This weekly 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 published weekly on Sunday evenings. The deadline for new submissions for the following week is Friday at midnight.

MEET THE PHOTOGRAPHER

Just in time for Spring, this week’s vibrant cover photo is Spring Explosion by Peggy McClure. It was taken at the Keukenhof Garden just outside Amsterdam during Peggy’s last pre_COVID trip. The garden is only open for 8 weeks each year from April through May and, if you like tulips, it’s the place to see them on display. Most of the displays consist of groupings of hundreds of bulbs of the same color, but Peggy loved this particular display which appeared to be an explosion of color.

Peggy chose to move to Sequim upon retirement because it met her three requirements; 1) It had to have less than 20 inches of rain a year; 2) it had to be close to the ocean; and 3) it had to be relatively close to an international airport.

The first two requirements were a result of being born and having lived except for the last 8 years in Southern California, always near the beach. The last requirement was included because she is sure that somewhere in her family line there are gypsies, as she loves to travel. She made her first trip to Europe when I she was 18, sailing from Los Angeles, through the Panama Canal with stops in Acapulco, Cartagena, Kingston and disembarking in Lisbon. She then spent two months traveling around Europe before returning home. Her father gave her an Argus 35 mm camera, lots of slide film, and some advice, “Take lots of pictures, it’s only film and you don’t know if you will ever go back.” She has followed that advice ever since.

Peggy joined OPCC in November of 2019 and attended just a few meetings before COVID arrived, so she didn’t really get a chance to meet a lot of members. She’s definitely looking forward to in-person meetings to get to know everyone. She considers herself at best an intermediate photographer and while she enjoys photographing wildlife, she’s recently concentrated more on landscape and macro photography. Besides travel and photography she loves gardening - flowers, not vegetables. So during COVID she’s done a lot of flower photography, including lots of macro shots.

Now that she’s fully vaccinated, Peggy is looking forward to traveling again. Her last trip was in 2019 and she went to Amsterdam (where the cover image was taken) and Greece.

Her profile picture includes her Aussiedoodle Daisy, her walking companion. The photo was taken by a friend on her iPhone this last year. They were on Miller Point, which Daisy loves because she gets to run free. So if you see Peggy and Daisy on the trail be sure to say “Hi”.

NEWS

Quote of the Week

“The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.” - Dorothea Lange

Marina Shipova Announced as OPCC Guest Speaker for June.

OPCC Program Chair Ardythe Wendt has shared that our OPCC Education Night Speaker for June will be Fine Arts photographer Marina Shipova. The title of her presentation is Storytelling in Photography. Visit the June Education Night Event page for Marina Shipova’s bio statement and website link by clicking HERE.

Voting on NWCCC Traveling Digital Salon Round 2 Starts Soon.

Northwest Council of Camera Clubs Delegate Rebecca Hanson reports that we’ll soon be starting a new round of voting for the NWCCC 2021 Traveling Digital Salon. Watch for an email with voting instructions.

You can view the OPCC entry in this club competition on the OPCC Competition Slide Shows webpage.

New Month, New Theme - Macro Photography

The Special Theme for April is “Macro Photography”. Take your macro images during the month of April and share at the May 6 Member Share Night meeting. The deadline for image submission is Thursday, April 29 at 11 PM. For more information and a helpful video, visit the Share Night event page HERE. For questions contact OPCC Share Chair/Projectionist Susan White at opccphotos@gmail.com.

Congratulations to…

Congratulations to OPCC member Steve Jones. His photo Cline Spit Kayaker was picked for the first place award in the Adult Photography division of the 2021 Tidepools Literary Magazine Art and Writing Contest. The latest issue of the magazine is set for release in May. His photo was also featured in Sequim Gazette and Peninsula College Buccaneer articles about the contest. Fine work, Steve!

COMING UP THIS WEEK

April Member Share Night is Thursday, April 1 at 6:00 PM via Zoom.

This meeting will include all categories of OPCC member sharing. The special theme for the month is “Moving Water”. Plus, the all new editing challenge “Your Photo My Way” debuts. For more information visit the April Share Night webpage HERE. For questions contact OPCC Share Chair and Projectionist Susan White (opccphotos@gmail.com). To access the meeting, visit the OPCC Zoom Codes webpage.

ONGOING ACTIVITIES

Member Share Night - Monthly Themes and More

CLICK ON THE IMAGE OR THEME TITLE BELOW FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. For questions, contact Share Night Chair Susan White at opccphotos@gmail.com.

Virtual Field Trips

CLICK ON AN IMAGE OR FIELD TRIP TITLE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. For questions or to suggest a new Virtual Field Trip idea contact Sandra Woods (fieldtrips4opcc@gmail.com).

External Competition Opportunities

CLICK ON AN IMAGE OR EVENT TITLE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. For questions or to suggest a new competition or juried exhibition opportunity contact Competition Chair Suzanne Anaya (OPCC.competition@gmail.com).

In Focus: March 29 - April 4