Minutes of the Fontenelle Forest Photo Club Meeting, June 21, 2018

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About 30 people met at 7:00 P.M at Bellevue University Humanities Center

Vice President Phil Mininni presided.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

PHOTO DISPLAYS- Judy Dye

For September: clouds and anything blue

Nov.: Autumn and churches

Pete mentioned that the club’s website was temporarily down but as of this post the site is back up and running.

Election of Officers: The following officers were nominated and elected:

President: Jay Davis

Vice President: Phil Mininni

Secretary: Eric Scholar

Treasurer: Kathleen Rose

A big thanks to both the new officers as well as Alex Wiles who served as the club president over the last year. Our club would not be as successful and enjoyable without the time that these folks, as well as Judy Dye/Photo Display Coordinator, Donna Gray/Contest Coordinator & Peter Carbonell/Webmaster, dedicate to our programs.

The board will be meeting soon to set the meeting agenda for the upcoming club year. We have received some ideas for meetings, but if you have any ideas please send them to the club email at webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org.

PROGRAM

The program for the evening was the judge’s critique and results of our annual club photo contest. Joe Burns served as the contest judge and presented the results of the photo contest. The winners of this year’s contest are:

CATEGORY MEMBER NAME TITLE
Best Fontenelle Photo Allen Kurth Early Morning Swim
Best of Show Allen Kurth Early Morning Swim
People’s Choice Jim Trojanowski Hungry Chick
Member’s Choice Allen Kurth Prairie Chicken Fight
 
Advanced Flora 1st – Sue Mininni Petunia
  2nd – Donna Gray Tulips
  3rd – Howard Carson Rivers
HM – Diane Kinney Fun Guys
HM – Jay Davis Climbing Roses
Advanced Scenic 1st – Jim Trojanowski Deadvlei
  2nd – Donna Trojanowski Morning Fog
  3rd – Howard Carson Finish
HM – Steve Carson Sunflowers on the Plains
HM – Steve Carson Backpacker’s Milky Way
Advanced Animals 1st – Allen Kurth Prairie Chicken Fight
  2nd – Jim Trojanowski Hungry Chick
  3rd – Donna Trojanowski Royalty
HM – Donna Trojanowski Dapper Snapper
HM – Howard Carson Evening Walk
HM – Sue Mininni Pelicans Entertwined
HM – Diane Kinney Resting Reflections
Anything Goes 1st –  Linnea Baney Street Mural
2nd –  Donna Turner Autumn Red
3rd –  Diane Kinney Wild Ones
   
Novice Flora 1st  – Donna Turner Fall Fungus
  2nd – Andrea Kuhn Summer’s End
  3rd – Andrea Kuhn Orchid Shadows
HM – Andrea Kuhn Simplicity
HM – Lorraine Feldhausen Full Moon Rising: Silver Moon Clemantis Bud
     
Novice Scenic 1st – Eric Scholar Icelandic Black Sand Beach w/Gulls
  2nd – Margaret West Grandstand
  3rd – Margaret West Eueka
HM – Margaret West Aldeyjarfoss
HM – Donna Turner Ride the Wave
HM – Wayne Brill Red Rock Canyon
     
 Novice Animals 1st – Donna Turner Yellowstone Coyote
  2nd – Phil Mininni Bald Eagle
  3rd – Tom Boggs Oriole
Honorable Mention HM – Emmett Erg Great Egret

Winning photos will be posted on the main page of the website shortly. Congratulations to all of the winners!

Thanks to Lorraine Feldhausen for bringing treats tonight.

 

Submitted by Eric Scholar, Secretary and Peter Carbonell, Webmaster.

Minutes of the Fontenelle Forest Photo Club Meeting, April 19, 2018

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About 33 people met at 7:00 pm. Alex Wiles presided.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

PHOTO DISPLAYS- Judy Dye

Photos will be displayed at both the Forest and at the Bellevue Library.

May Meeting: Red, white and blue

Fall: Autumn and churches followed by Clouds and Anything Blue

The photos can be 8×10, 8×12 or 11×14. No mattes or frames please. Remember to add your name, the subject and the location on the back of each photo you submit.

TREASURER’S REPORT: Kathleen Rose reported that there is now $ 1,500 in the club’s treasury.

PHOTO CONTEST: Contest Coordinator Donna Gray mentioned that the setup is May 26 at 10 am in the Bellevue University Humanities Building. Rules are available online. Kathleen will email  comments from the judge Joe Burns about what he expects from contestants. Donna mentioned that tags for the photos will be available at the next meeting and during setup.

Copies of the photos entered  should be sent to Pete Carbonell via the webmaster@fontenellephotoclub.org email address. If possible, image files should be resized down to 2000 pixels on the long edge and 72 pixels per inch (ppi) to ease emailing. But if there is any difficulty resizing the image, just send the file in its original size. The image files will be used for the critique session during our June meeting.

If you are not able to make it to the show setup, you may want to bring your photos to the May meeting. Someone at the meeting can make sure your photos are hung in the show.

MISCELLANEOUS BUSINESS:

Pete mentioned that Rockbrook Camera had a camera cleaning sale and calibration sale the weekend of April 27th with $20 off of camera cleaning services.

Pete mentioned he was contacted by a board member of Camp CoHoLo, a 7 day camp for children who have undergone treatment for cancer at the 4H camp at Schramm Park. The camp will take place this summer and they are looking for volunteer photographers to fill 4 hour shifts to help document the event. Photos will also be posted so that the parents can see how their children are enjoying the event. Pete believes the event will be in early July. More information will be posted soon.

NEXT MEETING – WETLANDS PHOTO SHOOT:

Our next meeting will be on Thursday, May 17th. For this meeting we will meet in the wetlands area of Fontenelle Forest for a photography outing. We will have a brief meeting at 7 pm outside of the Wetlands Education building across the street from the parking lot but we encourage everyone to come as early as you like to enjoy the sights and sounds of the wetlands. This is songbird migration season so there is lots of bird activity in the area. Also with the trees having sprouted and the wildflowers starting to bloom, there will be plenty of photography opportunities.

For those of you who have never been down to the wetlands, it is located at the eastern end of Childs Road. From the main Forest building, go south on Bellevue Blvd and make a left on Childs Road. Childs Road will change from pavement to gravel. Continue down the road, passed the rail crossing. When you see a medium sized parking lot on the left and building on the right, you’re in the right place!

Here are some items you may want to bring with you:

  • Camera
  • Tripod/monopod
  • Any variety of lenses, i.e., telephoto, wide angle, macro, etc…
  • Bug spray – It is tick season so be prepared.
  • Water
  • Long sleeve shirt – helps keep the bugs off.
  • Hiking shoes – We’ve had some rain lately so some of the trails may be a little mucky. So bring footwear that can keep you stable and you don’t mind getting dirty.
  • Rain jacket – the forecast looks good now, but this is Nebraska!

This is a great opportunity to practice your craft and share tips and techniques with your fellow club members. Whether you brave the trails or stay close to the parking area, there will be plenty of great opportunities to get excellent shots so come on out! 

PROGRAM:

Pete Carbonell presented the program tonight on what to look for in critiquing your own photographs.

The four main points in critiquing your photos are to know the rules of composition, technique, impact and weeding out the best photos.

The rules of composition are available in many sources. Technical items include composition, sharpness, border patrol, even horizon lines, highlights etc. Impact includes emotional response to photos. The culling process is a multi-step process. Photos should be reviewed again and again.

Pete suggested that everyone should create a portfolio with 24 of your best photos in a folder. He also mentioned the importance of sharing your photographs through social media and photo groups and mentioned the importance of online critiques and photo contests.

Thanks to Pete Carbonell for bringing treats tonight.

The meeting was adjourned at about 8:20 pm.

Please send any questions to webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org

Submitted by Eric Scholar, Secretary and Peter Carbonell, Webmaster.

April 2018 Meeting Reminder & Notes

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Despite what the thermometer says, spring is here and our club year is nearing its end. But before the year is over, we have some fun events coming up. Here are a few notes of what to look forward to.

Next Meeting

The April meeting will take place on Thursday, April 19th at 7 pm in the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. With the club photo contest on the horizon we’ve taken a suggestion from one of our members and decided to use this meeting to discuss how photographers can critique their own images. The ideas that will be shared may help us all better prepare our entries for the contest. This will be a group discussion so come with your ideas and questions and we’ll all enjoy this educational exercise!

Photo Contest

The annual club photo contest is fast approaching. As noted in the guidelines that were recently published, the contest setup will be Saturday, May 26th at 10 am in the Bellevue University Humanities Gallery. Joe Burns will be our judge this year and the awards and critique session will take place during our meeting on Thursday, June 21st at 7 pm in the auditorium at the Bellevue University Humanities Gallery.

We will use a video slideshow for the critique so members will need to send their entries in to the webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org email. The email should contain the member’s name as well as the name and category for each image submitted. Photos should be sized to 2000 pixels on the long edge and 72 pixels per inch (ppi). This will make the files easier to send via email. If you are unsure on how to resize the image, then please send the full size images.

Photo Displays

Judy Dye, our Photo Display Coordinator, is collecting photos for the displays in the Forest Nature Center and the Bellevue Library. The subject for photos will be Red, White and Blue. Nature based photos will be displayed at the Forest and all other photos will be displayed at the Bellevue Public Library.

The photos can be 8×10, 8×12 or 11×14. No mattes or frames please. Remember to add your name, the subject and the location on the back of each photo you submit.

Loessfest 2018 Featuring Alex Wiles!

Our esteemed club president, Alex Wiles is about to put another feather in his photographic cap! We are all aware of Alex’s Floodplain project that has been on display in the Baright Gallery in the Nature Center for the last few months. Now Alex’s project will be on display at the River’s Edge Pavilion in Council Bluffs during this year’s Loessfest celebration May 25th to the 28th. Alex will be onsite in the pavilion during the weekend so add this event to your calendar and stop by to support Alex and this awesome honor! For more information on this event, click on this link. Congrats Alex!

Please send all questions/comments to webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org. See you all at the meeting on Thursday!

Peter Carbonell

Webmaster

Fontenelle Forest Photo Club

webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org

 

Minutes of the Fontenelle Forest Photo Club Meeting, March 15,2018

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About 34 people met at 7:00 P.M.  3 new people were present.

President Alex Wiles presided.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Photo Displays – Judy Dye

Photos will be displayed at both the Forest and at the Bellevue Library.

March subjects: Doorknobs for the Library and Sky for the Forest.

Next spring: Red, white and blue

Fall: Autumn and churches

The photos can be 8×10, 8×12 or 11×14. No mattes or frames please. Remember to add your name, the subject and the location on the back of each photo you submit.

Treasurer’s Report – Kathleen Rose

There is now $ 1,617 in the club’s treasury.

Photo Contest –  Donna Gray

Setup is Saturday, May 26th at 10 am.  Joe Burns will be the judge. Rules are available online.

Program

Donna and Jim Trojanowski presented the program on their several trips to Africa.

Donna mentioned that the program was a compilation of their 6 trips to southern Africa. She showed slides of several animals and birds seen.

Jim then talked about the various photo equipment he brought on the safaris.

He mentioned the importance of limiting equipment and clothing to keep the weight down. He also mentioned the importance of getting medical and trip insurance and bringing adapters for electrical equipment. They talked about the type of vehicles used for the safaris.

Thanks to the Kuhns and Trojanowskis for bringing treats tonight.

The meeting was adjourned at about 8:20 P.M.

Our next meeting will be on on Thursday, April 19th at 7 P.M. in the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. The tentative topic for the meeting will be how photographers can critique their own photos.

Submitted by Eric Scholar, Secretary

2018 Photo Club Contest Information and Guidelines

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Our annual photo contest is only a couple of months away. So here is the updated information and guidelines for the upcoming competition.

Guidelines for the 2018 Annual Fontenelle Forest Nature Association

Photography Club Show

Bellevue University Gallery – Humanities Building

Hello to All Fontenelle Forest Nature Association Photo Club Members:

Set – Up – Saturday, May 26, 2018, 10:00 AM

Critique and Awards Presentation – Thursday, June 21, 2018, 7:00 to 9:00 PM

Take Down – Saturday, June 30, 2018, 10:00 AM 

Questions – Contact: Donna Gray – Email: djg618@cox.net

Who:  Any member in good standing of the Fontenelle Forest Nature Association Photo Club.  Prints can be color or black and white.  Prints that have been previously designated as award winners – including honorable mention at previous FFNA club shows are not eligible for entry.

We ask that members remember that we are sponsored by a nature association and as such the photographs we show represents that organization to our members and the general public.  The show contest coordinator and current President of the club reserve the right to remove an entry not following the rules set forth in the category descriptions below.

“Novice Class”:  This is open to club members who have NOT won a first, second or third place in any individual category, or Overall Show award in prior years’ photography club shows.

“Advanced Class”:  This is open to club members who have won a first, second or third place in any individual category, or an overall show award in the prior years’ photography club shows.

No exceptions for class designation.  If any member new or old feels they belong in the advanced class, they are welcome to enter their photos into this class.

Categories:

  • Scenic/Landscape: Continental US, outside continental US, any nature themed image where the focus or subject IS NOT manmade objects, including urban, city, pets, and Humans.  Must be a nature based photo taken by a club member.
  • Animals: Any living creature, wild or domesticated, including pets. Not humans.
  • Flora: A photo where the following are the main subject of the photo.  Any flower, plant or tree.
  • Anything Goes: (Combined category – Novice & Advanced)

Any photograph not meeting the requirements of the 3 categories listed above.   Also, any photo that is over enhanced or un-naturally manipulated will be entered into this category.

* Photos may be moved to another class up to the point of judging for awards if the Contest Judge, Photo Contest coordinator or club president feel an entry was categorized incorrectly at check-in.  These contest rules are their guide, and any corrections to classification are final.

 

How to Present Your Prints 

  • Printed presentations are to be either framed (wood, metal or plastic frames) with or without a mat or printed on a metal or matboard surface. A wire hanger must be attached to the back.   
  • Size of frame: Minimum outside dimension of the shortest side of the presentation will be shorter than 5 inches, maximum outside dimension of the longest side of the presentation will be no longer than 25 inches. 
  • Entries that are presented with no glass or Plexiglas are accepted at the entrant’s risk for damage by print handlers/displayers.
  • Each entry is required to have the Photographer’s name, address, and phone number on the back of each photo.
  • Contestants may enter up to 4 print presentations into the show. The contestant is responsible for deciding which category to place entry(s).   (One in each category or all in one category or any combination you desire.) Contest coordinator and club president have final say of excepting entry or on category classification at time of set-up.  The Judge may also move a photo to another category at the time of judging.
  • Entry Cards (White) for Novice, (Yellow) for Advanced, (Blue) for Anything Goes will be available starting at the April Club meeting. Contestants will need to complete entry cards prior to arriving at the show set-up.

Awards:

In each Class and category:   First, Second, and Third Place (18 Ribbons)

Anything Goes Category:       First, Second, and Third Place (Combined Classes) (3 Ribbons)

Overall Show Awards:  Best of Show – all classes, all categories

Public Choice – all classes, all categories

Club Members Choice – – all classes, all categories

Best Black and White – all classes, all categories

Best Photo Taken at Fontenelle Forest (Must designate on entry card)

Total of 26 Ribbons to be awarded at this Year’s Show!

All first and second place winners and overall show winners will be displayed at the Bellevue Public Library over the summer months and returned at our first club meeting in September.

All winning photos will be displayed on the Fontenelle Forest Photography Club’s Website.

Last revised on 03/05/2018

 

 

Minutes of the Fontenelle Forest Photo Club Meeting, February 15, 2018

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About 24 people met at 7:00 P.M.  (4 new people came)

President Alex Wiles presided

ANNOUNCEMENTS

PHOTO DISPLAYS- Judy Dye

Photos will be displayed at both the Forest and at the Bellevue Library.

March subjects: Doorknobs for the Library and Sky for the Forest.

Next spring: Red, white and blue

Fall: Autumn and churches

The photos can be 8×10, 8×12 or 11×14. No mattes or frames please. Remember to add your name, the subject and the location on the back of each photo you submit.

Treasurer’s Report – Kathleen reported that there is now $ 1597 in the club’s treasury.

PROGRAM: Alex led a discussion of how to get your photography work out to the public. He talked about the different ways to accomplish this.

  •  Free Competitions
    • Photo club photo contest. Alex mentioned that the guidelines for the clubs upcoming photo contest were being passed out. He mentioned the differences between the advanced and novice classes.
    • Nebraskaland photo contest
    • Wildlife Conservation Society – assignments
    • Your shots—National Geographic Society
    • Smithsonian Magazine photo contest
    • Natural Habitat Adventures
    • Guru.com
  • Fee-based Competitions
    • Wildlife Photographer of the Year
    • National Geographic nature photographer of the year
    • National Wildlife photo contest
    • Audubon photo contest
    • Nature’s Best Photographer
    • Outdoor Photography magazine
    • Iowa State Fair
    • Digital Photography magazine
  • Social media
    • Nebraska Through the Lens
    • Facebook
    • North America Nature Photographers Association (NANPA)
    • Instagram
    • FlickR
  • Local publications 
    • Nebraskaland
    • Nebraska Life
    • Newspapers
    • Blogs
    • Personal websites
  • Physical displays
    • Local galleries
    • Libraries
  • Conferences

 

 

 Thanks to Allan Kurth who brought treats tonight.

Next meeting will be on Thursday, March 15th at 7 pm in the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. Club members Jim and Donna Trojanowski will share photos and stories with us about their experiences on African photo safaris.

One final note. The Audubon Society of Omaha has invited us to join them on Saturday, March 17th at 7 pm in the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center for a presentation by Rick Wright on John James Audubon’s voyage up the Missouri River 175 years ago.

The meeting was adjourned at about 8:00 P.M.

Submitted by Eric Scholar, Secretary.

Minutes of the Fontenelle Forest Photo Club Meeting, January 18, 2018

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About 30 people attended the meeting at 7:00 P.M.

President Alex Wiles presided.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Photo Displays – Judy Dye

Photos will be displayed at both the Forest and at the Bellevue Library.

March subjects: Doorknobs for the Library and Sky for the Forest.

Next spring: Red, white and blue

The photos can be 8×10, 8×12 or 11×14. No mattes or frames please. Remember to add your name, the subject and the location on the back of each photo you submit.

Treasurer’s Report

Kathleen reported that there is now $ 1597 in the club’s treasury.

Additional Business

  • It was mentioned that Pete Carbonell won a second and third place in the Nebraskaland Photo contest .
  • Pete Carbonell reported that Rockbrook camera is starting a series of free mini-classes on Saturday mornings starting on Jan 27. The first one will be on  photographing the blood moon.
  • On Jan. 31st Fontenelle Forest is having a hike to view the upcoming lunar eclipse.

PROGRAM:

The presenter for the night was Molly Mullen of the Fontenelle Forest Communications department.

Molly’s talk was on Introduction to Cyanotype Photography.

Molly has been working in photography for several years and has traveled widely photographing people, refugees and war torn environments. Now that she has settled back in Nebraska, she has developed an interested in primitive photography.

Tonight she spoke on what is a cyanotype, the history of cyanotypes, the process and chemistry of it and the making of photos using the process.

The process produces a cyan blue print. It involves taking a negative and applying a paper coated with three chemicals to the negative and exposing these to sunlight or UV light.

John Hershel introduced the process in 1842. Anna Adkins in 1843 became the first person to produce a photographically illustrated book using cyanotypes.

Molly and her husband demonstrated the process including the mixing of the chemicals (ammonium iron oxide, potassium ferrocyanide, ammonium dichromate) and their application. Molly then invited members to try the process. She said she would be glad to give advice to and help anyone who is interested in trying this at home.

She emphasized the toxicity of the chemicals involved and used gloves and a mask when mixing and applying the chemicals.

The meeting was adjourned at about 8:20 pm.

Next Meeting

Our next meeting will be on Thursday, February 15th at 7 pm in the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. The topic for the meeting is “Getting Your Work Out There”. Alex Wiles will conduct a discussion on the various methods of sharing your photography such as photography competitions (including ours), Facebook pages, social media programs, and other outlets that are open to public submission of varying experience levels.

Submitted by Eric Scholar, Secretary.

January 2018 Meeting Reminder & Notes

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Happy New Year!!! The January thaw is underway and it’s just in time for us to get out to our first meeting of the year! The timing couldn’t be better because this is a meeting you will not want to miss.

Next Meeting

Our January meeting is tomorrow, January 18th at 7 pm and will take place as usual in the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. The presenter for the meeting will be Molly Mullen. Molly not only is the Marketing Manager for Fontenelle Forest, but she also enjoys working with cyanotype film development. Molly’s presentation will be about all of the fun things you can do with this vintage film development process. She will also bring materials and give everyone the opportunity to try their hands at this interesting technique during the meeting! So come on out and be ready to take part in this fun and unique process.

Floodplain Exhibition

As I mentioned in the last blog post I published, last Saturday the Forest had the grand opening of the photography exhibition created by our esteemed President, Alex Wiles. The exhibition, named Floodplain, was a great success! Over a hundred people came out and enjoyed viewing the photos and listening to Alex’s presentation on this very interesting view of the various creatures that inhabit the Missouri River floodplain and his vision to present them in this unique format.

If you were unable to attend the gallery opening, fear not! Alex will give us access to the Baright Gallery area in the Nature Center before our meeting so that you can check out this great exhibition. So come out to the meeting 15-20 minutes early so that you can have time to take in Alex’s great work.

Photo Displays

Photos will be displayed at both the Forest and at the Bellevue Library. Here’s what we are collecting now:

March subjects: Doorknobs for the Library and Sky for the Forest.

Next spring: Red, white and blue

The photos can be 8×10, 8×12 or 11×14. No mattes or frames please. Remember to add your name, the subject and the location on the back of each photo you submit.

Photo Contests

It is getting to that time of the year where opportunities to showcase your photos and earn some money in contests become more and more available. Please feel free to let me know of any contests that you hear about and I’ll share the information with the group.

Kathleen Crawford, a longtime member of the Audubon Society sent me a link to the National Audubon Society’s annual photo contest. So take a moment to check out the site. Who knows? You may be the next winner! http://www.audubon.org/photoawards-entry?ms=digital-eng-email-ea-x-20180111_photo-awards

We’ll see you all at the meeting tomorrow!

Peter Carbonell

Webmaster

Fontenelle Forest Photography Club

webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org

Floodplain Photo Exhibit at the Nature Center on January 13th – Featuring Photos from Alex Wiles

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Those of us who have spent any time with the photo club know that Alex Wiles is not only our current president, but he is also an accomplished and up and coming nature and wildlife freelance photojournalist.

One of Alex’s projects will be the subject of the next exhibit at the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center Baright Gallery. Floodplain: A Clear View of Life in the Big Muddy will be unveiled on Saturday, January 13th from 2 pm to 5 pm and Alex will be available to meet and greet all those attending.

Alex used high key photography techniques to capture clear images of the various animals that inhabit the often cloudy environment around the Missouri River.

The exhibit will likely run through April, but if you can, please take some time out on Saturday the 13th to support Alex and check out this outstanding exhibit!

Minutes of the Fontenelle Forest Photo Club Meeting, December 14, 2017

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Approximately 35 people attended our annual Holiday Potluck meeting. The club provided fried and baked chicken while members brought a variety of sides and desserts.

Following dinner we enjoyed a slideshow containing the favorite photos of the last year submitted by our members.

Photo Displays

Photos will be displayed at both the Forest and at the Bellevue Library.

March subjects: Doorknobs for the Library and Sky for the Forest.

Next spring: Red, white and blue

The photos can be 8×10, 8×12 or 11×14. No mattes or frames please. Remember to add your name, the subject and the location on the back of each photo you submit.

Next Meeting

The next photo club meeting will be on Thursday, January 18th at 7 pm in the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. Molly Mullen, Marketing Manager for Fontenelle Forest, will provide a presentation on cyanotype photography.

Peter Carbonell

Webmaster

Fontenelle Forest Photography Club

webmaster@fontenenelleforestphotoclub.org