Salons & Competitions

Hidden Earth Photo Salon

Hidden Earth Photo Salon

The purpose of this salon and competition is to encourage both new and experienced cave photographers. We will accept entries that depict any aspect of caving, cave science or mine exploration. Submissions from both established and new photographers are invited. During the judging process consideration will be given to artistic, technical and aesthetic qualities. A prize will be awarded to the overall winner in each category and, in addition, Merit and Distinction awards will highlight examples of praiseworthy entries. 

In 2024 there will be additional prizes allocated to Young Photographers (age 21 or under). Just enter the competition as normal, but indicate on the entry form that you are a Young Photographer.

Enquiries to photo-salon@hidden.earth

How to Enter

You must enter the salon in advance using our online form. Entries on the day are not allowed.

  • The entry form will ask you for your name, and the titles of your photos. Please check the spelling carefully because we will be printing labels to go on the display boards.
  • For prints, we ask you to (optionally) upload a digital copy suitable for projection at the closing ceremony. You should bring your actual prints with you and put them on the boards on the Saturday morning.
  • For digital entries you will need to upload them in advance.
  • We also ask that you (optionally) upload a picture of yourself that we can project at the closing ceremony, should you win a prize.
  • For 2024, the closing date for entries is 11pm on Tuesday 17 September 2024. You then have a short while longer to upload your photos, which you must complete by 11pm on Friday 20 September. 

Prizes

For 2024 we will continue with last year's streamlined categories as listed below, and there will be no delegate ballot.

  • Print (Colour and Monochrome) Combined Category – one winner
  • Digital Image Category – one winner
  • Portfolio (Premier Trophy) – one winner (prize: £100 from BCRA)
  • Plus Distinctions and Merits – certificates will be printed

Young Photographer Prizes

In addition to the standard competition we are awarding additional prizes for Young Photographers (age 21 and under).

  • Winners in the main competition will receive an additional prize if they are classed as a Young Photographer. Thus, if they win a Distinction or Merit they will receive an actual prize and not just a certificate.
  • Entries from Young Photographers will also be judged in their own competition, by a separate panel of judges where at least one prize will be awarded.
  • To enter the Young Photographers section, you just need to tick a box on the main entry form, and ensure that you display your photos on the display boards assigned to this section.

Note: “21 and under” means under the age of 22 on the day of the competition.

Competition Categories

  • Print and Digital Files
    Up to eight entries per person in each of these categories. One 'first prize' is awarded in each category, plus a number of Distinction and Merit Awards. The judges will look unfavourably on near-identical images that are submitted in more than one category. Digital files will be viewed by the judges on a computer monitor. Further information, including file formats is given on the entry form. Note that Special Effects, Digital and Composite Work are not barred from the competition but, as with all entries, you must demonstrate to the judges that your entry has sufficient technical, artistic and aesthetic qualities. For a further discussion of what a "salon" is, and what is meant by technical, artistic and aesthetic merit, please see Hidden Earth Salons Information.
  • Portfolio (Premier Trophy)
    The Premier Trophy is so named because the trophy is a replica of the millionth lamp manufactured by the Premier Lamp Engineering Co Ltd in Leeds in January 1950. The winner is awarded a cash prize (currently £100) and will have their name engraved on the trophy. To enter the Premier Trophy, you may choose FIVE of the above colour and monochrome print entries to form a portfolio. One entry (of five photos) is allowed per person. Note that a winning entry in this category will not be eligible to win any further prizes for the other categories. There is no requirement that the photos follow a theme. It is up to you to decide the content (and you might decide on a theme if you wish, or to explore some other aspect of presentation). It is up to the judges to judge the photos as a whole portfolio, deciding if the prints work well as a set. Because presentation is important, you should ask if you wish your photos to be displayed to a particular layout.
  • Giles Barker Award
    This annual award is given jointly by Morgannwg CC and Red Rose CPC in recognition of excellence in any aspect of cave photography. The winner is announced at the closing ceremony, although the award is independent of Hidden Earth and the BCRA Photo Salon.

Rules

  • Entry
    Your work should be registered online in advance using our entry form. Please follow us on social media, in case of any last-minute changes, or contact photo-salon@hidden.earth with your enquiries.
  • Delivery of Prints
    Your work should be delivered to the exhibition area by midday on the Saturday of the conference. Postal entries are not accepted. If you are late in arriving you may find that there is limited display space left for you. You are expected to hang your work yourselves, under the supervision of the event staff. You should collect your work on the afternoon of the last day of the event. Work left behind cannot be returned.
  • Eligibility
    Anyone may enter the competition. Images that are, in the view of the judges, substantially similar to winning entries from the same photographer in previous Hidden Earth competitions will be disqualified.
  • Subject matter
    This can be any aspect of caving, cave science or mine exploration.
  • Entry limits
    As indicated in the description of the various competition categories.
  • Judging
    This will be by a panel of three judges whose decision is final. Note that the organisers reserve the right not to award a prize if, in the opinion of the judges, the entries are too few and of insufficient standard to constitute a competition.
  • Permissions
    All works entered for the competition must have permission from the owners of all data (e.g. other photographs) used in production of the entry, and this must be appropriately credited.
  • Display Requirements
    Only card frames are allowed – no glass, clip-frames, or other heavy frames. The maximum dimensions of the mount plus frame that we can accept without prior arrangement are 400mm x 500mm. Because of space restrictions, we cannot guarantee to accept work that exceeds those dimensions and, if you wish to submit oversize work, it is a condition of entry that you contact the competition co-ordinator in advance to enquire about its acceptability.

Other information and recommendations

  • Copyright
    The copyright of all entries will remain with the photographer. Entries may be reproduced for display at the closing ceremony and for display during the weekend. All reproduced entries will be credited. No further use will be made of any copies without permission. No rights will be conceded to sponsors or other parties without permission of the entrants, and entrants will be free to set terms for any such use.
  • Display
    You will almost certainly improve the presentation of your print by mounting it. But do make sure that the mount will not curl or come unglued in the heat of the lights.
  • Print size
    We no longer specify the minimum print size in the rules, but you are advised that prints should have one-dimension (excluding any border or frame) that is at least 200mm to be of ‘reasonable’ size. For the Premier Trophy, 250mm is advised.
  • Print labelling
    For the benefit of viewers, you may wish to label your prints with a note (very short please) explaining where the photo was taken. It is in your own interest to properly label the back of each of your prints with your name and contact details.
  • Judging
    Although the competition categories will each have only one winning entry, the judges will also award Distinctions and Merits to entries that are worthy of mention. The premier trophy is judged first and all non-winning entries from this are taken forward for judging in the other categories.
  • Feedback
    Although we usually try to organise a feedback session, this is not currently scheduled for the 2023 event.
  • The Judges
    We choose judges who have a recognised experience and skill. For example, we try to include a professional cave photographer (who may be an FRPS), an established amateur cave photographer (who may have won prizes in previous BCRA competitions) and someone who uses cave photographs professionally, e.g. in the media or publishing industry. We also consider inviting an overseas visitor to the conference to participate in the judging if they have the relevant skills and experience. It is not always possible to announce the names of the judges in advance, but their names are published afterwards.
  • Screening of Digital Entries
    It is expected that the digital entries will be screened in the exhibition hall.
  • List of Winners
    A list of competition winners is made available to the media on request and is also published on the Hidden Earth website and are archived at forms.hidden.earth/he/history. Reproduction of winning entries is governed by the competition rules and is in accordance with the guidelines of the Artists Bill of Rights Campaign.
  • Loss, Damage & Insurance
    Every care will be taken of the entries, but the organisers cannot accept responsibility for any damage or loss. The organisers will not be insuring any work and, if required, entrants should make their own arrangements.