The Toronto Camera Club’s Mission is to enable photographers from different backgrounds and skill levels to develop their interests and abilities, through shared learning in a social environment. The club uses friendly internal Competitions as an important tool towards achieving this mission.
Each Season the club runs a diverse set of approximately 20 Competitions in different genres of photography, in addition to a round of special Year-End Competitions in these genres. Members who participate in these Competitions are motivated to practice and improve their photography over time, within their chosen genres.
Members are divided into three competition divisions, namely Beginners, Advanced and Masters, with recognition given to the best scoring images within each division in each Competition. Images are scored and commented upon by certified Ontario Council of Camera Clubs (O3C) Judges, enabling members to benefit from specific feedback on the images they submit.
Members do not have to actively participate in Competitions to benefit from them. Each competition culminates in a presentation night in which the submitted images are shown, alongside their scores and, where applicable, judges’ comments. Members are often inspired with new ideas and new ways to look at things while watching these presentations. They can also often identify how the comments on other peoples' images may apply to their own.
The types of Competitions we run include Pictorial Images; Nature Images; Creative / Altered Reality Images, Audio/Visual Presentations; Assigned Topics (different topics each time); and Special Categories (In-Camera Creative images and Street Photography, for example). This provides every Member who wishes to participate, an avenue to improve and share their favourite types of images - regardless of the kind of camera equipment they use. Photos taken with mobile phone cameras and tablet cameras are also perfectly fine.