Photocritic has an excellent article describing the steps to take to win a photography competition. Haje Jan Kamps was asked to judge on a recent photo competition and spelled out in the article the criteria he used to judge the photos.

In brief, the steps are:
- Stick to the topic
- Know the rules – then break them
- Keep it simple
- Tell a powerful story
- Technical perfection in pair with strong vision
- The X Factor
- Develop your own style

The step I think is the most important is “The X Factor”. After you have a handle on the competition topic, and have the technical elements sorted, you need to make sure your photo won’t look similar to any other photographer’s photo. Do that by adding a slice of originality – that X factor. Unfortunately no one can teach you how to add this! It will only come with experience and a little luck!

Read the full article here

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