Topic: Photo contests and juried exhibitions

[jharr]

Having just failed miserably at getting a photo shown at the San Diego County Fair, I am considering whether or not to keep trying and spending some time in introspection about why or why not. So I'll ask the group of photographers for whom I hold the utmost respect. Do you enter contests or not and why or why not?

[02Pilot]

I haven't entered any contests, but I am starting to approach galleries (in a very haphazard and sporadic way) about showing and selling prints. The purpose, to me, is twofold: first, raw unabashed avarice, and second, the process is forcing me to look at my work more in terms of collections and themes organized around a particular aesthetic, which I think may be useful in better understanding what I'm doing. Both objectives are likely to be at least partially unsuccessful, the first in particular, but it feels like time to start imposing some order and rigor on my work, and this seemed a potentially useful way to do it.

[Late Developer]

I haven't entered any - yet. I am considering sending some photos into a photography magazine that posts readers' photos but I haven't decided which. My approach is that I'm not going into a tailspin if they aren't included in the mag as there are a lot of fine photos printed every month and I'm not deluding myself that mine will necessarily be up to the mark.  Still if you don't try....

[Sandeha Lynch]

I'll occasionally go and view an exhibition drawn from a competition, like the touring Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition, and twice I've managed to catch the World Press Photo.  The individual photos and photo series definitely make good viewing, but so too would most of the other ten to eighty thousand entries.   In a sense, holding a competition is just one means for curating an exhibition, and not necessarily the most constructive method. 

So no, I don't enter them.  I see it as a lot of effort invested with a very low return, and I say that as a one time first prize winner in a national competition.

[Francois]

You're definitely right about the return on investment...
I've worked at a local gallery for four years and even if the manager told me that she could put me in on the next lineup, I decided not to. It was a city operated gallery that didn't have its own roster of supported artist. The exhibition space was really huge with a room that measured close to 100 feet by 100 feet. Just imagine how many 8x10s in frames you need to make that room look half full!

As for the contests, I've tried sending a ton of prints to them in the past only to have them returned completely butchered with a thank-you but no thanks note.
So I've definitely pulled the plug on them.

[Bryan]

I mostly take photos for my own amusement and capturing memories.  I like to share photos online to get feedback, I think that helps me become better at it.  I wouldn't rule out a contest completely but I don't feel the need to be judged like that.  If someone enjoys one of my photos that's good enough for me. 

[KevinAllan]

I take photos for my own enjoyment and I don't want to distort my subject choice to fit into the categories set by a competition. As for exhibitions, I've read a few articles by well-known photographers who have owned up about how much money they lost on the enterprise.

I have some images on stock sales sites and have sold a few - it's a nice bonus but they are photos I took for my enjoyment.

[gsgary]

I've not entered any of our club competitions for a long time, I would be wasting my time because I don't shoot wildlife, some bird on a stick usually wins

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[Terry]

I've had some intermittent success with juried exhibitions.  Maybe 20 photos hung, mostly in a couple of galleries on the West Coast.  They seem to like street photos of New York.  I reckon I could get more into these things if I spent more time photoshopping but I like to see in the photograph a close approximation of what I saw in the viewfinder.  The trend seems to be to overdramatic and oversaturated content (in my opinion) and that doesn't interest me. 

Edit: I've sold four photos of those that were exhibited.  Not going to quit the day job soon.

[jharr]

Good thoughts all. I myself have always taken pictures because I like to 'do' photography. I like the creative process often more than I like the results I get. I feel the same way about drawing. I can draw and I like to do it, but I am not good at it. I entered this contest at someone else's prompting. I had toyed with the idea for a few years and never really saw any of my own photos as being good enough to enter. I have trouble making photos that are of the kind that you would see in a gallery or a magazine. I think that is because I take photos of the way I see the world and not with galleries, magazines or contests in mind. People have asked me why I don't do photography as my profession. I usually answer "Because no one could pay me enough to give up my hobby." After five days of coding and troubleshooting and supporting, taking a couple of pictures helps me decompress like nothing else can. A good glass of beer comes close. If I was out taking photos all week trying to meet a deadline, I guess I would only be left with the beer for comfort and I don't care to live that way.

I think even though the rejection stung a bit, this has been a good exercise to get my head around why I love this hobby so much. Thanks everyone for sharing.