N4C Contest information

Paid members of the Sioux Falls Camera Club are eligible to participate in monthly N4C competitions. Competitions are held monthly September thru May, except for December. 

 N4C Handbook 2023-2024 

 MAY N4C COMPETITION

It's that time again, and this is the monthly reminder that if you wish to submit any images for the April N4C photo competitions you must get your images to Keith by the 11th.   

Our club judged Digital Nature in April and so we could not submit images for that category.  As a result, you may submit up to two nature images this month because we will be allowed double our usual 8 image submission allotment in that category.  

Please submit your entries to the SFCC email site with "N4C photo submission" 

in the subject line to help Keith find them.

sfcameraclub@gmail.com.

Remember that the deadline for submission is the 11th of the month.

As always, your submitted images must be 1920 pixels or less on the longest side and file size no more than 750 kb.

For more information about N4C competitions see N4C Photo Contests.

If you have any questions, please let Keith know.

Everything you need to know in order to submit photos to the N4C competition is listed below. Please read these instructions carefully.

As Marty said when showing the results of our winter club competition, our images are as good as any that are submitted to N4C, so don't be shy.  At worst you may get constructive criticism that can help you create better images going forward, and at best your image has a 25% chance of being recognized as Merit, Honorable Mention, 1st, 2nd or 3rd place.

Looking forward to seeing your images!

Please check out the latest N4C bulletin

https://n4c.us/Bulletins/N4C_Bulletin_2023-12.pdf

***** As a reminder the 6 categories for entries are

Altered Reality (DA) - The primary distinction for the Altered Reality category is that the maker intends (and the viewer easily recognizes) that the image is not a representation of reality. The Altered Reality image must have a photographic base of the maker’s own creation. Manipulation of the basic image or images can be done in camera and/or in computer. The use of brushes and textures made by others is allowed in Altered Reality, as is the use of software to create unusual effects. The makers of Altered Reality images should feel free to use a wide range of tools and resources, limited only by imagination. Rules for All Print Competi 

Journalism (DJ) -  Journalism Photography depicts some event or activity; story telling is emphasized, as in a newspaper or magazine photograph. An element of human interest is a fundamental quality for a journalism photograph. 1. A Journalism entry can be a single image or a sequence of related images arranged for presentation as a singleentry. 2. Only minimal digital editing is allowed. In the interest of credibility, photographs that misrepresent the truth, such as manipulation to alter the subject matter, or situations set up for the purpose of photography, are unacceptable. No elements may be moved, cloned, added, deleted, rearranged, or combined. No manipulation or modification is permitted except resizing, cropping, selective lightening or darkening, and restoration of original color of the scene. No special effect filters may be added orapplied. 3. For the Print competition, PRINTS should be UNMOUNTED or on a lightweight and have the same size restrictions as all prints as of May 2022 Board ratified amendment. 4. The three (3) jury members shall vote a score of between two (2) and nine (9) points. Separate voting for technique, composition, and interest will NOT be made, but will be considered only in connection with the suitability of the work for Journalism competition. The total score for each submitted photograph will range from six (6) to twenty-seven (27) points. 5. The titles or captions of the submitted works will be read at least for the first round of judging. If subsequent rounds are required, it is not necessary to repeat the title or caption. 

Nature (DN) -  Nature Photography is the recording of our natural world by some photographic means. Included are all branches of nature except Archeology and Anthropology. 1. No photograph is worth distress or injury to any wild creature. 2. Nature photographs may be either black & white or color. 3. The hand of man shall not be present in any nature entry except where wild animals have adapted to the built environment (e.g., fence posts and other man-made objects freely adapted for use by wild creatures). 4. Banding or tagging on nature subjects is acceptable. Photographs at bird feeders are not acceptable if any part of a man-made feeder is shown in the photograph. 5. Photographs taken in zoos, animal farms, or game farms are acceptable if the hand of man is not visible. 6. Domestic animals, and pets are not acceptable. Adjustments must look natural. The use of HDR, exposure blending, focus stacking, stitching, and related techniques that combine more than one image is acceptable, provided the resulting image is natural in appearance.  

Pictorial(DP) -  In pictorial photography, the artistic quality of the presentation is emphasized. The subject itself is not restricted: All subjects qualify. Pictorialism emphasizes beauty of subject matter, tonality, and composition as opposed to documentation. Thus, there is more freedom for artistic interpretation in pictorial photography than there is in Journalism, Nature, or Travel photography. Limited use of brushes and textures is allowed in Pictorial. Still, there is a clear effort to represent reality; this distinguishes the Pictorial category from Altered Reality. 1. The Pictorial category is well-suited for use of modern digital techniques, including HDR, exposure blending, focus stacking, stitching, and related techniques that combine more than one image. 2. At the time of writing, computational photography is emerging as a rapidly growing field. The Pictorial category is receptive to the use of modern photographic techniques and innovations, provided the intent of the photograph is to present an artistic interpretation of recognizably real subjects. 3. Photos submitted in the pictorial category should be in color. Black & white photos that are pictorial in quality should be submitted in the Black & White category.  

Black & White (DB) - The Black & White category is similar in character to Pictorial, except that the Black & White category is for monochrome images. Images are limited to monochromatic hues or shades of gray, although filters may be applied to give a hue or tint. Different photographic processes and toners give a different hue to a black & white photograph, for example, selenium, sepia, and split toning (duo-toning). No fraction of the image shall be given a special color treatment. package and send the prints in one container, provided they are wrapped separately and clearly marked. 2. Black & White prints and digital images may be created from a. black & white film, b. digital black & white captures, or c. digital color images converted to black & white. 3. The use of HDR, exposure blending, focus stacking, stitching, and related techniques that combine more than one image is acceptable. 

Travel (DT) -  Travel implies going to some place other than one’s customary environment; travel photography suggests the photographic depiction of that new environment or the means used to get there. There is no restriction of how far away that environment must be to qualify as “travel” or how different that new environment must be. However, the judges will generally award prizes to those photographs that depict more exotic and unfamiliar places, even though such places are home to someone. The ability to convey the feeling and sense of the place visited is essential. Emphasize the character that makes the place unique. 1. The location of the photography MUST be included in the title. IF THE LOCATION IS IN THE UNITED STATES, LIST THE STATE IN THE TITLE; IF FOREIGN, LIST THE COUNTRY IN THE TITLE. 2. Entered prints must be clearly marked as to category. The judging club will be evaluating Journalism Prints as well as Travel Prints. It is acceptableto package and send the prints in one container, provided they are wrapped separately and clearly marked. 3. Adjustments must look natural and must accurately portray the scene. 

*****For details on the categories and contest rules, etc., please have a look at  N4C Photo Contests online.  

You may submit up to one image in each category.  

Each image must be labeled in the following fashion: 

01,SKXXX, DX,Image title.jpg   (where SKXXX is your assigned N4C number and DX is the specific competition the image is being entered in).

*****Remember the images must be no more than 1920 pixels on the longest side and the file size must be less than 750KB. N4C allows a maximum of 8 entries per club per competition, so in the rare event that our club has more than 8 submissions for any category, the excess images will be held and entered in the next month’s competition.

*****When you are ready to submit your images, send them to the club email address (sfcameraclub@gmail.com).  Please put “N4C competition entries” in the subject line of your email so that I can easily pick them out from the other emails coming to the club.

N4C asks that all competition submissions be received by the judging clubs by the 13th of the month.  To meet this timeline, please get your images in no later than the evening of the 11th of the month.