PPSCV Image Competition Categories (2021)

Image competition entries are judged according to the category identified when the image is submitted.
It is important to assign appropriate category to each image. In some cases there may be more than one category that an image is suited for, in which case it is the maker's decision how which one to pick.

Important PPA District and IPC competition CHANGES 2021
PPSCV is a PPA affiliate, and in order that our members can transition their image competition entries to the PPA IPC and District competitions (rules here), we follow the PPA image competition categories, with some small changes to make our competition more relevant to our members.

In 2021 PPA made an important change to recognize the popularity of creating images with multiple components (focus stacking, HDR, background or sky replacement, composites and more). From 2021, the Photographic Open competition including Portraits, landscapes and Illustrative categories include this rule:
"The Photographic Open Competition is to show the photographic knowledge and skillset of the maker. However, a maker can use supporting photographic elements that they did not create, provided those elements are referenced as guide images on the face of the entry. The original photographic capture by the entrant should be merit-worthy independent of the work that was not their own. Elements created by the maker must not be part of the guide images."

This means that image composites are now allowed to be composed on a merit-worthy base image, and that those elements are not required to be added as guide images if captured by the maker. For those additional elements added but not captured by the maker, guide images must be included in the submitted image file, typically as thumbnails along one edge of the submitted image. 

This makes it possible to enter composite images in more categories than before where they may have been suitable only for the Artist category.
Reportage/Events are not included in this change.

A. Portrait - Images can portray a subject or subjects from all walks of life and should reflect the personality of the subject(s).
A.1 Animal: This sub-category is for portraits of animals using structured lighting in a studio or outdoor environment, where the owner or photographer controls the animal.
A.2 Children: This sub-category must contain a child or children from birth to age 16.
A.3 General Portrait: This sub-category includes families, groups, couples, high school seniors (16 and older), and adults (18 and older), relationships, models, and fashion portraits, in addition to tastefully artistic figure studies.

B. Illustrative - Consists of commercial/industrial images, scenic, pictorials, digital paintings, and similar subject matter. Illustrative can also be conceptual images that tell a story.
Portraits and weddings are not appropriate for this category.
B.1 Architecture: This sub-category can include the interiors and exteriors of buildings, and industrial or urban landscapes, where man-made buildings are the primary subject.
B.2 Commercial: This sub-category is used when images are created for a commercial client to advertise a product and promote a brand or company. Images can be an interior or exterior of a structure or from within an industrial environment.
B.3 Landscape: This sub-category shares joy and adventures while expressing a sense of place. Natural and urban landscapes, cityscapes, seascapes, and sunsets with or without people can be placed here.
B.4 General: Conceptual images that tell a story or that do not fit in the other sub-categories above can be placed here. 

C. Nature - Consists of images where the subjects are plants and/or animals in a domestic or wild setting.
C.1 Flora: This sub-category includes images where the main subject(s) are trees, flowers, or other kinds of plants.
C.2 Fauna: This sub-category includes images where the main subject(s) are mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, insects, or other kinds of animals.

D. Reportage/Events - Images that illustrate an actual public or non-public event, life, an area of human interest, telling news that has meaning in the context or record of events, high impact, and/or lasting emotional response. Images that illustrate sporting events are included in this category. ONLY basic color and brightness adjustments, cropping, dodging and burning in are allowed. Only single-capture images will be accepted. Composite and multiple exposure images will not be accepted in this category. The original captured image (in RAW or jpg) must be available if requested by the committee.
D.1 Photojournalism: This sub-category is for images that document news items, including sporting events., 
D.2 Street Photography: Images are typically from a public or urban setting capturing candid moments and situations, which may or may not include people.
D.3 Wedding: This sub-category includes traditional wedding day images documenting any aspect of the preparations, ceremony and festivities. Images can portray subjects from all aspects of a wedding, including traditional portraits, candids, or detail work. Images such as bridal portraits taken before or after the wedding day can be entered in the Portrait category.
D.4 Special Occasion (non-wedding): This sub-category includes images from non-wedding events including engagements, bar/bat mitzvahs, quinceañeras and other celebratory occasions.

E. Artist - A conceptual image altered or manipulated from its original condition. Creations can be a subtle application using post-processing techniques or a dramatic combination of details to suggest a larger story. The artist is responsible for the idea behind the image and the work done to create the finished art piece.
E.1 Creative Open: This category is for images that are fundamentally altered from the original image(s) captured by the camera, including composite images and images that were never captured by a camera. The image maker is allowed to use photography and visual elements created by other individuals provided the image maker has the legal right to use those assets. It is required to include guide images (thumbnails along one side of the image) to show work done on the image. This would include very heavy use of filters or painting, computer generated artwork, etc. Entries will be judged for digital, artistic, and technical proficiency.
E.2 Restoration: This sub-category is for images that have been restored from original damaged or degraded photographs. The original and restored images should be shown in the same frame.

N. Non-Member Open - This category is for images entered by makers who are not PPSCV affiliate members. This category is open, and can include images from any of the image competition categories.
Not all competitions will have a non-member category. Non-member entries are not eligible for awards or prizes.