What we can do vs what is considered "right"

[KenC]

Yeah, I've run into old slide shooters who hate PS and would like to insist that no one do any processing at all. The fact is that these people were in the minority even 50 years ago, when many people made prints, whether they started with negative or positive film, and did all sorts of manipulations in the darkroom. If they want to restrict their own work, they can by all means do so, but they shouldn't try to restrict others from using PS, especially for common manipulations (that were easy in the darkroom) like adjusting brightness, contrast, color, and even doing selective adjustments of these parameters.

 

[jsecordphoto]

I don't worry about competitions because I never enter them.

And I never enter them because they're basically a rights grab.

This x100. Barely anyone reads the fine print on these competitions. What's discouraging is so many photo magazines where the only prize is being featured in the magazine, but then they can do whatever they want with your photo.

 

[480sparky]

This x100. Barely anyone reads the fine print on these competitions. What's discouraging is so many photo magazines where the only prize is being featured in the magazine, but then they can do whatever they want with ALL the photos that have been entered.

FIFY.

 

[Overread]

Not every competition is a right grab - many local clubs are not rights grabs. Sometimes also the "rights grab" only applies in so far as promoting the competition itself; or might be linked to a charity one wishes to donate to or could be that it only applies to winning shots etc....

In general each is individual and its best to approach them on that ground. You can choose to join because its part of the society you are in (like the photo competitions on TPF); because its prestigious (Nat Geo); because you just want to etc....

Just be aware of what you are entering and the rules both for submissions and rights and you should be fine. Mostly its about being aware, looking and finding all the info and then making a choice.