FIAP Distinctions 2025

CAPA is Canada’s representative to the Federation Internationale de L’Art Photographique (FIAP), which is a federation of approximately 86 international photographic organizations. Each year CAPA submits applications for some of its members to receive FIAP Distinctions. These Distinctions recognize an individual’s success in international photographic exhibitions with FIAP patronage.

If you are a member of CAPA and have participated in photographic exhibitions with FIAP patronage you may qualify for a FIAP Distinction. CAPA will be submitting applications for Distinction to FIAP on April 1, 2025. If you are interested in finding out more about FIAP international exhibitions or the FIAP Distinctions please contact David Laronde, FIAP’s Liaison Officer in Canada at davidrlaronde@gmail.com

London Camera Club – Jan.2025 and Feb.2025 – Upcoming Presentation

Speaker:

Jan 23 7-9 pm EST Mitchell Brown : Firefighter photography

You can register by clicking here.

 

Feb 6 7-9pm EST Matt Shannon – Tools beyond your Camera, Lens & Tripod

You can register by clicking here.

Workshop:

Intermediate Lightroom Classic course

All sessions are on Zoom on Wednesdays 7:00 – 9:00 pm EDT/EST

$20 for LCC members. $30 for guests

Session 1 – January 8 2025
Session 2 – January 22, 2025
Session 3 – February 5. 2025
Session 4 – February 19, 2025

You can register by clicking here.

Contact Robert Zakirson at rzakrison@gmail.com

January 2025 Judging Program News

National Judges List


The Judges List is now online! All CAPA Clubs have online access to the latest list of CAPA Certified Judges and CAPA Apprentice Judges. Log in to your club’s account and go to Members > National Judges List. You must be logged in to your club’s account to download the list.

The CAPA Judging Program is made up of multiple components. Last month we talked about the Training Component.

Another component of the Judging Program is Monitoring. The monitoring program is a means of maintaining the Judging Standards and to provide ongoing improvement to the Judging Program by observing the judging process as it applies to CAPA competitions. The program is carried out in cooperation with the Director of Competitions, and with the help of certified judges having extensive experience judging CAPA competitions.

 

There are three elements to the monitoring program:


1. The Director of Competitions provides each judge of a CAPA competition with an analysis report on both the competition’s results and judges’ scoring, to assist them in self-evaluation of their judging performance. This analysis report will also go to the Director of the Judging Program.

2. The Director of the Judging Program or a named designate reviews all CAPA competitions in order to ensure that Judging Standards are being maintained and identify trends or anomalies in judging that may require a more in-depth review.

3. The Director of the Judging Program or a named designate conducts periodic evaluation of individual active judges to ensure that Judging Standards are being maintained, offer feedback to help individuals refine their judging skills, and identify training needs. These are conducted randomly or when a potential problem has been identified.

Next month we’ll look at the Support Component of the Judging Program.

If you have questions or would like further information, please contact the Director of the Judging Program at judgingdirector@capacanada.ca

January 2025 Competition Updates

Updated (January 1, 2025) CAPA Stance on Artificial Intelligence

We’ve expanded our Artificial Intelligence guidelines to include several new photography enhancement tools. This update, effective January 1, 2025, now addresses:

 

New AI Tools:

  • Adobe Photoshop’s Neural Filters
  • Additional text-to-image Generative AI applications
  • Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Raw’s “Enhanced” feature
  • Reflection removal tools in both Adobe Camera Raw and Adobe Lightroom

 

Special thanks to Greg Aldous of the London Camera Club for his valuable input regarding the Photoshop Neural Filters.


This policy revision supersedes our previous version from December 13, 2024.

You can view this new document here (English) (French)  

 

A hyperlink to this document is also included in the Editing Criteria Section for each of our forthcoming photo competitions.

 

Competitions Open For Uploading of Images

 

  • 2025 Ontario Zone Competition – closes on January 15, 2025

  • 2025 Fine Art Competition – closes on January 30, 2025

  • 2025 Quebec Zone Competition – closes on February 15, 2025

  • 2025 Colour Competition – closes on February 28, 2025

Image Editing Nights

Mystical Fanal Forest by Darlene Hildebrandt

Join us for our CAPA Image Editing Night series. This supportive evening is dedicated to refining your photographic vision. Whether you are looking to learn new technical skills or tell deeper stories, our discussions are structured to help photographers:

  • develop and strengthen impact in their images
  • improve composition and overall design
  • review the technical quality of the image
  • learn advanced editing techniques for post-processing

We invite you (Individual CAPA Members) to bring your images and participate in the conversation designed to nourish your growth and explore the creative potential with your images.

Monthly, on the second Thursday, at 6:30 pm Mountain time. 

Image Editing Nights for 2026-27:

20262027
  • Sept 10, 2026
  • Oct 8, 2026
  • Nov 12, 2026
  • Dec 10, 2026
  • Jan 14, 2027
  • Feb 11, 2027
  • Mar 11, 2027
  • Apr 8, 2027
  • May 13, 2027
  • June 10, 2027

For information on how to submit an image go to the Members > Education Links > Image Editing Nights

Photographic Guild of Nova Scotia – Feb.2025 – Upcoming Presentation

Celebrating its 77th year as a club, the Photographic Guild of Nova Scotia is pleased to extend an invitation to join us for our Fred & Edie Greene Speaker series. There is no charge to attend these webinars, but donations to support the speaker series are gratefully accepted.

Monday, February 10, 2025

Layers & Masking Demystified by Hazel Meredith APSA, HonNEC takes place on Monday, February 10, 2025 at 7:30 PM ADT. Hazel Meredith is an award-winning photographer and a sought-after teacher, speaker, and competition judge. She and her husband, Dave, produce the “Virtual Creative Photography Conference” with attendees from around the world. Hazel loves the creative aspect of photography and postprocessing, especially the use of textures and software to create unique images. She has written two eBooks on working with textures, and released two creative courses.

Hazel is actively involved with the photographic community and has received honorary distinctions from several organizations. In the Fall of 2020, she was the recipient of the Ashbrook Award for Digital Imaging Instruction from the Photographic Society of America.

Learn why layers are important – and useful – when working in Photoshop. In this webinar, Hazel will review the various types of layers and how they can make your workflow easier. She will also show you how to apply masking to a layer – a task many feel intimidated by. It’s easier than you think!

To view more of her work visit: www.MeredithImages.com

You can register by clicking here

Oakville Camera Club – Jan. 2025 – Upcoming Presentation

OCC Presents: AI in Photography with Sheldon Boles (Online Presentation)

On  01/20/2025 at 07:00 pm

No fee

Guests are welcome.

 

More informations by clicking here.

December 2024 Competition Updates

Important Update: AI Guidelines in Photo Post-Processing

Due to recent advances in AI-powered photo editing software, we’ve revised our CAPA position on artificial intelligence in photography. The updated guidelines provide detailed clarification on which AI features are acceptable and which are prohibited in our competitions.

You can view this document here (English) (French)  

*You can also find this updated guideline in all Competition Editing Criteria sections.

Updating Advanced & Intermediate Skill Levels In All Zones

We’re currently reviewing and adjusting all Zone Skill-levels using results from:

  • 2024 CAPA Salon 
  • 2024 Four Nations
  • 2024 Pacific Zone
  • 2024 Nature
  • 2024 Black & White

Advanced and intermediate skill level updates will be completed by December 15, 2024.

Please review all competition details before submitting images to any zone competitions.

Updated CAPA Eligibility Criteria webpage

This webpage has been updated and now include details on “image-to-image AI” as shown below in bold:

Images that have been created or modified using specific AI generative techniques are not permitted for submission into our competitions. This includes:

In-painting (where AI fills in generated elements not captured by the photographer or removes and replaces elements from a photograph with AI-generated content);

Out-painting (where AI extends beyond the original boundaries of the photograph using generated elements); and

Image-to-image AI (where AI transforms an entire photograph based on text prompts or style references)

Text-to-image (generated images from scratch based on text entered into a prompt description)

These restrictions apply whether or not text prompts are used in the AI generation process.

In the area of Generative AI images, there are three categories:

Text-to-Image:

  • Generates images from scratch based on text entered into a prompt description 
  • Complete creative freedom but less control over the specific details produced by the system

Photo Enhancement – Fill / Expand Boundaries:

  • Modifies existing photos by filling or modifying specific areas or expanding the boundaries of the photo 
  • Focuses on blending with existing content
  • Maintains consistency with original image (photograph)

Photo Image-to-Image:

  • Transforms an entire photo based on text prompts or style references
  • Preserves basic structure while changing style, content, or attributes
  • More control over output compared to text-to-image

2024 Black & White Competition

2025 Quebec Zone Competition

This completion is now open for the uploading of images.  Key point that entries will only be accepted by Quebec residents. Competition closes on February 15, 2024 (midnight).

You are strongly encouraged to review the competition details before uploading your images into this competition.  The details of this competition can be reviewed here.

2025 Colour Competition

Competition is also now open for the uploading of images.

Prior to uploading any images into this competition, you are wise to review the competition details and ensure your submitted images fall within one of the noted themes. Competition closes on February 15, 2024 (midnight).

You can view the competition by clicking here.

London Camera Club – Jan.2025 – Upcoming Presentation

Speaker:
January 9 Mike Grandmaison Ontario Naturally: Impressions of a Land 7- 9 pm EST.

You can register by clicking here.

Workshop:
Intermediate Lightroom Classic course

All sessions are on Zoom on Wednesdays 7:00 – 9:00 pm EDT/EST


$20 for LCC members. $30 for guests


Session 1 – January 8 2025
Session 2 – January 22, 2025
Session 3 – February 5. 2025
Session 4 – February 19, 2025


You can register by clicking here.

Contact Robert Zakirson at rzakrison@gmail.com

Education Dec.2024 Update

The “Elevating Your Photography” is an educational presentation that is aimed at small to medium sized CAPA photography clubs. Its origins came from discussions of the CAPA Education Committee early in 2024. It was first delivered to the Cowichan Valley Photo Club in late April of this
year.

The presentation takes a fresh at how to improve one’s photography by concentrating on Composition and creating images that engage with the viewer. It avoids looking at composition, as an application of the “Rules of Composition”. In fact demonstrates that many of the great photographers (both current and in the past) feel that a rule-based approach is counter-productive and does not result in strong images. Several common rules are debunked in the presentation. Considerable time is spent on that most challenging aspect of photography’ creating images that the viewer develops a strong connection with. The presentation is filled with many images from Manfred Mueller’s collection of works.

To date, this hour-long presentation has been shown to nine different photography clubs (two in person and seven via video conference) from
coast to coast. The reaction to these presentations has been overwhelmingly positive and we want to thank the CAPA clubs that have taken advantage of the offering.

We look forward to developing more content in the future.


Kind regards,
Dan Sigouin on behalf of the Education Committee.

Photographic Guild of Nova Scotia – Dec.2024 and Jan.2025 – Upcoming Presentation

Celebrating its 77th year as a club, the Photographic Guild of Nova Scotia is pleased to extend an invitation to join us for our Fred & Edie Greene Speaker series. There is no charge to attend these webinars, but donations to support the speaker series are gratefully accepted.

Creative Cellphone Photography by Stephen Scott Patterson takes place on Monday, December 8, 2024 at 7:30 PM AST

A photographer and photo-educator, Stephen has had several solo print exhibitions. He continues to create new images with his Camera as well as his iPhone 14 pro, and sees both as equally valid artistic devices, citing visual creativity as the more important aspect of artistic expression, over whatever device is used to create the photographs.

In this webinar, Stephen will discuss the differences in compositional approach, working with RAW files, focusing, working in bright daylight, slow motion photography, multiple exposure and much more.

You can register by clicking here

Studio Pet Photography with Larry Cowles takes place on Monday, January 13, 2025 at 7:30 PM ADT.

Larry Cowles HonPSA, GMPSA/P, EFIAP/d3 is a retired Electrical Engineer with a passion for Photography and specializes in Portraiture. He has been active in PSA since 1983, earning over 15,000 acceptances in exhibitions, winning hundreds of awards from 100 countries and was the first person to obtain GMPSA/P, PSA’s highest level. Larry has held various offices in camera clubs, councils and PSA Chapters, including chairman of the Color Projected Imaged Division, Vice chairman of the Print Division and past Vice President and Managing Editor of the PSA Journal.

While Larry’s program is centered around taking images of pets in the studio, he will also talk about using natural light. Many of us have pets that are part of our family and we want to have portraits of them like any other family members. They also make great subjects for competition images. Larry will discuss techniques of how to get your pet to look at the camera, compositional tools and developing a pet photography team to create great images.

You can register by clicking here

CAPA Judging Program Overview

The CAPA Judging Program is made up of multiple components.

The three primary components are Judge Training, Monitoring and Support.

Judge Training, which is developed in coordination with the Education Committee, covers all subjects related to the judging process. It includes:

• Basic Training for New Judges Course (BTNJ)
This course (currently under development) will be open to anyone and is a pre-requisite for entering the Judge Certification Program. Participants will be given a certificate recognizing that they have competed the course.

• Judge Certification Program
This is for CAPA members who wish to continue their training to become a CAPA Certified Judge. After completing the BTNJ course, individuals may apply to participate in this program. During this phase of their training, participants will be referred to as CAPA Apprentice (CA) Judges.

• Refresher Training for CAPA Certified (CC) Judges
In order to maintain their certification, CAPA Certified judges are required to complete refresher training prior to the end of their certification period. This training is designed to confirm maintenance of judging skills and review trends and recent changes related to judging.

• Supplemental/Advanced Courses and Seminars
These offerings will be based on changing trends, expanding on the BTNJ course and other subjects relating to judging

In the next Newsletter, we’ll look at the Monitoring and Support components.

 

Course Development

Some of the Judge training will be via on-line, self-paced learning. We are looking for individuals with expertise in this type of training to assist the working group that is updating course content.

If this is an area in which you can help, please contact the Director of the Judging Program at judgingdirector@capacanada.ca.

Prairie Zone News for November 2024

This month we’ve had three Clubs join CAPA – Moose Jaw Camera Club, Cochrane Camera Club and St. Albert Photography Club. Welcome to all clubs and club members. It’s great to have you as part of our community! Bob Royer and I had the privilege of joining the St. Albert Photography Club meeting last week. Thanks for the hospitality! I visited with the Regina Camera Club last month as well. Thanks to Larry Easton (a very long time CAPA member) for his time and engaging conversation over coffee.

This month the Prairie Zone sent out a note to some members who are from places that most of us have never heard of. Places like Martensville, SK, Tiger LIly, AB and Oakbank, MB. Canada is a huge country and as part of CAPA, we’re all joined as a nation, by our love of photography. I asked for people’s stories and interests, and some responded. Here are two people’s responses (more submissions are welcome):

 

  • My name is Sherrianne Talon and I’m a PPOC accredited Fine Art photographer and instructor at Red River college where I teach professional photography. I live near Oakbank, Manitoba. I love Fine Art nature and landscapes. I’ve been a professional photographer for over 25 years. I lived in Australia for 16 years and ran a photography business where I did portraits, weddings, commercial, photo restorations, fine art, corporate, landscapes and everything in between. Teaching now allows me to concentrate on my first love, fine art landscapes. To be able to create photos of places that evoke feelings of peace and appreciation of nature, is something I am grateful for every day. Four of my favourite images are shown below.

 

  • Wanda Knoss from Rockglen, Saskatchewan. I live in the middle of Saskatchewan close to the Montana border. I ranch with my husband and family. We raise commercial cattle. Saskatchewan is full of inspiration and wonderful ‘scapes so it’s easy to be inspired.
    I’ve been at this for some time. I have many interests – landscapes, HDR, macro, flora, still life, abstracts, rusty goodness and lately ICM. I shoot with an older Canon 5D Mk111, Olympus OM-D, and my IPhone Pro Max 16. At one time, I belonged to the Group of Ten photography club out of Assiniboia, SK and the Regina Photography Club. Here are three of my images:

Holiday Greetings 2024 from the CAPA President

As we gather to celebrate the holiday season, I want to extend my warmest wishes to each of you. This year has been one of growth, innovation, and connection within our CAPA community, thanks to your passion and support.

Together, we’ve achieved significant milestones:

  • Enhanced Learning Opportunities: Our education team, led by Dan Sigouin, launched valuable new resources, including a dedicated YouTube channel and interactive Zoom critique nights.
  • Digital Salon Launch: We’re thrilled to announce that the CAPA Digital Salon will open on January 15th, 2025, providing another exciting platform to showcase our members’ talent.
  • New Judging Course: In 2025, we’ll launch an updated judging course led by Bill Hall and his team, enhancing our standards and fostering excellence in competition evaluation.
  • Supporting Our Clubs: We introduced a comprehensive liability insurance program, ensuring that CAPA clubs have the protection they need to thrive.
  • Upcoming Conference Announcement: We’re excited to announce that details about our 2026 conference location will be revealed in early January 2025.

Your commitment and creativity continue to inspire, and I’m excited to see what we’ll achieve together in the coming year.

May your holiday season be filled with joy, peace, and beautiful moments captured through your lens.

Warm wishes,

Stella d’Entremont
President, CAPA

Speakers Series – Jan. 2025 – Stephen Orlando

CAPA presents via YouTube Live : Stephen Orlando

English presentation : January 15, 2025

Pacific 4:00 PM – Mountain 5:00 PM – Central 6:00 PM – Eastern 7:00 PM – Atlantic 8:00 PM (Canada)

Theme/topic of the presentation: Motion Exposure – Telling the Story of Movement Using Light Painting Photography

Summary: Stephen Orlando will present his ongoing light painting photography project called Motion Exposure. In addition to showing the photos he’s taken over the years, he’ll discuss the history of light painting, his photographic process and how you can take similar photos.

Available to Individual CAPA members via the members only section of the website. Please login, go to Members > Zoom & YouTube Live Invitation > Speakers Series, copy and save the YouTube link before the presentation.

Speaker's Bio

Stephen Orlando is a photographer and aerodynamicist based in Kitchener, Ontario. During his engineering studies at the University of Waterloo, he received a Master of Applied Science in aerodynamics.

He is a self-taught photographer and specializes in capturing movement with long exposure photography and LED lights. This has been an ongoing project since 2014 called Motion Exposure. Stephen’s photos showing paths of objects like canoe paddles and violin bows are inspired in part by the streamlines of fluid flow he sees in his day-to-day work. An avid canoeist and kayaker, many of his photo shoots take place in remote locations in the Canadian wilderness.

Stephen is also inspired by photography pioneers Harold Edgerton and Gjon Mili as well as artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude.

His work has been exhibited in the United States, Korea, Italy, Taiwan, and at home in Canada.

Enjoy a selection of his works below.

Victoria Camera Club – Dec. 2024 – Update

On November 21, 2024 Richard Letourneau, CAPA District Representative (Lower Vancouver Island) presented a GOLD MEDAL to Leah Gray, a member of the Sidney Camera Club.

Her image, “Three on the run”, scored 25.5 points in the CAPA – Gold – Individual – Advanced – Pacific Zone Competition.

Gold Medal Presentation – Leah Gray and Richard Letourneau
(Photo Courtesy of Steve Smith)

Oakville Camera Club – Dec. 2024 – Upcoming Presentation

OCC Presents: Photographic Journey with Linda Gutenberg

On  12/02/2024 at 07:00 pm

The fee is $10

Guests are welcome.

You can register by clicking here.

 

These are the current specified in person events on our calendar

More informations by clicking here.

Speakers Series – Dec 2024 – Scott Aspinall

CAPA presents via Zoom : Scott Aspinall

English presentation : December 18, 2024

Pacific 4:00 PM – Mountain 5:00 PM – Central 6:00 PM – Eastern 7:00 PM – Atlantic 8:00 PM (Canada)

Theme/topic of the presentation: Using Night Photography to Tell a Story

Summary: When someone says “Night Photography”, the galactic core of our Milky Way galaxy is what most often comes to mind. This appears bright in our summer night skies and is easily captured after memorizing a few settings for your camera and lens combo. But what happens after you get that first clean roadside image of the Milky Way? What’s next? Can you go further and tell a compelling story using night photography? In this presentation, learn ways to integrate the landscape and different night sky features to capture the imagination of your audience.

Available to Individual CAPA members via the members only section of the website. Please login, go to Members > Zoom Invitation, copy and save the Zoom link before the presentation.

Speaker's Bio

Scott Aspinall is a self-taught nature photographer from Saskatchewan specializing in landscape and night photography in Western Canada. Photography is a way for him to connect with the land not just physically but emotionally and spiritually. For him, all of nature points to something bigger than himself.

Enjoy a selection of his works below.

London Camera Club – Dec 2024 – Upcoming Presentation

The London Camera Club is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year

 

Dec 5 Andrew Collet: Learning to See Photographically 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm EST
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/andrew-collett-learning-to-see-photographically-tickets-1009694221597?aff=oddtdtcreator

 

You can have more details by clicking here.

CAPA award presented:

Harry Cartner, President of the London Camera Club, is pleased to announce that Pia O’Leary won the CAPA Gold medal for “Best in the Show” at the 2024 Western Fair Photography Competition.

Toronto Camera Club – Nov 2024 – Upcoming Presentation

 

Tickets for non-Toronto Camera Club members are $15 and the links are all listed in the information below.

All the info can be found on the Toronto Camera Club website under Talking Photography 

11/14/2024 – Louie Palu – On Zoom only – 7:30pm.

Louie Palu is a photographer and filmmaker whose work has examined social political issues, such as human rights, conflict, and climate change for 30-years.

Louie’s projects have been selected for a Guggenheim Fellowship, Arnold Newman Prize and World Press Photo Award. His work has examined topics such as the drug war in Mexico, conflicts in Afghanistan and Ukraine, Guantanamo Bay and changing geopolitics in the Arctic.

His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, National Geographic, The Guardian, Der Spiegel, Le Figaro and El Pais. His work is held in numerous collections including the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and National Gallery of Art. His films have screened at many festivals including at Hot Docs and the Munich Documentary Film Festival.

11/21/2024 – Valérie Jardin – On Zoom only – 7:30pm

Valérie Jardin is an award-winning French photographer who has developed a unique style that is both evocative and authentic. Her work is characterized by a strong sense of narrative, capturing candid moments that reveal the human experience in all its complexity and beauty. With a discerning eye for composition and a keen understanding of light and shadow, Valérie Jardin creates emotionally charged photographs of everyday moments.She has been shooting at 23mm with the Fujifilm X100 series for over 10 years. Currently using the X100VI.

Valérie’s work is also marked by her commitment to teaching and mentoring other photographers. Through international workshops, online courses, conferences, exhibits, podcasts and over a dozen books, she shares her knowledge and experience with others.