General rules
- You must be an RCPS member to enter, and can then enter all of our competitions.
- For each competition, check how many images you can submit. There will be a maximum combination of prints and/or PDIs.
- Each competition has a brief, so check what we’re looking for.
- You can submit images taken using digital cameras, film cameras or smartphones to both the print and PDI categories.
- All images must be your own work. Please observe any guidance on the use of AI.
- Entries must be with the competition co-ordinator by the published closing date.
- If your entry is awarded a place (1st, 2nd or 3rd), a ‘highly commended’ or a ‘commended’, it will be displayed on the RCPS website unless you ask for it not to be. You may be asked to provide a short commentary on why/where you took the image, and how you edited it.
- Any image which has peviously been awarded a place (1st, 2nd or 3rd) or ‘highly commended’ cannot be resubmitted for any further RCPS competitions. However, you are welcome to submit images which have been successful in any external competition.
Rules for prints
Presentation: Your images must be mounted onto board or foamcore of any colour, and either glued to the board or window-mounted.
- If your mountboard has velcro on the back, this MUST be removed before submission, as it could damage other people’s images during storage
- if the reverse of your mount features labels from other competitions, which indicate your name, please find a way to cover your name so that it is obscured.
Print sizes:
PRINTED IMAGES Inches Millimetres Minimum size 6×4” (landscape)
4×6” (portrait)152x101mm (landscape)
101x152mm (portrait)Maximum size No max, but must fit the max mount size
Mount sizes:
| MOUNTS | Inches | Millimetres |
| Minimum size | 11.7×8.3” (landscape) 8.3×11.7” (portrait) | 297x210mm (landscape) 210x297mm (portrait) |
| Maximum size | 20×16” (landscape) 16×20” (portrait) | 508x406mm (landscape) 406x508mm (portrait) |
If you plan to submit your image to the annual YPU exhibition, it may help you to cut your mount to 500x400mm (or vice versa) so you can use it for both competitions.
Labelling: On the reverse of your mount, write your image title followed by your membership number, eg: Poppies 97-25. If you think the judge may be in any doubt, draw an arrow to indicate which way is up. DO NOT WRITE YOUR NAME on the mount; if there is a label on there from a previous competition, showing your name, please remove it or cover it over (if you don’t, someone else will do that… perhaps not to your standard!).
The image name must be exactly the same on your entry form, on the back of your mount, and in the print reference filename.
Digital reference: You must provide a digital reference image for every print entry. This is for double-checking entries; for our records (because your print will be returned to you); and for possible inclusion on our website. Please save at the same size as for PDIs.
Rules for projected digital images (PDIs)
Presentation: On judging night, all PDIs will be projected onto a screen, in alphabetical order according to their titles.
Image sizes
Regardless of whether it’s landscape, portrait or square, no image can ever be more than 1600 pixels wide, and no image can ever be more than 1200 pixels high. So the max height is the same for all:
Saving format:
- Save to the colour mode sRGB IEC6 1966-2. In Photoshop, for example, you’ll find this in the menu: File > Convert to profile (Why?)
- Save your image as a JPG using “baseline (standard)” format, not “progressive” format (Why?)
- Save at the maximum quality (largest file size).
Labelling:
- Give your image a filename including your image title followed by your membership number, like this: Daisies 97-25.jpg
- Do not put your membership number before the image title, as we need the images to display alphabetically.
- If you include content (such as ‘resized’ or ‘v1’) in your filename, these will be part of your image title. SImilarly, typos will carry over.
- Do not include your name in your image title, your metadata, or any metadata copyright notice.
- The image name must be exactly the same on your entry form and in the PDI filename.
Submitting your files
- Make sure you use the right link – don’t upload prints to PDIs, or vice versa!
- When prompted at each link, “Do you want to uplaod more files?” that means OF THAT TYPE, eg PDI or print. Choose the other link to upload for the other category.
PDIs – Please upload these using the Dropbox link (make sure you use the right Dropbox link – there’s one for PDIs, one for prints). The links will be emailed to you ahead of each closing date, and can also be found on the entry page in the ‘members area’ of our website.
Prints – Please use the other Dropbox link to upload a digital reference image for each print, making sure you use the right Dropbox link. Hand in your hard-copy prints on a club night.
Entry form
Use the online entry form for all of your submissions. Entries cannot be accepted without an entry form. If you need to re-submit an image (eg due to incorrect sizing), you don’t need to do another entry form if that same image was listed on your original entry form.
Deadline
Please observe competition deadlines, because there’s a lot of work in getting the images ready for judging and then they must be passed to the judge, and the judge needs time for judging. However, everyone has personal circumstances – so if you know you need extra time, you can have up to a week more. However, you need to (a) tell the competition co-ordinator you need extra time, and (b) ensure your entry form has been submitted by the deadline (even if your images haven’t) – then we know to expect them, and can include them in the lists. The extra week is a hard deadline and can’t be extended.