Sorry I'm coming in late to the party, but I just got through reading the whole thread and the others in the forum so I'll hit a few comments and questions...
I noticed the pen contest comments and agree with them all, 2 Photo contests is enough (not counting the Match the Shop as a photo contest), and the Anything Goes, while I loved the idea, never really met my hopes for entries... I LOVE the "Where the Pen Meets the Paper", but I think the other Pen Photo Contest and Shop Life Photo Contest are the strongest, most universal ideas. If enough people thought it was worth it to run another, that's would top my list, but I think the 2 basic contests is enough.
My only concern is the "Glamour Pen Photo Contest" name. Glamour as a word, just seems strange, and the lesson learned from last year's "Marketing" photo contest may have me gun-shy for wording... My preference might be to just leave it at "Pen Photo Contest", but again, I'm popping in late to the planning, so I don't know what discussions have happened around the wording that I may have missed... At one point it was "Prettiest Pen" or something like that, and then "Glamour" came into it. In the end, the contest is for photos of pens, and we get great shots of pens on white, and great shots of pens in settings, so I would rather not have the name raise questions with the members on what may or may not be a focus of the contest, other than the pen(s).
Photo contests will also be limited to ONE entry per person, and ONE photo per entry... I don't know HOW I made that mistake 2 years in a row, but I'm not going to make it 3...
Below are some comments from posts I read, but forget who may have brought them up, or if they are still relevant in the discussion:
Cost limits on materials, I'm not sure if this was settled or not, but I agree with the issue of possibly needing people to prove what things cost, and the advantage people have who make some of the stunning (and expensive) blanks...
Someone had mentioned putting an order to voting (i.e. aesthetics, blank, fit/finish) but (all IMO of course) if the general population is voting, they are going to vote on overall looks, and the relatively small photos posted on the forum really don't lend themselves to evaluate some of the finer details of the pen. (I wish we had the time/money to have pens submitted and photo'd under identical conditions, as I think people with better photo skills have an advantage in nearly all the contests...) I think it is a great and valid method for evaluating the entries, but without a selected panel of judges tasked with evaluating on the criteria, you can't expect or count on the members to follow them.
Git-R-Done: I LOVE THIS IDEA!!! My "Debbie-Downer" concern would be for people who might not have the kit required (if there was one) on hand or available locally, but that could be reduced by having either 1 or 2 options, or go with a "Style", refill type, or tube size/# (like "Sierra Like" that would include Elegant Beauty, Aero (very Sierra like, but a different tube size), and the many others)
Guess the Blank Contest: I like this idea too, but when I first read it I thought that the blank that got the FEWEST correct answers would be the winner. Snakeskin, Pheasant Feathers, Carbon Fiber, mini-pinecones, poly-clay, etc... are so well know on the forum that few people would guess any of them wrong. Probably need to be careful about how specific you get on what the blank is. (i.e. I have a blank that is the same material clarinets are made from, technically called Resonite, but it is, in the end, basically black ABS or plastic... The same with anyone being able to tell Alumilite from Castin-Craft based on a photo.)
