NPAC addresses Photojournalist of the Year submission requirements

[Ben Nelms]

After careful consideration, the News Photographers Association of Canada (NPAC) executive has decided to temporarily repeal the mandatory requirement for a photo story in the Photojournalist of the Year (PJOY) contest entry.

NPAC continually works to reflect the contemporary state of the industry. It was with this in mind changes to this year's National Pictures of the Year (NPOY) competition were made. We increased the maximum number of images from 12 to 18 in the PJOY entry and made it mandatory to include a picture story/essay. In the same spirit, we divided the Picture Story category into two categories, one for news and one for feature stories, and modernized the requirements for the Student Photographer of the Year category.

NPAC champions top calibre photojournalists who excel in a broad range of work. This level of award, the top photojournalist in Canada, should display strong visual work in a variety of subjects as well as the ability to cover an event, story or subject that produces a series of strong images in that year. This could a portrait series, coverage from a news event or a documentary story.

However, after posting the new rules and submission guidelines, concerns were heard that members were not given enough notice of the changes to the PJOY. The NPAC executive relies on and values members' input and has decided to make the photo story/essay component optional for the 2016 contest.

The amended changes to the 2016 Photojournalist of the Year submissions are as follows: Portfolio may include UP TO 18 images. One of those submissions is encouraged to be a Picture Story, but it is not a requirement.

Beginning next year, 2017 NPOY Photojournalist of the Year entries will require one mandatory picture story to be included.  Please feel free to email president@npac.ca and advertising@npac.ca with any comments or questions you may have.


Thank you.


The NPAC Executive
Amber Bracken
Ben Nelms
Jason Payne
Gio Ciampini
Alison Ledgerwood

[Fred Lum]

thanks for the clarification Ben (and exec).

[Mark Blinch]

Overall, I love the idea of upping the required amount to 18. 12 was too little and it was very hard to represent yourself in 12 images. I also like how a picture story can now be involved, this allows many more photographers to enter.

However, I personally think you should leave the rules as you have just changed them: the picture series should not be a requirement, but it should be encouraged.

This is kind of how I see it:

Every photog gets 18 entries. One entry = Photo story/essay/series, or single image.

After that I would say you should cap the total amount of images at 40-50.

For example, if you capped it at 40: You could have two photo stories at 12 images a piece. That would total 24 images for picture stories, and say you add 16 single images, you would have a total of 40 images. 16 single images + 2 photo stories = 18 entries.

I dont think a photo essay should be required. I think it should be optional. Imagine if you required everyone to have at least 1 sports image, many documentary photographers would be eliminated. Not all newspaper/wire photographers get the chance to shoot a photo story either.

At the end of the day, the judges will most likely favour someone with a strong photo series anyways, so the most well rounded photographers (theoretically) would be recognized. I just don't think a series should be required.

There are many photographers here whos job it is to tell a story in one picture. There are also many photographers whos job it is to tell stories in multiple images. Photographers should be able to express themselves in this contest in the way they feel represents their work best - and then we should leave it to the judging to work out the results.

[Amber Bracken]

Hi Mark, thanks for your thoughtful reply.

Just a note: the portfolio size increase to 18 isn't required, it's just a new maximum. I like the idea of capping the total number of pictures but worry about over complicating the process. Also, the current situation of encouraging essays/stories is no change at all, it's been that way for a long time and we don't see that many series entered. Part of the thinking is that in making it a requirement, we can encourage organizations to support this work so there will be more of it in the future.

Again, I realize not everyone is shooting stories, but it doesn't need to be documentary work: an essay could be a series from the Olympics, a portrait series or a collection of work on a really big story (ie Rob Ford, Fort Mac, Gomeshi). I know you've covered all of these and I've seen you do stories. It is not about favouring one kind of photojournalist over another but of requiring the Photojournalist of the Year to demonstrate a consistency of vision in whichever niche they exist in. We will definitely discuss more before next year and I look forward to talking more at the conference in Toronto. I'll buy you a beer.

[Warren Toda]

Just to mention that the NPOY entry period is now half over. Don't leave it to the last day.