NYC street photo contest, just fyi

lizzard_nyc · August 5, 2010

http://www.photobooknyc.com/?eb=1
Here is the link for anyone interested.
I was all excited about it, until I realized there is a fee for each photo entered--$25 bucks too!

Wondered why such established companies such as Blurb and B&H would be part of something like this. Is it customary to charge these fees.
Reminds me too much of my teen years when my mother signed me up for a modeling agency and we had to pay them to take my photo :rofl. Yes I can laugh now, but it took years to get over that:)

If this is a legitimate practice, no one tell Mike Penn, and I will enter :rofl.

EDIT: Richard, wasn't sure if to post this here or the big picture--but it is related to "street".

canonthen · August 5, 2010

Seems to me that everything PDN related is money in the bank for them.

lizzard_nyc · August 6, 2010

canonthen wrote: »

Seems to me that everything PDN related is money in the bank for them.

it's frustrating because I love street shooting so much and I'd like to be able to show off a little--but this is a ripoff. I have noticed this trend though with so many other places. National geographic does the same thing, you can submit photos but they charge for each submission, WTH?

michswiss · August 6, 2010

There's a site that keeps track of organisations and competitions in terms of respecting the photographer's copyright, Pro-Imaging. Nat Geo is one of the absolute worst. Submit an image to them and it essentially becomes their property. If I remember correctly, PDN is generally good.

That said, it isn't unusual at all for legitimate organisations to charge for submissions to structured competitions. Think about it, even requiring a submissions fee, there will likely be hundreds (nee thousands) of photographers submitting very good material. The judges will be spending extensive time making proper, professional assessments which is almost certainly going to be time consuming. The sponsors are providing the "reward" for winning photographers in lieu for minor advertisement and exposure (Ha!, but who honestly wouldn't already know about B&H or Adorama or Adobe or any major manufacturer).

There's a side consequence as well. A paid submission is likely to have you seriously questioning what and why you would submit something. There are free competitions too, but I would look very carefully at the T&Cs before sending them in.

lizzard_nyc · August 6, 2010

michswiss wrote: »

There's a site that keeps track of organisations and competitions in terms of respecting the photographer's copyright, Pro-Imaging. Nat Geo is one of the absolute worst. Submit an image to them and it essentially becomes their property. If I remember correctly, PDN is generally good.

That said, it isn't unusual at all for legitimate organisations to charge for submissions to structured competitions. Think about it, even requiring a submissions fee, there will likely be hundreds (nee thousands) of photographers submitting very good material. The judges will be spending extensive time making proper, professional assessments which is almost certainly going to be time consuming. The sponsors are providing the "reward" for winning photographers in lieu for minor advertisement and exposure (Ha!, but who honestly wouldn't already know about B&H or Adorama or Adobe or any major manufacturer).

There's a side consequence as well. A paid submission is likely to have you seriously questioning what and why you would submit something. There are free competitions too, but I would look very carefully at the T&Cs before sending them in.

Thanks for the all the information. Glad and sad to know this is legitimate practice, and thanks for the warning on National Geo.
Now to make a decision, maybe just one shot.

bendruckerphoto · August 7, 2010

Thanks for sharing! I'm the same though. I don't enter contests with fees. Unless you have a truly spectacular image, it's kind of like buying a lottery ticket. There's a certain thrill to entering and seeing if you'll win, but the probability of winning multiplied by the value of the prize will always be less than the entry fee.

HelenOster · August 8, 2010

michswiss wrote: »

......who honestly wouldn't already know about B&H or Adorama or Adobe or any major manufacturer)......

You'd be surprised; I see at least one or two postings every single week on the forums I frequent, asking about the credentials of both Adorama and B&H.
More worrying is that I also pick up 3 or 4 postings each week from people asking whether wewon'tconyouphotogbargains.com and Honest Harry's camera emporium are legit - even when the prices are on average $200 less than Adorama or B&H!

misterb · August 8, 2010

Adorama rocks!

My class was canceled once and they *still* gave me a $25 web coupon!

(got my Ape Bag there, along with some other stuff!)

bendruckerphoto · August 8, 2010

B&H and Adorama are the only two places I shop, with the exception of snagging an occasional gear deal on Amazon. I have some friends who buy from Calumet too, although Calumet's prices aren't great. Most advanced amateurs from this area who have talked to me buy from B&H. But that's because we live in the NYC metro area, and because B&H is so well known because of the size of its store, their prices, and the amount of stuff they carry. Adorama is far less well-known. Pros know it, but otherwise, I rarely hear about people buying there. I mostly buy from B&H, but I am buying more stuff from Adorama these days, since I now get free shipping via NAPP.

With photo contests like these, you have to figure that only relatively serious photographers are entering at $25. Have they heard of all the sponsors and probably bought from them in the past? Yes. But if an ad for Adobe can remind someone that they wanted to buy the CS5 upgrade when they might have otherwise forgotten, it's worth it.

HelenOster · August 9, 2010

bendruckerphoto wrote: »

........Adorama is far less well-known. Pros know it, but otherwise, I rarely hear about people buying there. I mostly buy from B&H, but I am buying more stuff from Adorama these days, since I now get free shipping via NAPP.......

If you get a chance to let me know how we could do something about this I would be very grateful.

As you probably know we always make every effort to price match to B&H and other reputable retailers (unit cost as well as shipping). So what else could we do?
Many customers tell us that they find the Adorama store less overwhelming and therefore easier to make their choices, but if they don't even know we exist..........:cry

misterb · August 9, 2010

HelenOster wrote: »

If you get a chance to let me know how we could do something about this I would be very grateful.

Hi Helen,

I was promised a sampler pack of the different photo papers you sell but I never got it. I'll PM my snail mail address to you, if you can help me- that would be great.

Thanks- Bob Brandoff

bendruckerphoto · August 9, 2010

HelenOster wrote: »

If you get a chance to let me know how we could do something about this I would be very grateful.

As you probably know we always make every effort to price match to B&H and other reputable retailers (unit cost as well as shipping). So what else could we do?
Many customers tell us that they find the Adorama store less overwhelming and therefore easier to make their choices, but if they don't even know we exist..........:cry

I buy some of the FlashPoint products from Adorama. For certain things, I invest in the highest quality. But for others, the savings Adorama offers makes it my #1 choice. For example, I needed a grid for my Lastolite 24" square softbox. Normally, grids are insanely expensive. I found a FlashPoint grid at Adorama for about $25. Sold. In other situations, I can't shop at Adorama for tax reasons. Adorama has a processing center in New Jersey and so I have to pay tax on my orders. B&H doesn't. For a several hundred dollar purchase, that means Adorama has to beat B&H by almost 10% on price for it to have the best price.

In terms of selling to amateurs or enthusiasts as opposed to pros though, that's tougher. Matching B&H won't really be good enough, since B&H is in a fairly central location and is very well known. Adorama is in an area with lots of professional photographers, but not a high traffic tourist/shopper area. The new cart is a step in the right direction, since the old website interface was pretty clunky. I can't think of much else though. I'll think it over and let you know what I can come up with.

HelenOster · August 9, 2010

misterb wrote: »

Hi Helen,

I was promised a sampler pack of the different photo papers you sell but I never got it. I'll PM my snail mail address to you, if you can help me- that would be great.

Thanks- Bob Brandoff

It's on the way, Bob!

HelenOster · August 9, 2010

bendruckerphoto wrote: »

I buy some of the FlashPoint products from Adorama. For certain things, I invest in the highest quality. But for others, the savings Adorama offers makes it my #1 choice. For example, I needed a grid for my Lastolite 24" square softbox. Normally, grids are insanely expensive. I found a FlashPoint grid at Adorama for about $25. Sold. In other situations, I can't shop at Adorama for tax reasons. Adorama has a processing center in New Jersey and so I have to pay tax on my orders. B&H doesn't. For a several hundred dollar purchase, that means Adorama has to beat B&H by almost 10% on price for it to have the best price.

In terms of selling to amateurs or enthusiasts as opposed to pros though, that's tougher. Matching B&H won't really be good enough, since B&H is in a fairly central location and is very well known. Adorama is in an area with lots of professional photographers, but not a high traffic tourist/shopper area. The new cart is a step in the right direction, since the old website interface was pretty clunky. I can't think of much else though. I'll think it over and let you know what I can come up with.

Thank you so much; PM sent!

NYC street photo contest, just fyi

Comments