Friday, March 29, 2019

Notes from March 2019 Meeting


Thank you to Steve Rogers for his talk in the March Meeting
Below are his notes which he handed out

Boyle Camera Club 12 March 2019


Lightroom, Photoshop and Faststone (www.faststone.org) softwares.

Whites. Blacks. Best to do them before hitting the contrast slider.

Calibration in Lightroom – faithful, standard… makes a big difference

Composition, negative space, thirds… cropping


Photographing people :

If you have a third person around…

Always do test pics before pointing the camera at the subject.

Line up background before pointing the camera.

Easiest studio light is the front door.

Passive, passive… and suddenly…

With children and adults, it’s the tone in your voice that makes it easy for them to be photographed.

Never say “smile!” Children don’t have to smile. Just let them do their thing, you are doing your thing.

Treat and talk with babies children with the same tone in your voice as you speak with an adult you have just met. They can feel your respect. Thank them. They may well alow you to take another.

Ask a child for their favourite toy, and ask if you may have a picture of it with them.


Snapshots tend to capture a moment in time with little regard to lighting or composition. A tree growing out of the subject’s head? Its a snapshot.

Snapshots are great sometimes.

Portraits need attention to detail—light, position, background.

A Portrait is deliberate from both parties.

When taking a portrait, its not me me me , its you.

Everything is transient. There is no time like the present. Take pictures for the generations to come.

Macro photography is for the curious and patient. Try shooting using an ipad / laptop. Fat depth of field. Focus stacking.

Black & Whites? Must have top content, as there is no colour so its just the remaining elements, which are content, composition, texture, light, mood, emotion.

A snapshot – handheld. A classic – a tripod. Best possible tool is a tripod.

Take the picture, don’t pixel peep it too much, content is stronger in the long term than sharpness.

Confidence helps make the camera invisible.

Become aware of windows and the light sources. Notice the light streaming in. Speedread rooms and situations before you open the camerabag.

Start the habit of checking the camera settings & battery as you lift it out of the bag. Straight to aperture value if you are in a hurry.

Grip the camera nice n easy. Every time. No fumbling. Use your fingers to counterbalance. Practice.

You are hunting – switched on, aware, looking, noticing.

Learn to change the lens without looking at it.

Have patience to find angles. Line things up in front and/or behind to give context.

Photographers help other photographers.

Bad weather is good weather.

Lose yourself. Notice things. Photography increases awareness.

Practice. Professional and amateur musicians practice before performance. Footballers practice before the game. It gets easier. If you allow yourself to have practiced, it takes the heat off you when you really have to get a shot.

Practice taking the camera out, getting the picture and putting it away quickly.

Personality reflects photographic style. Empathic, introverted, extroverted. Use your personality.

Photography is an art, it involves self-expression.

Make images that matter to you. What do you like? Photograph that. Go back another day, shoot it again.

Passive photography. Active photography.

Landscape or Nature photography? – Usually its a wide angle lens for landscapes but it’s a macro to capture a specific facet of nature.


Hard drives, blu rays for long term storage, or

Print books! See blurb.com. Be a good editor.

Even technically dodgy pics can have a lot of power in the future.

Pictures accrue in value over the years in ways we cant yet imagine.


One flash is all you need. For on camera flash, try turning the flash head the wrong way around, to bounce off the wall behind you rather than straight up..

Off camera is quite easy to do.

Leave the flash in manual, avoid auto, and just turn the power up and down.


Theme for next month –

Find one of your favourite things around home.

It could be a cup, a tree… photograph it at least 3 times over a few days, each time in a different way. Then…

Select, copy, process and export the picture in the one go each time.

It gets easier.


Best wishes,

Steve Rogers.

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

March 12th Meeting Postponed

We have decided to postpone the March meeting until the 19th due to Orange weather warnings.
Please stay safe and we look forward to seeing you next week

Monday, March 11, 2019

Agenda - Club Meeting - 19th March 2019

Doors open at 7.45pm. The meeting will begin PROMPTLY at 8pm!

The Agenda for our March meeting this Tuesday night is as follows;
€5 entry due to speaker attending who is Steve Rogers.
  • Chairperson's Address
    • Announcements
    • AOB
  • Motivation Slideshow - Presented and judged by Joe Kennedy. The theme for this month's Motivation was ''Still Life ''. Entries can be seen here on Flickr.
  • Tea/Coffee Break
  • Guest Lecturer - Steve Rogers - Sligo photographer Steve Rogers will be talking about his work
    Reminders
    • Members are reminded that annual subscriptions are now due - details here.
    • €5 entry due to speaker attending who is Steve Rogers.

    Meetings are held in St Joseph's Resource Centre, Boyle.
    We look forward to seeing you all.
    As always, new members are very welcome. 

    Monday, March 4, 2019

    January 2019 Meeting Review

    Opening 

    The meeting opened with the chairperson's address by Brian Munnelly.

    Motivation 

    The monthly motivation was presented by Joe Kennedy. and judged by Joe Kennedy. The theme was 'Surreal' and the entries can be viewed:
    Advanced
    Intermediate

    Next month's motivation theme is 'Still Life'.

    Proceeds from Boyle Arts Show to Mayo-Roscommon Hospice

    Boyle Camera Club presentation €400 to Roscommon Pallative Care

    24/12 2018 - Presentation of Winner

    Martin Cooke being presented with his prize for 24/12 - 2018 challenge

    2018 Photographers of the Year

    From left to right: Gary Fitzgerald - Intermediate, Toney Henry - Beginner, Margaret Mulligan - Adavanced