A reader recently sent me a photograph, asking if it was “good enough” to submit to a photo contest.
The short answer, without even looking at the image, was “yes”.
Any photograph is generally good enough to submit to a contest. What is most important is the story behind it.
Images that may be technically perfect - framing, exposure, subject positioning - are very often passed over for images that include a compelling background narrative.
Incorporating a descriptive story along with your image reinforces its value to the viewer, it helps explain why you chose the image for a contest, and it offers a justification of its strengths when compared with the other (sometimes thousands) of images that may be submitted in any contest.
Considering the purpose and audience of the photo contest also ensures that your image aligns with the the particular contest “call”.
For example, the above image could be voiced in many different ways depending on the situation and the intent of the photographer: perhaps it was just early morning walk and something that caught the viewer’s eye, or perhaps a recent earthquake struck that devastated a city’s infrastructure, or perhaps it represents the rift in a once solid relationship.
The story behind an image changes how one interprets the message and its meaning entirely.