The Sault’s Violet Aubertin, a professional freelance photographer, is no stranger to earning recognition and winning awards for her work.
Her photograph Late Night Snack is one of 30 images that was included in Team Canada’s collection entered in the World Photographic Cup (WPC) 2025 held in Quito, Ecuador in March.
The World Photographic Cup is an annual event and is considered to be the photographic equivalent to the Olympic Games.
This year six of Canada’s 30 images earned Top 10 honours with one sports image winning a gold medal. Twenty-eight nations competed and Team Canada finished in sixth place overall.
“It was awesome," Aubertin told SooToday in a recent interview. "I applied to join Team Canada and my work was accepted. I never said anything to anyone about it until after I got the email saying ‘welcome to the team.’ It was quite surprising. It’s absolutely the biggest competition I’ve been in. I'm only the second photographer from northern Ontario ever to be named to the team."
Aubertin earned a certificate of recognition for Late Night Snack.
She intends to apply and submit work for Team Canada for next year’s World Photographic Cup to be held in Iceland.
Aubertin’s subject matter includes landscapes, birds, wildlife, flora, night photography, babies and pets.
“I don't specialize in anything," she said. "I like to educate myself and I'll take photographs of almost anything once and if I don't like it I move on. You won't find me doing what other people are doing. I like to do my own thing. Right now I like to work with nature."
She began to be interested in photography in her late teens.
“My first camera was bought at Camera Craft. It was a film camera. I used it quite a bit to take photos in the bush whenever I went hunting. I got away from it for a bit and then when digital came on the scene I bought my first digital camera and started working with it,” Aubertin said.
She worked for Sault Area Hospital for 25 years in a clerical role before retiring in 2018.
“I had already begun getting back to photography a few years before retiring and knew that it was going to be a big part of my life after retirement and I just ran with it,” Aubertin said.
She became a member of the Professional Photographers of Canada (PPOC) in 2019.
“With PPOC you're exposed to competition twice a year minimum, once regionally and once nationally. So, you're competing with the best of the best. And every year I’ve placed well. I have a lot of ribbons and plaques,” Aubertin said.
She is also a judge in photography competitions and a mentor to other photographers.
“I have an artistic background and photography is just something that gives me pleasure. I do it to make myself feel happy, to feel grounded. It keeps me calm and it gives me purpose. I just like to create,” Aubertin said.
The Camera Craft Gallery will host an exhibition of Team Canada’s World Photographic Cup 2025 collection — including Aubertin’s work — from Sept. 23 to Nov. 8.
“It’ll feel really good to have Late Night Snack on display at Camera Craft," she said. "That particular image has been very successful for me."
Admission to the exhibition is free.
Aubertin will be on hand to greet the public at the gallery Oct. 9.
“It'll be amazing to have the exhibition here. It's great for the city. This is world class art,” said James Wishon, Camera Craft owner/operator.
“I've seen Violet’s work over the years. We’ve seen her improvement and it's amazing. From her first work up to the World Cup, it’s been very good. It's amazing that we have this kind of talent. There's a lot of photographic talent here in Sault Ste. Marie,” Wishon said.