The Covid-19 pandemic is posing certain challenges — and opportunities — for local photographers.
At a time of Zoom instead of face-t0-face gatherings, not all members of the Central Alberta Photographic Society are feeling as engaged in attending the virtual meetings, admitted club member Connie Dubé.
“Our membership has gone from 80 or 90 to about 60 members,” she added — with some older photographers, in particular, deciding to wait to rejoin CAPS once gathering restrictions have been lifted.
But the pandemic has been fuelling a lot of photographic creativity.
Whether area residents have more time to contemplate compelling compositions, interest in the December CAPS photography contest has remained high, with 119 entries. “And their work wasn’t easy,” said Dubé.
She credits a new member in the novice category, Stephanie Simon, for “raising the bar” in her use of photographic techniques, “capturing great moments of light, texture, action and humanity.”
Simon’s creative eye is evident Crafting, a photo of two children immersed in a creative pursuit. The high-contrast, atmospheric photograph won First Place in the Human Studies category, and was also voted People’s Choice.
Club members submitted in a variety of categories: Landscape, Human and Non-Human studies, Action, Macro and Composite photography.
They also vied for the Doug Corrigan Award, in memory of a naturist and photographer who always sought out images that showed no human interference in the environment.
Dubé, the competition director, said the next CAPS photography awards will be held in April.
She would like to spread word about the club because, as a hobbyist photographer, she didn’t know it existed when she first moved to Red Deer. Dubé has since come to appreciate the support, camaraderie and expertise shared by group members.
Many are already turning their lenses toward the next competition, which will feature Deep Fake as the theme in the Composite Image category.
Dubé predicted CAPS members will rise to the challenge “and we’ll see spectacular images… come April.”
For more information about the club, and to see the other first place winners, please visit capsphotoclub.com
lmichelin@reddeeradvocate.com
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