PSA Photo Travel Division

Interclub Digital Competitions

In 2009, Wade Clutton designed an Web based entry process that is intended to make the entry and judging process for the PSA Photo Travel Interclub Digital Competitions more uniform and efficient. This process will likely continue to evolve but here are my general and technical guidelines in one document for easy reference. This will give you a basic understanding of the process, cumulative scoring and other general information.

Receiving entries

1. Review entry Input URL at ( click here for Photo Travel Entry form)

Remember... Images must be submitted as JPEG images and an sRGB color space is recommended. Maximum image width is 1024 pixels and maximum height is 768 pixels. Each image should have Maximum file size no greater than 800K.

2. When the interclub representative clicks on the submit button, the entered data and jpegs are stored on a PSA Server until all entries are received or until the deadline has past.

3. The Photo Travel Interclub Director will consolidate all the data and images on a CD along with a copy of the Club Viewer and mail the CD to the hosting club.

4. The Hosting Club should use the Club Viewer for judging and entering scores. The Club Viewer will produce an Excel spreadsheet with all the entrants and scores. At completion of Judging, please sort the spreadsheet into individual sections for each club and its entries. After the judging, send the master sheet to me to review. Please send me each club’s information and scores in an excel spreadsheet similar to the following PJ example:

If you are not using club viewer, the web page is able to write entry data to a TXT file.

- This file may be opened in Excel (you have to change the "File Types" to include TXT)

- Information may be added, columns added, etc to reflect judging, awards, etc.

- Save file and email as attachment to chairman

Please forward the information and the excel spreadsheet to me as soon as possible.

Testing before competition

It is strongly urged that each host club test the system before the competition.

Entry Guidelines

A PSA club may enter 6 images from six different members . Individual members need not belong to PSA to compete. The hosting club may not enter any images but may enter 12 images in one of the other competitions as a make-up entry.

Definitions

Entries must be the sole work of the exhibitor and must conform to the Photo Travel Division definition.

“A Photo Travel image must express the feeling of a time and place, portray a land, its people, or a culture in its natural state, and has no geographical limitations. Ultra close-ups which lose their identity, studio-type model shots, or photographic manipulations that misrepresent the true situation or alter the content of the image are unacceptable in Photo Travel competition.

No pictorial elements may be moved, cloned, added, deleted, rearranged or combined. No manipulation or modification is permitted except resizing, cropping, selective lightening or darkening, sharpening, and restoration of original color to the scene. Any adjustments must appear natural. ”

Entry of an ineligible image will forfeit the score for that image. Winning entries or look-a-likes of previous PT inter-club winners should not be entered and may be disqualified.

Judging and Scoring guidelines

In order to ensure consistency among the judging clubs throughout the year and fairness to all clubs and participants, the following approach should be used:

All images will be previewed before scoring begins. Images are to be judged on the basis of their quality within the context of this competition, using the full range of the following four distinction scale:

5 - Superior

4 - Above Average

3 - Average

2 - Below average

- The first place image should receive a score of 15. Rationale: If an image is good enough to place first, it should receive the highest score.

- The second place image should receive a minimum score of 14.

- The third place image should receive a minimum score of 13.

Honorable mention images should receive a minimum score 12. In general use 10% of the total images as a guideline for HMs . Specific numbers will be discussed with the judging club.

If there are multiple images with the same scores i.e. four images receiving 15 points, then the judges will decide which is first, second and third.

In order to encourage people to participate, err on the side of awarding HMs.

Make-up for Host Clubs

The host club is not allowed to judge its own images unless it chooses outside judges that have no connection with the host club. However, it is recommended that the host club use its own judges when possible, to give members the opportunity to judge and learn the criteria and guidelines for Photojournalism.

Each host club will have the opportunity to enter a double entry to a competition before or after the competition it hosts as a make-up any time during the year.

Roger McCarthy, Director

PHOTO TRAVEL INTERCLUB DIGITAL COMPETITION

e-mail address: rjmcc@charter.net