How much processing should be allowed?

[msprott]

I’m wondering whether all photos can be edited in any way or whether there should be restrictions in some cases.

[Emma Howells]

Does cropping count as processing?

[msprott]

Yes, I think so. But, it is often allowed when other things are not

[Peter Dunner]

There is editing and there is editing:
Enhancing editing: changes “normal” parameters of an image such as exposure, contrast, white point, black point, crop, etc.
Creative editing-takes the image beyond what it ever was: adding elements, subtracting elements, changing the sky, applying textures and other creative effects and “looks”-many of which are done in another program with the click of mouse.

My humble opinion is that we have evolved digitally into two distinct types of photography: one is what I would refer to as “straight” photography as in A above. The other is creative imaging and editing as in B above. Should they be in separate categories in competitions? Another long discussion
Peter Dunner

[mmklosek]

I was looking a description of rules re: processing, I think I remember seeing such text some time ago. There was a statement that no composite (?) images would be allowed, composite – does it collages (?). Digital photography is a different medium than prints or slides and should be considered as such. As to the Club competitions, I would call for the honor system of not using somebody else’s backgrounds or other parts/components of an image.

Gosia

[RJ Turner]

The Board specifically decided to allow people to use other people’s textures in their images (Board meeting 07/15/2020, item #7). Since textures can be used to modify the appearance of backgrounds and add elements to an image this gives a lot of leeway. You can easily replace a sky using someone else’s sky as a texture. Personally I don’t think that people should be allowed to incorporate other people’s work into images submitted to club competitions.

[RJ Turner]

I think that a composite means combining several images into one. So a collage would be a composite but something like taking a bird from one image and adding to to another would also be considered a composite image. In fact the club has no rules about what is allowed or not allowed in post processing – anything goes.

[msprott]

Basically I agree with you but when I think of all the things that are available in LR and PS, do you mean you can’t use any of them? Would it mean you cannot select one view from a selection of views that change things like contrast, saturation or vibrance. This is really someone else’s product but if we don’t allow these things, we might as well say we can’t post process. Maybe I’m missing something here so tell me if I’m not interpreting it correctly.

[Jim Turner]

I don’t have any problem with people using software to process their images or with them compositing their own images but I don’t think that composites that incorporate other people’s images should be allowed in club competitions.

[msprott]

Are we ready to consider adding this to our competition rules? I think I’ll add it to the agenda for the next board meeting.

[Peter Dunner]

I voiced my opinion not to question rules, of which there are none, but to start a discussion. Is there a point where a photo is overedited to the point that it is very far removed from the original and is this the intent of photography? This is an honest question. Or is there another category needed such as creative photography which would involve compositing, changing elements such as skies, textures, etc. This would be a different species from more or less straight photography.

[RJ Turner]

I think that the “intent of photography” depends very much on who you ask. Nature, sport, and street photographers typically do little or no “creative” processing and try to preserve the look of the original scene. But many fine art photographers consider the original capture to be just a starting point. My own goal is to make an image that pleases me, and if I have make some non-traditional edits to do so I make them.

[msprott]

Since it is so easy to change a sky in LR or PS, I don’t think that would be a bad thing to do. But, it would not be allowed in Nature, Photo Travel, or PJ.
I think images can be over-processed and I think they do not do well in competitions.
Maybe we do need a Creative topic sometime but I think we’ve just settled on the topics for the 2021-2022 year so if that is so, we’ll have to wait.
Do we really have to say the image must be your own?
I think the reason we did not make a rule about what processing is allowed is because it is a difficult rule to write. If anyone wants to try to write one, we can always change the competition rules again.

[mmklosek]

I agree with Jim about restricting in club competitions third party backgrounds (contrary to the Board past vote).

Too much processing? It’s up to an artist where to stop.

I’m all for a Creative topic competition (whatever the definition will be).

[Author]

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