Celebrating Canadian Women Photographers for International Women’s Day
Each year on International Women’s Day, we take time to recognize the voices, vision, and leadership of women across every field — and photography in Canada is no exception. From early modernist pioneer Margaret Watkins, whose bold still lifes challenged artistic norms in the 1920s, to contemporary conservation storytellers like Michelle Valberg and Daisy Gilardini, Canadian women have shaped how we see our landscapes, our communities, and ourselves. Their work spans genres — documentary, fine art, portraiture, wildlife, and conceptual practice — yet all share a commitment to perspective, patience, and powerful visual storytelling.
Below are just a few Canadian photographers who shaped the world of photography.
Margaret Watkins
Margaret Watkins (1884–1969) was a Canadian-born modernist photographer whose innovative still lifes and advertising work helped redefine early twentieth-century photography. Her carefully composed images of everyday domestic objects—dishes, sinks, glassware—merged formal abstraction with ordinary life, bridging Pictorialism and modernism.
Suzy Lake
Suzy Lake (born 1947, Detroit) is an American-Canadian photographer and performance artist recognized as a pioneer of feminist and conceptual art in Canada. Active since the late 1960s, she uses her own body to examine identity, gender, and social power structures, influencing later generations of artists.
Rita Leistner
Rita Leistner (born 1964, Scarborough, Canada) is a Canadian photographer, writer, and filmmaker recognized for her socially and politically engaged documentary work. Known for immersive projects in war zones and remote communities, she bridges photojournalism, art, and theory to explore resilience and belonging in extreme conditions.
Angela Grauerholz
Angela Grauerholz (born 1952) is a German-born Canadian photographer, installation artist, and graphic designer whose work examines memory, time, and the archival nature of images. Based in Montreal since 1976, she is celebrated for poetic photographs and conceptual installations that blur the line between documentation and recollection.
Joan Sullivan
Joan Sullivan (born 1946) is a Canadian photographer and visual storyteller whose work focuses on the human and environmental dimensions of renewable energy. Her images document Canada’s transition from fossil fuels to sustainable energy systems, capturing the beauty and scale of wind and solar infrastructure in development.
Michelle Valberg
Michelle Valberg, C.M., is an award-winning Canadian wildlife and nature photographer celebrated for her evocative images of the Arctic and other wild places. A Nikon Ambassador and Canadian Geographic’s first Photographer-in-Residence, she was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2022 for her artistry and philanthropy.
Jill Heinerth
Jill Heinerth is a Canadian underwater explorer, photographer, filmmaker, author, and climate advocate renowned for her pioneering cave and polar dives. She was the first person to dive inside iceberg caves and is widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost technical and rebreather divers.
Cristina Mittermeier
Cristina Goettsch Mittermeier (born 1966) is a Mexican-Canadian conservation photographer, marine biologist, and environmental advocate. Renowned for pioneering “conservation photography,” she uses powerful visual storytelling to connect people with the natural world and inspire action to protect oceans and biodiversity.
Daisy Gilardini
Daisy Gilardini is a Swiss-born Canadian wildlife and conservation photographer renowned for her images of the Polar Regions. Based in Vancouver, she is celebrated for documenting Antarctic wildlife and North American bears, combining artistic expression with a mission to raise awareness about climate change and environmental conservation.
Laura Letinsky
Laura Letinsky (born 1962, Winnipeg, Canada) is a contemporary Canadian photographer and visual artist renowned for her innovative still-life compositions. Her work reimagines the genre by exploring themes of intimacy, consumption, and the passage of time through the detritus of daily life. She has profoundly influenced conceptual photography and visual culture.
Patricia Lake
Patricia Lake is a Canadian wildlife photographer known for her striking depictions of animals in their natural habitats and for promoting conservation through visual storytelling. Her work highlights the beauty and fragility of North America’s ecosystems, particularly those in Canada’s national parks and wilderness regions.
Petra Collins
Petra Collins (born December 21, 1992) is a Canadian photographer, filmmaker, and visual artist known for her dreamy, intimate depictions of youth and femininity. Rising from Toronto’s online art scene, she became a leading voice of digital-age feminism and one of the most recognizable aesthetic innovators of her generation.