Role of the Judge
For a competition to be a true learning experience for entrant AND audience alike, the judge has to assume the role of teacher and by extension, become an evaluator.
Just as teachers are expected to be knowledgeable in their subject matter and specialists in their chosen area of expertise, so must a judge have a solid formation in the basics of photography yet be familiar with current trends and new directions modern photography is taking. Sensitive and thoughtful judges should always be tolerant of and receptive to new ideas and techniques and should try to keep themselves actively engaged in new projects and self-improvement workshops which would maintain skills and help them grow personally and professionally.
All effective teachers must be skilled communicators who clearly set forth precise goals and expectations for students to follow. They regularly analyze, assess, critique and evaluate student performance on all levels by using a variety of constructive, positive and imaginative techniques. Likewise the judge should be able to gauge levels of achievement, rank work submitted and reward mastery of skills and goals in a neutral, unbiased, open-minded and fair way. His / her viewpoints on the goals and expectations of judging should be clearly articulated and made readily available before the beginning of any competition process or event.
Just as master teachers frequently become far more than mere opinion-givers, likewise competent judges can become mentors whose positive contributions can inspire the novice and veteran photographer alike, can influence the direction a camera club competition takes, can elevate, endorse or praise certain photographic techniques or subfields. However, at the same time, disparaging remarks and conduct from judges can have a negative effect upon the beginning photographer, can skew the competition process, denigrate alternative processes / techniques and discourage photographic pursuits; this is an approach which competent judges should avoid.
Criteria for Judging
Based on my personal experience as an active competitor, I believe a judge should respectfully observe the rules set down by each camera club and apply them as conscientiously as possible to each judging situation. Furthermore, if contacted by a competition chairperson to judge or jury an event, I would consider it MY PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY to find out well in advance and in detail what each camera club expects during the judging process. I would apprise myself of the specific logistics and “standard operating procedures” followed by each group, and expect to stay in close contact with the competition coordinator if there were questions or problems which I deemed necessary to resolve prior to the event.
Since it is my firm belief that a judge should be as tolerant and open-minded as possible, I would therefore set aside any preferences or prejudices which guide my own photographic work, in order to look for strengths in ALL WORKS being judged. The ability to accurately and effectively communicate either the merits OR weaknesses of images AND make appropriate suggestions for improvement where needed would be top priority. My judging criteria would strive to combine the heavily-weighted intellectual considerations of craftsmanship (technical merits) and composition (elements of visual design) with the more imaginative aspects of creativity (imagination, uniqueness) in order to arrive at an appropriate and acceptable balance.