Photographers of every skill level are heading back to downtown Honolulu next week as PhotoCON Hawaiʻi opens its seventh year at Capitol Modern, running Thursday, September 24, through Sunday, September 27. The four-day gathering brings together photographers, artists and industry experts for hands-on workshops, photo walks and an exhibition floor built for Hawaiʻi's creative community.
Ric Noyle organized the first three-day photography convention in 2016 after he attended a photography event in California and recognized that Hawaiʻi lacked accessible visual arts education; PhotoCON Hawaiʻi launched in 2017, according to the Noyle Foundation. That first Honolulu convention charged $15 admission and hosted more than 500 Department of Education students and teachers for free, a commitment to student access that has remained a structural pillar of the event ever since. As reported by KHON2, Noyle now serves as the convention's producer and represents the Noyle Foundation, saying that sharing creative knowledge is his mission and that PhotoCON creates a place for Hawaiʻi's creative community to learn, connect and grow.
Free Entry Still Anchors the Event
Four-day general admission for 2026 runs $150, or $50 for military members, while the event continues to emphasize student and educator access, per the same account from the Noyle Foundation. This year's program includes roughly 65 workshop sessions, 10 specialized photo walks and more than 50 expert speakers, about 30 of whom hail from Hawaiʻi, KHON2 reports. Every classroom workshop and photo walk is capped at 35 participants to keep the sessions intimate and hands-on, according to PhotoCON Hawaiʻi, with popular sessions shifting to waitlists once they fill.
The keynote lineup spreads across three of the four days: underwater photographer Wayne Levin speaks Thursday, September 24, Nikon Ambassador D'Ann Boal takes the stage Friday, September 25, and Canon Co-Lab Ambassador Ben Hagarty closes out the keynotes Saturday, September 26, according to PhotoCON Hawaiʻi's speaker listings. The convention's exhibition floor gives camera makers and the wider creative community a place to connect directly with attendees, KHON2 notes.
Keck Observatory Brings Maunakea to the Convention Floor
New this year, W. M. Keck Observatory joins as an exhibitor with a joint presentation from project engineer Eduardo Marin and University of Hawaiʻi Institute for Astronomy professor Mike Liu covering celestial imaging and adaptive optics technology, according to W. M. Keck Observatory. Keck operates twin 10-meter optical and infrared telescopes atop Maunakea, giving attendees a rare look at how astronomical imaging techniques intersect with the kind of photography taught elsewhere at the convention.
The Historic Hawaiʻi Foundation has also signed on as an official contributing partner for 2026, promoting visual storytelling as a tool for preserving the state's architectural and cultural heritage, according to PhotoCON Hawaiʻi. The partnership folds place-based historical preservation themes into several conference workshops, tying the convention's photography instruction to the broader effort of documenting Hawaiʻi's built environment.
A Historic Venue With Its Own Art Law Legacy
Capitol Modern, located at 250 South Hotel Street in downtown Honolulu, rebranded from its former name, the Hawaiʻi State Art Museum, in September 2023 to modernize its identity within the historic Capitol District, according to Civil Beat. The rebranding campaign was developed by design agency Wall-to-Wall Studios. The No. 1 Capitol District Building that houses the museum was constructed in 1928 in Spanish Colonial Revival style and sits on a downtown site once occupied by King Kamehameha V's Royal Hawaiian Hotel, built in 1872, per the Hawaiʻi Aloha Travel Guide.
Hawaiʻi became the first state in the nation to pass a Percent for Art law in 1967, requiring 1% of state building construction funds to be set aside for acquiring public artwork, much of which is stored and exhibited at Capitol Modern, according to Capitol Modern. That statutory program is managed by the Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, giving the convention's host venue a legal and artistic legacy that predates the photography gathering by decades.
PhotoCON Hawaiʻi operates as an educational program under the Noyle Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, with a single-member entity, PhotoCON Hawaiʻi LLC, included in consolidated nonprofit reporting. The LLC does not distribute profits and advances the Foundation's charitable and educational goals, according to PhotoCON Hawaiʻi. More details on registration, the full workshop schedule and speaker lineup are available at photoconhawaii.com.
