Why enter club competitions?
Photography club competitions offer members many benefits. They provide a platform for others to see your work and give you the opportunity to be inspired by the work of other members. Through constructive feedback from expert judges on both your own and others’ images, competitions can help improve your photography, your visual literacy and your post-processing skills. They also offer a way to measure your progress against yourself and others. Not to mention that they challenge you to explore new techniques and subjects you may not have tried otherwise!
What competitions does QCG offer?
Queensland Camera Group competitions fall into two broad categories: serious and fun, each designed to support different aspects of photographic growth and club engagement.
The serious competitions include our Monthly Competitions (digital and print) and the Year End Photographic Awards (YEPAs). Monthly Competitions run throughout the year, with points accumulated toward annual trophies that recognise consistent achievement. At the end of the year, members may choose to enter selected images into the YEPAs, which are judged independently by a panel of three judges. Results from both the monthly point scores and the YEPAs are announced and celebrated at the club’s Annual Dinner.
Alongside these are our fun competitions—such as Audiovisual, Three Related Images and Hunt’n’Shoot—which are designed to encourage creativity, experimentation, storytelling, and participation in a relaxed, social way. Entries for these competitions are typically judged at Portfolio Night where we celebrate these specialist genres with popcorn and Jaffas.
In addition to regular competitions, the club runs two biennial events, held in alternate years, designed to help members take the next step in presenting their work—something that can feel daunting alone but becomes far more achievable with the support of a club.
Gallery Exhibition
The Gallery Exhibition offers members the chance to experience what it’s like to exhibit in a gallery setting—an opportunity that is often out of reach individually, but well within grasp when approached collectively. The exhibition also includes the Roger Bartlett Trophy for the top image, along with a People’s Choice Award.Photobook Competition
The Photobook Competition encourages members to explore the rewarding challenge of creating a cohesive body of work. Members may enter one book in an Open category and another in a set category, receiving considered feedback from judges experienced in portfolios and sequencing.
For the Monthly Competitions and the Year End Photographic Awards, entries are submitted via MyPhotoClub (MPC). New members receive information about accessing MPC when they join.
For other competitions, entry may be via Google Drive or other methods. Always watch for club emails containing details, including rules and submission process.
-
Monthly Competitions (also known as Aggregate Competitions or Point-scoring Competitions) are conducted most months of the year, and may be Print or Digital.
These competitions usually include a nominated Set Subject and an Open category (any subject allowed). Some set subjects are used every year while others will vary from year to year.
Monthly Competition rules and the current year’s Set Subject definitions can be found here.
Each month’s competition is judged by a different Photographic Society of Queensland qualified judge or a respected member of the photography community, who will assign each image an award (Honour, Merit, Commended, Acceptance, Non Acceptance or Out of Category).
Monthly Competition trophies
Each award (Honour, Merit etc) carries a point value, and these points are tallied and accumulate throughout the year. The highest point scorers receive trophies at the Annual Dinner.
These trophies celebrate photographers who not only have achieved good results throughout the year, but often more importantly, have participated consistently. The awards include:
Premier A Grade Photographer (Joan Robinson Memorial Trophy)
Awarded to the A Grade member achieving the greatest number of aggregate points (across both DPIs and Prints) in QCG Monthly Competitions throughout the year.AB Grade Photographer of the Year
Awarded to the AB Grade member achieving the greatest number of aggregate points (across both DPIs and Prints) in QCG Monthly Competitions throughout the year.B Grade Photographer of the Year
Awarded to the B Grade member achieving the greatest number of aggregate points (across both DPIs and Prints) in QCG Monthly Competitions throughout the year.Highest Aggregate Pointscore - Prints (Trophy of Excellence)
Awarded to the member achieving the greatest number of aggregate points in Prints, in any grade, in QCG Monthly Competitions throughout the year.Highest Aggregate Pointscore - Digital Projected Images (Dulcie Reid Memorial Trophy)
Awarded to the member achieving the greatest number of aggregate points in DPIs, in any grade, in QCG Monthly Competitions throughout the year.___________
In addition, every year one Monthly Competition is judged by a practising artist rather than a photographic judge. Traditionally the Set Subject was Still Life but since 2022 the Set Subject has rotated between genres that are relevant to both artists and photographers.
Artist Open Competition (Peggy Stumbles Trophy (Print)/Bill Woodhead Trophy (DPI))
An overall winner is chosen from the Honour awards (any grade) in this competition (or only from the Open subject in years where the Set Subject is Still Life).
Still Life Competition (Graham Forster Still Life Trophy)
This trophy is awarded when the set subject for the Artist competition is Still Life. An overall winner is chosen from the Honour awards (any grade) in the Still Life set subject.
-
The Year End Photographic Awards celebrate the best images of the year across various categories.
They are judged at a gala judging event in November, open to all members. Judging is impact style by a panel of three judges.
DPI of the Year (President’s Trophy)
Print of the Year (QCG Trophy)
Portrait of the Year (Gaye Edwards Portrait Trophy)
Black and White Print of the Year (Nick Caris Trophy)
Mountain Landscape Image of the Year (Mountain Landscape Trophy, donated by Andrew Klonowski)
Social Documentary Image of the Year (Social Documentary trophy)
Creative Image of the Year (Phil Lawrence Creative Trophy)
Nature Image of the Year (Anne Pappalardo Nature Trophy)
Most Apt Title (Most Apt Title Trophy)Year End Photographic Awards rules will be available later in the year.
-
Creating an Audiovisual (a planned sequence of still images using a combination of sound, music, voiceover and/or transitions) is a way to showcase a collection of images for the purposes of storytelling or mood creation. The Audiovisual Competition is non-graded with an Open topic. Go to current year’s rules.
-
The Three Related Images competition allows members to showcase a portfolio of images which are linked in some way. Go to current year’s rules.
-
The Hunt’n’Shoot is a fun outing open to members and their friends and family. It harks back to the days of film photography, where for the most part, we only had one chance to get a shot right in camera. Competitors meet at a pre-arranged time and place. They receive a list of cryptic topics, which must be photographed in that order (one shot per subject, no deletions allowed).
-
The Gallery Experience, formerly known as the Print Project and later Collections, is a bi-annual competition held by the club to provide members with a true gallery exhibition experience. While details are subject to change, participants have the opportunity to exhibit images in a professional setting.
View the images from the 2025 Exhibition here.
-
This competition encourages members to create a collection of printed images – in book form. Awards for first, second and third as well as a People’s Choice are usually made. The Photobook competition was introduced in 2019 and is intended to be a bi-annual competition held in the off-year to the Gallery Exhibition.
General QCG Competition Rules
These rules apply to all club competitions unless otherwise noted.
Only financial members are eligible to enter club competitions (with the exception of the Hunt and Shoot Competition).
All entries and elements must be the work of the entrant and must be of photographic origin. (For example, textures and sky replacements, if used, must be the work of the entrant.)
Post-production must be the work of the entrant.
Generative Fill or other Artificial Intelligence processes that use content generated by software from written prompts or developed from the work of others must not be used unless specifically allowed.
Members should exercise judgment to ensure that images are within the bounds of good taste. For example, artistic nudity in images is acceptable but must marry all aspects of good photography including light, composition and form in a manner that neither objectifies nor sexualises the model. Genitalia must not be visible. The Committee has the right to remove images from competition where it feels an image is questionable.
To enter graded competitions, members must first have their work assessed for placement in A, AB or B Grade. The same grade is used for both Digital Projected Images (DPIs) and Prints.