tion (SPE). Perhaps the leading not-for-profit mem-
bership organization for photography in the United
States, it has regional chapters across the United
States. It was established after a meeting of like-
minded photographers in 1962 who had gathered
for a conference at Rochester, New York, home of
the George Eastman House. Although it ‘‘provides a
forum for the discussion of photography-related
media as a means of creative expression and cultural
insight,’’ according to its mission statement, it is an
interdisciplinary organization that seeks to promote
a broader understanding of the medium in all its
forms. Of particular importance to the SPE are the
areas of teaching, scholarship, and criticism.
Prior to the 1960s, if taught at all at the university
level, photography was a subject in departments of
journalism. Recognizing the quickly spreading
practice of establishing photography programs in
university fine arts departments as a result of the
general boon in postwar education, Nathan Lyons,
then associate director at the George Eastman
House, organized a conference titled the ‘‘Invita-
tional Teaching Conference’’ in November 1962 in
Rochester to address the concerns of these educa-
tors. Beaumont Newhall, Walter Rosenblum, the
photojournalist so instrumental to New York’s
Photo League, Arthur Sinsabaugh, Aaron Siskind,
Henry Holmes Smith, John Szarkowski, Jerry Uels-
mann, and Clarence White were among the 30
attendees. Representing the intersection of fine art
practice, education, and history, these early partici-
pants aimed to formulate the goals, future, and
improvement of photographic education. The first
annual national conference was held in Chicago in
1963 and the articles of incorporation were signed
in May 1964. Since its establishment, many noted
artists, curators, and critics in the field of photo-
graphy have been involved with SPE or its pro-
grams. Although the majority of its 1,800 members
are fine art photographers and educators, curators,
critics, historians, and artists are also members. The
national headquarters are located at Miami Univer-
sity in Oxford, Ohio, and the archives are at the
Center for Creative PhotographyinTucson, Arizona.
SPE coordinates an annual national conference
in the spring and regional conferences in the spring.
Institutional memberships are accepted, and career
opportunities are posted on their in depth website.
Their website is http://www.spenational.org.
In the arena of working photographers, the Amer-
ican Society of Media Photographers (ASMP) is per-
haps the leading professional organization. Founded
in 1944 in New York, as the Society of Magazine
Photographers by a handful of the world’s leading
photojournalists and photographers, the purpose of
the organization was to work for professional rights
and better working conditions, including the right to
qualify for workman’s compensation if injured on the
job, as well as fair compensation for the use of photo-
graphs when reproduced. Its mission states that
‘‘ASMP is the premier resource for community, cul-
ture, commerce and publications relating to publica-
tion photography.’’ The founding president was
Philippe Halsman, and within a year, such major
figures as Margaret Bourke-White, Robert Capa,
Louise Dahl-Wolfe, Andre ́Kerte ́sz, Andreas Feinin-
ger, Dimitri Kessel, and Weegee had joined. An
annual award was developed and became a presti-
gious prize. At the end of the century, ASMP had
growntoover5,000membersin40chaptersnation-
wide and in many foreign countries, and maintains a
legal defense fund and is active in promoting copy-
right law. Their website is http://www.asmp.org.
Advertising Photographers of America is a re-
lated organization specifically concerned with the
business practices of advertising and standards to
improve the field of advertising photography.
In Canada, the Canadian Association for Photo-
graphic Art/L’Association canadienne d’art photo-
graphique (CAPA) is the overarching professional
organization, Canada’s largest. CAPA was formed
in 1998 when two associations, the Colour Photo-
graphic Association of Canada (founded in 1947 in
Toronto) and the National Association for Photo-
graphic Art (NAPA) founded in 1967 by photogra-
phers interested in advancing the practice of black-
and-white photography merged. NAPA published the
magazinesCamera CanadaandFotoflash.
Emerging from the long tradition in Canada of
amateur photo clubs, The Photographic Guild of
Nova Scotia, founded 1947, developed into an organi-
zation geared toward the professional and commercial
photographers, offering conferences, competitions,
and other professional services while also offering
activities and competitions for the amateur.
In Europe, theDeutsche Gesellschaft fu ̈r Photo-
graphie(DGPh), based in Cologne, Germany, is a
leading organization, in the words of their mission
statement, ‘‘whose activities predominantly con-
cern the cultural interests of photography and
related imaging media.’’DGPhdeals with all man-
ner of photography from the fine arts to its scien-
tific, commercial, and industrial applications. Its
organizational structure reflects this pan-photo-
graphic orientation, with divisions such as ‘‘Ima-
gery,’’ ‘‘Education and Advanced Training,’’
‘‘Medical and Scientific Photography,’’ and so on.
The Association arranges exhibitions, technical
talks, and conferences, and develops initiatives in
cultural, scientific, and political areas and awardsPROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS