs? Do the judges see every shot a group discussion or do they go through entries then see if there is any common shot(s) they have been pleased about?

 

Yeah, but if I wanted to get started in photo competitions I could easily find one with a lower standard than APOY ... try a local club competition & move on when you start to win prizes at that level.

 

What a load of self pitying (and slightly jingoistic) tosh. Where you get the idea that just because someone is an amateur they should somehow remain utterly inept at the craft and art is beyond me. You may not have bothered to improve your photography in the last twenty years but others have and to intimate that they have no right to have their pictures published in the leading magazine for amateurs is both insulting and pathetic.

 

Perhaps a competition entitled Amateurish Photographer of the Year is the answer!

I think it's a mistake to associate amateur with inexpert or unsophisticated. At present, my photography is well below the standard required to place in the competition, but rather than dumbing down the competition, I need to improve my photography.

 

There will be club competition judging in Ayr tonight, two sections, advanced and intermediates, the standards in both are high. There are loads of pictures submitted which have the potential to do well in APOY, national and international salons etc.
So dont expect the standards in club comps to be lower than APOY. But in the end, if you want to find out how your pictures will do, you will have to take part.

Graeme