FIRST OF ALL CONGRATS TO ALL 35 FINALISTS...

The first hurdle is over and the 9 (Chief Photographer) finalists must have made atleast a 50 phone calls to share the excitement with their family and friends. For the rest who did not qualify there must be a lot of questions running in your mind...cursing the selection panel...how did they go about the selection...some might think that even though I managed to get 100+ votes and had genuine good references in less than 36 hours and also managed to showcase a portfolio on par with other contestants, I still managed to lose to someone who had just 20 odd votes. Forget about all those...accept the decision and move along. There is always a next contest. So keep the spirits high and wave the red flag. The community managers have also addressed through a blog on how the selection process was done the fair way. The selection formula is something like the D/L system. It works but a little difficult to understand

So all the 9 prospective photographers...what do you need to do on 3rd March to "outclass" the competition. Yes you need to be "smart and innovative" if you have to crack it. Everyone selected here have the skill and have showcased it in their application. So what is your USP? That's what will make the cut on the D-Day. So here are some tips (based on my experience)

1. Be on time at the venue. Spend time making friends with the other prospective candidates and talk about cricket, RCB, photography etc...and also try and assess their weakness that you can project as your strength. You need to differentiate yourself. Have 2-3 tricks / USP's up your sleeve and project the one that others would not do on audition day.

2. Carry all the equipment you have as you never know what you would be asked to shoot. Mostly the practical session will be mid afternoon. So be prepared for some harsh light. So take care of the angles when you click. Carry additional memory cards, batteries and other required accessories.

3. If it would be similar to last time you would get about 1 hour of practical sessions which is good enough to click a few gigs. From that you have to showcase 3 best photographs and the reason why you clicked them. When you are in the ground, take a position and stick to it. Don't keep moving around. Probably just 2 positions and take the best shots you can. Also cover the crowd if there are any and try and get some shots of expressions / emotions. Another tip is to try and capture action. Take care of all the technicalities of a photograph. You might have shot a brilliant action image but what's the point if it is washed out because you just managed to over expose it.

4. Please carry your laptop and card reader with you. You would just have about 30mins to transfer, process and give the images back to the selection panel. So don't bother if someone from behind is asking you to lend your card reader. Just ignore him. You ensure you complete your job first. This happened to me when one of the contestant who was a semi professional himself was not carrying a card reader.

5. Try to get to know about some stats of 20-20 cricket, IPL and especially stats on RCB players. Last time we had a quiz but I am not sure this time around. But it is always good to know.

6. Stay focused through the day and be confident. Always think positive and that you can do it. Don't be bothered if someone is carrying a 100 page color print of all the cricket photographs that he shot during last IPL. So what? But I am not discouraging someone taking a print of their works.

7. When you have the face to face interview, be extremely confident when answering the questions. Do not goof up as that could be your last chance. Last time the MC was trying to hurry up teams before interview as it was getting a bit delayed. But please don't bother to what he says. But please please restrain yourself from asking for autographs during the interview. Put up your best during that 3-4mins.

8. Don't forget to collect your memorabilia at the end of the event

Over and above all, ENJOY THE DAY....GOOD LUCK. And don't forget to keep uploading some of the best cricket photographs and write articles on your blog. Keep doing something different till the day of the auditions. Something like what RadioSandeep did for Natasha's Birthday. That was truly awesome and inspiring.

Note - If I have missed out on something, I will add on as a comment to this post later.

Cheers
Siva A N