FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE

What skill level photographer can participate?

THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE is open to photographers of all skill levels. From award winning photographers to professionals to the highly ranked amateurs to those that are just beginning to those who don’t even know how to focus a camera. All skill levels are encouraged and welcome. You can’t be too bad and you can’t be too good! Everyone has room to learn and be challenged!

Award winning photographers? Really?

Yes. I can think of at least 10 photographers that participate regularly that have won a photography award of some kind.

Is this a competition?
NO. It is a challenge. There are no winners and losers. Well the people that don’t participate are losers.

Is there a limit to the number of submissions I can have each week?

Yes. That limit is 2. If you send me more than 2, I will post the first 2 that you send. I’m not trying to harsh your photography buzz, but any more than that starts to overwhelm the other submissions and it takes me about 5 minutes to take a picture from my inbox to code it on the website. So I have to manage my workload.

If you are going to submit more than one picture, I strongly urge you to choose completely different subjects for each submission. If you are submitting multiple pictures of the same subject, make sure that each picture is saying something unique.

If I start to average like 45 participants a week, I will lower the limit to 1.

Can I send you several pictures and have you pick the best one?

No! No! NO! If those words come out of your mouth or your keyboard, I consider that to be a non-submission.

Do you ever question whether somebody’s submission fits the theme?

Meh. Only if I think somebody is clearly confusing this week’s theme with last week or next week’s theme. Otherwise, if the submission makes sense in your head, that is good enough for me. However, I would urge you to not try to fit your favorite subject into the theme every week. This isn’t a challenge to share a picture every week of your kid or your business or your pet. It is a challenge to take pictures of different things every week. Which isn’t to say subjects can’t be repeated, but you shouldn’t become reliant on the same ones.

Why can’t I submit after 11 AM on Mondays if the post doesn’t publish until 12:01 PM?

I go to lunch at 11 AM. I leave my office. I’m not near a computer. At 11 AM I hit “Schedule” and then I go throw food down my throat. 167 hours is more than enough time to send a submission. Okay, 166 hours and 59 minutes. You got me.

Do I have to wait until Monday morning to submit?

Absolutely not! In fact (AND CAN’T EMPHASIZE THIS ENOUGH) I appreciate the submissions that make it to me by Sunday evening. Makes the job of putting this together on Monday morning much easier!

Are there resolution requirements for submissions?

I won’t turn down submissions that are too small. I will probably ask you for a picture of greater resolution if it is really small. The typical 4 x 6 image posted to my website has a resolution of 1280 pixels x 853 pixels. While a 400 x 300 image might look okay on your phone, it looks like trash on a computer monitor. I prefer images that are at least 1000 pixels at their widest point, but don’t ban smaller pictures at this point. But don’t tempt me!

What format should my submission be?

.JPG but .PNG also works. Notice that .HEIC is not listed. Apple cultists.

If I write a description of my image will you include that in your post?

No. Photography is art that should stand on its own. Only exception is the SLICE OF LIFE theme. But if you let me know where the picture was taken, I will include that. In fact, I appreciate you letting me know where a picture was taken. If you don’t let me know, I will assume the picture was taken in the state you live in.

When will you start accepting suggestions for next year’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE themes?

I will take suggestions only and ONLY in the comments sections of the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE posts the last week of October and the 1st week of November.

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WET! What a great theme! But did enough people moisten up to make it a popular theme?

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, September 22, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks:

*1-Mary Green – 1 week
2-Brandon Kahler – 1 week
3-Sara Lockner – 1 week
4-Ben Baier – 2 weeks
5-Suzie Brannen – 2 weeks
6-Sarah Karber – 2 weeks
7-Willy McAlpine – 4 weeks
8-Monica Jennings – 8 weeks
9-Becky Parmelee – 8 weeks
*10-Alexis Stensland – 24 weeks
11-Deanna McClain – 37 weeks
*12-Deb Powers – 56 weeks
13-Mike Vest – 69 weeks
14-Lowell Davis – 90 weeks
15-Scott Degeneffe – 108 weeks
16-Sheri Fakhouri – 117 weeks
*17-Logan Kahler – 120 weeks
18-Nathanial Brown – 121 weeks
19-Tamara Peterson – 132 weeks
20-Mindi Terrell – 136 weeks
21-Linda Bennett – 165 weeks
22-Sarah Toot – 166 weeks
23-Angie DeWaard – 169 weeks
24-Dawn Krause – 172 weeks
25-Kim Barker – 179 weeks
26-Joe Duff – 181 weeks
27-Teresa Kahler – 192 weeks
*28-Carla Stensland – 192 weeks
29-Micky Augustin – 194 weeks
30-Andy Sharp – 195 weeks
31-Bill Wentworth – 196 weeks
32-Cathie Morton – 199 weeks
33-Elizabeth Nordeen – 201 weeks
34-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 203 weeks
*35-Kio Dettman – 205 weeks

Here is the list of rules for Year 12 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE:

1. The picture must be taken between 12:01 PM today and 11 AM next Monday. This isn’t a curate your photos project. This is a get your butt off the couch and take pictures challenge!

2. There is a limit of 2 submissions per person per theme. If you send me more than 2, I will use the first 2 that you submit. If you submit 2 pictures, make sure they are of different subjects.
3. Deadline to submit your submission is 11 AM Central Time the following Monday. But that is a deadline. Pictures can be submitted as soon as you take them.
4. To be considered the photographer of an image, you have to be the one that clicks the shutter. If you hand your camera over to somebody else to take a picture of you, you are NOT the photographer of that image.
5. No screen captures. This is a photography challenge. Not a “look at what I found on the internet” challenge.
6. Please include the location of where the picture was taken with your submission.

There are still 2 ways to submit:

1. Email your submission to bennett@photography139.com.
2. Text your submission to my Google Pixel 8 Pro.

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks or the rules of the challenge or how to submit. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Johnathan Stensland (Ankeny, Iowa) – 1 week

Sabas Hernandez (Ankeny, Iowa) – 1 week

Sabas Hernandez (Ankeny, Iowa)

Suzie Brannen (Perry, Iowa) – 3 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Perry, Iowa)

Sarah Karber (Minnesota) – 3 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Spain) – 5 weeks

Monica Jennings (Boone, Iowa) – 9 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 25 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

Deanna McClain (Boone, Iowa) – 38 weeks

Deb Powers (Saylorville, Iowa) – 57 weeks

Deb Powers (Saylorville, Iowa)

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Lowell Davis (Iowa) – 91 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa) – 109 weeks

Sheri Fakhouri (Iowa) – 118 weeks

Logan Kahler (Ankeny, Iowa) – 121 weeks

Nathanial Brown (High Trestle Trail Bridge – Iowa) – 122 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Perry, Iowa) – 133 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Urbandale, Iowa) – 137 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 166 weeks

Linda Bennett (Boone, Iowa)

Sarah Toot (E. Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania) – 167 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Ames, Iowa) – 170 weeks

Dawn Krause (Don Williams Park – Iowa) – 173 weeks

Kim Barker (The Sphere – Las Vegas, Nevada) – 180 weeks

Joe Duff (League City, Texas) – 182 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ledges State Park – Iowa) – 193 weeks

Carla Stensland (Ledges State Park – Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 193 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Colo, Iowa) -195 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 196 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 197 weeks

Cathie Morton (Disneyland, Florida) – 200 weeks

Cathie Morton (Disneyland, Florida)

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 202 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Summerset, Iowa) – 204 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 206 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (McHose Park – Boone, Iowa) – 628 weeks

Submissions from 33 participants this week. A vaguely popular week! But the answer to the great riddle, “Is water wet?” According to these submissions water is indeed wet!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

• Iowa
• Kansas
• Minnesota
• Nevada
• Nebraska
• Pennsylvania
• Spain
• Texas

Here is the Year 12 list of places where submissions have been taken:

• Alaska
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Maryland
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Pennsylvania
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Washington
• Washington D.C.
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming
• Argentina
• Chile
• Dominican Republic
• England
• Ireland
• Northern Ireland
• Spain

That is 36 states, 1 district, and 7 foreign countries!

There were some huge milestones reached this week. Joe joined the 3.5 Year Streak Club! WooHoo! WooHoo! WooHoo! Woo! Cathie joined the 200 Week Streak Club! WooHoo! WooHoo! But man there was a literal bloodbath of streaks that came crashing to the ground. Mary, Brandon, and Sara couldn’t build on their submission from last week. Their streaks are over before they even started. Ben’s streak is kaput at 2 weeks. Becky streak called “no mas” after 8 weeks.

Enough dwelling on the past! Time to look to the future. We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future! This week’s theme:

PORTRAIT

PORTRAIT! What a great theme for Year 12 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE! It doesn’t matter what kind of PORTRAIT. Self, Formal, Candid… all viable options!

I look forward to seeing your interpretation!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of PORTRAIT in this place that is booked for portraits next month next Monday.