The opening of the 11th annual Exposed DC Photography Show is only 6 days away! Join us at brand new venue AJAX near Mt. Vernon Square to see 43 phenomenal images that celebrate Washington, D.C., with an open bar from Bluejacket Brewery and tunes from v:shal kanwar. Local upstart Framebridge printed and framed the photos in the exhibition.

• The deadline to submit to the Community Collective Photography Showcase is tonight at midnight. Our own James Calder is one of the judges, and the show will open at Capital Fringe on April 8.
• Over at Glen Echo, the Photoworks Gallery opens UNITED/DIVIDED today, with a reception next March 11, 5 to 7 p.m. Robert Miller, deputy director of photography at The Washington Post juried this show of 23 photographers addressing the current themes of unity/division in our nation and in our nation’s capital.
• In addition to seeing local fave Chris Suspect’s images in the 11th annual Exposed DC show opening next Thursday, you can also see a new music video he made for band Low Cut Connie based on his Instagram style of photography. Watch it censored or NSFW.
• Head to the District Architecture Center as Alan Karchmer presents architectural photographs and discusses the creative solutions he developed to address the complex aesthetic, logistical, and technical challenges of the assignments. March 7, 6:30 p.m., $35 for non-members.
• It’s been awhile since we had disastrous selfie news, but Yayoi Kusama’s mesmerizing Infinity Mirrors exhibition at the Hirshhorn did the trick. Only a few days after opening a guest smashed one of the pumpkins while trying to get a new Facebook profile pic. (We hear the couple in the Obliteration room, at the top of this post, exited without incident.)
• The L.A. Times has the photo by Al Seib that caught the shock of all the front-row actors at the Oscars at the realization that Warren Beatty had announced the wrong movie for the Best Picture award.
• Travel to Greenland to get the shot? Sure. Why not.
• Oh my, set those alarm clocks and get ready: The race to photograph cherry blossoms is coming a bit early this year, hitting peak bloom between March 14 and 17, thanks to the hottest February ever in D.C. We dare you to do better than the winning photo by Ginny Filer, which is featured on the cover of this year’s Exposed DC Photography Show magazine. Get the program showcasing all the winners for $10 at the opening reception next Thursday.
• Take some time and browse through the 30 new and emerging photographers PDN declares worth keeping your eyes on.
• Sahar Speaks is a group training young women to be journalists and photojournalists in Afghanistan.
• See the finalists from Smithsonian Magazine’s 14th annual photo contest, and go vote for your favorite.
• Photographer Joel Sartore has spent the last 11 years on a quest to photograph every animal species in captivity to create a “Photo Ark.” He’s photographed 6,500 species, including the arctic fox and the slow loris, and only has 6,000 to go!

Don’t forget to grab your advance tickets for our 2017 exhibit opening night, March 9, at cool new spot AJAX. $20 gets you first viewing of 43 gorgeous local photos framed and printed by the wonderful Framebridge, plus free wine, and craft beer by local brewmasters Bluejacket. Avoid paying extra on the day of the show by buying now (and no ticket fees!).

• 202filmcollective, a new “D.C.-based community dedicated to the art of film photography” announced their first ever meetup: Saturday March 11, 2 p.m. at Union Market.
• We all wiped away a tear as we bid Bao Bao bye bye this week. She left the National Zoo for China after three and a half years in D.C. Check out the extensive photo gallery halfway through this Washington Post article, covering everything from her departure via FedEx back to her first days as a pink blob of adorableness.
• Enjoy some local nature with these winners of Washington Gardener Magazine’s annual photo contest.
• A panel of artists, editors, and educators selected 12 African American photographers you should be following right now.
• Five-year-old Lola is recreating iconic portraits of famous black women to celebrate Black History Month.
• Bill Cunningham’s trademark bicycle, blue jacket and camera are now part of the permanent collection at the New York Historical Society.
• 17-year-old Brooklyn Beckham’s first photography book is set to be released next year. Sadly it is not called “Snap It Like Beckham” #missedopportunity
• Area raccoon hitches ride on garbage truck like a champ.
• Watch these Siberian tigers get some exercise by chasing–and catching–drones around in the snow.

Tickets are now on sale for our huge opening reception on March 9 for the 11th annual Exposed DC Photography Show. We’re holding the exhibition at AJAX, a new venue in the Mt. Vernon Square neighborhood. Your $20 (in advance, no fees!) ticket gets you in to see 43 photos wonderfully printed and framed by Framebridge that celebrate the Washington, D.C. area along with all the original Bluejacket brews you can drink.

• The deadline is tonight for the FotoDC and #202Creates photo contest. Submit portraits of your favorite local artists, entrepreneurs, educators, and anyone else who makes this city thrive. Entering is free but you need to get them in by midnight, and there are cash prizes to be won.
• Photographers Sally Canzoneri and Danny Schweers welcome visitors to their exhibit at the Washington Printmakers Gallery this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 17 and 18, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Danny will offer free tutoring on Saturday.
• Peter Stern is a photographer, ultralight pilot, and exhibit producer at the National Air and Space Museum. His show of painterly aerial images closes this weekend at the Atheneaum; head down Sunday at 3 p.m. for an artist talk. You can also see some of his work posted this past week on Air & Space Magazine’s Instagram account.
• There’s a heated debate going on over whether the photograph by Burhan Özbilici taken during the assassination of Turkey’s ambassador last December should have been awarded the 2017 World Press Photo of the Year. “Photography is capable of real service to humanity, promoting empathy and initiating change. This image achieves neither,” says juror Stuart Franklin in a Guardian op-ed, which features some of the other winners from the year.
• You can enter PDN magazine’s annual photography contest through February 24.
• Animals That Saw Me 2 is a photobook full of dry comic humor about Ed Panar’s “surprise encounters with animals.” Friend-of-Exposed Pat Padua gives it 4 out of 5 stars.
• A Dominican newspaper mistakenly ran a photo of Alec Baldwin instead of Donald Trump.
• Reuters photographer Christinna Muschi documented migrants crossing the border as they fled the U.S., through snow and ice, seeking refugee status in Canada.
• A dancing octopus, larval lionfish, and the “Imp of darkness” all went home winners in the Underwater Photographer of the Year contest.

Keep an eye out for the imminent announcement of the venue for this year’s show, along with all the details of the March 9 opening reception! We’re excited to be partnering with local business FRAMEBRIDGE for all the printing and framing of this year’s winning photos.

Oh right, those links:

• Pete Souza is using his Obama archive to troll Trump.
• FotoDC and #202Creates wants you to nominate your favorite photographers for The Inaugural Creative Class of 2017.
• “Spineless,” an exhibition of Susan Middleton’s remarkable photos of marine invertebrates opens Wednesday, February 15 at the National Academy of Sciences. The exhibition is the result of seven years of fieldwork across the Pacific Ocean.
• Head to the Black Rock Center for the Arts this Saturday, 2 to 4 p.m., for the opening of two photography exhibits: Joshua Dunn’s “Perishable,” documenting architectural monuments, and Thomas Germer’s spherical panoramas in “Forward, Backward, Up, Down.”
• Photojournalist Daniella Zalcman is leading the fight against sexism in professional photography by launching a website featuring 400 female photographers.
• Air & Space Magazine has the story and images from a photojournalist who stumbled across lost World War I photos in a Moroccan flea market.
• Get tickets to one of several events at the Washington National Cathedral between February 13-17 for “Seeing Deeper,” when they’ll clear the nave of chairs. Most of the events are planned with photographers in mind, but there’s also two “Special Photographer Access” sessions, one at night with the nave illuminated ($40) and two in the early morning ($25).
• Family portrait for 500? No problem.
• Stunning photos and video of a lava “firehose” flowing into the ocean from Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano.
• Artomatic is hosting a site preview of their spring 2017 Crystal City venue tomorrow, February 11, from 12-1 p.m. Meet in the lobby of 1800 South Bell St. While you’re there, check out our exhibit of 12 local photographers in the Crystal City Underground Fotowalk.
• InterAction, an NGO based in D.C., has kicked off its 15th annual photo contest. They want to see “powerful photos that illustrate innovative, effective, and inspiring efforts in humanitarian assistance and international relief and development.” The deadline is March 31.
• Headline of the week: “This is how you photograph a million dead plants without losing your mind.”