High Point Awards

High Point Awards are presented to those photographers who have the highest total scores in each class and category. The high point total is the sum of the 9 highest scores from the 10 monthly competitions for the competition year. If a member fails to turn in an image in any monthly competition, he or she will receive no (zero) points for that month. First, second and third place High Point Awards are presented at the Annual Awards Banquet in April.

Image Of The Year Competition

Prints and projected images placing first, second or third in any monthly competition category and class are eligible for print or projected Image of the Year Awards. Members with winning prints or projected images are encouraged to make them available to the Print or Projected Image Chairpersons for the Image of the Year competition. Any DCC photographer not wishing his or her images to be entered should discuss those wishes with the Print and/or Projected Image Chairpersons. Eligible prints and projected images are submitted for judging at the first meeting in March. First, second and third place awards for the winning images are presented at the Annual Awards Banquet in April.

Special Annual Competitions

There are five special competitions at the end of each year which are named in honor of members who have distinguished themselves within the club. Images for these competitions are submitted at the first meeting in March and results are announced at the Annual Awards Banquet in April. The special competitions are:

The J.J. Spurlock Award for Creative Portraiture

Portraits of people are to be entered in this contest. Photographs are judged on the creative use of photo processing, whether manipulated in the chemical darkroom or by the use of digital processing software. These creative portraits should depart from reality and be noticeably different from the scene as originally viewed through the camera lens. All phases of the photographic process, i.e. the original capture of the image and the creative processing, must be the original work of the photographer. Entries are either monochrome or color prints.

Dr. James J. Spurlock used creative darkroom techniques for his monochrome portraits which earned him local and international recognition. The competition includes both monochrome and color prints at the request of Mrs. Spurlock. He was a University of North Texas Administrator and Chemistry Professor and a long time member and past president of The Dallas Camera Club. The award was created in 1994.

The Marge Dance Award for Contemporary Images

Images shall demonstrate a substantial departure from realism using various non-standard image capture and/or processing techniques, such as distortion, composited images, trick lenses, motion blur, zoomed exposure, tonal distortion, digital filters, etc. Entries are color projected images.

Marge Dance used many creative in-camera techniques to produce color slides that altered reality. She was a long-time active member of the Dallas Camera Club having served 16 terms on the board and holding every office except Print Chair. Marge was also active in promoting photography within the Dallas area and Gulf States region. The award was created in 1997.

The Milton J. Rudick Travel Image Award

Images must have been taken while traveling outside the D/FW Metroplex during the last 12 months. Otherwise, the subject matter is unlimited. Entries are projected images.

Milton J. Rudick was an inveterate world traveler and was known for his outstanding travel photographs. His many varied interests ran from photography to sailing to the Dallas Arboretum. Milton was an executive at LTV Aerospace and a long-time Dallas Camera Club member. He was a past president and always ready to assist the club as needed. The award was created in 1997.

Ken Zapp Field Trip Image of the Year Award

Images must have been taken during a club field trip within the last 12 months. Entries are projected images.

Ken Zapp is a master of audio-visual presentations using both slide and digital presentation techniques. He gave freely of his time teaching these techniques to others and was instrumental in making field trip shows a staple of the club. Ken was Manager of Quality Control at Texas Instruments and is a lifetime member of the Dallas Camera Club. The award was created in 1999 and named in honor of Ken in 2002.

Barbara and Ralph Pike Award for Photojournalism

Photojournalism consists of images or sequences of images with informative content and emotional impact, including human interest, documentary and sports. The journalistic value of the photograph shall be considered over pictorial quality. Photographs which misrepresent the truth (such as manipulation to alter the subject matter or situations) or which are set up for the purpose of photography are unacceptable in this competition. Photographs must be taken within the last 12 months beginning in March. Entries are projected images.

Barbara and Ralph Pyke have been long-time members of the DCC, GSCCC and PSA serving as board members and actively contributing to the vision and educational values of these photographic organizations. The Pykes have both been recognized for their service and achievements within Photojournalism. Ralph Pyke served as Chairman for the PSA Photojournalism Division from 1994 to 1998. The award was created in 2010.