In Focus: April 2024
Mary Swartz - “Fine Dining”
Merit Award Winner PSA Interclub Competition - Round 2, Color
This e-newsletter contains OPCC events, reminders, and news and will be published on the first Sunday of each month. Please send contributions to the newsletter to opcc4news@gmail.com. Contributions are due at noon on the Friday before publication, but if time permits, we will attempt to accommodate late contributions.
NEWS
General Membership Meeting - April 16, 2024 7:00 PM
BIG CHANGES ARE COMING
Come voice your opinion on the future direction of the club
Mark you calendar: Tuesday, April 16, 2024 7:00 PM via Zoom.
We will be holding a general membership meeting to discuss the future of the club. Since we are unable to fill critical positions on the Executive Committee, we are forced to consider options and next steps. If you are interested in having your voice heard, please join the meeting. It is crucial that we get as many members as possible attending.
PSA Interclub Round 2 Results
From Witta Priester:
Our Club had a very successful Round two showing in the PSA Inter-club Competition. As you may recall, we entered three Divisions this year: Color, Monochrome, and Nature. Each Division is divided into 3 to 6 Groups, where up to 30+ PSA member Clubs compete against each other.
This annual competition comprises 3 Rounds. After the second round, here’s where we stand in each Division:
Fifth out of 20 Clubs in Color, Group E
Fourth out of 30 Clubs in Nature, Group C
18/32 Clubs in Monochrome, Group D
These successes are of course due to the many wonderful images that OPCC members entered for consideration. Thank you to all the Club members who entered, and special congratulations to the following award winners:
Bruce Fryxell, Nature Division, “Open Wide” - 15 pts, Merit Award
Suzanne Anaya, Nature Division, “Hyenas with Topi Kill” - 15 pts, Merit Award
Peg Hanson, Nature Division, “First Born’s Feeding Time” - 12 pts, Honorable Mention
Mary Swartz, Color Division, “Fine Dining” - 12 pts, Merit Award
Bruce Fryxell, Color Division ,”Komoa Village Woman” - 13 pts, Honorable Mention
Suzanne Anaya, Monochrome Division, “Winter Olympics” - 12 pts, Merit Award
Photos and Poems
From Kevin Talbot:
Last fall, we had an exhibition at Studio Bob and collaborated with a writer's group that wrote and read ekphrastic poems inspired by our photos. Heidi Hansen, the writer's group leader, contacted us to see if we'd like to collaborate again, as they enjoyed it so much. This time, their goal is to publish a book with the poems and photos. We would do this "virtually" by having members post to an online gallery for the poets to review and choose. Please contact Kevin at kevin.talbot@gmail.com if you are interested in participating, and we will arrange it if there is sufficient interest. The photos and poems from our previous collaboration can be reviewed by clicking HERE.
Clallam County Fair Photo Competition
Believe it or not, it is time to start thinking about this year’s Clallam County Fair. The rules for the Photo Competition have changed considerably from last year. This year’s rules can be found by clicking HERE. They will also be posted to our website. Pictures can be dropped off at the fairground on August 11-12. As was the case last year, we will need volunteers to operate the photo barn, and a sign up sheet will be posted to the website later in the year.
Photo Exhibit
From Kevin Talbot:
A photo exhibit entitled “A Different Lens”, featuring some friends of our club, is being held through May 18 at the Field Hall Gallery in Port Angeles. Featured artists include Alex Bodi Hallett, Amy McIntyre, Keith Ross, Ernst-Ulrich Schäfer, and Charlotte Watts. More information can be obtained by clicking HERE.
Florida Field Trip Slide Show
By popular demand, we will be having a special meeting most likely sometime in May, where everyone participating in the Florida bird photography field trip can show their best images to the entire club. The exact date and time have yet to be determined. Stay tuned for more information.
SPEAKER SERIES
Sean Bagshaw - Editing Tips and Tricks - April 18, 2024, 7:00 PM
Our April 18th speaker is Sean Bagshaw. During this presentation Sean will share some of the most useful developing techniques that he picked up over nearly two decades of photography and creative digital image editing. Includes many techniques that he hopes will make our photography better, more creative, higher quality and more fun.
Sean Bagshaw is a landscape and travel photographer, photography educator and experience enthusiast based in Ashland, Oregon. Sean's full-time photography career started in 2004, and before that, he was a middle school science teacher. He began taking photos in college to record and share his rock climbing and mountaineering adventures. Now he spends a lot of his time following light and exploring the landscape. Photography has provided Sean with some wonderful opportunities. At the top of the list are being a member of the photography team, Photo Cascadia, and working with Tony Kuyper, the luminosity mask pioneer. Sean's previous career as a science teacher makes photography education a good fit, so when he's not creating, Sean enjoys teaching and sharing what he knows about photography and image developing with others
Member Sharing / External Evaluation Nights
Our next Member Share Night is on Thursday, May 2. The special theme for this month is Spring Colors. Each member may submit up to 2 images, and submissions are due by Sunday, April 28. Members are encouraged to submit both out-of-camera and post-processed versions of each image. In addition, members can bring up to two prints, mounted in a way that they can be displayed on an easel. Click HERE for complete details on submitting photos.
Field Trips and Workshops
Due to a lack of time, Kevin Talbot has resigned as our acting Field Trip Chair. We would like to thank him for stepping up to take on this role after the last chair stepped down as well as all the other work he has put in on behalf of the club. He has been serving multiple roles for quite some time.
We need to find someone to coordinate our field trips for the remainder of the year. This person will not be required to lead the field trips - just to organize the logistics. If we can not find a volunteer to replace Kevin, the future of the club’s field trips for the remainder of the year is uncertain. However, Kevin may still be willing to plan a Salt Creek field trip probably for June and possibly an astrophotography field trip in July or August.
Port Angeles Underground Tour
From Kevin Talbot:
Kevin has been looking into a field trip on the Port Angeles Underground Tour. Here are some details if someone wants to volunteer to arrange it:
• Contact: Carmen at 360-452-2364
• Cost: $20 per person, $15 for seniors (60+)
• Regular tour times are Fridays and Saturdays at 1PM during "winter hours."
• They can accommodate ~10 people per tour, a minimum of 3 for regular tour times
• They can arrange a custom group tour time for us between 10 am and 2 PM any day except Sundays or Mondays with 5 people minimum
• The tour is 2 to 2-1/2 hours, with a 1/2-hour intro presentation before the actual tour.
• The underground portion covers a 2-3 block area of old downtown PA.
• Tours start at the Port Angeles Visitor's Center located at 121 E. Railroad Avenue in downtown Port Angeles (at "The Wharf").
• Photos and flashes are OK, but no video is allowed on the tour
• More information is available HERE.
Oregon Gypsy Vanner Horse Photo Tour
From Donna Dobbs, A Stroke of Light Photography:
This tour is operated by A Stroke of Light Photography from Michigan and is open to all NWCCC Camera Club members.
We will be in the Portland Oregon area June 12th and 13th with a great opportunity for a photographer of any skill level. Sharing with all of you in the event someone in your area may be interested in participating in a very unique opportunity. We would be grateful if you would be willing to pass this on to photographers and friends.
This opportunity to photograph Gypsy Vanner horses in Oregon just came up, and I am super excited. We will even have Fresians joining us for the beach photo shoot. Photographing horses has been a passion of mine personally for over 15 years, in particular loving horses with very long manes and spirit. When I first had the opportunity to photograph a Gypsy Vanner horse, it was love at first sight, and I am totally excited to have another opportunity in a gorgeous area - and not only on a farm, but also on the beach – can’t wait!
It would be a blessing if you could join us and/or forward to your other friends that might be interested. Of course, joining us and bringing a friend would be even better <smiling>.
More information can be obtained by clicking HERE.
NWCCC News
2024 NWCCC Traveling Image Salon
From Stephen Shoff:
Voting is open now for April. This month OPCC is voting on images from Mount Baker Camera Club. To view and vote for the images, click HERE and follow the appropriate links. Each month's voting must be completed by the 25th of the month. For “judging” and voting instructions, please review the first several paragraphs of the “Overview of the NWCCC Traveling Salon” on the web page. Please remember to vote.
NWCCC Executive Committee Meeting
From Stephen Shoff:
NWCCC holds Executive Committee meetings every other month by Zoom. The most recent was on Saturday, March 9. Just like OPCC, NWCCC is struggling to find members to fill leadership positions. Last year's call for nominations for the 2024 year went largely unanswered. As a result, Vice President David Johnson (BPC) has been appointed Acting President. There still remain unfilled positions for Secretary and at least one Director position, as well as President for next year. OPCC member Rebecca Hanson has been serving as a Director, but I imagine her term will be up sometime in the next year or so.
The Conference Chair position remains unfillled. The Mount Baker Camera Club has stepped up to investigate holding the yearly conference in Bellingham. This year's conference will be scaled down to the Saturday on-site speaker and Digital and Print Image Salons.
Other positions (Print and Digital Director) are currently filled by individuals that have been serving for several years now. They are getting ready to step down.
In contrast, NWCCC's services, like the Traveling Image, Print, and Digital Salons have continued to enjoy strong and growing participation by the club memberships. OPCC has been a strong and successful participant in these competitions.
NWCCC has been largely invisible to us in recent years. Activities were curtailed by the Covid crisis. Did you know that NWCCC has a Meet-up Group? It has been inactive for the last couple of years, but discussions in this last Executive Council meeting centered around trying to reactivate the networking and educational opportunities that NWCCC would like to provide.
As we engage in an exercise to re-architect OPCC for the future, let's also consider how we can step up and assist NWCCC in developing new initiatives for strengthening the regional photographic community.