Rules:
-Each paid member is allowed 4 total entries per month in any combination.
-All photos must have been taken and edited by the paid member.
-All print entries must be mounted, matting is optional.
-Prints must be a minimum of 70 square inches, and may not exceed 16x20 inches including any matte.
-All prints must be properly labeled with the club competition form.
-For submitted digital images, the digital file size shall be RGB color space, a maximum of 750KB and the longest side shall be 1920 pixels.
-Digital files should be named as such: Category_MemberNumber_PhotoName.
Example: C_109_MyPhoto.jpg Using C for color, M for Monochrome.
-Digital entries must be emailed as an attachment to minotcameraclub@gmail.com.
-All entries for the monthly competition are due at the first Monday meeting of that month.
Minot Camera Club categories:
COLOR - Whether it is straight out of the camera, or Photoshopped, do what you need to do to make a lasting impression on the judge!
MONOCHROME - The resulting image is limited to
monochromatic hues or shades of a single color or gray, filters may be applied to give a hue or tint.
Different photographic processes and toners may
also give a different hue to a black & white photograph; for example, sepia and split toning (duo-toning).
No fraction of the image shall be given a special color treatment.
September 2026 - Open
No meeting because of Labor Day so your Prints are due at Minot Public Library main desk 5 pm Sept. 3rd . Digital emailed same date.
Open Class is your chance if none of your category choices made the list. Trains, Landscapes, Minimalist, Kids, Architecture, Humor, Irony, Cats, Polar Bears, or Grapes. They are all legitimate here. Show us what you love because those things will make your best photos.
October 2026 - The Color Blue
Prints due at Oct 5th meeting. Digital emailed same date.
Images where a specific color (blue) is the dominant, defining, or most significant element in the composition. This can include natural scenes (blue hour, water, sky), moody portraits, or still life, where the blue tones evoke a specific emotion or atmosphere. All photographs must have the color blue in them. Any shade of blue. Any variation of blues. It can be skies, apparel, nature, abstracted work, scenery, still life, anything, once it has the color blue in the image. Some ideas:
The Power of Blue: Focus on using blue to craft a specific mood, such as serenity, coldness, or formality.
The "Blues" (Emotive): Capturing the emotional tone of blue, exploring sadness, tranquility, or calm.
Deep Blue: A focus on the darker, more serene shades of blue to create atmospheric, restful, or, conversely, highly dramatic images.
Blue in Nature: Capturing elements like the sky, sea, blue flowers, or ice.
Street Blue: Finding the color blue in urban environments, street scenes, or everyday life.
Blue Contrasts: Specifically looking for complementary color pairs, such as blue and orange, to make the image pop
As the Monochrome division is not called Black and White I guess one could enter a striking monochrome photo for a "blue" themed contest, you should focus on using different shades, tints, and tones of a single blue hue to create depth and texture. A successful entry will focus on composition, lighting, and texture to ensure the subject does not get lost, as all elements will be the same color.
November 2026 - Food
Prints due at Nov. 2nd meeting. Digital emailed same date.
The sustenance of life. Any photo of food. How do you photograph food and get such great results? What separates magazine-worthy photos from their less impressive counterparts isn’t a fancy camera or expensive equipment. It’s an understanding of what it takes to compose an appealing image and the confidence to execute your vision. Details like composition, lighting, and styling, which apply regardless of whether you’re using a digital single lens reflex camera (DSLR), a simple point-and-shoot, or an iPhone. First and foremost, a good food photo should evoke the food’s best traits and its inherent deliciousness. The colors and textures of a dish should be celebrated, not muted or hidden. That means avoiding blurry snapshots, unappealing angles, and that all-too-common yellow cast at all costs. If your mouth doesn’t water when editing your photos, you did something wrong.
December 2026 - People's Choice
Rules:
1. Pictures must be print, no digital entries.
2. You may enter 1 color and 1 monochrome print.
3. Pictures may be any size (up to 16 x 20)
4. Any type of framing, mounting or matting allowed. May be unframed, un-matted.
5. These pictures do not need titles.
6. Your name must NOT appear on the front of the photo.
7. The photos will NOT be critiqued and given scores, but each entry will be given a number for voting.
8. ONE RESTRICTION: Please do not enter any photos that have PLACED in a previous Camera Club competition.
January 2027 - Still Life
Prints due at Jan 4th meeting. Digital emailed same date.
Still life photography for club competitions focuses on arranged, inanimate subjects—such as food, flowers, or household objects—used to showcase skills in lighting, composition, texture, and color harmony. Themes often emphasize creating a "narrative," using "vintage" items, or exploring "found" vs. "created" scenes, allowing for either meticulously studio-lit scenes or natural, found arrangements. Still life photography is the artistic depiction of inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects, arranged in a controlled setting. It focuses on composition, lighting, and framing to create, rather than just find, an image. Subjects range from natural items (fruits, flowers) to man-made goods (vases, tools).
February 2027 - Portraits
Prints due at Feb 1st meeting. Digital emailed same date.
A portrait photo contest theme focuses on capturing a person or group's personality, mood, and likeness through creative lighting, composition, and storytelling. Winning images often feature authentic moments, strong emotional impact, and clear narrative, rather than just technical perfection. Portraiture, is a type of photography aimed toward capturing the personality of a person or group of people by using effective lighting, backdrops, and poses. A portrait photograph may be artistic or clinical.Camera club portrait competitions typically require images focusing on people, excluding pets or animals, and may be submitted in color or monochrome. Successful entries often emphasize emotional connection, unique lighting (e.g., low-key), or candid, un-staged moments, focusing on authentic expression rather than just a technical likeness.
People are all around you and here is your chance to show of your skills with all those people photos you took. Those cute kids or grandkids or friends and their holiday dress make for great memory photos. And if you wanted to have photos of people taking pictures, here is your chance. This section includes candid photographs and formal portraits which show some sort of emotion, drama, or mood. e.g. a couple in a romantic setting, a happy child at Christmas, someone who looks obviously sad or angry etc.; or people in a dramatic scene.
March 2027 - Stop Action
Prints due at March 1st meeting. Digital emailed same date.
Stop Action (or Freeze Motion) is a popular camera club competition theme designed to challenge photographers to capture high-speed moments in crisp detail, using fast shutter speeds to "freeze" elements within a fraction of a second. Common Subjects for Stop Action Competitions:
Sports: Athletes in motion, player facial expressions
Water: Splashes, water droplets, pouring water.
Wildlife: Birds in flight, animals jumping.
Everyday Fast Action: Popping balloons, shattering glass, dancing, or jumping.
Dealing with motion is a great test of a photographer's technique. You should focus on specific technique such as freezing or stopping motion. Freeze a fast-moving subject or a decisive moment in time, highlighting details usually missed by the naked eye. For example, you could capture water droplets or a moving car or train (from a safe distance).
April 2027 - Macro
Prints due at April 5th meeting Digital emailed same date.
Extreme Close-Up photos. What will it be that you show us in close detail? True macro is larger than life size. Insects and flowers are common subjects but intricate details of things like watch movements or coins can be macro too. Use your imagination to find good subjects. Explore the world of close up/macro photography. Seemingly mundane objects can have amazing detail if you just get close. Again, flowers and insects are only one possibility. Use a macro lens, extension tubes or bellows, close up filters, or just the close focusing abilities of your normal lens. It just requires you to get up close and personal with your subject.
May 2027 - Year End
Prints due at May 3rd meeting. No Digital.
Winning photos in previous 2026-2027 competitions Print or Digital are all to be entered as prints in year end competition. A maximum of 4 photos per member. If you have more than 4 winners you need to select your best of the best to enter.
If you entered and did not place you may chose up to 4 photos you've entered in during the year. The photos must have been in a previous 2026-2027 competition. Please remove the old judge’s form and add a new form to the back.