It’s been something I’ve been wondering about for quite awhile already and when I got a couple of links from Sitruuna about photography competitions, it just poked me in the eye again.
I’ve been looking into a good amount of photography contests and the biggest part of the prizes are point-and-shoot cameras or entry-level DSLR models.
These days I think of myself as a professional photographer, and I know that most of the people who enter the competitions I’ve been looking at (e.g. PDN, Smithsonian, Black and White Spider Awards) are also semi-pros or pros. So what on earth are we going to do with a point-and-shoot (that we most likely have already) or an entry-level DSLR (when we’re shooting with pro cameras like 1Ds, 5Ds, D3s, D700s, D300s or D200s?). I still have to come across a competition that offers a 1Ds Mark III, or a 5D Mark II or a D3 or D700.
Anyway…
Gotta process last weekend’s images. Tomorrow some pictures again.
I was actually going to comment this same issue when I left the links, that you probably aren’t very tempted to win a basic pocket size digicamera… But as Anna said, it’s probably due to those two things. Or the lack of creativity: photo competition, what should we give as a prize, I know, let’s give a camera! 😀
Well, it’s easy: a) the competitions are to encourage photography among amateurs. b) The prizes are donated by sponsors, who naturally prefer not to give away the top of the heap camera models when they can get away with less. An entry-level DSLR is still worth quite a lot, and makes a good gift if the unselfish winner does not need it him or herself. :c)