Thursday, November 27, 2014

December Meeting Agenda: Scavenger Hunt, Favorite Images of 2014 and HOLIDAY PARTY

Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
December 2014 Newsletter
December Meeting – Wednesday December 3, 2014, 7:00 PM
Program: Holiday Party – We will celebrate the end of the year with a holiday party. Please bring your spouse or a guest to enjoy our program and meet other club members. Our program will feature the results of our photo scavenger hunt. We will also share a presentation of member’s favorite image of 2014. This will be a great opportunity for our guests to see what our club members have accomplished this year. Light refreshments will be served.
If you have not yet done so, please email your scavenger hunt images and five of your favorite images on 2014 to Rick Vollbrecht (Rvollb@wi.rr.com). Please send these no later than Sunday, November 30th. Everyone is strongly encouraged to send images so we can have a good representation of our club member’s talents.
2015 Club Programs:
We are currently working on programs for 2015. All members are asked to submit ideas of programs they would like to see in 2015. A few members have done so, but we could use a lot more suggestions. This is your opportunity to have programs that will be most beneficial for you. Program suggestions should be emailed to Rick Vollbrecht
Our 2015 programs are listed below.
January 7, 2015 – Judging of the PSA Wisconsin Showcase images. We will judge images from thirteen Wisconsin camera clubs as part of the annual PSA Wisconsin Showcase. We will spend the reminder of the evening critiquing member images.
February 4, 2014 – Judging of Wisconsin Print Circuit.
Field Trips:
Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members. Frank Remfrey has agreed to coordinate field trips for the club.
At this time we have no further trips planned for the year. If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com). Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip. It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club.
Scavenger Hunt:
The photo scavenger has come to an end and it is time to get your images in! We will review the images at the December meeting as noted above. Please rename your images to correspond with the topics, i.e. 01-Waterfront, 02-Repition… As a reminder, here are the topics:
1. On the waterfront
2. Repetition
3. Unique
4. Celebrate
5. Time
6. Reckless
7. LOCAL (day trip) landscape
8. Challenges
9. Framed
10. Next to something
Future Events of Interest:
Third Annual WACCO Exhibit: Now through December 5th. Closing artist reception on Friday December 5th, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM. Located at the Reuss Federal Building, 301 W. Wisconsin Ave, Milwaukee. Photos on display are from members of WACCO member camera clubs.
Larry Chatman Photo Exhibit: Now through December 20th at the Sharon Lynn Wilson Center Ploch Gallery. Chatman encourages us to take another look at abandoned streets, neglected facades and faded signs to recognize their beauty and distinction.
Sarah Marie Becker Photo Exhibit: January 9th – 31st, 2015 at the Sharon Lynn Wilson Center Ploch Gallery. Becker utilizes photography and self-portraiture to investigate the ways in which social media dictates contemporary human behavior.
Adam Jones Photography Seminar: Saturday, March 21st 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM at the Mequon Nature Preserve. Sponsored by WACCO. Jones is a Canon “Explorer of Light”. His talk will cover workflow, RAW capture, macro techniques, wildlife, composition and travel strategies, and other topics.
If you are aware of any events of general interest, please let us know so we can share them with the club.
Photo Contests and Exhibits:
UW-Washington County Photo Contest: Deadline January 4th, 2015. Open to anyone age 15 and older living in Wisconsin. Cash prizes are awarded. For contest details go to: www.washington.uwc.edu/campus/news/releases/uw-wc-photo-contest
If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com
Photo Ops:
As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing. This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members. If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward those to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters. If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included. It is fun to shoot with a group.
Photography Classes:
A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha. Check their web sites for more information.
WCTC: www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha: www.waukesha.uwc.edu
Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements. Check out their web site: www.Artscameras.com . If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht
Websites of Interest:
Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org PSA Wisconsin: www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Tom Wright's Presentations Now Available for Viewing

At the top of the this blog you will find a group of page titles that are links to other areas of the website.  Recently we have added a pair of links that will allow you to view the two presentations prepared by Tom Wright.  Special thanks to Tom for his efforts in preparing these fine presentations.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Internet Resources for Photographers to Highlight Oct. Meeting

Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
October 2014 Newsletter
October Meeting – Wednesday October 1st, 2014, 7:00 PM
Program: Internet Resources for Photographers – Tom Wright will discuss how to find the most helpful photographic resources on the internet and how to get them to feed automatically to your computer. If you have some favorite internet resources, please send them to Tom (thomas657@centurytel.net) so he can include them in his presentation.
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Member Image Sharing:
Members are encouraged to submit several (up to five) images to share with the club for gentle critique. This is a great way to get suggestions for improving your images and developing your photographic skills. In order to give everyone a chance to share their images during the year, we will select several individuals who will be featured at each meeting. Other individuals may also provide images which will be shared as time permits
Since we did not have enough time at last month’s meeting to view member images, we will start with those images this month. In addition, members who participated in our August 19th photo outing in downtown Milwaukee and the September 11th Denis Sullivan photo outings should submit up to five images from those outing. We would like to show the club some of the images we shot on our outings.
Please email your images to Tom Wright at thomas657@centurytel.net by next Tuesday. This will help to streamline the process of viewing member images. We look forward to seeing your images
2014 Club Programs:
Our 2014 programs are listed below.
November 5, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part II – Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to cut mats and frame your photos. There will also be a presentation on creating canvas prints.
December 3, 2014 – Holiday Party! – We will wrap up the year with a gathering including your spouse or guest. We will view the results of our scavenger hunt. A program will show our guests some of our best images from the year. More details will follow as we get closer to the end of the year.
We will soon be working on our program schedule for 2015. If you have suggestions for programs you would like to see presented, have a speaker you could recommend, or have a program you would like to present, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht.
Field Trips:
Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members. Frank Remfrey has agreed to coordinate field trips for the club.
At this time we have no further trips planned for the year. If anyone has an idea for a Fall outing, please let us know. Any good ideas for fall colors?
If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com). Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip. It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club.
PSA - Nature Division Competition:
PSA offers member clubs a variety of opportunities to compete with other PSA member clubs around the country and the world. Our club has decided to participate in the PSA – Nature Division. What this involves is submitting six images, three times a year. Images are submitted in October, January and April. Images from approximately 60 clubs will be judged and results returned to the clubs, with regular club standings being reports so we can see how we compare. Elizabeth Whitcomb has agreed to coordinate this for us.
We will soon be submitting our images for the October judging. Thanks to everyone who submitted images The next Nature images will be due in January. It is not too early to start looking for your best nature images and have them ready when we call for entries.
Wisconsin Print Circuit Competition: This year we are also participating in the Wisconsin Print Circuit. Each member is encouraged to enter one color and/or one black & white image. This is an “open” division, so any subject is eligible and digital manipulation is allowed. Images must be on 8.5 x 11 paper, with the image being between 8 x 10 and 8.5 x 11. Do not mount or mat the pictures. Your name and our club name must be on the back, as well as an arrow to indicate the top. Prints are due to Elizabeth Whitcomb by October 15th. Why not submit your images to Elizabeth at the October meeting? Again, please submit some of your great images!
Scavenger Hunt:
Following on the success of last year’s scavenger hunt, we are announcing the 2014 scavenger hunt topics. Photo scavenger hunts are a fun and challenging way to get your imagination and creative juices flowing! The rules are simple:
1. Capture one image of each topic.
2. Be creative - think of a unique way to express the topic.
3. Images should be taken between now and December 1st. We will review them at our December meeting
4. Have fun.
Thanks to Elizabeth Whitcomb for coming up with the following topics:
1. On the waterfront
2. Repetition
3. Unique
4. Celebrate
5. Time
6. Reckless
7. LOCAL (day trip) landscape
8. Challenges
9. Framed
10. Next to something
Start shooting and be creative! We will be viewing images at the December meeting.
Future Events of Interest:
If you are aware of any events of general interest, please let us know so we can share them with the club.
Photo Contests and Exhibits:
Old World Wisconsin Photo Contest – Deadline October 17th, 2014
This contest is for photos taken on the grounds of Old World Wisconsin between August 31, 2013 and October 12, 2014. Categories include Pioneer Life, People, Agriculture, Nature and Historic Structures. For more information go to: www.friendsoww.org/photo_contest.
Friends of Retzer Photo Contest – Deadline October 29th, 2014
Images for this contest must be taken on the Retzer Nature center property. Please go to www.FriendsofRetzer.org for contest details and entry information. This is a good competition for members to enter and help support the Friends of Retzer. There is a reception on November 2, 1:00 – 3:30 where all entries will be on display and winners will be announced.
If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com
Photo Ops:
As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing. This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members. If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward those to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters. If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included. It is fun to shoot with a group.
Saturday, November 8th – Xtreme Raptor Day. Sponsored by Schlitz Audubon Nature Center. This is a day of activities and learning experiences with raptors. While not an actual photo shoot, there may be some interesting photo opportunities.
Photography Classes:
A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha. Check their web sites for more information.
WCTC: www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha: www.waukesha.uwc.edu
Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements. Check out their web site: www.Artscameras.com . If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht
Websites of Interest:
Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org PSA Wisconsin: www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

September Meeting to Feature Gerry Emmerich

Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
September 2014 Newsletter
September Meeting – Wednesday September 3, 2014, 7:00 PM
Program: Composition – What makes a good image? What can I do to improve my images? Gerry Emmerich, a well know Wisconsin photographer, will discuss the elements of composition that can help to create those wonderful images.
Member Image Sharing:
Members are encouraged to submit several (up to five) images to share with the club for gentle critique. This is a great way to get suggestions for improving your images and developing your photographic skills. In order to give everyone a chance to share their images during the year, we will select several individuals who will be featured at each meeting. Other individuals may also provide images which will be shared as time permits
The following members will be featured this month: John Marrari, Terry Molter, Wendy Muller, Rick Petersohn
In addition, members who participated in our August 9th photo outing at Frame Park should submit five images from the outing. We would like to show the club some of the images we shot that day.
Please email your images to Tom Wright at thomas657@centurytel.net by next Tuesday. This will help to streamline the process of viewing member images. We look forward to seeing your images
2014 Club Programs:
Our 2014 programs are listed below.
October 1, 2014 – Internet Resources for Photographers – Tom Wright will discuss how to find the most helpful photographic resources on the internet and how to get them to feed automatically to your computer.
November 5, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part II – Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to cut mats and frame your photos. There will also be a presentation on creating canvas prints.
December 3, 2014 – Holiday Party! – We will wrap up the year with a gathering including your spouse or guest. We will view the results of our scavenger hunt. A program will show our guests some of our best images from the year. More details will follow as we get closer to the end of the year.
Field Trips:
Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members. Frank Remfrey has agreed to coordinate field trips for the club.
At this time we have no further trips planned for the year. If anyone has an idea for a Fall outing, please let us know. Any good ideas for fall colors?
If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com). Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip. It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club.
PSA - Nature Division Competition:
PSA offers member clubs a variety of opportunities to compete with other PSA member clubs around the country and the world. Our club has decided to participate in the PSA – Nature Division. What this involves is submitting six images, three times a year. Images are submitted in October, January and April. Images from approximately 60 clubs will be judged and results returned to the clubs, with regular club standings being reports so we can see how we compare. Elizabeth Whitcomb has agreed to coordinate this for us. We would like to have a small group (3-4) of members who will review the images and select our submissions. Please consider helping the club in this endeavor. You will only need to meet three times a year for a brief time. Let Elizabeth or me know if you can help. Also, start looking at your Nature images and select one to submit for the October entry. This is a big step for our club to begin competing at a new level. We have a great group of photographers so this should be fun for everyone.
PSA Nature images are due to Elizabeth ( lizannwhit@gmail.com )by September 15th. Images must be sized to no larger than 1024(H) x 768(V) in JPEG format. Since this is a Nature competition, images must conform to the PSA nature definition.
Wisconsin Print Circuit Competition: This year we are also participating in the Wisconsin Print Circuit. Each member is encouraged to enter one color and/or one black & white image. This is an “open” division, so any subject is eligible and digital manipulation is allowed. Images must be on 8.5 x 11 paper, with the image being between 8 x 10 and 8.5 x 11. Do not mount or mat the pictures. Your name and our club name must be on the back, as well as an arrow to indicate the top. Prints are due to Elizabeth Whitcomb by September 13th. Again, please submit some of your great images!
Scavenger Hunt:
Following on the success of last year’s scavenger hunt, we are announcing the 2014 scavenger hunt topics. Photo scavenger hunts are a fun and challenging way to get your imagination and creative juices flowing! The rules are simple:
1. Capture one image of each topic.
2. Be creative - think of a unique way to express the topic.
3. Images should be taken between now and December 1st. We will review them at our December meeting
4. Have fun.
Thanks to Elizabeth Whitcomb for coming up with the following topics:
1. On the waterfront
2. Repetition
3. Unique
4. Celebrate
5. Time
6. Reckless
7. LOCAL (day trip) landscape
8. Challenges
9. Framed
10. Next to something
Start shooting and be creative! We will be viewing images at the December meeting.
Future Events of Interest:
September 27th – October 3rd, 2014 – PSA 76th Annual Conference of Photography
The annual conference in Albuquerque NM provides a full schedule of programs, photo tours and workshops. It is also the week before the annual Albuquerque Balloon Festival, so why not extend your trip! For more details, go to the PSA web site: www.PSA-photo.org
Photo Contests and Exhibits:
Old World Wisconsin Photo Contest – Deadline October 17th, 2014
This contest is for photos taken on the grounds of Old World Wisconsin between August 31, 2013 and October 12, 2014. Categories include Pioneer Life, People, Agriculture, Nature and Historic Structures. For more information go to: www.friendsoww.org/photo_contest.
Friends of Retzer Photo Contest – Deadline October 29th, 2014
Images for this contest must be taken on the Retzer Nature center property. Please go to www.FriendsofRetzer.org for contest details and entry information. This is a good competition for members to enter and help support the Friends of Retzer. There is a reception on November 2, 1:00 – 3:30 where all entries will be on display and winners will be announced.
If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com
Photo Ops:
As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing. This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members. If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward those to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters. If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included. It is fun to shoot with a group.
September 20-21, 2014 – Doors Open Milwaukee
A good opportunity to get behind the scenes at many of Milwaukee’s iconic locations. Go to www.doorsopoenmilwaukee.org for additional information.
Photography Classes:
A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha. Check their web sites for more information.
WCTC: www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha: www.waukesha.uwc.edu
Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements. Check out their web site: www.Artscameras.com . If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht
Websites of Interest:
Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org PSA Wisconsin: www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/

Friday, August 8, 2014

See You at the Frame Park Formal Gardens

The Retzer Camera Club will meet for a photo shoot/field trip at the Frame Park Formal Gardens, located off of Whiterock Ave. along the Fox River, on Saturday, August 9th beginning at 9 AM.  Parking is available near the gardens or behind Whiterock School.  Be sure to bring a tripod and be prepared to enjoy some spectacular displays of roses and many other plants.

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Topics are Hot for August Meeting

Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
August 2014 Newsletter
August Meeting – Wednesday August 6, 2014, 7:00 PM
Program: PSA Wisconsin Club Showcase Image – Each year PSA member clubs from Wisconsin participate in this friendly competition for bragging rights. Our club has consistently finished in the top five (of thirteen clubs). Last year we finished 2nd – see additional information below. At our August meeting we will select seven images from club members to compete in this year’s competition. Every member should submit one image to be considered for selection. Images may be of any subject - it is not limited to nature. Please email your image to Rick Vollbrecht at RVollb@wi.rr.com no later than August 5th. Pick your best image – we are shooting for first place this year. We will review the images at the meeting and select the best seven to represent our club. After the images are selected we will spend the remainder of the meeting critiquing member images, using the competition photos as a starting point.
Member Image Sharing:
Members are encouraged to submit several (up to five) images to share with the club for gentle critique. This is a great way to get suggestions for improving your images and developing your photographic skills. We would like to encourage members to submit images for sharing in advance by email to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com. This will help to streamline the process of viewing member images. We look forward to seeing your images. In order to give everyone a chance to share their images during the year, we will select several individuals who will be featured at each meeting. Other individuals may also provide images which will be shared as time permits
The following members will be featured this month:
Richard Knisbeck, John Lammers, Michelle Lee, Kathy Lilligren, Peter Lilligren
In addition, members who participated in our July 22nd Wildflower Outing at Retzer should submit five images from the outing. We would like to show the club some of the images we shot that day.
2014 Club Programs:
Our 2014 programs are listed below.
September 3, 2014 – Composition – What makes a great image? What can I do to improve my images? Gerry Emmerich, a well know Wisconsin photographer, will discuss the elements of composition that can help create those wonderful images.
October 1, 2014 – Internet Resources for Photographers – Tom Wright will discuss how to find the most helpful photographic resources on the internet and how to get them to feed automatically to your computer.
November 5, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part II – Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to cut mats and frame your photos. There will also be a presentation on creating canvas prints.
December 3, 2014 – Holiday Party! – We will wrap up the year with a gathering including your spouse or guest. We will view the results of our scavenger hunt. A program will show our guests some of our best images from the year. More details will follow as we get closer to the end of the year.
Field Trips:
Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members. Frank Remfrey has agreed to again coordinate some field trips for the club.
The following field trips are being planned with specific dates and details to be announced later:
August 9th, 9:00 AM – Frame Park Gardens – Frank Remfrey will coordinate.
August – Downtown Milwaukee at night including the rooftop garden at the MSOE Museum, downtown building details and the Milwaukee skyline from Lakeshore State Park (Summerfest Island). Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago including Millennium Park (The “Bean”) and Navy Pier. Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago Botanical Park – Elizabeth Whitcomb will coordinate.
We could use some volunteers to coordinate future trips. If you are interested please let Frank know. If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com). Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip. It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club.
PSA Wisconsin 2013 Showcase Results:
The results of the PSA Wisconsin 2013 Showcase are in and once again our club has done extremely well. We placed 2nd among the thirteen competing clubs! Well done club!! The images were judged by all participating clubs. Judging was done on a scale of 1-5, 5 being best. Here are the scores for our club members:
Name Title Average Score
Tom Wright Airmeal 4.086 - 2nd best overall
John Hasse Wood Duck 3.802 - 9th best overall
Jim Edlhuber Dinner Time 3.619 -17th best overall
Rick Vollbrecht Nautilus Shell 3.394
Carol Seals What’s Up Doc 3.230
Kevin Thomas Old Woman Chopping Wood 3.182
Elizabeth Whitcomb Old Truck 2.980
Congratulations to all of our participants.
PSA - Nature Division Competition:
PSA offers member clubs a variety of opportunities to compete with other PSA member clubs around the country and the world. Our club has decided to participate in the PSA – Nature Division. What this involves is submitting six images, three times a year. Images are submitted in October, January and April. Images from approximately 60 clubs will be judged and results returned to the clubs, with regular club standings being reports so we can see how we compare. Elizabeth Whitcomb has agreed to coordinate this for us. We would like to have a small group (3-4) of members who will review the images and select our submissions. Please consider helping the club in this endeavor. You will only need to meet three times a year for a brief time. Let Elizabeth or me know if you can help. Also, start looking at your Nature images and select one to submit for the October entry. This is a big step for our club to begin competing at a new level. We have a great group of photographers so this should be fun for everyone.
Scavenger Hunt:
Following on the success of last year’s scavenger hunt, we are announcing the 2014 scavenger hunt topics. Photo scavenger hunts are a fun and challenging way to get your imagination and creative juices flowing! The rules are simple:
1. Capture one image of each topic.
2. Be creative - think of a unique way to express the topic.
3. Images should be taken between now and December 1st. We will review them at our December meeting
4. Have fun.
Thanks to Elizabeth Whitcomb for coming up with the following topics:
1. On the waterfront
2. Repetition
3. Unique
4. Celebrate
5. Time
6. Reckless
7. LOCAL (day trip) landscape
8. Challenges
9. Framed
10. Next to something
Start shooting and be creative!
Future Events of Interest:
September 27th – October 3rd, 2014 – PSA 76th Annual Conference of Photography
The annual conference in Albuquerque NM provides a full schedule of programs, photo tours and workshops. It is also the week before the annual Albuquerque Balloon Festival, so why not extend your trip! For more details, go to the PSA web site: www.PSA-photo.org
Photo Contests and Exhibits:
Shalom Wildlife Zoo Photo Contest – Deadline August 3rd, 2014
Sponsored by the Shalom Wildlife Zoo in West Bend. The contest is for photos taken at the Shalom Wildlife Zoo during the months of May, June and July 2014. For more information go to the Special Events section at: www.Shalomwildlife.com
WACCO 3rd Annual Exhibit – Deadline August 31st, 2014
WACCO exhibits 75-90 images in the Reuss Federal Building in downtown Milwaukee. Images will be on display October 4th – December 6th, 2014. See the attached PDF for additional information on submission. This is a great opportunity to see your images on display with other wonderful photographs from area photographers.
Monona Terrace Photography Contest – Deadline September 1st, 2014
Sponsored by the Monona Terrace in Madison. The contest includes photos taken on the grounds of the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison. Please see the attached information flyer.
Old World Wisconsin Photo Contest – Deadline October 17th, 2014
This contest is for photos taken on the grounds of Old World Wisconsin between August 31, 2013 and October 12, 2014. Categories include Pioneer Life, People, Agriculture, Nature and Historic Structures. For more information go to: www.friendsoww.org/photo_contest.
If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com
Photo Ops:
As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing. This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members. If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward those to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters. If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included. It is fun to shoot with a group.
Photography Classes:
A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha. Check their web sites for more information.
WCTC: www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha: www.waukesha.uwc.edu
Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements. Check out their web site: www.Artscameras.com . If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht
Websites of Interest:
Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org PSA Wisconsin: www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Digital Slide Shows on the Agenda for July

Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
July 2014 Newsletter
July Meeting – Wednesday July 2, 2014, 7:00 PM
Program: Presenting Your Images – Now that you have taken some great family pictures or images from that vacation of a lifetime, how do you organize them to share with family and friends? One way is the digital “slide show”. Rick Vollbrecht will tell us how to create interesting shows from planning what to put in the show to creating it using several software programs for the creation process. Learn how to show off those great images and wow your friends!
Member Image Sharing:
Members are encouraged to submit several (up to five) images to share with the club for gentle critique. This is a great way to get suggestions for improving your images and developing your photographic skills. We would like to encourage members to submit images for sharing in advance by email to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com. This will help to streamline the process of viewing member images. We look forward to seeing your images. In order to give everyone a chance to share their images during the year, we will select several individuals who will be featured at each meeting. Other individuals may also provide images which will be shared as time permits
The following members will be featured this month:
Jan Hanold, Roger Hanson, Rick Heinze, Shawn Hibbard and Terry Hughes
2014 Club Programs:
Our 2014 programs are listed below.
August 6, 2014 – PSA Wisconsin Showcase Image Selection - Members will select images for the 2014 PSA Wisconsin Showcase. We will also spend some time critiquing member images.
September 3, 2014 – Composition – What makes a great image? The elements of composition will be discussed.
October 1, 2014 – Internet Resources for Photographers – Tom Wright will discuss how to find the most helpful photographic resources on the internet and how to get them to feed automatically to your computer.
November 5, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part II – Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to cut mats and frame your photos. There will also be a presentation on creating canvas prints.
December 3, 2014 – Holiday Party! – We will wrap up the year with a gathering including your spouse or guest. We will view the results of our scavenger hunt. A program will show our guests some of our best images from the year. More details will follow as we get closer to the end of the year.
Field Trips:
Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members. Frank Remfrey has agreed to again coordinate some field trips for the club.
The following field trips are being planned with specific dates and details to be announced later:
July/August – Downtown Milwaukee at night including the rooftop garden at the MSOE Museum, downtown building details and the Milwaukee skyline from Lakeshore State Park (Summerfest Island). Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
July – Wildflowers at Retzer nature Center. Jim Edlhuber will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago including Millennium Park (The “Bean”) and Navy Pier. Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago Botanical Park – Elizabeth Whitcomb will coordinate.
Summer – Frame Park Gardens – Frank Remfrey will coordinate.
We could use some volunteers to coordinate future trips. If you are interested please let Frank know. If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com). Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip. It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club.
Scavenger Hunt:
Following on the success of last year’s scavenger hunt, we are announcing the 2014 scavenger hunt topics. Photo scavenger hunts are a fun and challenging way to get your imagination and creative juices flowing! The rules are simple:
1. Capture one image of each topic.
2. Be creative - think of a unique way to express the topic.
3. Images should be taken between now and December 1st. We will review them at our December meeting
4. Have fun.
Thanks to Elizabeth Whitcomb for coming up with the following topics:
1. On the waterfront
2. Repetition
3. Unique
4. Celebrate
5. Time
6. Reckless
7. LOCAL (day trip) landscape
8. Challenges
9. Framed
10. Next to something
Start shooting and be creative!
Future Events of Interest:
July 31st – August 3rd – Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs (SWMCCC) Annual Weekend of Photography and Digital Imaging.
This annual event provides an extended weekend (Thursday – Sunday) of programs, workshops and tours. It is based at Hope College in Holland MI and provides some good educational opportunities at a reasonable price. For more information visit their web site and www.SWMCCC.org
September 27th – October 3rd, 2014 – PSA 76th Annual Conference of Photography
The annual conference in Albuquerque NM provides a full schedule of programs, photo tours and workshops. It is also the week before the annual Albuquerque Balloon Festival, so why not extend your trip! For more details, go to the PSA web site: www.PSA-photo.org
Photo Contests and Exhibits:
Shalom Wildlife Zoo Photo Contest – Deadline August 3rd, 2014
Sponsored by the Shalom Wildlife Zoo in West Bend. The contest is for photos taken at the Shalom Wildlife Zoo during the months of May, June and July 2014. For more information go to the Special Events section at: www.Shalomwildlife.com
WACCO 3rd Annual Exhibit – Deadline August 31st, 2014
WACCO exhibits 75-90 images in the Reuss Federal Building in downtown Milwaukee. Images will be on display October 4th – December 6th, 2014. See the attached PDF for additional information on submission. This is a great opportunity to see your images on display with other wonderful photographs from area photographers.
Monona Terrace Photography Contest – Deadline September 1st, 2014
Sponsored by the Monona Terrace in Madison. The contest includes photos taken on the grounds of the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison. Please see the attached information flyer.
Old World Wisconsin Photo Contest – Deadline October 17th, 2014
This contest is for photos taken on the grounds of Old World Wisconsin between August 31, 2013 and October 12, 2014. Categories include Pioneer Life, People, Agriculture, Nature and Historic Structures. For more information go to: www.friendsoww.org/photo_contest.
If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com
Photo Ops:
As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing. This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members. If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward those to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters. If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included. It is fun to shoot with a group.
Photography Classes:
A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha. Check their web sites for more information.
WCTC: www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha: www.waukesha.uwc.edu
Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements. Check out their web site: www.Artscameras.com . If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht
Websites of Interest:
Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org PSA Wisconsin: www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Tips From Paul Bialas



               
Paul Bialas Tips
Start a book .....
Use kickstarter to raise funds ... see below ..
Here was where I raised money Pabst book:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/585382058/pabst-an-excavation-of-
 art?ref=liv
e
weebly.comis a great easy place to start a free website. its super
easy ... I started with a free one, (which requires .weebly.com at the end of
the name) then switched to
lakecountryphoto.comwhich was $150 for 5
years ... not bad ..
I used adobe indesign to create the book. Somewhat difficult to learn, but
youtube taught me everything
.. for example I would type in "how to i put
page numbers in indesign" then watch the tutorial then do it ... "How do I
set up a book in indesign" then watch the tutorial
... its all there.. export in
PDF..                                                                                                                                 .
Ebook may be your best option, because its free, no printing costs, your file
must be in epub format which is pretty easy to do ..
Book printing: Shenzhen Jinhao Printing: roseprinting@lzjhy.com
How to art show:
- Meridianpro.com (Quality Prints)
- Goldenstateart.com (Matts, Backing & Bag)
- Don't Frame when starting out, fmd price range
- Use Zapp to apply, apply early, have fun
Equipment I use: Sigma 12-24mm, Sigma 50mm 1.4, Canon 24-10Smm, Lensbaby,
Lightroom, canon 5dII.
Need inspiration? Abstract Canvas on Facebook, David Beckstead.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                I'                   ) /
--

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

May Meeting Agenda Revealed

Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
May 2014 Newsletter
May Meeting – Wednesday May 7, 2014, 7:00 PM
Program: Architectural photography.
Photographer Paul Bialas will discuss his experiences shooting architecture, especially old building. He will include the process he used to publish books of his works.
Member Image Sharing:
Members are encouraged to submit several (up to five) images to share with the club for gentle critique. This is a great way to get suggestions for improving your images and developing your photographic skills. We would like to encourage members to submit images for sharing in advance by email to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com. This will help to streamline the process of viewing member images. We look forward to seeing your images. In order to give everyone a chance to share their images during the year, we will select several individuals who will be featured at each meeting. Other individuals may also provide images which will be shared as time permits
The following members will be featured this month:
Karen Geisel, Gene Gerbasi, Dale Graves, Mary Graves, Geri Germain, Tom Grzesiak
We have also challenged members to shoot some close-ups using the macro and close-up techniques we learned in April. If you have some interesting close-up images, please send them in so we can review them at the meeting.
2014 Club Programs:
We have developed a tentative program schedule for the rest of the year. Additional information will be provided as speakers and program details are confirmed.
June 4, 2014 – Favorite Places – Tom Wright will talk about some of our member’s favorite places to shoot locally and throughout the state. You don’t have to go on long trips to get some of your best shots. Members are requested to send Tom some of their favorite local locations, including photos of what they shoot. This will serves as a resources for club members.
July 2, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part I– Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to create dynamic “slide” shows from your images.
August 6, 2014 – PSA Wisconsin Showcase Image Selection - Members will select images for the 2014 PSA Wisconsin Showcase. We will also spend some time critiquing member images.
September 3, 2014 – Composition – What makes a great image? The elements of composition will be discussed.
October 1, 2014 – Internet Resources for Photographers – Tom Wright will discuss how to find the most helpful photographic resources on the internet and how to get them to feed automatically to your computer.
November 5, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part II – Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to cut mats and frame your photos. There will also be a presentation on creating canvas prints.
December 3, 2014 – Holiday Party! – We will wrap up the year with a gathering including your spouse or guest. We will view the results of our scavenger hunt. A program will show our guests some of our best images from the year. More details will follow as we get closer to the end of the year.
Field Trips:
Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members. Frank Remfrey has agreed to again coordinate some field trips for the club.
The following field trips are being planned with specific dates and details to be announced later:
May 14, 2014– Parfrey’s Glen, Pewitt’s Nest and the International Crane Foundation. Elizabeth Whicomb will coordinate.
June – Downtown Milwaukee at night including the rooftop garden at the MSOE Museum, downtown building details and the Milwaukee skyline from Lakeshore State Park (Summerfest Island). Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
July – Wildflowers at Retzer nature Center. Jim Edlhuber will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago including Millennium Park (The “Bean”) and Navy Pier. Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago Botanical Park – Elizabeth Whitcomb will coordinate.
Summer – Frame Park Gardens – Frank Remfrey will coordinate.
We could use some volunteers to coordinate future trips. If you are interested please let Frank know. If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com). Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip. It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club.
Scavenger Hunt:
Following on the success of last year’s scavenger hunt, we are announcing the 2014 scavenger hunt topics. Photo scavenger hunts are a fun and challenging way to get your imagination and creative juices flowing! The rules are simple:
1. Capture one image of each topic.
2. Be creative - think of a unique way to express the topic.
3. Images should be taken between now and December 1st. We will review them at our December meeting
4. Have fun.
Thanks to Elizabeth Whitcomb for coming up with the following topics:
1. On the waterfront
2. Repetition
3. Unique
4. Celebrate
5. Time
6. Reckless
7. LOCAL (day trip) landscape
8. Challenges
9. Framed
10. Next to something
Start shooting and be creative!
Future Events of Interest:
May 17th, 2014 (Saturday) – Schlitz Audubon Nature Center Birds of Prey Shoot
This photo shoot will run from 9:00 AM – Noon at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center in Brown Deer. It will give you a great opportunity to get close-up shots of birds of Prey. The fee is $45.00 for adults and $20.00 for students. (Save $5.00 if you are a Schlitz Audubon member). For more information go to www.sanc.org and check the calendar.
June 14th, 2014 (Saturday) - Wehr Nature Center Camera Club 2nd Annual Seminar
Jennifer Wu, a Canon Explorer of Light, will present “Nature’s Elusive Beauty” at the Milwaukee Art Museum from 12:00 Noon – 5:00 PM. The fee is $15.00 for the first 100 registrants, $25.00 after the first 100. Jennifer will cover composition and share her techniques for getting great shots. She will also share some of her night sky time lapse photography. Jennifer is a very dynamic and energetic presenter. Please see the attached information or go to www.wnccccevents.com for more information.
July 31st – August 3rd – Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs (SWMCCC) Annual Weekend of Photography and Digital Imaging.
This annual event provides an extended weekend (Thursday – Sunday) of programs, workshops and tours. It is based at Hope College in Holland MI and provides some good educational opportunities at a reasonable price. For more information visit their web site and www.SWMCCC.org
September 27th – October 3rd, 2014 – PSA 76th Annual Conference of Photography
The annual conference in Albuquerque NM provides a full schedule of programs, photo tours and workshops. It is also the week before the annual Albuquerque Balloon Festival, so why not extend your trip! For more details, go to the PSA web site: www.PSA-photo.org
Photo Contests and Exhibits:
Shalom Wildlife Zoo Photo Contest – Deadline August 3rd, 2014
Sponsored by the Shalom Wildlife Zoo in West Bend. The contest is for photos taken at the Shalom Wildlife Zoo during the months of May, June and July 2014. For more information go to the Special Events section at: www.Shalomwildlife.com
Monona Terrace Photography Contest – Deadline September 1st, 2014
Sponsored by the Monona Terrace in Madison. The contest includes photos taken on the grounds of the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison. Please see the attached information flyer.
Old World Wisconsin Photo Contest – Deadline October 17th, 2014
This contest is for photos taken on the grounds of Old World Wisconsin between August 31, 2013 and October 12, 2014. Categories include Pioneer Life, People, Agriculture, Nature and Historic Structures. For more information go to: www.friendsoww.org/photo_contest.
If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com
Photo Ops:
As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing. This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members. If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward them to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters. If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included. It is fun to shoot with a group.
Photography Classes:
A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha. Check their web sites for more information.
WCTC: www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha: www.waukesha.uwc.edu
Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements. Check out their web site: www.Artscameras.com . If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht
Websites of Interest:
Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org
PSA Wisconsin: www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/

Thursday, March 27, 2014

April Meeting to Feature Close-Up Photography Techniques



Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
April 2014 Newsletter
April Meeting – Wednesday April 2, 2014, 7:00 PM
Program: Portraits – Macro and Close-up Photography.
Terry Molter will discuss the equipment and techniques used for successful close-up photography. He will also talk about a technique called focus-stacking which allows for greater depth-of-field. This will be a good program to get us ready for Spring wildflower and other close-up photos.
Member Image Sharing:
Members are encouraged to submit several (up to five) images to share with the club for gentle critique. This is a great way to get suggestions for improving your images and developing your photographic skills. We would like to encourage members to submit images for sharing in advance by email to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com. This will help to streamline the process of viewing member images. We look forward to seeing your images. In order to give everyone a chance to share their images during the year, we will select several individuals who will be featured at each meeting. Other individuals may also provide images which will be shared as time permits
The following members will be featured this month:
Debby & Jim Donner, Jim Edlhuber, Elizabeth Filippo, Foat Family
We have also challenged members to use some of the portrait techniques we learned in March to shoot some portraits. If you have some interesting portraits, please send them in so we can review them at the meeting.
2014 Club Programs:
We have developed a tentative program schedule for the rest of the year. Additional information will be provided as speakers and program details are confirmed.
May 7, 2014 – Architectural photography – Photographer Paul Bialas will discuss his experiences shooting architecture, especially old building. He will include the process he used to publish books of his works.
June 4, 2014 – Favorite Places – Tom Wright will talk about some of our member’s favorite places to shoot locally and throughout the state. You don’t have to go on long trips to get some of your best shots. Members are requested to send Tom some of their favorite local locations, including photos of what they shoot. This will serves as a resources for club members.
July 2, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part I– Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to create dynamic “slide” shows from your images.
August 6, 2014 – PSA Wisconsin Showcase Image Selection - Members will select images for the 2014 PSA Wisconsin Showcase. We will also spend some time critiquing member images.
September 3, 2014 – Composition – What makes a great image? The elements of composition will be discussed.
October 1, 2014 – Internet Resources for Photographers – Tom Wright will discuss how to find the most helpful photographic resources on the internet and how to get them to feed automatically to your computer.
November 5, 2014 – Presenting your Images Part II – Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to cut mats and frame your photos. There will also be a presentation on creating canvas prints.
December 3, 2014 – Holiday Party! – We will wrap up the year with a gathering including your spouse or guest. We will view the results of our scavenger hunt. A program will show our guests some of our best images from the year. More details will follow as we get closer to the end of the year.
Field Trips:
Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members. Frank Remfrey has agreed to again coordinate some field trips for the club.
The following field trips are being planned with specific dates and details to be announced later:
May – Parfey’s Glen, Pewitt’s Nest and the International Crane Foundation. Elizabeth Whicomb will coordinate.
June – Downtown Milwaukee at night including the rooftop garden at the MSOE Museum, downtown building details and the Milwaukee skyline from Lakeshore State Park (Summerfest Island). Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
July – Wildflowers at Retzer nature Center. Jim Edlhuber will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago including Millennium Park (The “Bean”) and Navy Pier. Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago Botanical Park – Elizabeth Whitcomb will coordinate.
Summer – Frame Park Gardens – Frank Remfrey will coordinate.
We could use some volunteers to coordinate future trips. If you are interested please let Frank know. If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com). Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip. It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club.
Scavenger Hunt:
Following on the success of last year’s scavenger hunt, we are announcing the 2014 scavenger hunt topics. Photo scavenger hunts are a fun and challenging way to get your imagination and creative juices flowing! The rules are simple:
1. Capture one image of each topic.
2. Be creative - think of a unique way to express the topic.
3. Images should be taken between now and December 1st. We will review them at our December meeting
4. Have fun.
Thanks to Elizabeth Whitcomb for coming up with the following topics:
1. On the waterfront
2. Repetition
3. Unique
4. Celebrate
5. Time
6. Reckless
7. LOCAL (day trip) landscape
8. Challenges
9. Framed
10. Next to something
Start shooting and be creative!
Future Events of Interest:
May 17th, 2014 (Saturday) – Schlitz Audubon Nature Center Birds of Prey Shoot
This photo shoot will run from 9:00 AM – Noon at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center in Brown Deer. It will give you a great opportunity to get close-up shots of birds of Prey. The fee is $45.00 for adults and $20.00 for students. (Save $5.00 if you are a Schlitz Audubon member). For more information go to www.sanc.org and check the calendar.
June 14th, 2014 (Saturday) - Wehr Nature Center Camera Club 2nd Annual Seminar
Jennifer Wu, a Canon Explorer of Light, will present “Nature’s Elusive Beauty” at the Milwaukee Art Museum from 12:00 Noon – 5:00 PM. The fee is $15.00 for the first 100 registrants, $25.00 after the first 100. Jennifer will cover composition and share her techniques for getting great shots. She will also share some of her night sky time lapse photography. Jennifer is a very dynamic and energetic presenter. Please see the attached information or go to www.wnccccevents.com for more information.
July 31st – August 3rd – Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs (SWMCCC) Annual Weekend of Photography and Digital Imaging.
This annual event provides an extended weekend (Thursday – Sunday) of programs, workshops and tours. It is based at Hope College in Holland MI and provides some good educational opportunities at a reasonable price. For more information visit their web site and www.SWMCCC.org
September 27th – October 3rd, 2014 – PSA 76th Annual Conference of Photography
The annual conference in Albuquerque NM provides a full schedule of programs, photo tours and workshops. It is also the week before the annual Albuquerque Balloon Festival, so why not extend your trip! For more details, go to the PSA web site: www.PSA-photo.org
Photo Contests and Exhibits:
Monona Terrace Photography Contest – Deadline September 1st, 2014
Sponsored by the Monona Terrace in Madison. The contest includes photos taken on the grounds of the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison. Please see the attached information flyer.
Old World Wisconsin Photo Contest – Deadline October 17th, 2014
This contest is for photos taken on the grounds of Old World Wisconsin between August 31, 2013 and October 12, 2014. Categories include Pioneer Life, People, Agriculture, Nature and Historic Structures. For more information go to: www.friendsoww.org/photo_contest.
If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com
Photo Ops:
As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing. This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members. If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward them to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters. If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included. It is fun to shoot with a group!
Photography Classes:
A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha. Check their web sites for more information.
WCTC: www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha: www.waukesha.uwc.edu
Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements. Check out their web site: www.Artscameras.com . If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht
Websites of Interest:
Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org
PSA Wisconsin: www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/

Thursday, February 27, 2014

March Meeting to Focus on Portraits



Retzer Nature Center
Camera Club
March 2014 Newsletter


March Meeting – Wednesday March 5, 2014, 7:00 PM
 
Program: Portraits – How to pose and shoot great portraits.

Professional portrait photographer Noelle Youakim will gives us tips on shooting portraits, including how to pose people for the most interesting shots.  Noelle uses primarily natural light in outdoor settings to achieve her most interesting portraits, so her tips will help us all to get the portraits we want without having to invest in studio lighting equipment.

Member Image Sharing:

Members are encouraged to submit several (up to five) images to share with the club for gentle critique.  This is a great way to get suggestions for improving your images and developing your photographic skills.  We would like to encourage members to submit images for sharing in advance by email to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com.  This will help to streamline the process of viewing member images. We look forward to seeing your images. In order to give everyone a chance to share their images during the year, we will select several individuals who will be featured at each meeting.  Other individuals may also provide images which will be shared as time permits
The following members will be featured this month:
            Robert Beitz, Mark Blackman, Craig Brown, Shane Carlton, Wayne Christensen
           

2014 Club Programs:

We have developed a tentative program schedule for the rest of the year.  Additional information will be provided as speakers and program details are confirmed.

April 2, 2014 Macro and close up photography - Terry Molter will discuss techniques and equipment for shooting close-up images.  He will include the use of focus stacking to get better depth of field.
May 7, 2014 – Architectural photography – Photographer Paul Bialas will discuss his experiences shooting architecture, especially old building.  He will include the process he used to publish books of his works.
June 4, 2014 – Favorite Places – Tom Wright will talk about some of our member’s favorite places to shoot locally and throughout the state.  You don’t have to go on long trips to get some of your best shots.  Members are requested to send Tom some of their favorite local locations, including photos of what they shoot.  This will serves as a resources for club members.
July 2, 2014 – Presenting your Images  Part I– Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to create dynamic “slide” shows from your images.   
August 6, 2014 – PSA Wisconsin Showcase Image Selection - Members will select images for the 2014 PSA Wisconsin Showcase.  We will also spend some time critiquing member images.
September 3, 2014 – Composition – What makes a great image? The elements of composition will be discussed.
October 1, 2014 – Internet Resources for Photographers – Tom Wright will discuss how to find the most helpful photographic resources on the internet and how to get them to feed automatically to your computer.
November 5, 2014 – Presenting your Images  Part II – Rick Vollbrecht will demonstrate how to cut mats and frame your photos.  There will also be a presentation on creating canvas prints.
December 3, 2014 – Holiday Party! – We will wrap up the year with a gathering including your spouse or guest.  We will view the results of our scavenger hunt.  A program will show our guests some of our best images from the year.  More details will follow as we get closer to the end of the year.

Field Trips:

Photo field trips are a great way for us to share our common enjoyment of photography, learn some new techniques and share in camaraderie while getting to know our fellow club members.  Frank Remfrey has agreed to again coordinate some field trips for the club.

The following field trips are being planned with specific dates and details to be announced later:
May – Parfey’s Glen, Pewitt’s Nest and the International Crane Foundation.  Elizabeth Whicomb will coordinate.
June – Downtown Milwaukee at night including the rooftop garden at the MSOE Museum, downtown building details and the Milwaukee skyline from Lakeshore State Park (Summerfest Island).  Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
July – Wildflowers at Retzer nature Center.  Jim Edlhuber will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago including Millennium Park (The “Bean”) and Navy Pier.  Rick Vollbrecht will coordinate.
Summer – Chicago Botanical Park – Elizabeth Whitcomb will coordinate.
Summer – Frame Park Gardens – Frank Remfrey will coordinate.

We could use some volunteers to coordinate future trips.  If you are interested please let Frank know.  If you have some additional ideas of where you would like to see us go, please let Frank know (FRemfrey@wi.rr.com).  Better yet, why not offer to coordinate a field trip.  It's not hard - find a place you would like to go, pick a date and we can announce it to the club. 

Scavenger Hunt:

Following on the success of last year’s scavenger hunt, we are announcing the 2014 scavenger hunt topics.  Photo scavenger hunts are a fun and challenging way to get your imagination and creative juices flowing! The rules are simple:
    1. Capture one image of each topic.
    2. Be creative - think of a unique way to express the topic. 
    3. Images should be taken between now and December 1st.  We will review them at our December meeting
    4. Have fun.
Thanks to Elizabeth Whitcomb for coming up with the following topics:
1.    On the waterfront
2.    Repetition
3.    Unique
4.    Celebrate
5.    Time
6.    Reckless
7.    LOCAL landscape
8.    Challenges
9.    Framed
10.  Next to something
Start shooting and be creative!

                         

Future Events of Interest:

March 15, 2014 (Saturday) – Calumet Regional Photo Club 2014 Photography Clinic
The 5th annual clinic will be in Munster IN, from 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM.  The program features three speakers – James Cook, Dean Pennala and Ralph Velasco. The $60 registration fee include a continental breakfast and lunch.   For more information see the attached registration form or visit the Calumet Photo Club web site: www.CalRegionPhoto.org

March 22, 2014 (Saturday) – WACCO Nature Photography Seminar with Joe LeFevre.
This seminar will be at the Midway Hotel, Brookfield from 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. Joe is a landscape photographer from upstate New York.  His program will cover making dynamic landscape images from conception to capture to computer optimization.  The registration fee is $50.00 if you register by February 22nd ($75.00 after 2/22), including lunch.  Please see the attached brochure or visit the WACCO website www.wicameraclubs.org for more information.   WACCO has annually brought us some great speakers at a very reasonable price.  This should be one you should strongly consider attending, not only to further your own knowledge, but to support WACCO!

June 14th, 2014 (Saturday) - Wehr Nature Center Camera Club 2nd Annual Seminar 

Jennifer Wu, a Canon Explorer of Light, will present “Nature’s Elusive Beauty” at the Milwaukee Art Museum from 12:00 Noon – 5:00 PM.  The fee is $15.00 for the first 100 registrants, $25.00 after the first 100.  Jennifer will cover composition and share her techniques for getting great shots.  She will also share some of her night sky time lapse photography.  Jennifer is a very dynamic and energetic presenter.  Please see the attached information or go to www.wnccccevents.com for more information.

Photo Contests and Exhibits:

Monona Terrace Photography Contest – Deadline September 1st, 2014
Sponsored by the Monona Terrace in Madison.  The contest includes photos taken on the grounds of the Monona Terrace Convention Center in Madison. Please see the attached information flyer.

Old World Wisconsin Photo ContestDeadline October 17th, 2014
This contest is for photos taken on the grounds of Old World Wisconsin between August 31, 2013 and October 12, 2014.  Categories include Pioneer Life, People, Agriculture, Nature and Historic Structures.  For more information go to: www.friendsoww.org/photo_contest. 


If you are aware of other photo contests, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht at Rvollb@wi.rr.com

Photo Ops:

As a club, our members have a wide variety of subjects that we enjoy photographing.  This newsletter can serve as an excellent way to share various photo opportunities with club members.  If you know of interesting subjects or events that may interest other club members, please forward them to Rick Vollbrecht so they can be included in future newsletters.  If you are interested in having others join you, that information can also be included.  It is fun to shoot with a group!





Photography Classes:

A variety of non-credit, reasonably priced classes on photography and Photoshop are available at Waukesha County Technical College (WCTC) and UW Waukesha.  Check their web sites for more information.

WCTC:  www.wctc.edu
UW Waukesha:  www.waukesha.uwc.edu

Art’s Cameras Plus has an extensive list of classes covering everything from camera basics to photographing in a variety of situations and use of Photoshop Elements.  Check out their web site:  www.Artscameras.com .  If you are aware of other photography classes or seminars, please forward the information to Rick Vollbrecht


Websites of Interest:

Retzer Camera Club blog: www.RetzerCameraClub.blogspot.com
WACCO (Wisconsin Area Camera Clubs Organization): www.wicameraclubs.org   
PSA (Photographic Association of America): www.PSA-photo.org
PSA Wisconsin:  www.PSA.wisconsin.org
Friends of Retzer Nature Center: www.FriendsofRetzer.org
Jim Edlhuber’s blog: http://www.windowtowildlife.com/