Andy Mostowski had his first B & W photo lab was in his bathtub in Poland in the early seventies, with a large cutting board across the tub supporting the enlarger.  Today, he shoots many of his stunning digital images in his simple but effective home studio located under a staircase!  Andy will walk us through his set-up and will show various lighting techniques to achieve a desired effect.   

   

Details to follow

Definition: Using reflections in photography can lead to some amazing effects and beautiful images. Using water, windows, mirrors or any sort of reflective surface can change an image into a work of art. The wonderful thing about using reflections when taking photos is that they can completely alter the image from something fairly straightforward to something richer or abstract or otherwise more artistic.

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** NOTE / BONUS: Smartphone Competition: Although we are not doing a formal “smartphone” competition, the CAPA competition closing on November 30, 2020 is “Smartphone” photography. If you submit images in the Nature or Reflections competitions that you happened to take with a smartphone (iPhone, Android phone or tablet), when you upload your image(s) to the RAPC Competition, please put a title on your image and put “-SP” in the title so that the Competitions Committee will be able to identify it as an image taken with a smartphone. If you normally don’t title your images you don’t have to get fancy, for example, your title can be “Bird-SP” or “Puddle-SP” or “Reflection-SP”, whatever you like as long as “-SP” is in the title. Only put “-SP” if your image was taken with a smartphone.

Images entered into Nature or Reflections competitions do not need to be taken with a smartphone. We are just adding this extra tag for any images that were taken with a smartphone so they may be considered for the CAPA “Club” level Smartphone competition.

External devices attached to a smartphone or tablet are NOT permitted, such as DxO One digital connected camera or similar devices. External lens attached to a smartphone or tablet is permitted. A copy of the original captured images must be preserved and the original image’s metadata (EXIF) is not to be altered. For the potential winners of this competition, the CAPA Director of Competitions may require the entrant to provide the original captured image(s) to confirm that the image(s) were captured on a smartphone or tablet.

If you have any questions on this, please don’t hesitate to contact the Competitions Committee.

Helene Anne Fortin is one of Canada’s leading portrait photographers and a Creativity mentor.  Virtually, she also offers one-on-one Masterclasses for photographers. Through her fascinating eyes, she’ll walk you through what makes her tick and guide you to learn more about yourselves and your art.

www.portraitsofyourlife.com / www.creativemarketmagic.com

 The AV Showcase will feature a selection of several AV shows combining still and video images with a soundtrack, produced by club members. The "mini-movies" will run up to six minutes each.

These are two separate themes, but will be limited to 3 images as per usual - one in the General category, and 2 in Assignment. Therefore, you can enter: 1 image in Creative, 1 in Fine Art, 1 in General. OR, 2 in Creative and 1 in General. OR, 2 in Fine Art and 1 in General.

The RAPC is adopting the CAPA definitions for these themes. For your convenience here is a link to CAPA’s definitions and rules for: Fine Art and Creative. Each page also contains sample images of the theme, which can be very helpful and inspiring.

Definition Fine Art: Using photography as a medium to bring something to life that only lives in the artist’s mind. A portrait, landscape, still-life, nature, wildlife or photo journalism image must have significant artistic changes for it to be accepted into this competition. To be considered for the CAPA “Club” level Fine Art competition, your image must fit into either a monochrome / infrared or colour category:

• Monochrome/Infrared – A sepia image is considered a monochrome image. A ‘duo-toned’ image is not considered a monochrome image for the purposes of this competition.

• Colour – An image containing all colour elements or only a few elements having colour.

Definition Creative: This involves the manipulation of a photograph both in-camera and post processing, for artistic purposes to create a fictional or conceptual image or photographic art. Any subject is acceptable provided that the original captured image is the work of the photographer and the photographer must have taken all components of the final image. Images may not be constructed entirely within a computer. To be considered for the CAPA “Club” level Creative competition, your image must fall into one of these themes:

• Abstract – does not attempt to represent an accurate depiction of reality and where colour and form make up the subject of the images rather than it representing tangible objects or people. Examples are – bokeh, double exposure, blurred image, intentional camera movement, panning, patterns, light painting, lines, macro image, oil & water, high-speed water drops, shapes, simplicity, spinning, smoke, texture, etc.

• Altered Reality – using real-world environment and elements to create a realistic or unrealistic fictional image. Ideally, the intention is to create an image that conveys a message or tells a story.

• Creative – conveys a mood, a feeling, a beautiful arrangement of elements. This could be expressive and can be aesthetically pleasing or promotes an emotional response to shapes, lines and colours. Image should go beyond a pictorial rendering of a scene.

Julie will describe the process she followed from concept to execution of a photographic project; including the behind-the-scene hacks she used to make a still-life studio setting at home, a few lessons learned the hard way, and some pre and post-production tips that allowed the images to lift off the page and maintain a cohesive look.

The RAPC is adopting the CAPA definition for Monochrome: A black and white work ranging from the very dark grey (black) to the very clear grey (white) is a monochrome work with the various shades of grey. A black and white work toned entirely in a single colour will remain a monochrome work able to stand in the black and white category. On the other hand, a black and white work modified by a partial toning or by the addition of one colour becomes a colour work (polychrome) to stand in the colour category. A sepia image is considered a monochrome image. A ‘duo-toned’ image is not considered a monochrome image for the purposes of this competition. Hand-of-man and infrared is permitted.

Here is a link to CAPA’s Monochrome competition page: https://capacanada.ca/2021-monochrome/. Please refer to this link for further detailed instructions and sample images

The RAPC is adopting the CAPA definition for Curves & Lines. For your convenience here is a link to CAPA’s definition and rules for this theme: https://capacanada.ca/2021-lines-and-curves-lignes-et-courbes/.

Definition: Lines and curves have a significant compositional role that focuses the viewer’s attention on some part of the image and influences the interpretation of the image; they can also add a sense of movement. Examples are:

• Converging Lines

• Curved Lines

• Diagonal Lines

• Horizontal Lines

• Opposing diagonal Lines

• S-Curves

• Vertical Lines

he RAPC is adopting the CAPA definition for Canada, My Country. For your convenience here is a link to CAPA’s detailed definition and rules for this theme: https://capacanada.ca/2021-canada-my-country-mon-pays/.

Definition: Image(s) which symbolize our unique Canadian identity and the beauties and the natural beauty of our country, such as:

• cultural heritage

• geographical uniqueness

• historical events or locations

• iconic landscape/cityscape

• roughness of Canadian landscape

• seasonal uniqueness

• symbols of caring, confidence, courage, encouraging, helping others, nurturing, pride, respect, self-sacrifice and trust

• nature

• wildlife specific to Canada

• Architecture

To be considered for the CAPA “Club” level Canada, My Country competition, the image must have been taken within the last three years and not previously submitted and entered into this competition.

Definition: A photographic portrait which is a representation of a living person, especially the face, OR a photograph in which the subject, the human body, is the primary interest. Entries are limited to POSED photographs of one or more human beings. The backgrounds may include statues or paintings of people provided that these are not the primary subject. Pet and animal portraits are excluded. There are no restrictions on location (indoors or outdoors) nor on lighting (ambient or artificial), however both must be considered and controlled.

This competition is for system testing only