THE 2019 COMPETITION WILL BE OPEN FOR ENTRIES ON 1ST JUNE 2019.

Catalogues from previous years

LMN Catalog – reduced1 2018

Information about the competition

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About this Exhibition

This exhibition is being conducted by the Belmont 16s Photography Club, a subsidiary club of the Belmont 16 Foot Sailing Club, located on the eastern shore of Lake Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia.

The exhibition was first conducted in 2016. It has been approved by the Australian Photographic Society (APS).  Acceptances in this exhibition may be used in applications for some APS Photographic Honours (as detailed on the APS website).

This is a Digital or Electronically Displayed Image (EDI) competition, with entries for the competition submitted via this website.

The sections for the 2018 competition are:

  • Colour
  • Monochrome
  • Nature (colour or mono)
  • Photo Travel (colour or mono)
  • Youth (for entrants who are 18 years old or younger on the closing date of the exhibition.

The accepted images will be exhibited at:

If you register your interest on the form at the bottom of this page we will email you a reminder when this site is open for entries.

The competition entries will close on the 4th August 2019.

Judging will take place on 11th August and notification of results will occur on 18th August 2019.

All entrants will be able to download from this site a PDF catalogue containing all accepted images. The catalogues will be available on 11th September 2019.

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Entry Fees for 2018

Four images may be entered in each section.

The entry fees are:
1 section $6
2 sections $11
3 sections $15
4 sections $18
Special Youth section $2

The payment method for this competition is PayPal.  No other payment methods are offered. You do not need a PayPal account – you can use PayPal if you have a credit card.

There are no group entries so each entrant must individually pay for their entry.

All fees are in Australian Dollars (AUD).

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Conditions of Entry

The submission of entries signifies acceptance of the following conditions:

Eligibility: The exhibition is open to all photographers who are residents of Australia or members of the Australian Photographic Society.  An entry may be rejected when the sponsoring organization or its agent, in its reasonable discretion, believes the entry does not conform to the exhibition rules and conditions.

The Exhibition Chairman, persons closely involved in the organisation of the exhibition, persons in charge of the handling of the exhibition software, and judges are not permitted to enter the exhibition.

Images that have been accepted in the Lake Macquarie National in previous years may not be re-entered.

Recognition: The exhibition is conducted in accordance with the recommendations of and approval  of the Australian Photographic Society (APS)  –  Approval number 2019/16.

Subject to the rules of the APS, acceptances in this exhibition are eligible for inclusion in applications for APS honours.

As a condition of APS approval of the exhibition, all entrants must signify agreement to the following statement before being able to enter images;

By submitting images to this exhibition, I agree to accept without exception or objection the following terms:

  1. To ensure that images comply with the Conditions of Entry, including all relevant definitions, the exhibition organisers may ask me to provide originally captured images, with EXIF data intact, by a specified deadline.
  2. If I do not supply the requested image(s )in the specified time those images will be deemed to be in breach of the Conditions of Entry.
  3. Images that are submitted as requested may be investigated by any means determined appropriate by the exhibition organisers to establish if the image(s) comply with the conditions of entry.
  4. Images that are deemed by the exhibition organisers to breach the Conditions of Entry will be removed from the exhibition. Any acceptances or awards allocated to those images will become void.
  5. The exhibition organizers will provide APS with details of al lbreaches of the Conditions of Entry. APS retains the right to impose sanctions on entrants deemed to have repeatedly breached the Conditions of Entry of any APS Approved exhibition.

Image creation, authenticity and reproduction: Entries must originate as photographs (image captures of objects via light sensitivity) made by the entrant on photographic emulsion or acquired digitally.

All final work must be an electronic file.

By virtue of submitting an entry, the entrant certifies the work as his/her own (aliases are not permitted).

The entrant permits the exhibition organisers to reproduce all or part of the entered material free of charge for publication and/or display in media related to the exhibition. This may include low resolution posting on a website. Note: Entrants who indicate that their images may not be reproduced or used may not be eligible for awards or inclusion in audiovisuals of the exhibition and could be subject to disqualification by the exhibition organisers.

By submitting an entry the entrant certifies that in the process of capturing the image the entrant did not violate any of the standards of ethical practice of the APS.

Copyright: The copyright of each image entered always remains with the author of the image. The exhibition assumes no liability for any misuse of copyright.

Note: The exhibition committee reserves the right to check all accepted images for copyright violation.

Image alteration and computer generation: Except for the restrictions on Nature images and Photo Travel described in the relevant definitions, images may be altered, either digitally or otherwise, by the entrant. Artwork or computer graphics created by the entrant may be incorporated, provided that the photographic content predominates in a way that is obvious to the viewer. Images may not be constructed entirely with a computer and all photographic components must have been photographed by the entrant who holds copyright of the complete works submitted.

Image titles: Each image must have a unique title. Images without a title will not be judged.

Titles may not include file extensions such as .jpg or .jpeg. (or any other camera capture filenames). Words such as “untitled” or “no title” are not acceptable as part or all of an image’s title, nor are camera capture filenames or titles consisting of only numbers.

Titles must use the English alphabet and can contain no more than 30 characters (including spaces). Image titles may be in a foreign language, but the English alphabet must be used.

The titles should be exactly as you want them to appear in the catalogue.

No title or identification of the maker shall be visible anywhere on the actual image.

Titles will not be announced at judging.

Email List 

By virtue of submitting an entry, the Entrant accepts that his/her email address will be used for communicating information about this exhibition and future Lake Macquarie National exhibitions. The Entrant may opt out of this email list by using the unsubscribe option at the bottom of each message sent. 

Warning: opting out of this email list before the exhibition catalogs are posted may result in the entrant not receiving important information about the exhibition.

The exhibition organisers will not pass email addresses on to any third party.

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Submitting entries

This is a digital or electronically displayed image competition.

The maximum image size is 1920 pixels horizontal and 1200 pixels vertical when the image is viewed with correct orientation. Maximum size of closed file is 2 MB.

Images larger than the permitted size will be rejected. Smaller images are permitted but will be projected smaller on screen.  A minimum size of the longest dimension of the image is 1000 pixels.

File format must be JPEG.

Image files should have the same name as the title of the relevant digital image in the online entry system. For example, an image called “Golden sunset” should have a file name “Golden sunset.jpg”. Titles and file names must use the English alphabet and may include numbers. No other characters are permitted.

Images will be displayed to the judges at the size submitted, using an Epson EB-1985WU projector with a display resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels and operating in sRGB colour space.

The projection background is black.

Any borders should be included within the dimensions shown above. Please keep borders to a minimum, e.g. to separate images from the background if necessary.

If you need assistance resizing your images for entry please download these instructions.

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Definitions

MONOCHROME

An image is considered to be Monochrome only if it gives the impression of having no color (i.e. contains only shades of gray which can include pure black and pure white) OR it gives the impression of being a grayscale image that has been toned in one color across the entire image. (For example by Sepia, red, gold, etc.)

A grayscale or multi-colored image modified or giving the impression of having been modified by partial toning, multi toning or by the inclusion of spot coloring does not meet the definition of monochrome and shall be classified as a Color Work.

NATURE

Nature photography is restricted to the use of the photographic process to depict all branches of natural history, except anthropology and archaeology, in such a fashion that a well-informed person will be able to identify the subject material and certify its honest presentation.

  • The story telling value of a photograph must be weighed more than the pictorial quality while maintaining high technical quality.
  • Human elements shall not be present, except where those human elements are integral parts of the nature story such as nature subjects, like barn owls or storks, adapted to an environment modified by humans, or where those human elements are in situations depicting natural forces, like hurricanes or tidal waves.
  • Scientific bands, scientific tags or radio collars on wild animals are permissible. Photographs of human created hybrid plants, cultivated plants, feral animals, domestic animals, or mounted specimens are ineligible, as is any form of manipulation that alters the truth of the photographic statement.
  • No techniques that add, relocate, replace, or remove pictorial elements except by cropping are permitted.
  • Techniques that enhance the presentation of the photograph without changing the nature story or the pictorial content, or without altering the content of the original scene, are permitted including HDR, focus stacking and dodging/burning.
  • Techniques that remove elements added by the camera, such as dust spots, digital noise, and film scratches, are allowed.
  • Stitched images are not permitted.
  • All allowed adjustments must appear natural.
  • Colour images can be converted to grey-scale monochrome.
  • Infrared images, either direct-captures or derivations, are not allowed.

COLOUR

Any image that is not monochrome. There are no restrictions on the subject matter.

PHOTO TRAVEL

A Photo Travel image expresses the characteristic features or culture of a land as they are found naturally. There are no geographic limitations. Images from events or activities arranged specifically for photography, or of subjects directed or hired for photography are not appropriate. Close up pictures of people or objects must include features that provide information about the environment. Techniques that add, relocate, replace or remove any element of the original image, except by cropping, are not permitted. The only allowable adjustments are removal of dust or digital noise, restoration of the appearance of the original scene, and complete conversion to greyscale monochrome. Other derivations, including infrared, are not permitted. All allowed adjustments must appear natural.

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Awards

Most Successful Exhibitor – Belmont 16s Trophy

The entrant who achieves the highest aggregate score in the four sections of the exhibition (excluding the Youth section) will be awarded the Belmont 16s Trophy which is sponsored by the Belmont 16 Foot Sailing Club . If necessary, awards will also be considered when deciding the Most Successful Exhibitor.

Most Successful Exhibitor from a member club of the Northern Photographic Federation – NPF Trophy

Entrants who are members of photography clubs that are part of the Northern Photographic Federation (NPF) will be eligible for this award. It will be determined by the highest aggregate score in the four sections of the exhibition (excluding the Youth section). If necessary, awards will also be considered when deciding the winner of this award.

Most Outstanding Image of the Exhibition – APS Gold Plaque

Images in all sections, including the Youth section, will be considered by the full panel of judges when this award is being chosen. The image receiving this award will not be eligible for any other awards.

Best Monochrome Portrait – Alex Hunter Trophy
This special award in the Monochrome section will be given to the the judges’ choice of the best monochrome portrait. It may be presented to an image that gains another award (medal or ribbon) or to any accepted image.

Youth Section Awards
APS Herbert Medal
Lake Macquarie National Gold Medal
Lake Macquarie National Silver Medal
Lake Macquarie National Bronze Medal
Exhibition HM Ribbons, 5 to 7 at the judges’ discretion.
Monochrome Awards
APS Gold Medal
APS Silver Medal
APS Bronze Medal
Lake Macquarie National Gold Medal
Lake Macquarie National Silver Medal
Lake Macquarie National Bronze Medal
Five APS Merit Ribbons
Exhibition Ribbons, 8-12.
Colour Awards
APS Gold Medal
APS Silver Medal
APS Bronze Medal
Lake Macquarie National Gold Medal
Lake Macquarie National Silver Medal
Lake Macquarie National Bronze Medal
Five APS Merit Ribbons
Exhibition HM Ribbons, 8-12.
Photo Travel Awards
APS Gold Medal
APS Silver Medal
APS Bronze Medal
Lake Macquarie National Gold Medal
Lake Macquarie National Silver Medal
Lake Macquarie National Bronze Medal
Five APS Merit Ribbons
Exhibition HM Ribbons, 8-12.
Nature Awards
APS Gold Medal
APS Silver Medal
APS Bronze Medal
Lake Macquarie National Gold Medal for Wildlife
Lake Macquarie National Silver Medal for Wildlife
Lake Macquarie National Bronze Medal for Wildlife
Five APS Merit Ribbons
Exhibition HM Ribbons, 8-12.

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Sections

The sections for this competition are:

  • Colour
  • Monochrome
  • Nature (colour or mono)
  • Photo Travel (colour or mono)
  • Youth – for entrants who are 18 years old or younger on the closing date of the exhibition. (colour or mono)

Each entrant may enter a maximum of four images in each section.

The same or substantially the same image cannot be entered in more than one section of this exhibition regardless of image titles. Colour and monochrome images produced from the same image capture are considered the same image for this rule.

There are no restrictions on the subject matter of images except as outlined in the definitions for Nature, Photo Travel and Monochrome sections.

Entries in the Nature and Photo Travel sections must comply with the relevant definitions.

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Judges and Judging

Judging
Each section will be judged by a panel of three judges who will each allocate the image a score between 1 and 5. The decisions of the judging panel with regard to acceptances and awards are final and without appeal.

Judging reports.
Each entrant will receive an individual judging report, which will be sent by email.

Catalogue
A  downloadable catalogue will be available on the website.

Judges

Monochrome

Craig Parker MPSA, EFIAP/b, GMAPS
Bill Chambers
Roy Killen EFIAP, APSEM, GMPSA

Colour

Craig Parker MPSA, EFIAP/b, GMAPS
Diane Schofield
Neville Foster EFIAP/b, GMAPS

Nature

Craig Parker MPSA, EFIAP/b, GMAPS
Bill Chambers
Neville Foster EFIAP/b, GMAPS

Photo Travel
Craig Parker MPSA, EFIAP/b, GMAPS
Helen Walker PPSA, FAPS
Roy Killen EFIAP, APSEM, GMPSA

Youth Section

Helen Walker PPSA, FAPS
Diane Schofield
Bill Chambers

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