about unfairness, imho, in the rules

[DeaconBlues]

Nutkick42- between the power of TotalFark and the power of the Almighty Pipe-Wielding Dobbshead, you are now UNSTOPPABLE.

[Elsinore]

Ok, so under the proposed new rules, spot corrections would be fine, while adding/removing elements from the photo would not be fine. What about using the dodge/burn tool to lighten teeth, moles, pimples, etc? WRT moles and pimples, you could probably effectively remove them with the dodge tool, so would we say that would violate the proposed rules because it removes elements even though it’s using a tool that would otherwise be ok? How about lightening teeth? In that case you aren’t removing elements, but it’s not so much photo correction as retouching (which in my mind is a little different). I would think retouching in those cases would still violate the spirit of the rules? I don’t know..I can also see cases where maybe something like that would be a correction for the lighting. What do you guys think?

[schnee]

I tried to edit the Rules (on Fark) using the guidelines we’ve discussed. Here’s what I got:

* What are acceptable and unacceptable modifications?



** These are the submission guidelines for all Farktography contests,

unless otherwise stated in a theme description.



* Submissions must be photographs. Screen captures do not count as

photographs.

* You must be the original photographer of your entry. Do not

submit anyone else's photography as your own.

* You are only allowed to enter a photograph once. Do not submit

the same photo to another contest later.

* Up to 3 photos can be entered into each contest, as long as each

photo is of a different composition. Please post each photo

separately so they can be voted for individually.



** General Guidelines:

* Gross compositional changes are bad

No adding Elvis, no erasing ulitiy lines



* Image corrections are accepted

Color correction? Perspective? Pin cushion? Fix these. That's cool.



** Acceptable Modifications:



* Cropping

* Sizing

* Rotating

* Copyright text

* Correction for pincushion or barrel distortion

* A small 2 pixel wide border

* Spot treatment for red-eye removal, film scratches, and sensor

or scan dust is acceptable, but these are the only spot

treatments allowed!

* Sharpen using any method

* Dodge and burn

* Pimples, blemishes, stray hairs - these can be cleaned up



** The following modifications and filters (or their non-Photoshop

equivalents) are also allowed:



* Adjustment layers

* Levels

* Curves

* Brightness/Contrast

* Greyscale

* Sepia (or adding a similar monochrome tone to an image)

* Hue/Saturation/Lightness

* Color balance

* Sharpen

* Unsharp Mask

* Jpeg artifact removal

* Moire pattern removal

* Median Cut

* Noise reduction

* Gaussian blur



NOTE:



While the above modifications are allowed for Farktography, you should

strive to keep your results in the realm of the realistic. For

example, the contrast and saturation tools can yield cartoonish

results when cranked up to their maximum strength. Such use of these

otherwise acceptable tools is discouraged and may subject your

photograph to disqualification.



** Unacceptable Modifications:



* HDR (High Dynamic Range) images or use of similar techniques

that blend either separate exposures or differently exposed

single RAW images unless the individual contest specifically

states that HDR is allowed. Multiple exposures produced

in-camera are always acceptable, however.



* Remove or add objects or textures via cloning or copying - no

removing of utility wires, no inserting images of Elvis





If you have any questions about the acceptable modifications, or if

you'd just like to chat and learn more about photography, feel free to

drop by the forums at Farktography.net or email

questions@farktography.net.

It still feels “heavy” to me. I think we could tighten by concentrating on the “that shalt not” – if it is not forbidden, go for it. Basically, the key is the “General Guidelines” of “don’t change the composition, but feel free to correct all you want”.

Suggestions?

[Elsinore]

I can dig that. Though why allow correction of blemishes and stray hairs but not power lines? I’m not opposed to it, but trying to come up with a justification of allowing one but not the other. I think it’s a matter of scale, maybe? Removing power lines is a huge removal (though maybe not, depending on the picture), but a pimple or a stray hair not so much (though potentially not, depending on the picture).

I think we could probably combined the Acceptable Modifications lists–it’s currently two separate lists, but it could probably be listed together and generalized so as not to need so many items.

[schnee]

Though why allow correction of blemishes and stray hairs but not power lines?

I struggled with that as well. Scale, yeah, and I was combining photojournalist ethics with portrait photographer ethics – the portraitist knows that everyone wants to be presented at their best and removes blemishes automatically. The journalist wants to show the reality image.

Now, if we had a “Show us your liver spots theme”, then keeping the blemishes in would be the right thing to do.

[SilverStag]

I think Elsinore is right on about combining and shrinking the acceptable modifications lists, to the point of Draconian pruning. It’s better to simply state what’s *not* allowed, without a huge list in the posted rules. We can have an exhaustive list here on the site in the full rules section, if push comes to shove, but I don’t want to scare away the casual Farktographers.

[sleeping]

It’s better to simply state what’s *not* allowed, without a huge list in the posted rules.

I agree with this – in Photoshop in particular there are often multiple ways of achieving similar results, and unless we really want to create a highly detailed list, there will always be questions of “why is that approved and not this”.

[schnee]

Concentrating on the nots, we get:

* What are acceptable and unacceptable modifications?



** These are the submission guidelines for all Farktography contests,

unless otherwise stated in a theme description.



* Submissions must be photographs. Screen captures do not count as

photographs.

* You must be the original photographer of your entry. Do not

submit anyone else's photography as your own.

* You are only allowed to enter a photograph once. Do not submit

the same photo to another contest later.

* Up to 3 photos can be entered into each contest, as long as each

photo is of a different composition. Please post each photo

separately so they can be voted for individually.



** General Guidelines:

* Gross compositional changes are bad

No adding Elvis, no erasing utility lines



* Image corrections are accepted. Color correction? Perspective? Pin

cushion? Unsightly blemishes? Fix these. That's cool.



** Unacceptable Modifications:



* HDR (High Dynamic Range) images or use of similar techniques

that blend either separate exposures or differently exposed

single RAW images unless the individual contest specifically

states that HDR is allowed. Multiple exposures produced

in-camera are always acceptable, however.



* Removing or adding objects or textures via cloning or copying -

no removing of utility wires, no inserting images of Elvis





If you have any questions about the acceptable modifications, or if

you'd just like to chat and learn more about photography, feel free to

drop by the forums at Farktography.net or email

questions@farktography.net.

More nicelyer concise, but not quite pithy. Is there a wordsmith in the house?

(after getting the edits, I can work on the final copy and convert it to HTML for Fark consumption, unless you know org-mode in emacs – the above is just that (and by ‘you’, I mean the collective ‘you’))

[swampa]

You have the adding Elvis, removing wires in there twice. Is that right?

[Elsinore]

More nicelyer concise, but not quite pithy. Is there a wordsmith in the house?

*adjusts her nerd glasses*

[linguine]

Should we include no stitching photos together unless otherwise stated as well or would you say thats covered with no gross compositional changes?

[Elsinore]

I think if we worded it along the lines of “Multiple exposures done in-camera are fine, but combining exposures in post processing (e.g. stacking negatives, stitching, HDR, etc) is right out” we could get everything in one fell swoop, both film and digital.

[schnee]

    * Combining exposures in post-processing is not allowed.  HDR

(High Dynamic Range), stitching, stacking negatives, use of

similar techniques that blend either separate exposures or

differently exposed single RAW images - all those are

out. Multiple exposures produced in-camera are always

acceptable, however.

?

[Elsinore]

Perfect

[RcMacStudent]

The last part seems kind of wordy, how about:

* Combining exposures in post-processing is not allowed. However, multiple exposures produced in-camera are always acceptable.

[Author]

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