Role of the Judge
I think the role of the judge is to educate and evoke thought and discussion. After the judging, the submitters should come away with an understanding on how to improve their image. They must feel that the judge is knowledgeable and objective.
The judge must be cognizant of different levels of experience and expertise. For the novice, the judge must be able to critique based on design and composition criteria. For the more advanced, who should already be familiar with these concepts, the judge should be able to express why one image impressed him more than another.
Although it is not desirable to compare one image to another, this is after all a ‘competition’ and some images need to be ‘placed’ above others. Submitters should know why the judge did or did not select a particular image. For novices especially, they should feel inspired and not criticized.
The judge should give his/her honest opinion of the image. It is not doing the image maker a favor not to point out compositional or technical flaws.
Criteria for Judging
I look for images that I could live with on my wall and enjoy seeing everyday. These may not be the highest immediate impact images.
I look for images that I feel someone put effort into, both on the original image capture and the making of the print. Just as careful tripod placement and focusing is required for composition, darkroom or digital imaging effort is required for printing. These efforts should be recognized over the grab shot and drug store produced print.
I first look at a high level:
- I look for images that evoke thought. How are people interacting with their surroundings?
- I look for images that give a sense of place. Does the image make me long to be there?
- Very important, is the image a unique perspective when the subject is somewhat common?
Then I look at the technical execution:
- Composition and relationship of elements in the picture space
- Use of lighting
- Printing – correct colors, artifacts, gamut, tonal ranges, zig-zag edges, etc.
Then if I like an image, I might ignore all this and give it first place.
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