July 20th, 2012, Toronto. From driving snow storms and minus 40-degree temperatures to blazing heat waves that see us cranking our air conditioners and clamouring for spots on the beach, Canada is one of the few countries in the world that experiences such dramatic changes in weather from one season to the next. Being a resilient lot, we tend to make the best of every weather situation.

Now, Canadian Geographic magazine and The Weather Network have teamed up to stage the Whatever the Weather Photo Contest, an interactive competition that asks residents of the Great White North to photograph memorable weather scenes. Of course, those don’t necessarily have to be the aforementioned extreme situations such as heat waves or blizzards. Sometimes a pleasant sunset on a summer’s night or rain sprinkling on to a pristine northern lake is enough to produce some truly memorable images.

To help weather photographers categorize their images, the contest has been divided into several distinct categories: stormy scenes (lightning, blizzards and raging weather), dawn to dusk (spectacular sunrises and sunsets), turn, turn, turn (seasonal change), people and weather (people braving a snowstorm, getting caught in the rain or simply basking in the sun, for example), smartphone-ography (spontaneous camera phone snapshots) and even a category for junior photographers (15 years and younger).

“Given our country’s rich geography, it only makes sense that Canadians experience all sorts of weather – from picnic-perfect sunny days to blizzards,” said Gilles Gagnier, Vice President, Digital Media and Custom Publishing at Canadian Geographic . “What better way to share that experience than through photography? We’re already very impressed by the number of submissions the contest has received.”

A grand prize, second place and runner-up winner will be chosen in each of the six categories. Winners will receive a wide range of photo-friendly prizes, including a chance to be published in a special themed issue of Canadian Geographic magazine.

The contest is powered by Filemobile’s Media Factory social media suite and includes innovative features such as photo geo-tagging, Facebook Connect to allow for easy logins and sharing, as well as easily-navigated photo galleries.

“We’re very pleased to be working with two iconic brands such as Canadian Geographic and The Weather Network to bring Canadians’ weather images to life with this fun and interactive contest,” said Filemobile President Marc Milgrom.

Participants and visitors to the contest website can enter and vote for their favourite submissions from now until December 17, 2012 on the sites of Canadian Geographic , The Weather Network, or on Facebook. To help drive support for their favourite photos, fans and photographers are encouraged to share their top picks with family and friends via social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and LinkedIn. The winners will be selected by a panel of judges on January 11, 2013 at Canadian Geographic’s Ottawa headquarters.

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