Print and Electronic Image Competitions

Valley Viewfinders Monthly Print Competitions - Prints entered into competition must comply with the club's Print Competition Guidelines.

Prints are judged by club members during the first meeting of the month. Every member may vote for three images in each competition area (for example, they may vote for three color-large-open images and three color-large-theme images). Images with the most votes in each competition area are awarded first, second, and third place. Members are encouraged to follow the club's Judging Guidelines when casting votes.

Since the prints that win first and second place may be sent to the 4Cs for further competition, members are asked to leave these prints with the Print Chair. The Chair and the selection committee will select prints from this group to be sent out to the 4Cs judging club. The Print Chair will hold these prints until it is determined they are no long needed for 4Cs competitions, then the prints are returned to the creator. It may be necessary for the Print Chair to keep the prints for several months until judging is complete.

Valley Viewfinders Print of the Year Award - Club members select the Print of the Year from the monthly first-place winners of the previous competition year (September through June). Prints are judged, and awards presented, during the last meeting in June.

Valley Viewfinders Print Photographer of the Year - Awarded for participation in the club's monthly print competitions. Both a Color Print Photographer of the Year award and a Monochrome Print Photographer of the Year award are given. The club member with the most competition points accumulated during the previous competition year is declared Print Photographer of the Year. One point is awarded for every print entered in a monthly competition, three points for a first place winner, two points for second place, and one point for third. This award is presented during the second June meeting.

Valley Viewfinders Quarterly Electronic Image (EI) Competitions - Electronic images entered into competition must comply with the club's Electronic Image Competition Guidelines.

Electronic images are judged four times a year. Judging is done by a three-judge panel selected by the club President. A 27-point scoring system is used, with each judge awarding from a low of one point to a high of nine points for each slide. The three images in each competition area with the most points are declared first, second, and third place winners.

Valley Viewfinders Electronic Image of the Year Award - The Electronic Image of the Year in the Traditional and Creative categories are selected from the monthly first-place winners of the previous competition year (September through June). Images are judged, and awards presented, during the the second June meeting.

Valley Viewfinders Electronic Image Photographer of the Year - Awarded for participation in the club's competitions throughout the year. The club member with the most competition points accumulated during the previous competition year (September through June) is declared Electronic Image Photographer of the Year. One point is awarded for every image entered in a competition, three points for a first place winner, two points for second place, and one point for third. This award is presented during the second June meeting.

Columbia Council of Camera Clubs (4Cs) Competitions

4Cs Monthly Competitions - The 4Cs Monthly Image Competitions provide it's Member Clubs, and their individual memberships, the opportunity to compete, display and be recognized with other members throughout the Council. These competitions present its participants the chance to see how their individual images compare to others from around the northwest. Learn more about the 4Cs. For purposes of slide judging, the 4Cs uses year-end scores to organize member clubs into three groups. Each month a club from each group is designated as the judging club, and judges images from all clubs in the group. Periodically the Valley Viewfinders Camera Club is the judging club, so we encourage our members to become familiar with the 4Cs Judging Guidelines. The Valley Viewfinders Print Chair and Slide Chair chose images to be sent to the judging clubs. 4Cs Creative Slide Competitions - The 4Cs offers creative slide competitions in November and May. Any creative method you use to make the image is appropriate as long as it fits in a standard slide mount. Digitally enhanced images may be used if they fit into a standard slide mount. This competition is on an individual basis rather than a club basis. For more details, visit the 4Cs website at http://www.columbiacouncil.com. 4Cs End-of-Year Competitions - At the end of the competition year all images that received an award in 4Cs competitions are considered for the Print/Slide Of The Year award. The images are judged and the winners announced at the annual 4Cs convention (usually the third weekend in October). Several members of the Valley Viewfinders Camera Club have won the prestigious 4Cs end-of-year awards. More Information - The 4Cs occasionally changes its rules and procedures. For up-to-date information, and to read more about the 4Cs clubs, competitions, and competition guidelines, visit their website at http://www.columbiacouncil.com.

Photographic Society of America (PSA) Competitions

PSA Bi-Monthly Competition - Our club participates in the bi-monthly PSA Slide Division competition. The Valley Viewfinders PSA Chair selects slides from the monthly competition winners to be sent to the PSA for judging.

PSA Year-End Awards - Year-end awards are sent to the Valley Viewfinder PSA Chair.

More Information - Read more about PSA.