I posted this in my journal (Visions by Vicki) and Marie suggested that I repost it here for all our photographers to see...so, here goes:
I've been a member of the Monmouth Camera Club, in NJ, for 2 years and have been involved in a number of "competitions." I'm still no expert, but have observed that some judges seem to follow what they believe are iron-clad rules of photography (Rule of Thirds, Leading Lines, etc.) in some cases, but don't apply these rules consistently. This angered and confused me a bit because they were being inconsistent and that didn't seem fair. Also, as far as I knew from all that I've read, these "Rules" are actually guidelines and NOT written in stone. I just read an article by one of the premier landscape photographers in the US--Alain Briot, Arts and Facts, The difference between judgments and opinions--and something clicked. It's definitely worth a read, so I suggest you go to his website and check it out. While you're there, browse through all his writings and photographs--he's really amazing! And...let me know what you think. :)
P.S. The original article referred to in this one was written for a different website, which I also highly recommend. The original article is titled Being an Artist.
