To those who have won photo competitions before

[Dan Dozer]

Not sure what catagory to put this in. For those of you who have won competitions before, what are your thoughts on your past winners? Do you consider entering them again in future competitions, or do you basically "retire" your past winners from future competitions? This is assuming that the future competitions you are considering don't have any restrictions on past use.

[AtlantaTerry]

Back in the '70s I lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA. Every year they have the Three Rivers Arts Festival. One year a high contrast black and white landscape photograph I created on a 2¼x2¼ Yashica TLR won Best of Show. I was thrilled because I assumed it would be great publicity for my photography studio. Then the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette newspaper employees went on strike and I received no publicity! Bummer...

To answer your question, I would have no problem re-entering a photograph in multiple competitions.
Why not?

[Doug Howk]

I forget which photographer said it; but he was asked what's his favorite. His reply was the one tomorrow.
I do on occasion submit an older winner depending on the venue. But I like to think that I'm always improving.

[Vaughn]

I usually go with my latest and greatest. That said I entered an annual regional contest with what I consider to be a most excellent photo. Did not get juried in. So, I entered the same photo to the same competition the next year and got an award.

[Lenny Eiger]

I don't like competitions. The things that win are usually splashy, heavy on the saturation slider and commercial. They usually don't have too much going for them aesthetically…. at least from a "depth" point of view. There are exceptions, of course, and it isn't my intention to insult anyone - except maybe the people who run these things.

Better to be appreciated by one's peers - for having a truly unique insight into something… or something similar.

Just my opinion,

Lenny

[Alan Gales]

I don't like competitions. The things that win are usually splashy, heavy on the saturation slider and commercial. They usually don't have too much going for them aesthetically…. at least from a "depth" point of view. There are exceptions, of course, and it isn't my intention to insult anyone - except maybe the people who run these things.

Better to be appreciated by one's peers - for having a truly unique insight into something… or something similar.

Just my opinion,

Lenny

Lenny, you forgot about the cute cat pictures! :rolleyes:

[matthew blais]

I don't see any problem with it, but remember todays winner could be tomorrows disappointment.
Judges are people with preferences, likes and dislikes same as us.
Submit what you think is your BEST work

[Doug Howk]

I don't like competitions. The things that win are usually splashy, heavy on the saturation slider and commercial.
That sounds like the typical PPA or PSA competitions, whether local or national. I avoid all such clubs like the plague.
I prefer entering local arts associations' competitions even though we're competing against other media.

[ShannonG]

I try to forget the images i have done in the past,thats why i did them in the first place ,is to perfect them then put them away.I can always do better tomorrow,when i wanna enter a competition i shoot specifically for that competition..

[Alan Gales]

That sounds like the typical PPA or PSA competitions, whether local or national. I avoid all such clubs like the plague.
I prefer entering local arts associations' competitions even though we're competing against other media.

I'm considering joining a club again for the comaraderie. My old club (I was a member in the 80's) was and is involved in PSA competitions. I viewed some of their recent winners in their print competition and they were mostly sickly sweet over done HDR crap.

[Greg Blank]

Many many years ago, I submitted a 35mm slide to a Baltimore radio stations calendar contest. I was in college at the time and they were giving suggestions over the air related to themes and places that would make good subjects. I went to one that was local and got a really nice shot of the sunset going down over a large farm field full of horses. That year I bested over five hundred entries for first place. On top of having my image distributed as twenty thousand calendars with my name on it, I won a nice Canon 35mm SLR and they threw a really nice banquet for the winners. Couple of years later I won second place for the same contest with another farm scene, thus getting some free landscaping for my parents house- as a prize. Although winning at the time sort of made me somewhat cocky, those two winnings set me up to go on to shooting for a few magazines, and eventually I was freelancing regularly.

[Greg Blank]

Dan to directly answer, it would depend on how restrictive the first contest is, sometimes you give up rights to the image after winning. Knowing what I know now I have become careful what rights I give up just to submit to a contest.

[Dan Dozer]

The competitions in question do not get my photo usage rights beyond their competition so that would not be a problem. The reason for my original question is that one of the competitions that I have won is a fairly prominent one - one that people may recognize my photo if I enter it into another different competition.