The Lions Gate Nature Competition is on again this year and there are a number of changes.  There are new categories, the rules have been clarified inline with CAPA and there is a image size limit of 1.8 mb.

There are four categories in this competition:

•  01 – Botanical – subjects such as wild flowers, plants, trees, fungi and algae. Germinated and grown without human assistance.
•  02 – Nature – subjects such as animals, birds, insects, reptiles and marine subjects – under the control and feeding of humans if not obvious – such as zoos, game farms, animal preserves, aquarium, etc…
•  03 – Landscape – subjects such as weather phenomena, geological formations, landscapes, seascapes and natural phenomena, planets, stars and astronomical events – no hand of man.
•  04 – Wildlife – ONLY living and untamed mammals, birds, insects, reptiles and marine subjects – no hand of man.

Link to the CAPA rules for each category

Link to the Lions Gate specifications

Images have to be uploaded by October 20th followed by a week of voting.  You can vote eight images including your own image.  The top eight images will be forwarded to the Lions Gate club by November 1st.

Look through your best shots, be certain there is no ‘hand of man’ in the image, ensure it is less than 1.8mb and submit it.  Images have a maximum width of 1400 pixels and maximum height of 1050 pixels. 

This is a unique opportunity for the photography produced by your members to be judged by some of the best nature photographers in Canada.

The Harbour City Photography Club is hosting Photo Salon again this year.  Your image(s) need to be submitted by February 15th/2020.

Photo Salon is part of a worldwide system of recognized forums to showcase the commitment, achievement and outstanding work of photographers in the region. It is open to club and non-club members on Vancouver Island. A panel of judges adjudicates the digital entries and, if accepted, the photographs are printed, hung and evaluated for 1st -, 2nd -, and 3rd -place recognition. There is also a ‘People’s Choice’ award. Photo Salon is hosted by the Harbour City Photography Club in Nanaimo and is endorsed by the Canadian Association for Photographic Art (CAPA), the prime photography group in Canada.

Full details for image sizes and print sizes, dates and timeline are detailed in INVITATION-INFORMATION 2020.

Assignment number 2 – April 16-April 30 2020

Our second topic is How Close Can You Go????

Dust off your macro lens and have fun in and out of the house. You don’t have a macro lens – no problem just go as close as your camera will allow you to get. The ideas here a endless and it doesn’t just have to be flowers.

You can enter a photo for each of the categories – one black and white, one color and one digitally enhanced.

  Like field trips we will be doing assignments twice a month instead of one and there will be no voting at this time.  Please enter your photos on the website following the sizing and category specifications.  If you entered in the assignment #1 please send them to president.opc@gmail.com and I will make sure they are included in the slide show.  Let’s have some fun with this since we are asked to stay at home or keep social distancing.

Description: It can be of shiny, rusty, new or old metal.  Let your imagination be your guide and you can be as creative as you like as long it is metal.  Try to use different photos in
each category.  There are three categories and you may place one photo in each category – color, black and white, and digitally enhanced.  This final category of digitally enhanced you can adjust with filters, styles or any changes you would like.  Photos must be taken May 1 – July 28  Please do not put your signature on your photos in this category

This is your chance to get down and see the life from underneath all of those things we look down at on the ground. Take your photos from the ground up (looking up) to 31cm (12 inches ). This can be alot of fun and challenging all at once.

Remember you can post 3 photos – one color, one black and white and one digitally changed.  Photos must be taken in the last three months – June – August

dark vs light                                                            large vs small                                                     rock vs water

Here is a topic that some of you may never heard of but it can be fun and will make us think a little.
Topic: Juxtaposition
What is it?  Two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.  Ideas of this can be
Fat vs skinny –eg: a large tree vs a skinny one
Past and present -eg: an old building next to a new one ,
Old vs new –eg: a film camera vs a flash card.
Big vs small –eg: a child’s hand holding their parents
Dark vs light colors– eg: a dark puppy with some light ones
Nature vs manmade – eg” flowers or trees next to a home or apartment
Circle vs rectangle or angle – a carpet with a pattern
Black vs white – self explanatory
Water vs rocks – Qualicum falls

These are just some ideas but let your imagination go and have fun with this.
Remember you can enter one color, one black and white and one digitally enhanced.  Try not to use the same photo for all three categories

This month our assignment is INTENTIONAL MOVEMENT. I know that some of you may have tried it but for those who haven’t – Intentional Camera Movement (ICM) is a technique used to create a form of abstract art. Instead of using a tripod to keep the camera still, move the camera in a panning motion to create motion blur while the camera’s shutter is open.

You can submit 3 photos on the website-
1 color
1 black and white
1 digitally enhanced however you would like

Photos must be taken within the last three months (Sept 1 – Nov 28)

French Creek marina and estuary; 20 February, 10:30; Pub is open but no group lunch. Please remember the Health Directives.
For an extra challenge use a single focal length lens or a telephoto lens with a set focal length. Or if you are inclined, and in adventuresome mood, use your cell phone camera.

Light and shadows in any form and any source of light.

Note: we are voting on the assignment images again. Many members have requested that we re-start voting again, so we will try it. The reason we stopped voting was to determine if this affected the member of members participating in the assignments. Some members dropped out and others began participating.

So, participate.