Students from Holland College’s Photography and Digital Imaging program had an opportunity to meet and compete against professional photographers at the Professional Photographer of Canada Atlantic Annual Convention and Image Competition 2008 held in Charlottetown recently, earning various awards and recognition for the high quality of their work.

A dozen students from the program submitted approximately 30 images for this year’s competition. There were almost 150 entries in the competition overall. Holland College student Greg Adey won Student Photographer of the Year for the second year in a row. Classmate Spencer Birt was also nominated for Student Photographer of the Year. Students from the college's program rated well against the professionals, with many images scoring in the Accepted class. The students also received numerous merit awards and two Awards of Excellence. Additionally, program instructor Alex Murchison received a Citation for Service, an award presented every three to five years.

Students attended many workshops, including a dynamic session by two-time nominee to the Photoshop Hall of Fame photographer Vincent Versace, from Los Angeles, California. Murchison said that participating in the convention and competition and volunteering for a wide range of duties while they were there was great experience for the students.

“Preparing images for the competitions, seeing their work on display with that of professionals, attending workshops and talking to professionals are just a few of the benefits of their participation in the event,” he said. “They left with a renewed enthusiasm for their craft.”