I’m Don Franco, a member of the photo club.  Most of my photo work is as a volunteer, but occasionally I get hired for fun jobs.  On Sunday, October 11th from 11:30 – 3:00 I was asked to photograph a birthday party for a 7 year old.  I attended one of this family’s prior events.  They’re very nice people and just want someone who’s pretty good with a camera to take photos so they can preserve the memories and enjoy the party.  Unfortunately, I can’t make this event.  The Mom is scheduled to deliver twins next week so I HATED to tell her I couldn’t make it.  Would someone in the photo club like to help?  My typical charge for something like this is about $100.  It would involve taking photos of the decorations and kids & adults having fun at a birthday party (i.e. low pressure photography).  It will be held at Dave & Buster’s in the Irvine Spectrum.  Would you like to bail me out?  If so, respond to this post or to my regular e-mail (don4nfl@cox.net) or my cell phone (949) 683-1819.  THANK YOU!

Accomplished Nature Photographer, Ralph Nordstrom, is the featured speaker at our October 7, 2015 Meeting.  Take a look at his website http://ralphnordstromphotography.com.

His works are for sale as prints and he offers a number of workshops in Western US National Parks each year.

Ralph’s Bio –

Jim Newberry will speak to us on “Street Photography” at our November 4th Meeting at the Alliso Viejo Library at 6:00 PM.

Jim is an award-winning, internationally published photographer from Chicago, now based in Los Angeles. His photographs have appeared on many album covers, in numerous books, and in magazines, including: Esquire, The Guardian, Interview, LA Times, London Times, Mojo, New York Times, Rolling Stone, Spin and Village Voice. Jim’s fine art street photography has been exhibited in Chicago and Los Angeles.

Jim’s Bio:

My interest in photography began as a young child, when my father–James Newberry, who founded the photography department at Chicago’s Columbia College–taught me how to use a camera and darkroom. That childhood hobby became a lifelong career, when, after graduating from college, I began shooting portraits for magazines, record labels, and other commercial clients. After years of living and working in a very great city with very punishing winters, I’ve relocated to Los Angeles, where I’m loving the mountains and ocean, and still trying to get used to seeing umbrellas used to block the sun, not the rain.

Assignments I’m available for include, but not limited to: editorial, advertising, corporate, and unit still photography.

See more of Jim’s work at http://www.jimnewberry.com/

See his educational offerings at http://www.piccoach.com/

The meeting is open to the public and free.  We would love to have you.

Congratulations to Sue Shepard – Our October Featured Photographer.

See her cool Alphabet photos at her website www.ABCbySue.com

Read her story below:

When asked what I like to shoot, I say that I am an Alphabet Photographer.  I take pictures of things in the environment that resemble letters of the alphabet.  For me, anytime I go somewhere new, it’s like a treasure hunt because I am always looking for a new letter to add to my collection.  I have over 500 photographs of letters of the alphabet and am always looking for new ones. To better understand the concept, you can see my gallery of photos at  www.ABCbySue.com 

What I love about Alphabet Photography is that it gets me outdoors and looking at the world with a new perspective.  I began doing it about six years ago.  I saw the concept in a boutique in San Clemente and I thought it would be fun to see if I could photograph my own A-Z.  Soon I was hooked and started seeing letters everywhere I went and I could not leave my house without my camera.  Prior to this, I probably only pulled out my camera once or twice a year to take a snap shot of my nieces and nephews at a holiday function.

I started by making a 40^th birthday gift for a friend and framed some of my photos to spell out their last name.  At the party, people wanted to order gifts for their friends and I was asked by an employee of the Orange County School of Arts to sell my photos at their upcoming Holiday Boutique.  Immediately I was in business and I had only showed up to show off my new hobby.

At my first event, it was humbling to see real photography students and their instructors buying my photos.  I was embarrassed when one of them asked me what aperture I was shooting in and I had to admit that I didn’t even know what that word meant.  They were shocked to discover that I had taken my photographs with a pocket sized point and shoot camera.  I used the money I made from that event to buy my first Canon Rebel.

At the end of August 2011, I discovered Greeting Card Universe (GCU), an online site that prints personalized store quality greeting cards on demand.  I decided to see if I could use my letters to create greeting cards.  I sold my first card two weeks after my store went live and I was hooked.  One of the things I like best about GCU is that it’s all about the creativity and they take care of all the work.  I am thrilled that I can create as many cards as I want because I don’t have to keep any inventory, haul boxes of cards to a boutique, or pay for printing or postage fees.  I now make more money selling my greeting cards online than I do selling my photography at Holiday Boutiques.  As of today, I have sold over 36,000 cards online at www.GreetingCardUniverse.com/ABCbySue

I joined SCPC at the end of 2012 with the hopes of learning to take pictures of things other than the alphabet.  I haven’t been successful so far.  When I go on outings, I still find myself looking for letters in random places.  I think when I retire, I will finally have the time to take photography classes and learn how to take “real” pictures.  But until then, I will continue to enjoy going to new places and discovering new letters.

— Sue Shepard

Congratulations to Valerie Shepard, our November 2014 Featured Photographer.

Here is her story:

It is such an incredible honor to be included as a Featured Photographer.

I joined SCPC back in late 2011 after hearing Rick give a presentation at the OC Fair, and I was

hooked! I had just joined the Digital Camera world after having film cameras, I think I received

my first camera, (an instamatic?) after opening a savings account at Glendale Federal S&L, I

believe I was 7 or 8. My first SLR was a Canon, but it was stolen, so I received a Fujica as a gift.

But I always wanted a Nikon and bought a film SLR about 15 years ago and now have two

DSLR’s so I am a happy photographer!

My interest in photography began at an early age. My Mother loved photography, and wrote a

column for papers in the San Gabriel Valley. And of course we were often the subject of the

column, including having our photos in the paper. My brother Karl, and sister Monica, now

both members of the Club, also share this passion.

This is such a warm, friendly and helpful group of photographers. I have really enjoyed going

on outings with the group but haven’t attended many, due to a day job…. The plan is to go on

more outings going forward.

I took all of Laura Hoffman’s classes, some a couple of times, and have found the classes really

improved my skills and brought out interests in subjects I would never have imagined. Also

seeing classmate’s perspectives on the same subject matters opened my eyes to try different

shots.

My subject matters are often family, and just by sheer numbers fur family (dang iPhones),

different types of animals (would love to go on a Safari photo shoot), architecture, the moon,

and quirky things that I see.

I have found that I am drawn to B&W, especially dramatic contrasts, and plan to expand my

shoots to increase my learning curve, but I have quite a ways to go still.

So here are my photos!  (Click Images to Enlarge):

Bob Bone’s Biography

Bob was born and raised in southern California.  He graduated from California State University, Long Beach, with a BS degree in electronics.  He was employed in the microelectronics industry for 37 years, retiring in 2005.

He started taking pictures as a boy in the late 50’s, after winning a camera for selling magazine subscriptions for a middle school fundraiser.  He purchased his first SLR camera in 1972, and shot film until late 2006, at which point he acquired his first digital SLR camera.  He enjoys taking photos of his family, landscapes, flowers, and wildlife.  Bob’s other hobbies include wood working, cooking, and traveling.

Bob has been married to his wife, Jill, for 36 years and has lived in south Orange County for 40 years. They have two children, and are about to become grandparents for the first time!

Many South County Photo Club members know Laura and have taken her classes. Laura has also been a frequent speaker at our meetings.  Some have asked when she would start offering classes again.

You can see her work on her website Laura Hoffman Illustration and Design

Kent Kobersteen is a former newspaper photographer, editor and Director of Photography at National Geographic magazine.  He currently conducts photographic workshops and lectures internationally on the philosophy, ethics and business of photojournalism.

Kobersteen was Director of Photography and Senior Editor at National Geographic magazine from February 1998 until January 2005.  He joined the National Geographic in 1983 as a picture editor.

As Director of Photography at National Geographic his responsibilities involved building the magazine’s cadre of staff and freelance photographers, assigning photography for the magazine, supervising the photographers administratively, as well as participating in the editorial management of the photographic coverages for the Magazine.

Before joining the National Geographic, Kobersteen spent eighteen years at the Minneapolis (Minnesota) Tribune — sixteen years as a staff photographer and two years as editor of the Tribune’s Sunday magazine.

As a photographer for the Minneapolis Tribune, Kobersteen’s assignments took him throughout the United States and Canada, and to over 25 foreign countries, primarily in the Middle East and Africa.  Although his duties at the National Geographic were administrative, they took him throughout Europe and Africa, and to the Arctic, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

While at the Minneapolis Tribune, Kobersteen won numerous awards for his photography.  A series on the drought in Africa’s Sahel, another on Cuba under Castro, a third on the major oil producing nations, and a fourth series on global poverty each received recognition from groups such as the Overseas Press Club and the National Press Photographers Association.  During his tenure at the National Geographic, the magazine won the prestigious National Magazine Award for photography five times, and was a finalist an additional eight years.

Kobersteen attended the University of Minnesota.

Kobersteen’s stock photographs are available from National Geographic Creative (http://www.natgeocreative.com).

2016 Monthly Challenge SmugMug Upload Links

WET – January 2016 Challenge Upload Link

Holiday Party Pictures

Click Here to See

Santa Day at the Library

(AKA – Never let a great Santa go to waste!)

Click Here to see Pics

Congratulations to Brooke Vogelgesang our February 2016 Featured Photographer!

Please read about her photographic journey and check out a collection of her photos here:

I feel very honored that my work was selected to be featured at our meeting. There are so many good photographers in this club. It is truly a compliment.

I began my photographic adventure in my garden. I have a very unique garden in that it houses about 400 roses of all varieties. When the roses bloomed I found it hard to cut the roses, keeping them on the bush as long as I could  in order to enjoy them longer, so I decided to photograph the blooms so they would stay beautiful forever.

Well, one thing led to another – as it seems in life – I liked my rose photos so much that I started entering them in local rose society photographic contests. Long story short, I had early successes  in that I won the Best of Show at the Los Angeles Rose Society Annual Convention in 2011.  After that, I won quite a few more local rose contests.

I was encouraged early on to photograph my roses by winning the contests and then also selling the photographs. Today, I have a few select clients who have my pictures hanging in their office and reception rooms.

It was an easy transition from photographing my rose garden to other types of photography – macros, landscapes, and astrophotography.

It was an unconscious takeover from the rose garden to photography! I do still love my rose garden but photography has taken over my life.  We now travel to different places just for me to photograph exciting and beautiful places. Our interest in traveling had waned over the years, but now it has taken on a new fervor – researching places to visit in order to photograph them. We’ve visited many national parks up and down the West coast. This year it will be Alaska.

My most favorite type of photography is now landscapes. I have been awakened to the beauty of nature never really paying much attention to it before until I became a photographer, and it seems that I am really seeing it for the first time. My photo ambition is to create large prints of landscapes that portray the artistry in nature and to somehow capture that essence of wonder and serenity in nature that can evoke a sense of peace and hence, healing of the mind and spirit.

Photography has changed my lifestyle – hiking into the woods (I never really liked hiking before), hanging out at sunsets at the beach, staying up all night in the cold shooting photos of stars and sky objects, and learning about photography like it was calculus!

I am so thankful for this club and for the people who lead this club who dedicate their time and effort to make it a great club.  My photography has really improved as a result with the bonus of meeting really interesting people!

TOPICS

Simulate Neutral Density Filter in Photoshop

Useful when some of the image is in the sun and the other in shadow usually making a difficult exposure without filters. We usually see this problem if we have a bright sky in the image.

Download images to practice the technique yourself.

(Note:  You have to have a Dropbox account to make the download in the PDF work.)

Click here to see the pdf:  Simulate Neutral density filter in Photoshop

Sample images used in the tutorial (Right Click Image to Download to your computer)

Light Image

Dark Image

Click here to see the blended image-

Theo Allofs is our featured speaker for April,  He is also offering a Nature Photography Masterclass on April 23, 2016 at ProPhoto in Irvine (More Info here).  Theo has been a full time professional photographer for the past 25 years. In 1995 he started to specialize in wildlife and nature photography with a strong focus on endangered animals and threatened habitats. His work has been published in all major natural history and other renowned magazines and newspapers around the world including National Geographic Magazine, Smithsonian, Time Magazine, New York Times, Newsweek, GEO, American Photo. His images have appeared on over one hundred book and magazine covers and he was the sole photographer for dozens of calendars. He is author/photographer of seven books including coffee table books about the Yukon, Namibia, Australia and the Pantanal. “Pantanal – South America’s Wetland Jewel” was voted by Discover Magazine as one of the ten best scientific oriented books of the year. During his career Theo has won numerous international awards, amongst them 11 awards in the prestigious BBC Wildlife Photographer Of The Year competition.

My photographic journey began about 40 years ago when I took an Instamatic camera on a backpacking trip to Slushy Meadows in the San Bernardino National Forest. At that point, I didn’t have much experience of camping and I found the wilderness to be awe-inspiring. So, with my little Instamatic I took my best shot at capturing the beauty of the stream and the surroundings with that simple camera. But when I got my prints back I was disappointed. What those photos showed didn’t come close to reproducing what I’d seen. I knew I needed a better camera but at that time my budget didn’t allow for a fancy camera.

About five years later I was talking photography with a friend and he loaned me his Canon AE-1. I bought a roll of film and walked around the neighborhood taking test shots. I was hooked. By that time I could afford a nice camera so I bought an AE-1. I eventually had a succession of Canons and later Nikons and took them with me on camping trips, sailing trips and other local outings.

I enjoyed landscape photography and wildlife photography although I have to admit that I don’t have the patience to wait for hours for an animal to strike just the right pose in just the right light. But if I can grab a quick wildlife shot I’ll take it.

Recently, I’ve found I have a penchant for architectural photography. Perhaps, that’s because my travels have lately been taking me more to cities than to parks. Fortunately, one of the things I’ve learned is: if you look carefully you can find interesting photos pretty much anywhere.

A couple of years ago I did a photo a day practice where I shot every day for three months. I tried to come up with at least one decent photo every day. Some days I feel like I did pretty well but other days I feel like I struck out. Even though I know that there’s material all around us it’s sometimes hard to get inspired. But another thing I learned is that sometimes you just have to keep pushing yourself. Sometimes getting a good photo just depends on the amount of time and effort you’re willing to invest.

These lessons that photography teaches are one of the things I love about photography. There are so many aspects to photography you could go on learning for a lifetime. Even after you’ve mastered the basics there’s still much to learn about composition and light. And there are different genres to explore and lots of equipment. And every year there are newer, faster & more powerful cameras. And then there’s a whole world of photo processing software!

One of the things I like to dabble in is processing photos beyond the bounds of regular photography. I enjoy the application of creative effects to achieve a painterly look or an abstract feeling. I was at a photography workshop a few years ago when I had a debate with another participant about altering photos in post. He took the perspective of a photojournalist, insisting that any alteration of a photo is somehow wrong. Of course, I understand that journalists shouldn’t change a photo in any way that fails to convey a reasonably objective reality. Still, I’m not a journalist so in my work, I figure the sky is the limit when it comes to altering and combining images. As long as I’m not deceiving anyone why not take advantage of all the tools that are available?

I mentioned earlier that I’ve owned a series of Canon & Nikon cameras. These days, however, I’ve abandoned the two big manufacturers. There’s been a great deal of innovation in mirrorless cameras and Canon & Nikon are way behind in this space. A few years ago I bought a small Fujifilm camera to take with me for casual shooting and I was amazed at the features it had that my much more expensive Nikon D7000 didn’t have. Then, last year, when I got into video I initially tried shooting with my Nikon but the quality was lousy and the user interface for video was rudimentary. The D7000 was a fine still camera but for my video needs I decided to get a Panasonic GH4. Again, I’ve been amazed at the features it packs in for both video and still photography. And the user interface is great; it’s intuitive and easy to use. The touch screen is terrific. I’m looking forward to seeing what photographic wonders next year will bring!

For more info about Dave see his website The Video Performance and his blog The Photo Performance.

This Photo was taken at our Long Exposure Sunset Outing in April 2016 at Laguna Beach

See All from this Outing

This image was taken by Ken Gatlin at our LA Arts District Outing – May 21, 2016

To See all the Photos from the LA Arts District outing click here.

Congratulations to Alice Ong on being chosen as out June 2016 Featured Photographer.  Read about her photographic journey.

I would like to thank the club board for nominating me as the featured photographer this month.  As a new club member, I was surprised to get the invitation from the board, and after a few hours of thinking about, realized that I’m a good example of how the club benefits beginning photographers.

I have a long history of storytelling using photos.  I started putting photos in scrapbooks back in high school.  I continued taking photos, printing doubles at Costco, sending some to family and organizing the rest in photo boxes.  My photos lived a very organized life in those boxes  – until I discovered Creative Memories in 1998.  Suddenly I had an amazing hobby that I continued until 2012. I loved the creativity of combining photos, souvenirs, and storytelling, also referred to as journaling, with beautiful papers and putting them in books, cards, and collages.

Scrapbooking was also the perfect social outlet since I worked and had young kids.  It fed my need for creativity, it was social, and I could preserve family memories all at the same time. I met my friend and fellow club member, Carol Moore, when I noticed her scrapbook keychain at a PTA meeting when our kids were in grade school.  We had a lot of fun scrapbooking together over many years.  I branched out into various paper crafts, stamping, and making photo related gifts.

Notice my story, up to this point, isn’t at all about TAKING PICTURES!  I had a point and shoot and captured moments, but wasn’t “into” the art of photography.  My husband is an amazing photographer, and many of the photos I used were taken by him.  He worked at Toshiba and we got one of the first digital cameras on the market, a Toshiba, around 1998 – well before most people started adopting digital.  We carried around several cameras because we didn’t trust digital.  I didn’t fully make the switch away from film until one day my film camera died and I decided digital was probably going to be around for a while.

My scrapbooking also started moving into the digital world and I got good at using Photoshop elements to combine photos, digital papers, and scanning my souvenirs.  I loved not having to lug out a ton of supplies and put them back when I was finished.  It was simple, less expensive, and I could share via email, print, or creating printed books. But I was still using other people’s photos.  Even my son took better photos than I did by the time he was in 5^th grade!

My neighbor, Marian Nicholas, had joined SCPC and taken a lot of classes, and suggested I join the club.  She knew I loved working with photos, but I had no clue what made a good photo, or the underlying basics of photography.  Fast forward a couple years.  I kept meeting Marian’s club friends, hearing about outings, and seeing the amazing work she was doing.  My husband had the same type of camera Marian did, a Canon Mark III 5 D, and offered to loan me his camera and get me started.  I set aside my point and shoot – this is where my photo journey begins!

We went to Balboa Park in San Diego and in one intense day, he taught me to use the Mark III.  He talked about abstract things like aperture, lighting, and shutter speed, and how to clean and change lenses.  I was in waaaay over my head, but still got some great results because the subject matter, camera, and instructor were all the best of the best.

Around the same time, I ran into Carol and she mentioned she was taking digital photography classes and there was one starting soon.  Carol and I took two classes with Laura Hoffman.  Laura nicknamed the Mark III “BERTHA” and often used it as an example in class, of a high-end camera with amazing quality.  The camera definitely intimidated me, probably because people would ask me technical questions about it and I had no clue what the answers should be!  BUT – I was learning about those abstract photography topics, and getting decent results.

Marian and Carol were going on a lot of outings, and as a recent empty nester, I thought this photography hobby would be a good way to get out and have some fun with a great group of people.  I joined the photo club after my first meeting in February 2015.

I could not have been more right about joining the club!  I discovered the club members are a very diverse group – with a wide range of cameras and skills – and lots of people willing to share their skills and knowledge with beginners.

Over the last year, I have attended almost all the meetings, gone on club outings, gone to workshops, and even co-planned the club Christmas party.

My son sometimes still asks me “mom, what is your subject in that photo” and it reminds me how much more I have to master!  I still struggle to manage aperture, exposure, shutter speed, getting the horizon straight, and creating an interesting photo ALL AT THE SAME TIME.  I don’t have any that I would consider submitting to the OC Fair competition—but I do share them in the club outings and challenges, on Facebook, Instagram, and in emails, and now with you.

When it’s time to print photos to display in our house, I’m no longer using other people’s photos; I’m using photos I took with my new Fuji X-T1 mirror less camera!  I switched to the Fuji late last year, because I wanted something lighter weight.  Steve’s camera will outshoot mine any day, but now I have something I can carry all day, and he can join me on outings and bring along his reliable friend, Bertha.  Even though we are at the same place at the same time, we have a different eye for composition and it’s amazing to see the same event or scene through both our mind’s eyes and camera lenses.

Thank you for having me as the featured photographer tonight!  I hope some of you who are new to the club are encouraged to keep showing up and getting out with the group, and know that those of you who have helped along the way have made a great contribution to the club members!

Click here to see a sampling of Alice Ong’s photography.  

Congratulations to Judy McLennan for being selected our featured photographer for July 2016.

Please read her photographic journey below:

First, thanks to the board for asking me if I’d like to be the Featured Photographer this month. Of course, the answer is ‘Yes’. It’s an honor and thank you so much!

I think of myself as a sort of accidental photographer. As a kid I had a little camera my grandmother bought for me and my dad had a sweet little 35mm SLR that came out at holidays and vacations. When I was in high school I was allowed to use it, but my interest in it was short lived, and it soon went away in favor of other things.

Several years later a friend bought a Canon and a couple of lenses and I was entranced. I loved that camera and bought myself a Canon FTB with a 50 mm lens — I still have it and it works great — but there was something about f-stops and aperture and ISO that felt a lot like math and I just couldn’t seem to grasp it. Also I began to understand that photography had some more frightening numbers and they all had dollar signs in front of them. On top of all that, my camera seemed to attract unwanted attention when I went out with it—apparently a girl with a nice camera was something of a novelty.  So goodbye fancy camera, hello point and shoots.

Fast forward — digital! I bought my first digital point and shoot, and major disappointment ensued. I’m sorry to say it was a Canon and among its not-so-notable features — terrible lag time, horrible image quality, and super-short battery life. I really wanted something better, but at that time better mostly meant no lag time. It also meant not a Canon (I know better now!).

Meanwhile, people were publishing blogs and I was an avid reader. One day I fell down the rabbit hole and ended up at the Pioneer Woman’s blog, back in the days when her blog was all about photography and had nothing to do with FoodTV or anything else. She posted beautiful shots of the ranch, cows, horses, and sunsets — she shot Nikon and I was intrigued. One day she was a guest blogger on Scott Kelby’s blog, which was how I discovered NAPP and behold — more Nikon shooters! I began to think I should try again, my point-and-shoots had disappointed me for the last time, and I bought a little Nikon.

But uh oh, I still didn’t get aperture and no matter how much I read and experimented it remained a mystery. Plus my pictures were just as bad as any I ever took, pre-digital days. I was seriously thinking of selling it and letting it go. Meanwhile, I was working at the same company as Dina Damon and it turned out she too had a DSLR. Not only that, she was as disappointed about her pictures as I was about mine. I’d heard about classes at Silverado High School and we decided to go take Laura’s Digital Camera I class. This is something I might never have done on my own, so thank you Dina Damon!

I swear my intention was to take just one class so I could learn to use my camera. But somehow one class turned into two, two into three, and so on. All of a sudden I needed more lenses, a tripod, bigger memory cards, filters, Lightroom, and that was it. It was like a virus — a very nice virus, and one I’m very thankful I caught. Photography has changed my life in ways I never imagined and for that, I’m very grateful.

Judy

To see Judy’s images click here.