When I first began my career as a fine art baby photographer 12 years ago, I was very reluctant to participate in professional photography competitions, not only because I didn’t have the confidence that I could compete with seasoned photographers with 10, 20, or 30 years of experience, but also because I didn’t see a major benefit in doing so. However, as I developed as a photographer and joined more professional organizations, I became more familiar with the photography competition process, and gained an appreciation for the value that competitions can provide for both novice and experienced photographers alike.
Most significantly, photography competitions have challenged me to consistently improve and refine my work. Most professional competitions provide entrants with valuable image critique and constructive feedback (many competitions even provide the opportunity for participants to watch live judging of the event, which means that photographers can benefit from hearing feedback on hundreds of images, not just their own). Competition judges generally have many years of experience in the industry, and their insights sometimes offer perspectives that I might not have considered. The feedback I have acquired has consistently helped me to sharpen my technical proficiency and refine my artistic vision.
Additionally, participating in photography competitions encourages experimentation and innovation. In instances in which I have created images specifically for the purpose of competition, I experimented a bit with different techniques and equipment, and stepped outside of my comfort zone a bit to shoot in different scenarios and environments than those I am accustomed to. I also learned how to do things like create digital frames and replicate hand-torn edges on images as a result of participating in competitions.
Of course, I would be lying if I said that placing in image competitions didn’t also provide an endorphin boost but, truthfully, doesn’t everyone value recognition from their professional colleagues and industry leaders for their hard work and efforts to continually improve and grow in their field? Even though I have been a professional photographer for more than 12 years now, I can’t imagine ever feeling like I have nothing new to learn!
If you are a professional photographer like me, and have been sitting on the competition sidelines, what are you waiting for?
This past Fall (I’m behind on my blogging!), I was fortunate enough to have placed in both the Newborn category (3rd place) and Milestones category (2nd place) in the Accredited Professional Newborn Photographers International competition, as well as to have received merit awards in both the APNPI and National Association of Portrait and Child Photographers‘ international image competition. I am honored to have my work appear in the winners’ gallery among so many beautiful images from my talented colleagues!
