What Makes an Award Winning Photograph??

Having judged photos for over 4 years and having taken photos for over 30 years, I feel qualified to share some insight to what people who judge photos are looking for.

1.) Have a dominate subject or theme . . . that doesn't mean it HAS to be a single subject like this, but if you have to guess . . . that's not a good sign.

2.) The Simpler the Background the Better . . . that doesn't mean it HAS to be soft focus like this, but do NOT let it pull your attention away from the subject.

3.) Lines and Shapes Must Support the Subject . . .
too often and lines or shapes can lead your eyes off the page and or make you wonder what else is there besides the subject.

4.) A Great Image must have Emotional Impact . . . we all see 1,000's of images a day. The Greats Ones are those that stay in our mind. We can feel, touch, or smell that image in our mind because of the creative use of Texture, Depth of Field, or the Rule of Thirds. Great Images make us want to look again and again. Not all Artists are Photographers, but all Great Photographers are Artists!! Be aware of the Principles of Design. The Photo seen here was shot by Janet Daniel from Texas. It did not win our photo contest when first submitted, but . . . it easily could have.

Kami Myles Wins After Dark Photo Contest

Thanks to all my friends who helped me be a winner in the After Dark contest. This contest was not really a best photo award. It was more about marketing game to get the word out about After Dark Education.

The prize was $2000 worth of tickets to go to Miami to enjoy the next After Dark educational event. If you are into photography like I am, you will want to sign up now. They have an early bird special that knocks $100 off making it $400 for now. It's well worth the money. I have never seen so much photography talent in one place at a time.

Here is a link if you want to look at all the fantastic instructors.

http://afterdarkedu.com/mentors/

This was a fantastic experience!! - Kami Myles

How to post to this Blog

It has been brought to my attention that the reason more people are not using this blog is that they don't know how. Therefore I thought I would solve that problem.

Step 01. Once at Blog site, go to upper left hand corner click on the “Sign in” link
Step 02. Enter your Google Account User Name and Password
Step 03. If you do not already have a Google Account click on the “Create a Blog Link” to create a Google account. It’s free and you can use any existing email address.
Step 04. Once signed in, it will pull up the Dashboard. On the left hand side you can create a profile about yourself, if you desire. On the right hand side you will see options like “New Post”, “Edit Post”, “Settings”, etc. Click on “New Post” link
Step 05. In the new post Tab you will see “Title” and a box to the side. Enter The Title of your post, example: “How to Post to this Blog”
Step 06. Across the top of the “Compose Section” you will see different options like: Font, Font Size, Bold, Italic, Font color, etc.
Step 07. If you want to place a picture with the post, go to the third icon from the End (on the right hand side). This is the Add Image icon. Click it and a new window will appear.
Step 08. From there you can “Add an image from your computer” or you can “Add an Image from the web” You can also choose your layout. I usually use the default layout; (image to the left with text wrapping around it). I also usually use medium for image size. Click Add image, then click done.
Step 09. Back at the compose tab, type in your comments or questions as you desire.
Step 10. You can use the preview link in the upper right corner so see how it will look before you actually post. When ready click on the Publish Post button on the bottom left hand corner.

Just like a normal web page, it takes a little practice lining things up. That's why I use the Preview Link (a lot!) But now that you know how, give it a try and share all those wonderful photography experiences.