In Focus: May 2 - 15

May 1

Kevin Talbot - *Chinaman’s Hat Moonrise (Hawaii)*
Taken on the eastern shore of Oahu, Hawaii at Kualoa Park

This twice monthly list of OPCC events, reminders, and news is compiled by Lori Moilanen. Please send information on upcoming events, news items, and corrections to opcc4mail@gmail.com. This newsletter is currently published twice monthly on Sunday evenings in advance of our first and third Thursday meetings. The deadline for new submissions for the next newsletter is Friday May 13.

MEET THE PHOTOGRAPHER

This month’s featured photographer is our newest member, Kevin Talbot. Here’s more about Kevin, in his own words:

“Photography has been a lifelong hobby for me that started when I was about 13 years old. I grew up using fully manual film cameras and developing film and making black and white prints in a wet chemistry home darkroom. In my adult life, I later did my own color prints from slides and negatives at home.

I transitioned to full digital in 2003 shortly after my wife and I took an amazing trip to Africa to visit Ethiopia and Kenya, and then Rome and Paris. I spent nearly $1200 on over a hundred rolls of film, developing, slides and prints on that trip. I realized I'd soon be money ahead to get a good digital SLR! On that trip, we had three film cameras and my first digital camera (first generation Canon Powershot G1) with a whopping 3.3 megapixels.

I grew up in southern California and moved to Seattle in 1979. My wife Bonnie and I met there. We moved to the island of Oahu in Hawaii in 2010 for a good job opportunity and lived there for about three and half years. While living in Hawaii, I started selling my prints at craft shows and local gift shops as a sideline to my day job. I have to say, living in Hawaii really rekindled my passion for photography and got me very interested in sunsets and sunrises. They are my favorite subjects to shoot: always challenging and different, sometimes a complete bust but sometimes very rewarding,

We moved back to Seattle in 2013 and really love living here again. We now live in Port Angeles. We have an adult son and two young grandsons, one of whom has caught the "shutterbug" virus and the other has caught the "engineer" virus, both I think I had something to do with :-).

I currently use a Nikon D-500 DSLR with a variety of lenses. My go-to workhorse lens is a 17-55mm f2.8 DX Nikon zoom. It's big and a little heavy, but it's a very versatile and sharp lens. I also use my 10-24mm f3.5 DX Nikon wide-angle zoom for sunsets and sunrises. For the most part, I've always used Nikon SLR cameras.

I do most of my own proof and small lot prints at home with a Canon PROGRAF PRO‑1000 inkjet printer that can make professional-quality archival prints. Most of the prints I sell are metal or acrylic prints made by the online professional company Bay Photo.”

Kevin joined OPCC after reaching out to OPCC member Suzanne Anaya, after viewing her show at the Blackbird Coffeehouse in Port Angeles. His primary photography goal for 2022 is to get to know the area better and find some great locations for sunrise and sunset photography. To learn more about Kevin, his gear, and portfolio, visit his website at www.kevintalbotphotography.com.

Kevin Talbot

NEWS

Monthly OPCC Executive Board Meeting on Tuesday May 3 at 7:00 PM via Zoom

The next OPCC Executive meeting is scheduled for this Tuesday May 3. All OPCC members are welcome to attend as observers. The agenda for the May Board meeting is available by clicking HERE. To add an agenda item, provide feedback, or ask a question, contact OPCC President Bruce Fryxell (opccpres@gmail.com).

Use the OPCC Board Meeting Zoom code to access this meeting. Click HERE to access the OPCC Zoom Codes webpage.

New OPCC NWCCC Delegate

We are pleased to announce that Susan White has volunteered to serve as our new Northwest Council of Camera Clubs (NWCCC) delegate, effective immediately. It will be great to have her back on the OPCC Executive Committee.

NWCCC is a non-profit association of camera clubs in western Washington State. The Council provides a network to share photographic expertise, promote regional competitions and communicate education opportunities. For more information on NWCCC, visit their website at nwcameraclubs.org.

Dan Hudgings Retires as Refreshments Chair

Dan Hudgings, our longstanding Refreshments Chair, has decided to retire from this position for family reasons. Prior to the pandemic Dan did a great job of organizing OPCC members to provide tasty treats for our in-person first-Thursday meetings. Thanks Dan for all of the years that you did this.

OPCC Secretary Suzanne Anaya has volunteered to take over from Dan. Thanks for stepping up Suzanne - looking forward to those cupcakes!

PSA Washington State Membership Newsletter

The May edition of the Photographic Society of America (PSA) Washington State Membership Newsletter is now available. Click HERE to view.

New Month - New Monthly Theme

The May Monthly Theme for photography is Birds/Flight/Raptors. Shoot your bird-themed photos this month to share at a future Member Share Night meeting. Be sure to take advantage of the upcoming OPCC field trip to Seabeck for eagle photography (details coming soon).

Reminder - Judy Larimore to Exhibit at the Blackbird Coffeehouse

OPCC member Judy Larimore will be exhibiting 20 photos and paintings at the Blackbird Coffeehouse in Port Angeles for the month of May . The theme will be beautiful places across the country, including New England, Baja, Big Sur, the Monterey Peninsula, Yosemite, Utah, the Olympic Peninsula and others. The Blackbird Coffeehouse is located at 336 E. Eighth Street, Port Angeles (http://www.theblackbirdcoffeehouse.com/).

Welcome to Our Newest Member

A warm welcome to our newest member Kevin Talbot. Kevin has jumped right in and volunteered to mentor the Canon printer users among us. Thanks Kevin, we’re glad to have you with us.

EDUCATIONAL SPEAKER SERIES

April Speaker Recording Now Available

A recording of the presentation by Mike Jensen has been posted to the OPCC website. Please note that the first couple of minutes were not captured in the recording as a result of technical issues. Click HERE to visit the Recorded Presentations webpage. This page may also be accessed using the “Recorded Presentations” button on the Education Nights webpage of the OPCC website.

To view the video, use the 2022 OPCC member password when prompted to enter a password.

MEMBER SHARING

Member Share Night - Thursday May 5 at 7:00 PM via Zoom

The next Member Share Night is scheduled For Thursday May 5 at 7:00 PM via Zoom. The Special Topic is Spring/Blooms/Botanicals. Use the Member Share Night Zoom Code to access this meeting (click HERE to access the OPCC Zoom Codes webpage).

Each OPCC member may submit up to two (2) images for Member Share Night. The deadline for submitting images for the May Member Share Night is Sunday May 1. at 11:00 PM.

For more information or questions about OPCC Member Share Night, visit the OPCC Member Share Night webpage by clicking HERE, or contact Member Share Night Chair Dan McKenna (opccphotos@gmail.com).

FIELD TRIPS, WORKSHOPS, & MEET-UPS

April Trip Report From Ellen Bogenschutz: Whitney Gardens, a Nearby Waterfall, and Lunch

Beautiful weather welcomed the OPCC Group to Whitney Gardens in Brinnon last Saturday. We had a very nice turn out with 11 participants. Everyone wandered over the multiple acre nursery at their own leisure and the diversity of photos in the Gallery prove that all were attracted to many things in the garden. A few intrepid souls drove down to see the Rocky Point waterfall: a beautiful waterfall, a little bit of a challenge to photograph. All gathered afterwards for refreshments and lunch at a local restaurant with a great view off the veranda with visiting gulls and very fast swallows. It was a wonderful gathering, in an historical location with lovely surroundings, and the best part was that it was fun! If you attended, please upload your photos to be added to the Field Trip Gallery, if you couldn't join us, please check out the photos in the Gallery! I'd like to extend a special thanks to the folks who carpooled by giving rides to their fellow members.

Please visit the Field Trip Gallery to peruse and enjoy trip photos submitted by the participants.

Remember, if you have an idea or can host a Field Trip or even a casual “Meet Up”, let OPCC Field Trip Chair Ellen Bogenschutz know via email (fieldtrips4opcc@gmail.com) to keep learning and expanding our photographic talents.

Judy Larimore - *Field Trip Participants Lunch at the Geoduck*

Stephen Shoff - *Rhodie Bouquet (at Whitney Gardens)*

OPCC May Field Trip - More from Ellen

Bird photography enthusiasts - please acquaint yourselves with the May Education Night description on the OPCC website (click HERE). This is a very special Eagle shooting opportunity for us here on the Olympic Peninsula and I doubt you want to miss it. More information regarding the field trip will be published in the next In Focus Newsletter.

Bonnie Block - 2016 Audubon Grand Prize Winning Image
(taken at our next field trip location)

COMPETITION/IMAGE EVALUATION

OPCC Spring Competition/External Image Evaluation

Submission Deadline: May 19, 2022

PSA will be providing a judge who will view and score your photos based on the criteria we have provided them. Then on June 2, 2022 the judge will present their comments and scores for the photos in our first-Thursday zoom meeting. The session will be recorded and will be available for viewing under the June Member Share Night entry on the website.

Members may submit a maximum of two (2) images for evaluation. If you are thinking about entering a photo(s) for any competition this is a good way to get objective feedback on your image before you submit to a competition.

Information and tools for OPCC competitions are located on the “Competition” webpage in the Members Only section of the website (click HERE to visit the Competition webpage). For more information contact OPCC Competition Chair Peggy McClure (opcc.competition@gmail.com).

External Competition Updates

Washington State Fair – Northwest International Exhibition of Photography

When: September 2 -25, 2022

Online Entry Registration: Monday, April 25, 2022 to Saturday, July 23, 2022

Last Day to Receive Entry Packages (Prints): Monday, July 25, 2022

This is a large and well respected Exhibition that was started in 1937 and is recognized by the Photographic Society of America (PSA) as one of the leading international exhibitions. The entries are on display for only 20 days, but they estimate more than a million people from the greater Puget Sound area come to see the latest and best in photographic art.

Entries are accepted for both prints and projected images. There are five print divisions and four projected image divisions. The entry fee is $2.00 per image and if you submit prints and wished them returned there is an additional $10.00 fee. There are nine best of show awards (one for each division) and additional Special Fair Medals and award ribbons. An exhibition catalog will be produced and will be available only online after Thursday, October 6, 2022)

Rules for this exhibition are too long and complex to be included in the newsletter. To view or download the instructions go to Enter a Competition at the Washington State Fair (thefair.com) and click on Northwest International Exhibition of Photography.

If You’re Aware of Competitions That Might Interest OPCC Members…

If you are aware of any competitions you think members might be interested in please contact Competition Chair Peggy McClure at opcc.competition@gmail.com. Peggy will gather the details and when appropriate we will publish information in the Newsletter and on the Website.

Information on a select list of external competitions (curated by Peggy McClure) can be found on the Competition webpage of the OPCC Website in the Members Only section.

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