(Awards received by Danielle Barabé-Bussières for being chosen as the 2020 Photographer of the Year by the Professional Photographers of Canada)
Danielle Barabé-Bussières, a Stittsville professional photographer, has earned the title of Canada’s Photographer of the Year for 2020 — the second year in a row she has been honoured. The April 25th gala, held in Edmonton, Alberta, took place virtually in light of circumstances with gatherings of limited numbers. The Professional Photographers of Canada (PPOC) competition features entries from across Canada in 22 different classes, including press, portrait, architecture and fashion.
Danielle went on to receive the prestigious and coveted designation of Craftsman of Photographic Arts. An honour to be sure!
But she didn’t stop at these enviable honours, Danielle earned an additional accreditation in Fine Art/Photo Decor at the national judging competition. Accreditation is the first elevation above the general membership level — achieved by submitting samples of her photography to a PPOC Board of Review for Accreditation. Receiving accreditation demonstrates that a photographer is capable of delivering above average quality photography in a chosen category.
The esteemed designation as Craftsman of Photographic Arts is bestowed by the PPOC upon its members whose images have been accepted into the annual PPOC Image Salon over a number of years. The photos must consistently be of high quality and in recognition of the contributions made to the Association and to photography in Canada. The designation was presented virtually to Danielle by PPOC Chairperson, Louise Vessey MPA SPA, at the Association’s annual Awards Gala in April.
Four images from Danielle’s submissions were selected for exhibition in the 2020 PPOC National Salon celebrating the best of Canadian professional photography. A panel of master photographers judged the best works submitted by professional photographers from across Canada and accepted a selection of outstanding images for exhibition. The gallery of images from the various photographers can be seen on the PPOC Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/PPOCNational/.
Her image ‘Eyes Of The Night’ in the Animal Class won the prestigious Best in Class award, as well as being selected for inclusion in the Professional Photographers of Canada’s 2020 Loan Collection.
Her image ‘Sleepy Heads’ received a Judge’s Choice award and was selected for inclusion in the Professional Photographers of Canada’s 2020 Loan Collection.
Danielle gushed, “The PPOC Loan collection is a selection of 40 of the best images that were presented at the Salon. It is quite an honor to have two of my images now in that collection for the first time!” To view all of the images chosen for the Loan collection, follow this link.
As for the winning images by category, you can view each one here.
“Photographers must show extraordinary talent to win an award among such illustrious company,” said Charles van den Ouden HLM, MPA, SPA, Chair of the National Exhibition Committee. “We were thrilled to see so many inspiring entries in the competition this year. The salon images clearly demonstrate the exceptional skill and quality that professionals bring to the medium of photography.”
Danielle’s other entries receiving acceptance and merit designations – Orange Blossom Special and Rose Pastels respectively – are below.
In addition to entering photography competitions, “I am also involved in mentoring three photographers right now and I feel very blessed to be able to share my experience and help them with accreditation and image competitions,” shared Danielle. We are sure that her students are honoured to work with a celebrated photographer such as Danielle, while advancing their skills in the artistic world of photographic imagery.
“Wanting to be part of a team of people who shared her level of passion”, Danielle has been a member of the Professional Photographers of Canada since June 2014, working hard to achieve the professional level.
The Professional Photographers of Canada is a not-for-profit organization representing photographers of all genres from across the country. The Association promotes photographic excellence through education and exploration of image artistry and establishes standards of professional performance.