Abbotsford Photo Arts Club

Competition Categories & Definitions

All 20 categories across five groups, with full definitions and entry requirements

A note on editing
Image editing and enhancements are permitted in the categories of all five groups, but each group is subject to its own editing rules.
Documentary Editing Rules Pictorial Editing Rules Creative Editing Rules Open Editing Rules Artistic Editing Rules
DO
Documentary
2 categories • Nature • Photojournalism
NA Nature

One of the most restrictive categories in photography competitions worldwide. APAC has adopted the same Nature and Wildlife definitions as CAPA, aligned with international standards from FIAP, PSA, and RPS (updated January 1, 2019). Images must fall into one of the five qualifying themes below.

Five qualifying themes
Theme 1
Botanical
Only wild plants photographed in their natural environment are permitted: flowers, shrubs, bushes, trees, fungi, and algae. Human-created hybrids and cultivated plants are not permitted, though wild plants growing in a botanical garden are accepted. Hand of Man must be 10% or less of the total image area and must be integral to the nature story.
Theme 2
Insects, Reptiles & Amphibians
Includes alligators, ants, bees, beetles, butterflies, crocodiles, dragonflies, frogs, geckos, hornets, iguanas, lizards, mantis, mosquitoes, snakes, turtles, wasps, and similar subjects. Hand of Man must be 10% or less and integral to the nature story.
Theme 3
Landscape
Weather phenomena, geological formations, landscapes, seascapes, natural phenomena, planets, stars, and astronomical events. No Hand of Man elements are permitted.
Theme 4
Nature
Animals under human care: zoos, game farms, animal preserves, and aquariums. Includes living mammals, birds, marine subjects, and arthropods. No domestic or escaped animals. Hand of Man is permitted only where it qualifies as an adaptive environment element, at 10% or less of total image area.
Theme 5
Wildlife
Only living and untamed wildlife: mammals, birds, and marine subjects living free. No traditional zoos, open-range zoos, game farms, or areas where animals are restrained or confined. Nature parks qualify as natural environments. Scientific bands, tags, or radio collars are permitted; tethers and harnesses are not. No domestic or escaped animals. No Hand of Man elements.
ⓘ Hand of Man Definition ▶
Human No human body or any portion thereof should be visible in the image.
Sky No human-made elements such as cables, aircraft, light pollution, or artificial lights.
Land Man-made structures, paths, buildings, concrete, telephone poles, fence posts, sidewalks, domesticated or cultivated plants, cut grass, and organized plantings of trees should be absent.
Elements No cut trees, stems, branches, tree stumps, posts, man-made food, objects, or man-made backgrounds.
Sea No boats, ships, piers, docks, posts in water, or any human-made elements visible in the image.

Adaptive Environment (CAPA definition): Where Hand of Man is permissible in a theme, it must constitute 10% or less of the total image. In the Nature theme it must also conform to the Adaptive Environment condition: living organisms using man-made structures for nesting, feeding young, attracting a mate, or consuming food on a human-associated element such as a sawed log, fence post, or telephone pole. Simply resting on a Hand of Man object does not qualify.

👤 Getting Help with the Nature Category ▶

Nature is the strictest of APAC's categories and qualifying conditions can be difficult to interpret for certain images. If you are unsure whether an image qualifies, reach out to one of the members below before competition night. If an image is disqualified, every effort will be made to notify the maker in advance.

Rob Macleod Bob Friesen Doran Aisenstat
🌿 APAC Nature Photography Ethics ▶
Do not do anything to injure or distress animals or destroy their habitat in an attempt to secure an image.
Maintain an appropriate distance from an active nest, and in most cases avoid them entirely.
Do not bait wildlife, to avoid possible long-term impacts.
Do not stress wildlife by getting too close.
Learn about the species' behaviour and the ecology of the area.
Use appropriate lenses and techniques that minimize stress on wildlife.
Be a naturalist as well as a nature photographer, and take extra care when photographing species-at-risk and threatened species.
Consider avoiding the photography of species-at-risk altogether. Consult the Canadian Federal Species At Risk Act, Schedule 1 for a complete listing.
PJ Photojournalism

An image that tells a story, where the storytelling quality of the image is weighted more than the pictorial aspect.

PI
Pictorial
12 categories • Action • Architecture • Landscape • and more
AAction

May include images of sport but is open to interpretation of action more broadly.

ARArchitecture

Images depicting buildings, structures, interiors, and surroundings, whole or in part, that emphasize design or functionality.

LALandscape or Seascape

Scenic images of land or water.

DCDomestic & Captive Animals

Pets, livestock, zoo animals, and animals in similar circumstances.

URUrban or Rural

Images depicting either urban or rural scenes.

FLFloral

Images of flowers or parts of flowers. Both cultivated and natural specimens are acceptable.

PTPortraiture

Images of persons with the person as the main subject.

MAMacro

An image where the main subject is displayed at least one half life size relative to 35mm film. For example, a subject 7 cm in size would fully occupy, at minimum, the long side of the print or projected image, regardless of camera format used.

STSport

Images of sport or sports activities.

SLStill Life

An arranged setting of inanimate objects under controlled conditions.

SPStreet Photography

An image that features subjects in candid situations within public places. Does not require the presence of a street or even an urban environment. The subject can be absent of any people, featuring instead an object that projects a human character or an environment that is decidedly human. Framing and timing are key aspects, with the aim of capturing images at a decisive or poignant moment.

ZM Mature Sensitive Content

Viewer discretion is advised. The following category is intended for mature content potentially including nudity, violence, gore, alcohol use, and drug use.

This category serves two purposes. Every image entered is judged and scored on its own merit under Mature. After the competition night, the Scorekeeper will follow up with the maker to confirm, for each image, whether the score is to be recorded under Mature or attributed to another category of the maker's choosing, for example Street Photography or Portraiture or Action. Until the maker responds, the score remains held under Mature and is not applied to the official scoresheet.

Nudity: images are limited to semi-nudity. Images displaying genitals, focusing on fully exposed buttocks, or showing female breasts with the nipple visible are not permitted. Exceptions: images of breastfeeding, post-mastectomy scarring, and artwork or sculpture depicting nude figures are permitted.

Violence and gore: depictions of violence, injury, and gore are permitted when staged, artistic, or documentary in nature. Graphic depictions of real death, mutilation, or severe injury are not permitted.

Alcohol and drug use: depictions of alcohol consumption and legal substance use, including cannabis, are permitted when shown responsibly. Images that glorify excessive or underage drinking, or that depict illegal drug use, are not permitted.

Because this category may contain sensitive content, a warning will be given during a competition night before the category is shown, providing time for attendees to leave the room or turn off their screens before images are displayed.

CR
Creative
3 categories • Abstract • Creative Edit • In Camera Effects
ABAbstract

Images extracted from a larger reality or subject. An abstract image is usually independent of pictorial references and is reduced to form, colour, tones, texture, and line.

CECreative Edit

An artistic and creative interpretation of the maker's original photographic image through post-processing, manipulation, and enhancement: compositing, transformation, creative filters, artistic brushes, edge effects, and similar techniques.

ICIn Camera Effects

Images created by altering the photographic process in-camera: multiple exposures, motion effects, sandwich effects (Orton), in-camera filters, and similar techniques. If these effects are simulated out of camera using post-processing software, the Creative Edit category should be used instead.

OP
Open
2 categories • Monochrome • Open
MCMonochrome

Any image that is rendered in one colour and white.

OPOpen

Any original photographic image.

AA
Artistic
1 category • Artistic
AAArtistic

Images that allow the maker complete freedom from any restrictions to create photographic works of art. No restrictions on edits. Images may include elements or components from any source and do not need to be created by the maker. Scores count toward club totals, but images entered in this category may not be eligible for outside competitions.



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