CAPA Digital Photojournalism Competition  

 
Submit by:
January 15, 2023

VCC is trying this category as part of our attempt to broaden the scope of photography supported by the Club. The Club has had volunteers photographing various events for the past year, and this, combined with street photography, may allow members who have not previously done so to enter into competition.

Definition

In its Judging Manual, CAPA defines photojournalism as photos that tell a news story. Photojournalism images are distinguished from street or documentary photography by the added element of “newsworthiness”. “Newsworthy”, for the purposes of this competition, is defined as being timely, of local, national or international interest, portraying conflict or controversy, or human interest, and of relevance to assist individuals to form a decision about, or to confirm their current perspective on an issue of interest. If your photo would have been a welcome addition to a news report when taken, then it belongs here.

These pictures should endeavour to answer the “who”, “what”, “where” and “when” questions. The title should introduce the image to the judges, who cannot know every news event across the country.

Images should not be staged, posed or re-enacted. They are not meant to be pretty, structured or artistic. Members are reminded that they must endeavour to comply with the journalistic principle that they “treat all subjects with respect and dignity” and “give special consideration to vulnerable subjects and [show] compassion to victims of crime or tragedy.”

Themes

Images must be assigned to one of the following themes:

  • Contemporary Issues, including disasters and demonstrations impacting individuals and communities, or influencing or demonstrating inequality or conflict.
  • Environmental Issues, including global warming, climate change, pollution, urban sprawl and waste disposal.
  • Animal/Bird/Insect/Marine life, including domestic, in a comical situation or pose.
  • Portrait: candid images of individuals whose situation is newsworthy.
  • Sports: any candid photos of a newsworthy sporting activity.
Editing

The usual CAPA eligibility rules apply: see the CAPA general page.

This is a “restricted editing” competition, and entrants should make any post-capture changes on a copy, being prepared to provide the original JPEG or RAW image upon request.

Permitted editing includes adjustments to tone and contrast, cropping, sharpening, noise reduction, flipping the image, minor cleaning up like sensor dust removal, and dodging and burning, all provided that the nature of the story and the content of the original scene are not altered in a way that might deceive the viewer or misrepresent the reality of the situation.

Digital frames, background softening or blurring, vignetting and stitching are NOT permitted. All changes must appear natural. No object removal, cloning or replacement is allowed. Images may be converted to monochrome, but infrared images are not allowed.

Submissions

To VCC by January 15, 2023, and CAPA by February 15, 2023.

Visit CAPA Website

 
    
Specifications
  1. Images should be in JPEG format, maximum 1400 pixels on the horizontal x 1050 on the vertical in size

  2. Note: One of the dimensions must be exactly the maximum allowed size (either 1400 or 1050 pixels)

  3. sRGB colour space and have a maximum file size of 1.8 MB

  4. Maximum number of submissions per VCC member is two

  5. Please preserve your image’s RAW formatted files, should CAPA request them.

 

 


   

VCC Results

  • 2022/23:
    CAPA does not hold a Photojournalism competition every year. The last one was 2018. In 2023, 31 clubs entered 168 images. Victoria Camera Club placed 9th with 139 points. (The Gold Medal winner, Langley Camera Club, scored 150.5.) This is a respectable result, and an improvement over 2018. Only 19 images were submitted for selection by the Competition Committee. See the Gallery at the right.
  • 2018/19:
    In 2018 we placed 10th out of 35 entries. We have not traditionally done well in this competition, but are improving. See gallery at right
  • 2017/18: 
    The Victoria Camera Club placed 16th in the 2017 CAPA Photojournalism competition. See the gallery
 

--to see a full image size slideshow, hover cursor over an image then click on the "Expand" icon on the right of the filmstrip--



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