HOW TO PERFORM BETTER IN
SALONS & CIRCUITS

INTRODUCTION:

Performing better in salons and circuits, particularly in the context of competitions or professional photography, involves a combination of skill refinement, strategic preparation, and effective execution. Here's a guide to help you.

  • Sections Overview: There are many sections related to salon photography. But there are some basic sections like “Open Colour, Open Monochrome, Nature, Travel & Journalism”. These are basic & backbone structure of salon photography. All of you need to understand each & every section to perform best. Open colour & monochrome has no restrictions in post processing but must remember to use only photos that you have taken by yourself. Do not use any type of downloaded images to create your own file. Do not use any 3rd party brushes in post processing software to create your file.

There are three restricted sections. Nature, Travel & Journalism. These sections are called restricted/realistic because these section images tell us the actual story of the Nature, a place & an incident, which can not be modified at any point of view. So, for these sections use only basic editing tools like brightness, contrast adjustment, cropping, removing dust or sensor marks & straightening. You can use little bit dehaze also to remove haze from your image while processing RAW in post processing software. Use your crop tool properly to position the subject in composition frame. Emphasize your main subject to attract juries.

 

  • Submission Idea: Do not submit sequential images in any section. For example, if you are submitting images in open colour section, do not submit same posture images from the same model taken in the same workshop. Another example is, for nature section, if you have taken some continuous shots, then do not submit those continuous shots in the nature section. Submit 4 different types of images in a section to get better acceptance.
  • Here are some examples – what to do or what not to do.
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  • Skill Development: Ensure your foundational skills are strong. To be the best performer, you must learn various skills in digital photography. Clicking a shot from your camera is not the end. To attract the juries, you must be very perfect in cropping & post processing.
    • 1st ask yourself, how is your image/creation.
    • Can you engage your self to watch your creation more than 1 minute?
    • Did you get the wow factor in your image?
    • If yes, then the jury can watch the image more than 1 sec & assign better marks for the image you created.

You must develop your photography skills accordingly. Taking only good photographs is not the ultimate solution for salon photography.

You need Basic knowledge of photography, know your device (camera), learn to use post processing software & make a habit of watching international/national salon galleries. 

 

  • Stay Updated: Keep up with the latest trends, techniques, and tools in your field.
    • Attend workshops, photo tours, webinars & online courses.
    • Make a habit of reading salon/circuit rules carefully.
    • Read & understand division definition carefully.
    • Watch previous salon/circuit galleries & try to understand the trend.

 

  • Specialize: Identify your niche and hone unique styles or techniques that set you apart. There should be various sections or divisions in a salon/circuit. Some participants think of participating in all sections while they don’t have proper images for the particular section. For that reason, the percentage of acceptance become very poor.
    • Identify your images for which section they fit best & divide them properly. Save them in separate folders. Name those folders like division names. It is very important to know your images.
    • If you have images for all the sections, then go ahead with all the sections.
    • If you are a nature & travel photographer and understand the division definitions perfectly, then my suggestion is to participate in those sections only. Avoid other sections. That will increase your percentage of acceptance & also confidence in salon photography.
    • If you are interested to attend indoor photography workshops & know how to process indoor shots, then my suggestion is to participate in Open sections only. Avoid restricted sections to get poor percentage.
    • Which is better for you? 6 out of 8 or 7 out of 16 acceptances? In my opinion the 1st one is better. What do you think? Ask yourself.

 

  • Study Previous Winners: Analyse what made previous winners successful. Look for patterns, standout elements, or innovative ideas. Try to inspire yourself to become the best.

 

  • Practice makes a person perfect: Practicing photography is an exciting and fulfilling endeavour.
    • Learn the Basics of Your Camera: Understand aperture, shutter speed, ISO, and how they interact (the exposure triangle). Experiment with different settings.
    • Learn & practice post processing regularly.
    • Just one hour everyday can make the difference.
    • Participate in salons/circuits regularly. You don’t need to participate in every exhibition. Pick 3 or 4 exhibitions (salons/circuit) per month to participate (Depending your financial capacity & image stock).
    • Analize the images which are not accepted. If an image is performing very poor regularly, stop sending it in exhibitions.
    • Keep track of all acceptance in a spreadsheet.
    • Keep a close watch on jury teams. (Later I shall discuss this in detail)

 

  • Visual Appeal: Visual appeal in photography is the ability of an image to captivate and engage juries by evoking emotions, telling a story, or showcasing beauty. Achieving visual appeal requires attention to composition, lighting, colors, and details.
    • Remember these compositions in your images. Rule of thirds, Leading lines, Symmetry and Patterns, Framing & Negative Space.
    • Story telling – Emotion, Action & movement & Context.
    • Perspective & angles, depth & reflection.

Last but not the least – to get accepted & awarded in any section, the image must have the wow factor or powerful story or strong visual appeal or the emotional impact.

Select your images for salons/circuits accordingly.