Club Internal Competitions

All members of the club are encouraged to enter their work into our internal competitions, which are spread throughout the season.

We host nine internal Photography competitions each season, as well as participating in several external competitions. It can be a daunting prospect to put your images forward for open critique and judging. However, this is an excellent way to learn how to improve your photography.

If you are new to Club Competitions take a look at our Get Involved page if your interest is in Projected Digital Images (PDI). If Printing piques your interest, see our guide to Club Competition Printing page.

All of our competitions are judged by judges affiliated with the PAGB and come from outside our club. We have a set of rules that govern our competitions. SEE HERE

Nine Club Trophies are presented to the competition winners at the end of the Season:

  • Print League Championship
  • Projected Digital Image (PDI) League Championship
  • Image of the Year
    • Projected Digital Image (PDI) of the Year
    • Print Image of the Year
  • Print Panel Competition
  • Projected Digital Image (PDI) Panel Competition
  • Landscape Cup*
  • Howard Morris Memorial Trophy*
  • Creative Vision Award

*presented alternate years

(please be aware that images in the competition pages may contain nudity)

For information on our current and past season results, see the Competition Results pages.

Competition Summaries

The Internal League Competition is a photography contest open to all paid members of the club. Each round features two categories:

  • Print
  • PDI (Projected Digital Image)

Members may submit up to two images per round, in any combination:

  • Two Prints, or
  • Two PDIs, or
  • One Print and one PDI

Each image is scored out of 20 points. For each round, a member’s highest-scoring image in each category is recorded. At the end of the season, the members with the highest 5 accumulated scores in Print and PDI, respectively, are awarded the club trophies.

Set Subjects for 2025-2026 are:

  • Round 2 Low Light – Low light can add atmosphere and focus to an image, changing the way we see the scene.
    • Your images need to use limited light to lift the picture above the ordinary. Natural and artificial lighting, and long exposure are all in scope.
  • Round 4 Low Angle – Involves positioning the camera below the subject and shooting upwards, creating a unique perspective that can make the subject appear larger, more powerful, or imposing
  • Round 6 Hats – We see people wearing a wide variety of hats all around us throughout the year and are a great opportunity to create some fun, creative images. Your images need to contain 2 or more hats of any kind, and the hats must be the main focus of the image.

 Set Subjects for 2026-2027 (subject to AGM approval) are:

  • Round 2 Abstract – Photography that emphasises shapes, colours, textures and patterns rather than clear subjects.
  • Round 4 SubFrame – Utilise scene elements, implied or physical, to create a frame that directs the viewer’s focus to the subject.
  • Round 6 Books – A book(s), whether a single page or an entire collection, must be intrinsic to the image.
  • Additional Information: Abstract Photography ; What is a Subframe ; Subframing

The ‘Image Of The Year’ competitions are held at the end of the season, following the completion of the Clubs League Competitions for Print & PDI.

  • Members can submit up to two images from the current season.
  • Images can be either Print or Digital.
  • Each submitted image must have previously participated in its respective format category (Print or PDI) in one of the current season’s six club league competitions (comprising three “Open” and three “Set Subject” competitions).
  • Images may be revised based on the judge’s comments (including the image title) from the original competition.
  • There are no separate sections (S1 or S2); all members compete equally against each other when selecting their best work from the season

The Committee will appoint an external judge who will select the first, second and third place for both Print of the Year & PDI of the Year. The winning image in each category will be used on the club website next season (where possible).

This annual competition is for panels of 3-6 Prints, to be judged as a panel. There are NO Section 1 or Section 2 categories in this competition. All members compete equally against each other. Titles are required and the images must show some link, identifiable by the judge. For example, a common colour, subject or shape.

Each member may enter up to two panels.

For examples of previous competitions SEE HERE

Members may enter both the print and digital panel competitions.

Each member may enter up to two panels as either prints or digital Images, or one of each.

The committee will appoint an external judge who will select the first, second and third place panels for both prints and digital Images.

The committee reserves the right to withdraw portfolio submissions if the overall entry is larger than can be dealt with
by the judge in the time available. Members will be consulted.

How to enter the Portfolio competition

Please also refer to the General Requirements for details of how to prepare images for entry.

Prints: A print entry consists of 3 to 6 mounted prints (monochrome, colour or a mixture) to be viewed
simultaneously.

Each print’s position must be marked on the back, either by numbering from left to right (when
viewed), or labelled ‘Left’, ‘Inner Left’, ‘Centre’, ‘Inner Right’ and ‘Right’. The back must also be marked with the
Member’s name.

When deciding the size for Prints, it may help to remember that the Club’s print stand is 6 feet (180cm) wide and the
prints will be displayed side by side.

Pictures may be sized and positioned as required within the frame. A plain monochrome background must be used –
the background must NOT be one of the images. The file must be named as described in the General Requirements.

This annual competition is for panel of  3-6 Digital Images, to be judged as a panel. There are NO Section 1 or Section 2 categories in this competition. All members compete equally against each other. Titles are required and the images must show some link, identifiable by the judge. For example, a common colour, subject or shape.

Each member may enter up to two panels as either prints or digital images, or one of each.

For examples of previous competitions SEE HERE

To encourage more landscape work, Barbara Fleming ARPS DPAGB has sponsored this biennial competition. It is open to all members with no sections. The subject matter is “Landscape”.

LBPC Landscape Cup Competition Definition – Landscape photographs typically capture the presence of the natural world, traditionally showing little or no human activity, featuring subjects such as strongly defined landforms, weather, and ambient light. However, Landscape can also focus on man-made features or disturbances of landscapes, including rural or urban settings or industrial areas. Within the scope of the LBPC Landscape Cup competition, ‘Seascapes’ are permitted. However, they MUST include a significant proportion of land or coastline as the main subject. Note: the genre ‘Intimate Landscape‘ IS NOT included within the scope of the Biennial Landscape Cup.

Entries must not have been, entered into any previous club competition.

This is a normally a black & white print only contest with up to two prints that must NOT have been entered into any previous league competition.
It was instigated and sponsored by Howard Morris, one of our veteran members whose great love was B/W prints and who also donated the trophy. The submissions must be Black/White without any toning, colour-popping etc. This is a biannual contest alternating with the ‘Landscape Cup’.

This biennial print competition was established in memory of former club member Howard Morris. Traditionally, this is a print-only competition, open to all members.

  1. Members may submit up to two images in total, in accordance with the Clubs Competition general rules.
  2. All images must conform to the rules as set out in General Competition Rules.
  3. Each image MUST NOT have previously been entered into the MHMT, or any club league competition.
  4. There are no sections (S1 or S2); members of both sections are invited to select their best work from that season. All members compete equally against each other.
  5. The subject matter is open.
  6. Black & White only.
  7. Each member may submit up to two entries, that have NOT been, entered into any other club competition.

The Committee will appoint an external judge who will select the first, second and third place entries.

This is a sophisticated, utterly unfair and usually pretty chaotic competition. Contestants submit up to 6 images each, which are anonymously and randomly selected for projection in pairs. One of each pair is chosen by the assembled club members, via a show of hands, to go through to the next round. Last image standing is the winner.

A member of the Programme Team will set several challenges each year.

Mike K is sponsoring a new annual club competition and trophy starting in 2025.

“As you all know my great love is artistic and creative photography in all its varieties and over the past few years I’ve seen how you’ve all embraced the concept of visual art in your images.

This has driven my decision to sponsor an annual trophy the “Creative Vision Award” which will be assessed for originality of concept and faithfulness to the theme.

The theme will change each year but the same basic tenets will apply as above and the competition will be adjudicated by an independent judge”.