Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) June 02, 2014
Professional Photographers of America (PPA) is now accepting entries for the International Photographic Competition (IPC).
The IPC challenges photographers to grow their artistic and technical photography skills by creatively capturing and presenting their best images, and by doing so, improving their businesses. It also gives PPA members the opportunity to earn merits toward photography degrees.
The competition attracts submissions from the best of the best in the photography industry from all over the world and urges others to push themselves to join the ranks of the elite. Last year, nearly 5,000 images from all over the U.S. were entered in the competition. This year’s entries will be judged August 3 to 7 at Gwinnett Technical College in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
To enter, photographers submit prints, electronic files and physical and/or digital albums to be judged by a panel of qualified photographic experts. Competitors must designate the category under which each image is being submitted. The four categories include: portrait, illustrative and album (event and non-event).
Submissions will either merit or not merit and are judged against a standard of excellence using PPA’s 12 elements of a merit image. The 12 elements are: impact, technical, excellence, creativity, style, composition, presentation, color balance, center of interest, lighting, subject matter, technique and storytelling. An explanation of each can be found on PPA.com.
Images that earn merits will move on to a second round of judging, which could possibly earn an additional merit and a place in the Loan Collection. The prestigious "Loan Collection" consists of the winning images from the year’s IPC. These images are compiled into a book, published by Marathon Press, and are also showcased in a special exhibit at Imaging USA—PPA’s annual photography convention and expo, to be held Feb. 1 to 3, 2015, in Nashville, Tennessee.
And for those who don’t earn merits this year: they don’t have to leave empty-handed. Critiques from the IPC judges will be available upon request, as a way to help participants find areas of improvement and prepare for future photo competitions.
“Becoming involved in competitions made me a better photographer and turned out to be good for business,” said PPA president Susan Michal, M.Photog.Cr., CPP, ABI. “I learned so much about lighting and posing from the judges and learned even more about the emotional impact an image.”
Competitors must submit their images by midnight, June 26. Physical print entry cases must be received within seven days of the entry deadline. The images will be judged from August 3 to 7 and results will be posted the ppa.com/IPC website soon after.
For more information on the IPC, how the competition works, submission criteria and rules, to view previous winners, or to register, visit ppa.com/IPC.
About PPA
Professional Photographers of America (PPA) is the largest international non-profit association created by professional photographers, for professional photographers. Almost as long-lived as photography itself, PPA has roots that date back to 1869. It assists close to 27,000 members through protection, education and resources for their continued success. See how PPA helps photographers be more at ppa.com.