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The entry fees of all DM entrants (up to $75 if you enter 5 images) has helped fund the whole DM competition for several years now, so if entrants didn't pay their $15 the competition would likely not run and it relies on many people who don't (or never) win a thing to enter so there is a money pool to fund the exhibition. To now only give those who are successful in this competition the opportunity of appearing in the Astrovisuals calendar seems a restrictive shame and is by association, thus reliant, at least in part, on the DM funding subsidy to progress.
The beauty of the Astrovisuals/Ice in Space calendar to date was that it provided a quite separate opportunity for all Aussie (and NZ) astroimagers to see their work up in lights in a fabulous product and (quite rightly) due to the commercial connection, it didn't require an entry fee.
The Astrovisual/IIS calendar competition was also peer judged, making it refreshingly different to the DM's which is only judged by one person.
Not the end of the World but still a bit of a shame in my view
Mike
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