Contests Good, Bad and Ugly!

limeblu

Hey all, hope your well. I have read a lot about the fact that most photography contests are basically a free for all on the sponsors end, they gain full rights to your images whether you win/place or enter. I am very interested in entering a few so I can maybe get my name out a bit, have some fun and hopefully improve and learn. I am wondering if any of you fine folks would know of anywhere that may list reputable contests for basically any style. I am sure that a few of you would like to have some fun also so hopefully somebody here will know the in and out of photo contests and can educate us on what to watch for, how to prepare and how to protect our images and our wallets. Take care all and talk soon!

Pistnbroke

You are quite right to be caucious ..my wife entered a short story competitions and did not win but the famous judge published a clone of her story within 6 months ......

sevencrossing

most photography contests are basically a free for all on the sponsors end, they gain full rights to your images

Yup that what I used to think
The organisers of a local competition "24 hours in Bristol 2014" , persuaded me, as it is now so difficult to make serious money, selling reproduction rights, I had very little to lose,
( I do make good money from commissions but tiddly squat from reproduction rights)
So I entered his competition
I won second prize and a thousand pounds

maybe get my name out a bit, have some fun

The photographs all had to be taken within a set 24 hours period. I had a lot fun and met many interesting photographers. But don't think it did much to get my name out

mikep

yeah these contests are nonsense imo.

ever notice how the theme of the contest is exactly the pictures that the people running the contest wants?

my university runs one, and pictures must always be of either the university, life in the university, stuff around in london, ie the exact thing they want for the website and brochures.

i dont care about the "your pictures were not doing anything hidden under a bushel" argument, i am just commenting on the underhanded nature of these "competitions".

ThomasHorton

I am personally not a fan of treating my photography as a contest. Not everything needs to be a competition, and, in my opinion, that is especially true in areas of art.

But other photographers like contests and that's great.

My local photo club keeps pushing for people to enter their contests. They don't seem to acknowledge that there are people who are simply not interested in making their hobby into a competition.

tcole1983

I actually entered a contest for our local zoo. I was in the final 5 and I haven't heard who won yet. I guess for me it depends on the contest and which pictures I would be entering. Pictures I have taken at the zoo. What else am I going to do with them? Pictures I feel are good enough to hang in my house...I don't really want to give away. It really also depends on the contest rules and what will happen to the picture. Sometimes I don't care too much if it is one I feel I wouldn't personally be able to do much with myself.

Vipmediastar_JZ

I tagged a photo of mine on instagram for mefoto. My image was selected and I won a mefoto sidekick 360. I did send them a copy of my image watermarked and they published it on their website.
Most competition do take ownership and don't allow watermarks and I tend to stay away.