Open discussion on screenshots

I believe manipulating the screen shots in image editing software is not allowed (I am not sure, but I think it is in the rules. I'm not even sure now how to find those to confirm it though). I can only speak for myself, I do not manipulate them in such a manner. I do use the in-game post processing tools to adjust lighting and such, but since that is accessible to anyone I assume it is ok to do.
 
One other thing I'd like to mention, and this is for the voters, please take into consideration the Theme (when there is one) when voting. For example (and I see this in a few comps) in a recent competition titled "Heatwave" there was an image that received 4 votes, but had nothing to do with the theme. It was a beautiful pic, absolutely deserving of votes, but it didn't fit the theme at all. This again lends itself to people voting for just the "nicest" pic.
 
I agree with both of the last two posters.

I tried manipulating a couple of my comp posts in external software but felt a bit guilty afterwards, not that they won anyway. :D

Comp. subject does need to be adhered to, otherwise it will just lead to genaral shots with tenuous reasons for inclusion in the comp, which is unfair on those of us that make a real effort on the subject in the comp.

I wonder if anyone posting screenshots had a read of this sticky first..

https://forums.auran.com/trainz/showthread.php?70-What-to-Post-in-Screenshots
 
Definitely agree with a lot of points here. Biggest one for me has been stated here a few times - there are some folks who have naturally better scene building skills and advantages (see: TANE shaders vs TS12) over many others that dissuade people from entering. It doesn't feel worth it posting a shot if others have posted something clearly significantly better than what I, or others, would've posted.

On the topic of digital manipulation, I'm of the belief some modification is fine. The only edits I make to my photos are to add in my own headlights - as I've never been pleased with how Trainz renders them - and to crop the image a bit to remove clutter or blank space (and occasionally to fix a bug in the shot, such as splines with odd splits/holes that shouldn't be there. Example: Original vs. Edit. Rails and road spline all have an odd break in them I edited away [though still noticeable, just less so]. Also note the headlight edit I mentioned previously). Same result, essentially, just a little bit finer.

However, wide manipulation of colour or lighting is a little farther and I'd say is less valid in terms of a competition. It's quite standard, however, for most photography competitions elsewhere to allow some editing work. Something to consider, at least.

Cheers,
SM
 
It doesn't feel worth it posting a shot if others have posted something clearly significantly better than what I, or others, would've posted.
Cheers,
SM

Usain Bolt always had competition, even though the fellow entrants knew he would win.
So, if nobody raced against Usain Bolt because they knew he would win, then there is no competition.
There will always be also-rans (my usual place :) ).
One week I won, next week no votes at all. but I still keep entering.

I try to make my shots as different as I can, only occasionally will I post a front quarter view of a big loco.
Different voters have different likes and dislikes, I put myself at a big disadvantage, my preferred subjects are landscapes, modelz, European standard gauge trains and European narrow gauge trains.
Looking at the forum posts each day tells me that American diesel stuff is the most popular, so I expect that to reflect in the votes too.
I still keep entering though :)

Voting, I tend not to vote if I am in the comp, so that I can't bias the results.

By the way, age should not be a barrier, I am 68 this year and still learning and I think my first comp entry was Jan last year!.

So come on you youngsters get screenshotting, comp or elsewhere.
 
Interest may grow and wane depending on what else is going on. Is there any relationship, for example, between the number of entries/votes and the beta testing process - if people are too busy testing then they may not be inclined to post or vote.

I have posted a few shots over the years (I actually got a vote on a few occasions) but usually when I am involved in route and/or session building. Currently I am taking a break from that but I am playing around with a few new routes from the DLS so I will post again as soon as a "no theme" competition comes around again.

I vote more often than I post - it is a lot easier.

I like the themed competitions but I usually do not have any suitable screenshots that would fit the set theme.

I would not like the competition scrapped as it does serve a useful purpose by showing what different users are doing. It is true that some people are far better at making screenshots than others but some are faster at the 100m than others as well. It is not always the screenshot kings that win - at some point Usain Bolt will be beaten.
 
I for one used to love taking part in these competitions back a few years ago. I remember the best I got out of these competitions was the challenge to set up the perfect screenshot. But the fact is that Ive only manage to get into the top 3 slot only once in my entire time I took part in these competitions and also when I noticed the same people making into the top 3 all the time I basically gave up on competing all the time and now just only entire if I feel I have a good screenshot. I feel like this is no longer a competition where anyone could win, but is now only a competition against the best screenshot creators. While they make amazing screenshots, I feel really bad for the people who keep entering and almost never make it to the top 3. I remember one guy who keeps on entering every competition but he never makes it to the top 3 and I think he deserves to be in the top 3 for once for trying so hard but again, it seems people are more focus on "What Screenshot will look best as a Desktop Background" instead of focusing on "Oh this guy is really trying hard to win one of these competitions but never wins ones, I should give him a vote". Heck there have been a few people who post screenshots and some people think its a real image and the people who post those screenshots normally end up in the top 3. This is one of the reasons why I almost no longer want to participate in these competitions if I know Im not really going to make it into the top 3 most of the time. I miss the days when this was a competition that anyone could win instead of becoming one where only the best screenshots creators can win.
 
...I almost no longer want to participate in these competitions if I know Im not really going to make it into the top 3 most of the time. I miss the days when this was a competition that anyone could win instead of becoming one where only the best screenshots creators can win.

This seems to be a point several have made. But unfortunately, it is a bit like real life. Even in a class full of Einsteins, someone has to come second and someone has to come last. The last place entry may have been a very worthy screenshot and deserving of a win.

I do recall one screenshot competition I voted in (but did not enter) where I dithered between two entries before finally, in a "toss-up", I gave it to the shot that was the eventual winner. But the result was so close that if I had gone the other way, then my second choice would have won. So it is not just the people who enter the competitions who decide the outcome, it is also the "mood" or "whim" of the voters.

Perhaps one solution would be a rule that if you win one contest then you cannot enter (or perhaps not win) another for a set period - but not a permanent ban.
 
So it is not just the people who enter the competitions who decide the outcome, it is also the "mood" or "whim" of the voters.

Perhaps one solution would be a rule that if you win one contest then you cannot enter (or perhaps not win) another for a set period - but not a permanent ban.

If the idea is to improve the number of participants (entrants/voters), I am not sure a ban is the way to go. Besides which, most ppl who follow the competitions seem to adjust their votes already if you were the winner last time (or at least it seems so to me). This self adjusting by voters is only fair imho.
 
One other thought, some themes are very specific and narrow, which leads to few entries and only one vote usually. This sometimes makes it easier to win (just bc there are so few entries, each vote counts more) . It might be a fairer competition if the themes were a little wider, or less often (more non-themed weeks). More ppl enter when either happens, which makes it easier for anyone to win.
 
Besides which, most ppl who follow the competitions seem to adjust their votes already if you were the winner last time (or at least it seems so to me). This self adjusting by voters is only fair imho.

I never considered that possibility, although I have never voted on the basis of who won last time and I'm not sure how many voters would even be aware of who won the last competition. Although I take your point, in government elections I often vote against the party that won the last election.
 
Too busy making a route , I post screenshots of that in a separate thread , can't be bothered competing and anyway the route isn't complete enough to compete against finished work. Also I don't like the competitive aspect.
Might it be a good idea to have some non competitive threads where the idea is to ask for constructive comments rather than which shot is " the best "? . Also, people might be more inspired if there was a way to like posts , similar to the facebook feature ......
 
Thanks everyone for your honest and interesting feedback.

In a nutshell, I agree with almost everything you've mentioned (except, perhaps a couple of posts about ships ;).

The Trainz Gallery is at still at our "Phase 1" implementation, hence the lack of some of the obvious improvements that could be made. We won't be making any changes in the near future, but it is one of those things we'll be getting to when we have some spare bandwidth to add more features. (I'm sure most people would agree that game features and updates should take priority over the Gallery).

Better communication is something we're always striving for (hence the call out here to get your feedback). We've tried a few things (some that have worked well and others that haven't) and no doubt we'll try a few more.

From what I hear, there is nothing inherently broken with the current competition and it's an option among several available for people to show their screenshot skills to the Trainz world.

As pointed out by a number of you, the most important thing is to not take things too seriously - enjoy the hobby, contribute when you feel the urge, and vote when you see something you think is worth voting for.
 
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