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Testing phase. This process is being proven end to end with a founding group of photographers. The consent language below is plain and honest, and the formal release behind it goes through legal review before anything is published. Details may be refined as we learn.

The brief

The Photographer Brief (2026)

Photographers begin the record.

The founding cohort / forming Contact sheet
  1. Awaiting portrait
    Frame 001
  2. Awaiting portrait
    Frame 002
  3. Awaiting portrait
    Frame 003
  4. Awaiting portrait
    Frame 004
  5. Awaiting portrait
    Frame 005
  6. Open / 2026 Your frame Take part →
    Frame —

This brief is how you decide. The frames are for the founding photographers, filled as they join and are photographed.

The brief in ninety seconds. The full text is below.

What this is

Portrait of Canada is a national portrait and voice record. One day. One question. One record. In 2026 it begins with photographers, ahead of the broader public capture day on July 1, 2027.

We are not asking you to photograph the public yet. We are asking you to be one of the first people in the record: make a self-portrait, and answer two short questions on camera.

Why photographers first

Photographers are the trust layer of this project. Before we invite the public in 2027, we want to prove the whole thing with people who understand portraiture, consent, and why a record like this should last. That means testing the story, the workflow, the consent process, and whether photographers across the country want to take part.

What you contribute

  1. A self-portrait. You have full creative freedom. Make the portrait you want to make. Honest and high quality is all we ask.
  2. A short recorded answer to: What do you love about being a photographer?
  3. A short recorded answer to: If you could ask all Canadians one question, what would it be?

Video is fine and easy to make. We use the audio and a typed transcript in the record, next to your portrait. Clear and honest beats polished.

A note on the second question: it stays the same every year. The answers become the pool we vote from to choose the one question the whole record asks the following year. So your answer is also a proposal.

How it works, step by step

  1. You fill out the short form at portraitofcanada.ca.
  2. I reply by email and we talk. When you decide you are in, you get your member ID and your own private upload link.
  3. You make your self-portrait, record your two answers, and upload them to your own Dropbox folder. You only ever see your own folder.
  4. I confirm I have your files and start processing the portrait, the audio, and the transcript.
  5. I keep you posted by email at each step, so you always know where you are: received, in review, ready for your sign-off, published.
  6. When it is ready, you review a proof: your portrait, the transcript, and the short public-facing message. You make any final notes.
  7. Once you sign the consent, and only then, your portrait and voice go up as part of the record.

Nothing is published before you sign.

Consent, plainly

You choose what is public:

  • Public: portrait, name, location, audio, and transcript may appear in the record.
  • Limited public: some of it, for example portrait, name, location, and a written quote, but not the full audio.
  • Internal only: we keep it to test the workflow, but publish nothing.

You can change your choice or ask us to take your record down later. We hold only your email and your signed consent as personal data, and we keep it in our own workspace. We do not sell anything, and we do not train AI on your voice or your face. You must be 18 or older to take part in 2026.

The full release is a separate document you sign before anything goes public.

Your membership and your invitations

Your self-portrait is your membership. When it goes up, you are in the record.

You will also get a small number of invitations to pass on. Use them for one or two photographers who understand the civic and documentary purpose. The record grows slowly, and by trust, on purpose.

Specs and naming

  • Self-portrait: the highest quality you can manage. Colour or black and white, whatever style you want. Your creative choice.
  • Recording length: roughly 30 seconds to 2 minutes for the first question, 15 seconds to 1 minute for the second. Short is fine.
  • File names: POC2026_LastName_FirstName_City_Province_FileType
    • e.g. POC2026_Swaneck_Cedric_Toronto_ON_SelfPortrait.jpg
    • e.g. POC2026_Swaneck_Cedric_Toronto_ON_Response.mp4
  • Tell us: name, city, province or territory, email, and an optional credit line, website, or Instagram.

Provenance and dates

  • Content Credentials, optional this year. If your editing tool supports Content Credentials (Capture One and Adobe both do), turn them on when you export your JPEG. They attach a verifiable digital ID to the file: who made it, when, and with what. A record built to last should be able to prove where its images came from, so expect this to become part of the standard as the record grows. For 2026 it is optional, and welcome.
  • Dates, plainly. Metadata is part of the record’s transparency: what your file says about itself, including its capture date, can be shown alongside your record. In 2027 the whole public record will carry one shared date, July 1, 2027. For 2026, your record is dated by your membership, the day you join the record. If your self-portrait was made earlier, the capture date in your metadata stands, and we can date your record back to it.

What this is not

  • Not a mass public event yet. That is 2027.
  • Not a social media challenge.
  • Not about covering every corner of the country in 2026.
  • Not asking you to photograph other people this year.

Timeline

Submissions open July 1, 2026, Canada Day. We are not promising a date for when portraits go live. Each record goes public only after you sign your consent, and we would rather take the time to do it right than rush it. The broader public capture day is July 1, 2027.

Questions

Email me directly: cedric@swaneck.com.

Cedric Swaneck
Just a dude with an idea :)

Read it all and feel like you belong in this? Raise your hand. No commitment at this step; that is what the form is for.

Take part as a photographer

This brief is part of the 2026 proof of concept and may be refined as the process is tested. Nothing is published without a signed release.