that's it, I'm done

I don't know why I put myself through it.  I really don't.

Firstly, there was the considerable effort of shooting some first-rate images in the first place. Then there was processing and re-sizing them for the particular requirements stipulated, and then there's actually submitting the images.

I'm talking about photography competitions.

Although I don't really "agree" with them (see this post) I entered one earlier this year, and vowed then "no more"!

But after spending the best part of a year trying to become a decent macro photographer, I had a series of images with two in particular that I felt were good enough to get at least shortlisted in a contest. 

In the case of the image you see above, I was really happy with it from a number of different angles.  I felt the composition was strong, it was beautifully lit and technically I couldn't do a better job if I tried; but most importantly I felt it told a story that had a real connection to the plant and the time of year.

Then with this image (left) I was certain that looking at past entries this was every bit as good as (if not in fact better than) the majority of previous entries in its category.

Again, the subject matter, technical proficiency and all the other factors surely enough to warrant a second look.

But no!

Neither image found favour with any of the judges and therefore I'd wasted another day preparing the images not to mention the entry fee as well.

Now, don't get me wrong.  I'm in no way jealous of the people who got images shortlisted.  It's just that it would be nice, bearing in mind that there was a not insubstantial entry fee, to get some sort of feedback or notice as to why the images weren't deemed good enough.  In the case of the second image here, it was almost identical in concept and subject to an entry that was successfully shortlisted.

Is it down to having to have a "name" again, a thought I alluded to in that previous post, or are my images just not as good as I think they are.

It would be good to know!