Nothing like waiting to the last minute. Hey did know we are having our Fontenelle Forest Photo Club meeting tonight at 7:00 PM? I apologize for the lateness in this reminder. I will update you all about upcoming items and what we need for our displays,…etc on another post, coming real soon.

Our speaker had to cancel due to her work requirements. She was sent out of town. But your executive board has arranged a “Behind the scenes look at the Zoo? Those of us who went to the zoo prior to its opening on November 4 of last year is going to give you some insight and show some of their photos. They will share their insights about the experience. Please attend. Thank you for your support.

Phil

The meeting will be at the forest at 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM on March 21, 2024

Allen Kurth will be presenting Lightroom by Adobe. He will show his process in post processing photos. Allen is an excellent photographer. Please attend to see some of his secrets he uses in his photos.

Treasurer’s Report

 Feb. 1 balance                $787.14

Income                                                0

Expenses;                                65.42

display id cards

  Plexiglass print covers

Feb. 29 balance              $721.72

The dues have never been raised but our annual contest expenses and other expenses have more than doubled over the years. 

Comments?  Could this be an agenda item at the March meeting

Proposed: Member Dues going UP!

You know it has to be done. We need to raise the price of membership for next year. The executive board has discussed this. Presently membership dues are; Single, $12, Family, $20. I believe this has been this way for years. Proposed increase to; Single, $20, Family, $30. After February the price will be halved for new memberships. We will take a vote at the March 21 meeting.

Photos for Forest and Library Displays

We need to start collecting prints for the new photo displays.  The  topics are:

“PLAYING WITH LIGHT: REFLECTIONS AND SHADOWS”  for the library display.

And for the forest  “SPRING IN FONTENELLE FOREST”.

Thanks to Jean Lindfors for suggesting “reflections and Shadows”

Please bring prints to the March and April meetings so that the new displays can be put up after the April meeting.

Post Processing Editing Video

If you don’t have Photoshop or Lightroom, perhaps this video will help get you started post-processing without the expense of Adobe products. It is about 8 minutes long.

Please look at the proposed rules for the 2024 Photo Club contest. We will vote at the March 21 meeting.

2024 Photo Club Contest Information and Guidelines

Guidelines for the 2024 Annual Fontenelle Forest Nature Association

Photography Club Show

Bellevue University Hitchcock Humanities Center / Criss Auditorium

Hello to All Fontenelle Forest Nature Association Photo Club Members:

Set – Up – Saturday, May 25, 2024, 10:00 AM

Critique and Awards Presentation – Thursday, June 20, 2024, 7:00 to 9:00 PM

Take Down – Saturday, June 29, 2024, 10:00 AM

Questions – Contact Contest Coordinator: Donna Gray – Email: djg618@yahoo.com

Who:  Any member in good standing of the Fontenelle Forest Nature Association Photo Club.  (***Only Fontenelle Forest Photography Club members who are up to date regarding Club dues are eligible to enter photographs.  If you are unsure of your status, check with Club Treasurer Kathleen Crawford Rose.***)

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.

If there are less than five entries in any novice category, those entries will be automatically transferred to the advanced categories. 

“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.

Birds: 

Any bird, wild or domesticated, including pets.

A minimum of ten bird photos are necessary to have a separate category.  If there are less than ten bird photos, the bird photos will be included in the Animal category.

Flora:

 A photo where the following are the main subject of the photo – any flower, plant, fungi 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.

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.  Members may enter a total of four photos in the contest.  Watermarks or any feature that could identify the photographer are prohibited on the photos entered in the contest.

How to Present Your Prints 

• Prints 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 no 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 prints 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.
•  

Email a digital copy of the entered photos to the photo contest coordinator in jpg (jpeg) format.  Don’t worry about file size.  I will take care of any resizing that needs to be done.  If you don’t know how to convert to a jpg (jpeg) file, just email what you have, and I will convert as needed.  If your files are large, you may need to email them one or two at a time due to email restrictions on file sizes.  Please have your photos to me between May 15 through June 7, 2024 .  No earlier, no later.      Email them to   djg618@yahoo.com   Failure to send a digital photo will result in disqualification in the contest.  These are needed for the PowerPoint presentation on the critique/awards night.

The email information will include the category name, whether you are entering as a Novice or Advanced, the title of the photo and if it was taken at Fontenelle Forest.  Make sure your name is also included in case it is not part of the email address.

Awards: 

In each Class and category:   First, Second, and Third Place (24 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 32 Ribbons to be awarded at this Year’s Show (If all categories are filled)!

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 02/24/2024

JarredZ is our guest speaker

Jarred will be discussing his “From Teacher to Full Time Artist – How I Pivoted at 46 years old to a career based in Photography”.  Jarred has a website https://jerredz.com/

Weather hit us again in January

Allen Kurth has agreed to be our presenter at the March 21 meeting. We had to cancel the January meeting due to weather.

Photo Displays

We swapped out the photos at the Forest and Bellevue Library. Go check them out. We are looking for new subjects for future displays. Bring your suggestions to the February meeting.

Treasurer’s Report

Treasurer’s Report for January, 2024

No income

Expenses:     December potluck      $108.00

Balance:      $787.14

From Fontenelle Forest

Emily Prauner from the forest will address our club at the February meeting about some news about our club getting more exposure in resources used by the Forest.

Smart Phone Photography

In Closing

Please comment below about anything on your mind. Still looking for someone out there to volunteer to become our president and vice-president. Thanks to Kathleen, Donna, and the Kuhns for swapping out the photos at the forest and library.

Don’t forget to attend our meeting at 7:00 PM on January 18, 2024. Our guest speaker will be past president and club member, Allen Kurth.

Lightroom will be our subject

Allen says; My discussion centers around the reason I use Lightroom and the most important things that I accomplish with it. I’ll demo as many different things as I can to try to show users of all skill levels something new.

If you want to bring a few raw images on a thumb drive, Allen will show how he would adjust the images using Lightroom. We will try to get to as many as we can, if time permits.

Photo Displays

We need members to bring  a “Midwest Scenic” and/or a “Fall in Fontenelle Forest” print. 

2023 Nebraskaland Magazine Photo Winner

Congratulations to Margaret Block-West

Margaret received 2nd place in the Scenic category with her photograph called “Toadstool Splendor” Check out her photo in the January-February 2024 issue of Nebraskaland on page 20.

Still Looking for a President and Vice President!!!

Lightroom and Lightroom Classic Comparison Video

Final Thoughts

I hope everyone survived the last two storms. I finally got some use out of my snowblower. I helped out my neighbor also. I hope everyone has a better 2024 than 2023! I am looking forward to making it so for me and my family. Please comment below with your thoughts and things you hope for in the New Year.

You saw our meeting schedule in my last post. We are trying to find someone for March meeting and tells all about phone camera photography. Fingers crossed. See you all at the January 18 meeting.

Phil

Adobe Alternatives

Treasurer’s Report

Greetings all.

Beginning and ending balance for December:  $895.14

Pending expenses:  $105.00 for potluck. Includes chicken, sodas, paper goods, etc.

Bellevue Times

I sent the following to the Times for publication. It is our meeting schedule for the year 2024.

The name of our club is “Fontenelle Forest Photography Club”. We meet on the third Thursday of each month except in July and August. Meeting times start at 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM. Our meeting place is at Fontenelle Forest. Public is welcome to attend our meetings. Our website is . https://www.fontenelleforestphotoclub.org/   People should check our website for latest information about our club.

Our schedule for 2024 is;

January 18, Allen Kurth. Lightroom

February 15. Jared Zegelis, TBD

March 21, TBD

April 18. Ni Drehmann, TBD

May 16, Annual Raptor Photo Shoot

June 20, Photo Contest critique and winners announcement

July and August, NO MEETINGS

September 19, TBD

October 1, TBD

November 21, TBD

December 19, TBD

I am working on speaker/subject for March. We have received some suggestions for subjects for our meetings. I hope to get with our executive board members to discuss these suggestions. Thank you to those who have sent in ideas.

Comment Below…

Please leave comments below, volunteer to be president or vice-president, have a Happy New Year…etc.

Christmas Potluck Slideshow

Our slide show photos are now on the website homepage.

Forest and Library display photos

Kathleen says;

Greetings and happy holidays everyone.

Thanks to those who were able to participate in the December potluck/slideshow.  It was FUN.

Please check through your images and pick our a MIDWEST SCENIC and or FALL AT FONTENELLE FOREST.  We need several more of each for our new displays.  We’d like to get them up as soon as possible.

You can drop them off at Phil’s home in midtown Omaha webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org or Kathleen’s home on Bellevue Blvd. South.  katcr@cox.net.

January 18 Photo Club meeting

Allen Kurth will be our speaker and he will talk about Adobe Lightroom. He will show his workflow and tips for using Lightroom.

Lightroom Video

In Closing

I want to say to all of you, I have had a ball being in this club and being your webmaster. I hoped all of you had a happy Holiday and wish for you to have a very, very Happy New Year. Please comment below what you would like to see your club do different for 2024. And don’t forget to be one of the lucky few who volunteer to be president and vice- president of the Fontenelle Forest Photo Club.

Pot Luck Dinner

It is that time of the year. The club will provide fried and baked chicken. Members should bring a side dish to share. Dinner will begin shortly after the food arrives. If you haven’t already, let us know if you can come and how many. We need a count so we can have enough chicken. Send your info to the webmaster@fontenelleforetphotoclub.org and I will get that count over to Kathleen.

December Meeting Slideshow

We need your photos for the December meeting slide show. Please send your photo files to the webmaster@fontenelleforestphotoclub.org . They should all be submitted by December 19, Tuesday. This give me a couple of days to process photos into a slide show. The sooner the better.

Failed Post Notifications

It appears some of you are not getting notified when a new post is publish on the website. Some of the issues are spam filters on the individuals mail service. P;ease check your spam folders to see if the notification is there. I have asked Kathleen to email all of our members that a new post is on the website. Let me know or Kathleen if you do not see a notification.

Photo Displays

Kathleen says;

We still need some photos for the displays…

Midwest Scenic s for the library

And

Fall in Fontenelle Forest  for the Forest display.

More Zoo Pics From Our Field Trip by Tom Boggs

Loess Bluffs Eagles and more

Brent and Mary Headley have been down to the bluffs and he says there are a lot of eagles and snow geese during “Eagle Days”

Past Meeting Minutes

I have received the minutes from October and November meetings. I will post them in another post to avoid fatiguing you guys too much!

Short Video

Looking for President and Vice-President Still…

Please comment below.