Sorry, but I find the idea of novice and professional categories silly and I’m not even going to address the idea that shop owners should be barred from entry.
Personally, I think there are two problems with the competition (IAPLC).
The first and gravest is cheating through photoshop. There are multiple ways to address this, but I think the most successful and clear cut would be to ONLY accept RAW files. The competition asks for RAW files, but its clear that anything goes, as shown by our friend at world rank 4.
The second problem concerns the judging. The criteria and points allocation doesn’t add up to me and I know others share my opinion. The solution to this is less clear to me, but it’s something the competition must work on and decide on for themselves. Personally, I think impact, composition, sense of nature (not a natural habitat for fish, but a feeling / an essence of nature), skill, originality and longterm maintenance should be the criteria in order of importance. This is a similar breakdown to the EAPLC and I’d suggest that some of you might find this competition more favourable. It’s also compatible with the IAPLC.