"What are the Judges looking for"? Sounds familiar, right?
Follow Mark's journey into the often scary world of PPA Print Competition.
Learn the tricks and the thought process he brings to each competition, and take advantage of the same things yourself. Information is the most valuable commodity on earth. Leave this program with tools you need to succeed!
We'll turn the 12 Elements on its head and give you Mark's version of the 12 Elements that will shake up everything you've been taught. This is real life, not just words on paper.
You'll leave with the knowledge and confidence to get those print merits...and get them regularly.
You'll learn:
*One type of image almost always merits. Find out what it is and how to create it. Better yet, find out
how to get others to pay for it.
*Two subjects are usually better than one, find out why.
*See Mark's SECRET WEAPON he uses in almost every competition piece he creates.
*One thing will drive down the score of any competition print more than any other. Find out what it is and how to
avoid it.
*Learn how to squeeze an extra point or two by paying close attention to an overlooked area...the mat!!!
*See the Juror's Charge, the video every Juror must watch before sitting on a panel.
*Learn what the Jurors can say, and more importantly, what they can’t say.
*Storytelling goes a long way. Learn to tell or create a story within your image that can make a
less-than-perfect image score much higher. PPA ranks Story Telling as #12 on the list of 12
Elements, but Mark has it ranked #2!!!
See the completely new 12 Element List!, listed in the order that Jurors mentally apply the Elements to your images.
This one item will be worth the cost of admission!
*Find out what type of paper to use with what type of image.
*What mounting material?...yes, it makes a difference.
*Learn about printing, subject matter, where to find inspiration and most importantly, learn
what the judges are looking for and what they'll ding you for.
*Learn to use PPA's own rulebook in your favor to earn the coveted Photographer of the Year Award or a Medalist Award.
*Entering client work vs shooting for Competition. Which is better? The answer will surprise you.
*Printing your work vs entering digitally, which is better? Another shocking answer!
*Hear a few of Mark's funny print competition stories....real things that have happened in Print
Competition.
Mark has entered and judged photographic competitions in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico,
Arkansas, Virginia, Louisiana, New Hampshire, Mississippi and Alabama. His background in Human Behavioral Studies,
as well as thousands of hours sitting on Judging Panels, working up images, working behind the curtain, listening and participating in print competitions has given him a unique insight as to what will merit, and what will not.
Mark McCall operates a boutique studio in the Historical District in downtown Lubbock Texas specializing in wedding, portrait and commercial photography.
Mark's lifelong love affair with photography began in 1974 at the tender age of 8 when he spotted a calendar at the grocery store checkout. After begging for the calendar, full of beautifully captured landscapes, mountains and rivers, the die was cast.
Mark’s Grandmother noticed his interest in photography almost immediately. She presented him with a plastic, 35mm camera that she’d received for a minimum purchase of mail order makeup.
Opening its doors in July 1996, McCall's was one of the first fully digitally integrated studios in Texas and continues to be a leader in capture, digital file handing, file preparation and enhancement.
Mark holds all three degrees offered by the Professional Photographers of America as well as six Photographic Fellowships.
Mark was the 2014 President of the Texas Professional Photographers Assoc. and continues to serve the Association as Chairman of the TPPA Print Competition Committee. Mark also served on PPA’s Certification Committee that wrote the test that all photographers must take to become Certified Professional Photographers.
Mark was awarded PPA’s National Award in Houston Tx., in June 2017, the highest honor PPA can bestow.
His client list includes Texas Tech University, Huggies, Bell Helicopter, Pioneer, Tama Drums, PETA, Ford, Sherwin Williams, Daktronics, Proctor and Gamble, Taco Villa, Wells Fargo and many more.