MY GOD, HE LIVES.... Welcome back.

I have never entered a competition. Never felt the desire to. Anyone else ? Welcome back Zack.

New Upload from Zack Arias *instantly dropping everything for a 25 minute break*

I really loved the casual mention of something unexpected in a photo. That ought to give a lot of us something to ponder.

Photo contests are completely inane. You should be doing art to please yourself. If others like your work that is a bonus. Daido Moriyama's work was hated by most for a long time because he worked outside the so called normal rules of photography. Today, he is recognized as one of photography's greatest artists. Follow your own instincts and don't give a damn what anyone else thinks .

"Shooting for contests and not for yourself." So much this. And it applies so well to social media (*cough* Instagram). Whenever I think "this shot will get a lot of likes" it bombs so hard. But when it's something I seriously loved and put my heart into it, that's what gets noticed.

Initially, while watching the video I felt frustrated because I felt that all I was hearing from you is that it is a crap shoot, everything is subjective, the judges, the weather, the season, or even the relevant humidity in the room might be the difference from honorable mention or the trash bin. However, afterwards, I thought for a bit and came to realize the trouble I have is what is something that is probably so obvious to yourself and so many others: Art is art. Art is not math. My brain works mathematically and while I thoroughly enjoy art, and want to create art, I may be limited in my abilities by having a natural desire to focus more on the technical and less on the emotional or artistic aspect of photography. Thank you for sharing your input- in the end, I found it very insightful and helpful.

Thank you for insights on photo contest. I have felt like that and stopped submitting my work, one of the main reasons is that I have accepted that my work is not for everyone to like them or a popularity contest image. My work might only connect with a small bunch of people who can directly connect with my images, and I am ok with that. Thank you for reminding me to shoot for myself.

I've only ever entered one photo competition.....I won third prize in the "colour print" section. The 1st prize was won by the judge's wife with a lopsided Polaroid snapshot (true story). I no longer enter photo competitions :-/

Very informative, as always with Mr. Arias. But even more than that, I’m soooo happy to see one of my favourite photographers and photography teachers back! :)

After this post I'm going back, looking through my collection and giving photo contests a try. Just completed a film and did some image capture along the way in back scene, and you inspired me Zack. Thank you!

I've never entered a contest until recently. It was a small show at my local VA. The photo I entered was not one that I would have chosen, but was chosen by a dear friend. I garnered a first place and am on my way to a national competition. The lesson I took from this was to not be so invested in my own idea of what is a great photo.

For me to stay glued for 25 minutes means this was REALLY interesting. Many thanks, Zach.

I actually want to consciously enter more this year. Not so much to win but more for the creative challenge of sticking to a brief and seeing what I can do within the confines of that.

Excellent, honest, and informative. You hit the bullseye on the topic title of why an image might not win. The the reason why a lot of people would care is because they WANT to win (kinda obvious, I know). So the next question (video) could be Why do you want to win contests to badly? And this gets more to the heart I think of many photographers that enter.... Maybe it's ego--I'm great and I want the world to know it... Maybe it's lack of confidence and the pursuit of validation, by others, that your work amounts to something... or Maybe it's the need or desire to pad a resume with awards, honors or the alphabet soup of certification levels... I liked your video a lot, and I'm glad to see you back putting out content!!

Great video, I only started entering contests just over a year ago and it has made a big difference about how I think about my work and how edit. Fortunately, I am with the MPA and they have a monthly critique and you get to hear what the judge thinks of the photo and that has been invaluable to me improving my photography.

Hey Zack, looking well buddy, good to see you back. Personally can’t stand photo competitions but each to their own. If you are producing work that makes your client cry with joy, who cares what anyone else thinks.

You are the one that made me interested in photography 10 years ago, if I didn’t see One Light I would never continue in photography ;) Just wanted to say that! Cheers from Japan!

Thanks! I enter images into contests on a regular basis and find they are great feedback mechanisms. Appreciate your insights.

It's so nice to see you Zack with new videos. I watched all your OneLight Workshop videos back in the day and they taught me more about lighting than anything I've seen since.

Welcome back. glad to see you again. Cheers from Costa Rica!

So glad I found your channel. I was in Shenzhen, China last year for work and got invited to join a photowalk contest by a few new friends that I met while I was there. I was expecting a more casual 'walk and shoot' experience. But it was obvious right from the start that most of the guys were falling into the no.5 reason that you mentioned in this video.

I can only imagine the head spinning journey you must have taken from queuing slides on the projector to where you stand now. I found this extremely informative and honest. Thanks for sharing your hard fought knowledge.

Dogs and babies. I was a judge for a corporate photo calendar contest we had, for a medium corporation that did a lot of travel. It was soul-crushing to fight against the others to stop them from choosing only photos of dogs and babies over amazing travel photos representing our company's world reach. I was overruled. One year, one employee got TWO of her photos in the calendar, from hundreds of submissions, for a 12 month calendar.

As someone who has never, and may never enter a contest, I appreciate the insight. This is honestly good advice for me to improve my creative approach. Applying this, I can far better look at my own photos and see where I need to improve. Thank you.

So glad to see you back. Hope to see more of you.

Great video, thank you. I've had similar thoughts, but could never put them into words as well as you did.

I believe photo competitions will make you a better photographer if you listen to the judges’ critiques and make an attempt to see your photos the way they see them. Many times I will not agree with the way they see my photographs, but, then, there are many times the judges are spot on and help me see how to improve my photography. The learning, and becoming a better photographer, happens over time. I say, enter competitions several time a year for a few years, and then decide if they are not for you.

thank you. there is nothing like honest perspective.

What an education those early days running the projector must have been! Thanks for sharing you expertise.

Thanks for taking time to share your thoughts. Very much appreciated 🙏

Other than the usual camera club judged events, I have entered only one contest. It was a city wide event for artworks including wood turnings, metal work, ceramics, paintings, and photographs. I took best of show with my photo and one of the judges bought my entry. I agree that contests can provide valuable insights, but I have never tried to do that again and still enjoy photographing whatever catches my own interests.

Hey Zack! Thanks to using my photo as a sample (the firefighter), it did means a lot to me! Although it's funny cause I was just thinking about to submit that particular picture on the latest sony competition, and I have seen the last years winners and I just didn't really understand them photos, in fact, I didn't found them pleasing enough by myself to being in the first places. So I have backed up and just uploaded my photo to Unsplash. Now you have found it and showed it to 18+k people. So thank you, Zack. This is my win for the year! :)

Great insight in to mind of judges. I admit that I still think too much about what other people in SOME think about my images and might post something other than my personal favorites because of that. From now on, it's personal favorites only. Thanks for this!

I read this story in your book. Felt like I understood it. Only after watching this do I realise I didn’t have the full sense. Thank you for sharing this!

This video brought back a lot of strong emotions for me from the contest you ran back in 2014. I was able to produce arguably the greatest image I ever have specifically for that contest, and gained a lot of experience in the process about working with a team to create an editorial style piece. I loved that piece. I loved gathering the team together, finding the bar, and the feeling of everyone working together to accomplish something. The whole team has prints. I've a 20x30 of it framed. It also brought back that crushing pain I felt because I wasn't selected for the top three by the voters. I remember thinking that all of the preparation, money, and time spent by the people I assembled had been wasted. I've never entered another contest after that. I couldn't see the point.

I've forgotten how much I love you, Zack! To me you are one of the most honest and inspiring people in the industry. So good to see you back here again!

I gave up on my camera club contests because most of the types of photographs that win are nature and landscapes; nothing else gets much score. I did win once with a flat camera photo category; I just submitted for fun and remarkably it did well. Then in another organization a film photo won first place and I only entered to be a part of the event/community and I received first place. Now I feel pressured to have the best photos more often but learning to just shoot, follow the light and pick what interests/catches my eye. I love your attitude, advice and cool factor. Please keep making. Hugs.

The Angry Photographer won a neighborhood contest between him and uncle Fester. His display of the cat in the garden was marvellous. He could not have done it without his GFX.

So good to see you posting again. Well done & great advice.

As always you bring a perspective to things that is honest and interesting! Thank you for your time good sir.

Thanks for bringing something to the table which was quite interesting.

I am glad you are back! I hope to see more videos

Good to see, and hear you again Zack. Thankyou

Wow, great information Zack! Thanks so much for another awesome video.

Thank you for explaining this - now I get it!

Some reasons I did not see u long time on youtube. what really happens. I missed you, Zack . and as always, that is something worth time to listen.

Really appreciate your candor and of course your rugged good looks! Great to see your face and thanks for the wisdom.

Excellent insights on how photo contests are judged. Some of this I was already aware of but a lot was new to me so thank you Zack it was very informative!

Thank you for sharing these awesome insights! I will recommend this post to my list.

Thank you Zack for the great insights and advice. Makings sense out of some incoherent thoughts and feelings that had me captive some time ago (though always as an amateur).

Photography is a hobby of mine. By definition, I do not need to make a living with it (thank goodness). This means that I do not have to be good at it. In fact, I am awful at it. I know enough about photography to see real ability and to know I do not have it. But nothing makes me happier than me, my camera and some film (or blank SD card). So competitions never interested me in terms of entering, but I was always curious to know how they work. This is a great video that gives insight into it, and the advice applies to photography in general not just competitions. Zack I hope this means you will be back on KZfaq.

Really interesting thank you. At the outset, I never imagined I would watch it all, but I did. I look at my own photos and I go 'out' 'out' 'out'. I've found listening to judges critique mine and others' photos at my camera club has been invaluable, mostly on improving technically. Ultimately though, I only ever shoot for myself.

So good to see you back sharing the knowledge again Zack, hope you are well, you look well. Anyhoo I've only ever entered one contest, it way a terrifying yet good experience. You make some really solid points about how & why things are judged the way they are. Also subtle use of a background, I approve :)

The subject of entering artistic work into a contest or critique: I sit at my keyboard and I see a vast hole clouded with all sorts of thoughts, feelings, questions and resentments. I think I will not go down that rabbit’s hole. Thanks for the video anyhow.

Thanks for that, Zack; some inspiring words there. And hey, I just have to say on behalf of all those photographers that you called to let them know about how their work showed well but didn't win, thank you! That was a super generous thing to do and a real feel-good moment for me this morning.

At the risk of starting a war. Yes, I have entered contests. I have been recognized and have had scathing reviews. I lost a contest to a person who through Photoshop added a lightning bolt to his photo. I started shooting film in the '70's. I am "old school", read if it's not on the negatives it doesn't exist on the print. With that as my motto if you will I pose to those who read this board is this question; " with the advent of digital and post processing when does photography become not about the actual photograph, [ read: composition f/stops, ASA,] but how good you are at computer manipulation"?

Wow! This video popped up in my recommendations at a very apt time. I've been shooting for the last couple of years, entering some contests and not seeing my work being selected. A lot of your words resonated with me. I feel that my biggest take away from this video is that I'm now realizing the difference between the expected shot and the unexpected. Learning over the past couple of years, I'm starting to self-evaluate and reject shots that I feel were the expected shot in that situation. So, thank you! This gives me motivation to go out more and start learning how to get that unexpected shot.

Interesting commentary Zack ! Interesting, inspiring and also encouraging. Especially to those who dropped out after trying a few times never really understanding what goes on behind the scenes. Thanks again.

Thanks for sharing your experience and insight, Zack!

Thanks for this video. I have been entering competitions on and off for a while, with some mini achievements. This helps put much of what happens in perspective. I've subscribed!

everyting correct. I made the same experiences for many years an it helped to develop my photography

Competitions and the whole competitive mentality in the arts is toxic, and mostly illogical, imo. There is little to no objectivity or way to objectively analyze a piece of art that could prove it superior. You either like it or you don't. It is purely subjective. If you win a photography competition all you really can say is that some random people ("judges") happen to prefer a certain image of yours more than the ones other people chose to submit.

Photo contests are way too subjective. I shoot to please myself first. If you like my work, you can have a copy. Great video.

Bro I am sooo happy that you are back ... you influenced the way I look at photography and my approach not only to my gear and work but to my clients too, and for that, I have to thank you A LOT!.

Zack is great to see you are doing fine and we have you back, your voice is so important in the photography Industry because you give us no BS

Its been a long time coming, glad to see you back Zack, with a wee bit of luck and lots of beard oil we will see your content again. I'll send you over a Newcastle if you promise to keep showing up?!!!!

I’ve got a few books in my W.C. Got your Q&A book in there. For years now. Don’t take me wrong. It’s just that this is where I can find peace and can read for a while. Sometimes it even feels like meditation and all. Your book’s there, between one from Annie and a couple from Henry. Got also two Joe’s one in there and one unbelievable book from Alex and the latest from Sebastião. I’ve read that story on photo competition quite a few time in it, along some others, of course. I’m no photographer. Some sort of obsessive (¿Passionate?) bald man in his early 40’s with the extremely occasional gig every now and then. I just love and take photography, somehow, seriously. Sometimes I grab your book, open it randomly and read a couple of pages, sometimes more. Often, you reopen my eyes on any sort of stuff. Like you know : Gael dude, North is 3º that way. It’s a bit like “what will that guy re-teach me today?” Or something like that. Not even sure what I just wrote is proper syntax. I’m no native english speaker. I’ve always admire the signal thinggy. Hopefully you’re not getting too noisy. Absolutely love your latest personal work, to me, it does speak (Altho, that portfolio of yours may have a couple+ of years now) and encounter a youtube vid of you in india where you’re showing a bit of BTS of those shoots near the end of that 2 part video. It’s just unbelievable how valuable you are. You truly are. I know, you’re no surgeon clamping a new heart to someone. But. I’m sure you get me. Thanks Mr Zack Arias, for all of that, all along the years. ..

Ok. I wanted to get all the way through your video before commenting but I'm half way through and can't help myself. WHAT AN AMAZING VIDEO (Yes I'm shouting and I'm sorry there is no way to give you hundreds of likes or promote you more). I started the video thinking the young you was right, how is it that great pics were being dropped, but I got half way through and realized that the best pictures are often the ones that are unexpected. To some degree that explains why my photos are so popular. I'm not formally trained, I don't follow a formula and just photograph what I like. Sometimes it's by design, mostly my good photos are a mistake. But overall I don't care what people think. I'm just engaging in photography because I enjoy it. Will I enter a competition? Possibly. Will I win? I really don't care, because I really only take photos for myself and if others like it, that's an amazing bonus. Again thankyou for your video and I'll now watch the rest. (I hope that the rest of your video concurs with what I've said. Lol 😂😂😂)

Best take on photography contests ever! Thanks for sharing your experience and insights.

I have missed Zack. Kipling had the right idea toward success and failure. Always nice to look at your images Zack and take note of all you say. Thank you.

Man.... i miss you. Please, keep sharing.

Always appreciate your view on photography. I will always be grateful for you critiquing my college portfolio in Starbucks in Richardson, Texas. Lol. Much respect. Peace.

A much appreciated practical and useful explanation and still maintained compassion. Thank you.

Sheer size is going to be the biggest factor. Your odds will always be low with lots of entrants, regardless of the quality of your work. So losing really isn't as significant an indicator of the quality of your work as winning is. It's not a big insult. It's just what was most likely to happen.

Besides a few moments of over-explaining, you are awesome. Love the video. I learned a lot, some of which I was already doing. Thanks for posting. And with that I am: Out. Out. Out. :)

Oh it's so good to have you back on KZfaq!

Thanks Zack. Good to hear your words on this.

Lots of good information in this video. It proves again that only one party gains from contests. The party that holds the contest. It's mostly just a marketing thing and the visibility gained by the contestants is low. Also the process described here has problems. The judges discuss so a judge with better talking skills wins over the one withe the better eye. Focus on your goals and ask yourself if a contest brings you closer or if it is a waste of time

Glad to see you back!

Know the rules and preferences of your judging panel or clientele. Morph your portfolio to support their egos. That’s how you win. It is a plain and simple competition that less to do with art and more to do with fitting into their box.

Thanks Zack that was informative and rekindled some older ideas. Gave to see you posting again, I often chuckle when I think of the crop sensor video!!!

Yes Zack, it provides motivation as my photos, which I think fits the category would be judged by experts. I take photos for myself and not for the contests.

This was an utterly fantastic video. Thanks for all that you do, Zack!

That was awesome. Thanks for sharing.

Very insightful. As a regular participant in salons recent times and having seen the judging process, I am very much convinced with all your points. Personally I have also attended your workshop held in Chennai last year. Keep your good work going.

I have entered many many contests and only used photos I just took in the normal course of shooting, and have done fairly well, never a first place but did place. and they were just photos I had, the times I tried to take a photo for a contest never did too well.

Great to see Zack back online. Always entertaining, always thought-provoking.

Awesome insight, thanks man! (PS: I too have a pic of a firefighter, flames, and a hose. lol.)

We miss you Zack,you always say things as they are in a simple way. I really like seeing award winning pictures and portfolio from professional photographers that i admire,because it shows me their point of view and thinking.The variations of different styles of photography it really opens new horizons to think alternate ways of shooting, using your imagination ,adopting in your own way and improving day after day .As a hobbyist landscape photographer i often ending up with facepalms when i see pictures from locations i've been and how i didn't think about shooting similarly. On the other hand,having a personal style of shooting and improving it is just what makes me happy.

Great content, Zach! Very insightful advice. Nice to have you back.

Oh SO real Zac! Great to see you back! Greetings from Scotland!

Very informative. I've only entered one photo contest which I entered on a lark and didn't even make it past the first round. My initial thoughts were of disappointment but that I would wait to see the winners to analyze them to see what mine might be missing. I hadn't expected to win but I did expect to at least make it past round one. Then I saw all the winners and couldn't believe how bad nearly all of them were. To borrow your example think what that firefighter photo might have been if the composition was awkward, the front of the firehouse spraying water was cut off in the frame, the image was out of focus, and the fire didn't make it into the frame. So bad they were laughable. That led me to wondering who the judges of the competition were and found they kept it secret. Then I finally found someone online that said they had been a judge for the competition in the past and stopped because they disagreed with who were recently being put on the panel by the contests board to judge the contest. Then I eventually found out who the judges were and after looking at their background (or work in the case of some of them being photographers) realized they had no qualifications to judge such a contest. Obviously this wasn't the contest you were part of. So I started looking into contests in more detail and found that many, and I emphasize many, look like they have questionable methodologies. Either there is no clear parameters as to what judges look for or the judges involved are often of questionable competence to be judging. Then I learned about the situation of photographer Sal Cincotta winning his own photography contest and that was enough for me to realize contests are not for me.

Welcome back Zack. I have learned a LOT from you. This is an excellent video. The Crop or Crap video opened my eyes also, as SO MANY PEOPLE get caught up in the sensor size dilemma. Hello from ATLANTA!😊

He Lives. Thanks Zack. Your silhouette shoot past midnight with Jared Polin opened my eyes as to what a set of speedlights can do. Welcome back

Very interesting, Zack! It's good you're back here. We missed you.

Hey Zack! Great to see you back to posting videos. Right on the money, as usual.

There are so many parameters on which judges guide their judging that i am sure that a rejected photo in one contest may be admitted in the following contest by the same judge, plus judging thousands of photos is very tiring, after two or three hours they don't really care who wins, they just want to go home to rest and watch tv, so contests are really based on luck.

Thanks Zack, just what I need.

I have seen many photography competitions where the photos winning are so obviously edited that it is no longer a photo and more like artwork. Unless it is in the creative division or a Photoshop competition I think this send a bad message to photographers that you have to be more skilled with Photoshop than with the camera to win a competition.