As far as the rules are concerned, the only requirement for submitted images is that they are primarily composed of fractal elements. That is because although this is an art contest, it's also a fractal art contest. One of the limitations fractal artists accept is that the medium—visual representations of mathematical formulas—imposes some restrictions on the creative process. Producing beautiful images despite the restriction is part of the challenge and beauty of fractals.      If you choose to process your image, that is OK as far as the rules are concerned. But you should keep in mind that the more obviously you alter the image, the less pleasing it is likely to be to some of those who vote. The key word you should remember is enhance. We're not really interested in who can apply the most complex filter combinations in Photoshop to produce something barely recognizable as a fractal. We're interested in great fractal pictures.      As a guideline (and this is only a suggestion, not a rule) you should stick to processes and alterations which are performed on the entire fractal image, and which use the fractal image as part of the process.      If your "post-processing" pushes your image into the realm of 3D, you should enter your image into the 3D category.     Return to contest rules