The Council has asked us, as competition secretaries, to see how you feel about the current club competition set-up. There is reportedly some disquiet about the levels structure arrangements for our competitions.
Two main concerns have been raised. The first is that, given the relatively large size of the Advanced group, ‘tail enders’ may feel that they have little chance of achieving awards. The second is that, at the other end of the scale, some highly skilled photographers feel constrained from entering club competitions for fear of becoming the ‘usual suspects’ in too often taking home the prizes. These concerns seem to apply more to the bi-monthly competitions, perhaps less so to the annual competitions.
Although we nominally have three levels of entry, Basic level entries are rare. In practice, for both Print and DPI, we usually have about 24 Advanced and 10 Intermediate entrants. New club members tend to be speedy in joining the Intermediates, while the top Intermediates tend to be promoted equally speedily into Advanced. This means that, while Intermediate numbers are fairly stable, the Advanced group expands. We encourage judges to give as many awards as there are entrants, but some members, regular competitors though they are, never get even an HC for their pains.
We have had a quick look at how some similar clubs organise their competitions. Some have a more formal process to determine levels of entry, with movement between levels – promotions and demotions – based on scored performance. A few clubs have a Premier Level open only to holders of distinctions or by invitation. Based on this admittedly unscientific inquiry, the BPS informal 'nod and a wink' of level membership and movement is perhaps not typical. You can find our current guidelines on Pages 23-24 of the handbook.
As competition secretaries, we believe that enjoyment and positive feedback should be at the heart of our competition system.
Years of custom and practice have led us to where we are now and it is perhaps time for a review. If you share the concerns outlined above, have other concerns or are even content with the way things are, let us know. What changes, if any, may be desirable?
Please speak to one or both of us at the club or send an email letting us know what you think.
