A guide to the Club’s competitions, to be read in conjunction with the Competition Rules
During each season, various internal competitions are held at the Club. These are:

1. Club Six – the main competition. It is called ‘Club Six’ because there are six ‘rounds’ spread throughout the Club season. Each of the six rounds has three categories – projected images, colour prints and monochrome prints. Three of the rounds are ‘Open’ subject, i.e. your prints and images can be of any subject or topic you like. The other three rounds have ‘Set subjects’ which are usually announced at the AGM in May to apply the following season commencing in September and are printed on the Season’s Programme. External, qualified, photographic judges are booked to appraise the entries and award points. Members are allowed a maximum of two entries in each category.
2. Knockout Competition – This is run along normal KO competition lines. In this case, in each of the three categories, pairs of prints and pairs of projected images are displayed side by side and for this competition the Club Members vote by a show of hands for the photograph they prefer of the two. The one with the most votes progresses to the next round. The last pair in each category form the finals, ending with category winners and runners-up.
   Members are allowed a maximum of three entries in each category.
3. Natural History Competition – Members are allowed a maximum of three entries in each category.
   The Photographic Alliance of Great Britain (PAGB) revised it’s definition of Nature photography from Feb 2018. Below is a précis of the wording.
   Images entered as Nature can have landscape, geologic formations, weather phenomena, and extent organisms as the primary subject matter. This includes images taken with the subjects in controlled conditions, such as zoos, game farms, botanical gardens, aquariums and any enclosure where the subjects are totally dependent on humans for food.
   Wild animals, including those with scientific bands, scientific tags, or radio collars are permissible. Photographs of human created hybrid plants, feral animals, domestic animals, or mounted specimens are ineligible, as is any form of manipulation that alters the truth of the photographic statement.
   Processing of the captured image, by cropping, exposure adjustment, colour correction, noise minimisation, dodging/burning, HDR, focus staking and sharpening, is allowed. Cloning of image defects and minor distractions, including overlapping elements, are permitted when these do not distort the truth of the photographic statement.
4. Prints and Projected Digital Image of the Year Competition – held at the end of each season. Prints and digital images which have been awarded high points in Club Six rounds and Natural History during the season, and the winners only of the Knockout competition, are eligible for this competition. Club Members vote for their particular favourites in a paper ballot, choosing their top three in each of the three categories – projected images, monochrome prints and colour prints. 1st choices are awarded 3 points, 2nd choices 2 points, and 3rd choices 1 point. Highest number of points in each category, wins that category.
   Members are advised by the Competitions Secretary which prints qualify for these competitions. Qualifying images for digital projection are already stored on the Club’s computer.