P3D Re: Slide competitions are fair?

["Dr. George A. Themelis" <DrT-3d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Mark is making recommendations to make club slide competitions
more fair:

1. First, lets be more specific regarding the topics. If the topic is 
   "architecture" for example...be more specific such as "churches" or 
   "office buildings". 

The assignment topic must be such that allows some imagination and
flexibility.  How would you like "Parthenon" to make it ever more
specific architecture?  (Parthenon is a ancient building in Athens
Greece.... I have plenty of pictures of it :-))

One time I suggested "Churches" for a Detroit assignment.  I had plenty
of pictures of churches (many from Greece).  The Detroit officials
chose to call it "SPIRITUAL" which gave a totally new spin to the
assignment.  Spiritual can include churches but also religious and
spiritual symbols, cemeteries, etc.  I ended up brining a camera and
taking pictures inside our church in Cleveland. I combined images like
candles with a picture of Jesus.  I had a blast working on this!
I ended up submitting these unusual combinations and not even one
picture of a church!

2. Secondly, assignments should be
   disclosed at the previous meeting, allowing a month to photograph the
   assignment and enter the images. This would discourage the old timers
   and lazy long timers from entering " stock" images. 

The way I see things, you must place a special requirement (or put it
as assignment topic) that the images are "fresh".  Most clubs do not do
that.  Even the old timers will run out of pictures eventually, if they
are not as prolific as DrT, for example :-)

My first years in Detroit I worked every assignment from scratch. Some
of my best pictures were taken the weekend RIGHT BEFORE the Wednesday
meeting.  I remember the "Neon Lights" assignment in February.  It was
-40F and I was trying to take double exposures of neon signs with my
Realist!  Imagine, trying to advance the film wearing two pairs of 
gloves!  I would stay in my (warm) car for 15 minutes, just to be able
to get out and snap a few pictures for 3-4 minutes and then back to
the car!

I did very well like that.  Now, the Cleveland club and other
responsibilities have taken my energy away... and I do put it "stock"
images.  Result: I am not doing very well... :-(

Mark, stop "complaining" and start moving!  I expect to see results
of your great work in our next meeting!  And yes, you will have to
compete with pictures from exotic lands, like Greece, etc. :-) taken
some 10 years ago!

George Themelis


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