The year of 2007 brought us all kinds of suprises, both bad and good. This past year has been one of the most infliential years for our Vancouver photographers as their work got more progressive and noticed. I personally never had as much exposure to the wonderful works of Vancouver photographers as much as I did this year. I kept getting constantly inspired and left in awe with the different ways all of our photographers capture and perceive our beautiful city of Vancouver.

The talented photographers that made this years list have, throughout the year, captured all things beautiful, sad, lonely, real, pure, innocent and vulnerable. They have not only altered my view on life in our city but also managed to spark up different emotions through their photos in anyone who views them. Please join me in congratulating these amazing people and their genius work (in no particular order).

All photos courtesy of Julia K

Last Friday, for the first time, I joined the Vandigicam photography group in attending the Winter Solstice Lantern festival. This year the festival had displayed lanterns and hosted activities in six different neigbourhoods that included: West End, Yaletown, Chinatown, Strathcona, Eastside and Granville Island.

Elizabeth and I, who initiated the Vandigicam walk, decided that Chinatown would be the best neighbourhood to attend since San Yat Sen garden would look dreamy with all the lanterns. Plus its location would be a closer commute for everyone. The group made a pit stop for some hot chocolate before pulling out our tripods and slowly paving our way to the gates of San Yat Sen garden. Luckily it stopped raining thus making our experience even more joyful. Everyone, especially me, was afraid of getting their cameras wet, not mentioning ourselves.

All photos by Matt Simpson

Finally, I am from the deep and long hell of finals. My apologies for being absent for such a long time and not informing all of you about the wonderful photographers we have here in Vancouver. As it is my first post in a long while, I thought who better to feature then Beyond Robson's own - Matt Simpson.

Mr. Simpson is known around BR as the guy who does the photo features and give all of you camera lovers out there your one posts worth of fame. His photography ranges from digital, film and trippy lomography photos. His lomography and polaroid work is my most favourite, thus it is the focus of my feature today. I hope you enjoy reading all that he has to say about photography. I would also like to hear your suggestions on Vancouver photographers that you love and admire, and who you would like to see featured on BR. Drop me a line in the comment box, or if all fails or e-mail me at julia@beyondrobson.com

Photo courtesy of Julia

Attention all Film makers, students and enthusiasts!
The Documentary Film Project that - hosted by VCN - is a perfect opportunity for young film students and enthusiasts to develop their skills, showcase their work and be part of something meaningful.

Shannon Ross, one of the Regional Coordinators, is planning on showcasing the 5 minute documentary at this year's BC Summit. The doumentary will be about the CAPprogram and how it benefits the community in the Lower Mainland.

Photos courtesy of Teresa

Teresa really works her macro lens, because her close up shots are amazing. I love how her photos are incredibly random, and seem to be products of random spurs of imagination and ideas. I take great pleasure in seeking out the talented photographers that roam the streets of Vancouver, thus I hope you enjoy what Teresa had to say about photography as much as I did!

All images courtesy of Svacher

I've been following Stephanie Vacher's photo stream on Flickr for a long while now, as she is one of my contacts, and it is amazing to see how much her skill grows and develops with every photo. My all time favorite series of hers are the photos she took in her Industrial Design classroom at Emily Carr. The way she captures her classmates through lens is so personal and magical.

She includes many details in her photos such as the class notebooks, supplies, drawings and etc that directly grasp all the factors that entangle her every-day life at Emily Carr. Her continual stream of food photos keep my taste buds seeping with envy but also keep me engaged. Ms.Vacher can always pursue a career as a cuisine photographer if industrial design doesn't fall through.