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Visa pour l’Image 2018: 9 things not to miss

People walk around an exhibition room looking at the printed photographs on the walls.
At Visa pour l'Image 2018, visitors will enjoy insightful talks, inspirational exhibitions and more. Taken at Visa pour l'Image 2017 on a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV with a with a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens.

The countdown to the the 30th edition of Visa pour l’Image has begun, with the popular festival of international photojournalism returning to the medieval city of Perpignan, southern France, from 1 to 18 September 2018.

Photojournalists, photo agency representatives, editors, curators and photography students, plus industry experts and journalists, will converge to enjoy a packed programme of exhibitions, discussions, screenings and awards during Professional Week from 3 to 8 September.

With a long list of powerful exhibitions and inspiring talks in locations around the city, here are 9 things not to miss at the 2018 festival – the 29th year Visa pour l'Image has partnered with Canon Europe to celebrate the best in photojournalism, and to support the future of the industry.



1. Test out Canon kit

Head over to the Canon Experience Zone to get hands-on with the all the latest Canon products – the very latest in groundbreaking photo, video and printing equipment. You’ll find us in the festival headquarters in the Palais des Congrès. Free to enter, the Zone will be a hive of activity, and a great place to network with fellow industry insiders and to find some photographic inspiration...
A FARC women fighter cradles a baby standing in a jungle, surrounded by tents.
Find an exhibition of work by Canon Female Photojournalist Award winner Catalina Martin-Chico, whose project follows FARC women fighters banned from having children and now experiencing a baby boom, in the Canon Experience Zone alongside the work of other celebrated female photojournalists. Taken on a Canon EOS 5D Mark III with a Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM lens. © Catalina Martin-Chico/Cosmos
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2. A celebration of female photographers

In the Canon Experience Zone at the Palais des Congrès, find an exhibition of work by 26 female Canon Ambassadors, titled The Women’s Eye. It will include a selection of work by the winner of last year's Canon Female Photojournalist award, Catalina Martin-Chico. She was given the prestigious prize for her proposed project about female former members of Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC). That finished work, Colombia: (Re)Birth, will be on display in the Zone’s gallery.



3. George Steinmetz exhibition

Big Food is a series of photographs by the distinguished photographer George Steinmetz, who has completed over 40 major photo essays for National Geographic magazine in the past 30 years. His latest exhibition focuses on large-scale agriculture, particularly seen from an aerial perspective. It will be on show in the Couvent des Minimes from 1 to 16 September.

4. Rising stars presented

Want to see the work of the next generation of photojournalists? From 4 September, the best five portfolios produced by photography students on the Canon Student Programme will be presented from 11am to 12 noon each day on the first floor of the Palais des Congrès (accreditation will be required).
A man walks down a row of large panels of photographs that are taller and wider than him. The photograph closest to us shows a long corridor, the photograph behind that shows the front of a European-style house, and behind that we just glimpse the edges of landscape photographs.
Exhibitions featuring the year's best photojournalism can be found all over the city of Perpignan during Visa pour l'Image 2018. Taken on a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV with a with a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens.

5. Paolo Pellegrin screening

Canon Ambassador Paolo Pellegrin is an acclaimed photojournalist and the winner of 10 World Press Photo awards. A large retrospective screening dedicated to his work will be shown in the outdoor auditorium at Campo Santo on 7 September at 9.30pm (get there at 9.00pm to avoid disappointment).



6. Visa 30th anniversary retrospective

In recognition of this 30th edition of Visa pour l’Image, a special exhibition will look back over the festival’s history and the photographers who have made this annual celebration of photojournalism so special. It will be on show at Couvent des Minimes from 1 to 16 September.



7. Women in photojournalism

A panel discussion on women in photojournalism, called In Search of Balance, will be chaired by Canon Ambassador Hilary Roberts, curator of the Imperial War Museum in London. She will be joined by Canon Ambassador Ilvy Njiokiktjien, the 2017 Canon Female Photojournalist Award winner Catalina Martin-Chico, and the 2018 Award winner. They will discuss a range of topics surrounding women who work in photojournalism and reportage at the Palais des Congrès on 5 September from 3pm to 4.30pm (accreditation will be required).
A technician has just unscrewed the front of a Canon EOS 5D Mark III camera. The camera lies on a mat on a table, with bottles of cleaning liquids ready beside it.
The CPS team giving a member's camera a service and clean at the CPS desk at Visa pour l'Image. Find the 2018 CPS desk in the Canon Experience Zone in the Palais des Congrès. Taken on a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV with a Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM lens.

8. Get your tech questions answered

Receive technical advice and support from the specialist Canon Professional Services (CPS) technicians on hand in the Canon Experience Zone in the Palais des Congrès. And if you’re a member, they’ll give your Canon products a free service and clean while you’re there. The CPS desk will also offer product loans to members (with valid ID).



9. Award-winning images by Veronique de Viguerie

Veronique de Viguerie’s series Yemen, The Hidden War, won the 2018 ICRC Humanitarian Visa d’Or Award. In an assignment for Paris-Match, she overcame huge obstacles to document the major conflict and associated humanitarian disaster in the country. The images will be on display at Couvent des Minimes from 1 to 18 September.

Written by David Clark

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Nine men and women stand or sit in a group, in a room set up with photographers' light stands. The black and white photo shows Mashid Mohadjerin, Ilvy Njiokiktjien, Daniel Etter, Roberto Koch, Paolo Pellegrin, Alvaro Ybarra Zavala, Carolina Arantes, Magnus Wennman, Simona Ghizzoni.

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