Stars and Promotion

  1. Each member will have a “Star Rating” , initially from 1 to 5 Star.  Thereafter, the ratings go on to Honours, Honours Bronze, Honours Silver, Honours Gold, Master Bronze etc. The higher your rating, the more strictly your photos will be judged.  
  2. New members will start as 1 star photographers. New members who are also members or have been members of another PSSA affiliated club can apply to start at a higher star level by submitting a panel of 12 images. Based on the panel submitted the committee will determine at what star rating the person will be graded but limited to 3 star. These images may not be used subsequently for grading purposes.
  3. When judging photos, there will be 1 external judge. 
  4. The judge will rate the photo, and then allocate an award for the photo (Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Merit)
  5. Judges will know the Star Rating of the person who took the photo, and will be more strict with higher Star Rating images.
  6. If the award for your photo is a Gold or Merit then your photo will count towards a promotion in your Star Rating!

THE JUDGE’S DECISIONS IS FINAL AND NO DISCUSSION WILL BE ENTERED INTO NOR WILL ANY RESULT BE OVERRULED OR REVERSED

The table below shows how many Awards you need to get for promotion.

NOTE THAT STAR RATINGS ARE CURRENTLY UNDER REVIEW

  • From 1 Star to 2 Star => 24 Gold or Merit awards
  • From 2 Star to 3 Star => 30 Gold or Merit awards AND 1 Salon Acceptances
  • From 3 Star to 4 Star => 42 Gold or Merit awards AND 26 Salon Acceptances
  • From 4 Star to 5 Star => 54 Gold or Merit awards AND 86 Salon Acceptances
  • From 5 Star to Master Bronze => 60 Gold or Merit awards AND 166 Salon Acceptances AND 3 Salon Awards (COM/Medal)
  • From Master Bronze to Master Silver => 60 Gold or Merit awards AND 261 Salon Acceptances AND 6 Salon Awards (COM/Medal) AND 1 PSSA Honours Award (LPSSA/DPSSA)
  • From Master Silver to Master Gold => 60 Gold or Merit awards AND 366 Salon Acceptances AND 10 Salon Awards (COM/Medal)
  • Tip: To advance quickly, you need to enter OFTEN!)

When you advance, your accumulated Gold and Merit awards are reset to zero. You start again, and your photos will now be judged more strictly. Your Salon Acceptances/Awards/Honours do not reset; they are for life.

Award allocation:

Bronze – Poor image not meeting required standard

Silver – Average image not quite meeting required standard, marked down because of problems which should have been corrected either when taking the picture or in post processing.

Gold – Good image meets the required standard

Merit – An exceptional image exceeding all criteria by far

Disqualification – An image entered into the incorrect category will be disqualified and may subsequently be re-entered into the correct category which will be advised at the time of judging. An image may also be disqualified if the judges deem it offensive to reasonable public morals. These images may not be resubmitted.

Here is how photos will be judged:

1 STAR

  1. Correct exposure.
  2. In focus.
  3. Element of composition.
  4. Picture clean and well presented.

2 STAR

  1. Correct exposure.
  2. In focus.
  3. Composition.
  4. Picture clean and well presented.
  5. Some impact.
  6. Some knowledge of when and how to crop.

3 STAR

  1. Correct exposure.
  2. In focus.
  3. Composition – should begin to show an understanding of the importance of lines shapes and form.
  4. Picture clean and well presented.
  5. Impact (a strong requirement now).
  6. Knowledge of when and how to crop when needed.

4 STAR

  1. Should show a full grasp of all the above principles.
  2. Should show work of entry level NATIONAL salon standard. (Salon Standard is the top 20% of all entries in a typical national competition).

5 STAR

  1. Should show a full grasp of all the above principles.
  2. Should show work of entry level INTERNATIONAL salon standard. (Salon Standard is the top 20% of all entries in a typical international competition).

Good luck!

Regards,

HCC Committee