Friday, May 8, 7:30pm - NCUPS Critique Night: Refine Your Vision
In-person at Backscatter Underwater Video & Photo (Monterey) and online by Zoom
Refine Your Vision
Join us for an evening of constructive feedback and professional insight at this month’s Northern California Underwater Photographic Society meeting. This is a dedicated Critique Night, offering active members a unique opportunity to have their work reviewed by a panel of experts.
Whether you are looking to polish a competition entry or simply want a fresh perspective on your latest underwater captures, this session is designed to help you elevate your imaging skills.
The Panel: We are thrilled to host a distinguished panel of reviewers who bring a wealth of experience in underwater imaging, technical precision, and storytelling:
Jim Decker
Becca Boring
Bruce Sudweeks
Submission Guidelines
Active members are encouraged to share their work for a chance to be featured. To ensure we cover as many participants as possible, the panel will select one primary piece of media per person to focus on during the live session.
Entry Limit: Submit up to 3 images OR one 1-minute video.
Selection Process: From your submission, the panel will choose one image or the video clip to provide detailed, live commentary.
How to Submit: Email your files or download links (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.) to becca@backscatter.com.
Deadline: Submissions must be sent by midnight, Thursday, May 7th. Meeting - Friday, May 8, 2026
In-person:
Backscatter Underwater Video & Photo
225 Cannery Row, Monterey, California
Zoom:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82087016894?pwd=WVRabSIONTWJlzoWhJnf7LMrp4Srwc.1
Mini Competition
Some big changes here too. Read the full details on our website on the competition page. But the quick big ticket items:
Still Photo and Video competitions each month. Enter either or both!
Competition will be judged with comments provided instead of the old voting approach.
NEW DEADLINE for entry. Since we’re using judges, we need to get images to them and give them time to actually do the judging. So, going forward, please submit your images via the link below (or on the the competition page) by the 15th of the prior month. So, for May, you would submit by April 15.
All of the minicomp themes are on our here with convenient upload links. You can upload your picture for any month at any time UP UNTIL the deadline.
May Minicomp
May’s theme is “California”. Those images were due by 4/15. June’s Minicomp theme is “Snooted”. Those are due by 5/15. Get them in on time, please! Please name your files like this 06YourName.jpg. Upload June entries here.
And remember, entering is a good idea. For 2026, we have 2 BIG annual prizes:
Best Photographer. $100 prize for the person with the highest cumulative score during the year.
Best Shot. Another $100 prize will be awarded to the best photo of the year (based on the first place winners during the January to November time frame).
NCUPS Background
The Northern California Underwater Photographic Society (NCUPS) is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that promotes interest in underwater photography. The club has been active since 1957, sponsoring educational events on both underwater photography and video while promoting awareness of the underwater environment and pertinent ecological issues. NCUPS serves the greater San Francisco Bay area, including Silicon Valley. FEIN 94-3278015
