Tue Aug 10, 2004 4:55 am Therefore your odds arent going to be astronomical
Hmm... I think that the way that you put the last bit just about sums it up!
I wouldn't even think of a contest in terms of "odds"... If I join a competition, it would really be to see how I do compared to other contestants, and to see what I can learn from them, i.e. not just to win.
If I join a contest where I KNOW that there will be 199 crap photographers, it would defeat the purpose, wouldn't it?
Now if you could guaranteee that the other 199 contestants were really, really good, then I'm sure that some of the best photographers would consider signing up... but then they would hardly pay, would they?
Sounds like your "target market" is the sort of people who THINK that "Won XYZ competition" sounds good on the old resume?
I'm sure that there are people out there who would find this appealing, but not me...