Meeting Monday May 18

Hi - Hope you're all planning to be at our Monday meeting because we have a super speaker and a learning experience on enhancing photos. Skip Brown will present his talk on Action Photography - here's what his website says:

"Skip Brown is one of the worlds top outdoor action sports and travel photographers. As a Class V kayaker, advanced-rated hangglider pilot and accomplished windsurfer, kiteboarder, mountain biker and all-around snowsports guy Skip brings a special perspective to adventure landscapes. These skills enable him to keep up with pro athletes in the field and give him a unique understanding of their sports. When he's not working in the outdoors Skip is shooting portraits and ad campaigns for a variety of commercial and editorial clients. Skip lives in Cabin John, MD near the Potomac River with his wife and two young sons."

Our member and Exhibits Director Bill Tongue is preparing a presentation to show us how he makes "painterly" adjustments to his photos. We've seen some of these in Showcases, and now you will be able to use these techniques, too.

Come before 7pm and chat with your photog cohorts, and we'll start with Skip. I think you'll really enjoy this show - I've seen it recently - and have some Q&A time with him. See you there.

Know what's right under copyrights

This coming Monday evening we have a chance to get an expert view on an interesting subject for photographers - copyright issues. This is a wide topic of concern today, and you need some background knowledge if you offer your photos to others for viewing or seek to use others' photos.

Our speaker on this is Lesley Ellen Harris, a copyright lawyer, author and educator. She will discuss how to protect your photographs in traditional and digital media, what to do if someone uses your photographs without your permission, and terms and conditions when licensing and assigning your photographs and working on assignment.

Lesley has been working in copyright law since 1983 while still in law school, and consults on copyright issues in the U.S. and Canada and the around the world. She is well qualified to provide us an overview of U.S. and international copyright law and the protection of photographs. Since 1998, Lesley has made her home on the South River in Annapolis. See information about her work at http://copyrightlaws.com.

Lesley would be happy to receive your copyright questions in advance -- email Don Dement right away and he will forward your questions to Lesley.

Matting and framing, and a request

There are two upcoming opportunities to learn about presentations. A class to help you mount your photographs yourself is being offered at MD Hall by Instructor David Ashman. He spoke at our last meeting announcing this, to be held on April 18, next Saturday afternoon for $70. More info is on the website http://www.marylandhall.org/classes/detail/classitem5132.html

As he described at the meeting, David is willing to follow the matting course with a follow-on: a Framing Workshop to learn custom framing techniques for your matted images. To be given at low cost, this workshop needs a location.

The theme will be cost-effective custom framing. It includes proper selection of materials and use of tools, glazing choices, and artwork installation techniques using metal, wood and canvas floater frames. Handouts would include lists of materials and sources.

David asks whether a member can identify a place to hold this workshop. Contact David at david@davidashmanphotography.com

Exhibit Opportunity Continues

Hi All - This just in from the Maryland Federation of Art about their exhibit opportunity to enter the "Chesapeake Watershed" photography show.

The MFA has decided to continue to accept entries for the Chesapeake Watershed Photography Exhibition until Wednesday, April 15th. Please spread the word!!!! We can't show your great work if you do not enter!!! The prospectus with entry form and rules is available at the MFA site under Exhibits, or use this direct URL http://mdfedart.org/chesapeake_watershed09web.pdf

If you have any questions please feel free to contact the gallery at 410-268-4566 or via email or drop in to see them at 18 Church Circle. They're open most days 11-5.

I just dropped off five entries by CD (required) or you can USPS mail to them if you do it very soon. No email submissions. Must be in by close of business next Wednesday.

This is a prestigious gallery in town, and the opportunity to show there is a good one that doesn't come often. This is a rare PHOTO-ONLY show! It's juried by one of the best-known of the pros in town, Richard Olsenius. Read his background on the prospectus.

The town's major photo club should be well represented. What's more, there are substantial cash prizes plus the chance to sell your prints.

A winner - DKD

New Exhibit Opportunity - Now or never!!

Hi, all members. The Maryland Federation of Art in Annapolis - gallery is at 18 State Circle - is inviting our Club to submit photos to their "Chesapeake Watershed" exhibit. They want photos you may already have taken of anywhere in the Watershed from New York to Virginia, at any time.

This is an MFA Open Show, so artists of all kinds are invited regardless of being a member. I was reminded by the show organizer that entries are due next Tuesday Apr 2, and cannot be by email - must be on a CD, USPS mailed with postmark on/before Apr 2 or hand-carried. However, that date could be waived if there is a need for it and if the gallery is notified that an entry is coming (410-268-4566). The info about this is here: http://mdfedart.org/chesapeake_watershed09web.pdf

The juror, Richard Olsenius, has top-rated credentials, owns his own gallery in Eastport, and is a photographer (Nat'l Geog, books, etc.) and composer with several DVDs out.

I've been a member at MFA for several years - have had a one-man show and several individual photos selected for their exhibits. It's a great place to visit, view, and show. There is prestige in getting your photos hung there and possibly selling your photos, as well as winning some of the $1500 in prize awards.

And you don't have to join to enter!! - although it would be to your advantage to participate now and in the future. See the brochure for details and read it carefully.

This notice was coordinated with our Exhibits Director, but it's an individual opportunity, not a Club event. Give it a try and get into the arts community!

Next Meeting - March 23

Hi, all - Our upcoming meeting should be a real winner again. We have Steve Gottlieb, outstanding photographer and founder/operator of Horizon Workshops in Chesapeake City, MD coming to us to speak on what he calls a combination of images, amusing stories, personal history, photo tips, and answers to questions: "On the American Road: Images and Anecdotes." Take a look: www.horizonworkshops.com/index.html. He'll have items from his business, including brochures and books.

With our upcoming Challenge on Black and White Conversion, in addition to the demos we did at the meeting we have a unique opportunity to witness a black/white master printer's work and talk with him. Dick Bond, photography instructor at MD Hall, will conduct a tour for us in the 2d floor Marino Gallery where he has a one-man exhibit in presentation. Dick has made the dozens of woodland prints that are on display using an 1895 Korona 5x7 view camera, which he restored and has on display. The sharpness and tonalities are remarkable.

Following all this, we'll return to the digital world in our Rm 308 for a short talk by Jay Alden on "Photo Documentaries: Creating Entertaining Photo Slide Shows." Jay has considerable experience with this, and will show us one of his, how he does it and alternatives we can use.

I'm surely looking forward to each of these presentations. I think you'll enjoy the evening.

Please don't forget to do some Black and White conversions, even if just for practice. Get pretty good at it and then do some to submit for the Challenge. The submission deadline is April 13. See you there.

Next meeting - March 9

Hi, DPCA Members. You're participating in the Challenge "Composition on a Tabletop," I hope.

We have an expert in closeup photography coming to give us comments and critique on our entries. He's Fred Lagno, retired airline pilot and an award-winning barnstormer/aerial photographer now living in Queenstown. Since retiring 14 years ago he's become an expert modelmaker and photographer, primarily of model trains and scale-model buildings.

I've seen his train photography show, and it's amazing. As an added inspiration about closeups, after our critique Fred will spend a few minutes showing us samples of his realistic shots, including some that have been magazine covers of the popular publications about model trains. We'll have some Q&A about these techniques and equipment. You can bet he knows something about controlling depth of field and composition in small object arrangements. Fred has also been using HeliconFocus, which is a program somewhat like HDR but in this case, for "focus stacking."

Not a bad subject following our field trip to the B&O Museum, huh? It should be an interesting and as always, informative meeting even for those who haven't been challenged this time.

Hope you'll be there with your photos. Looking forward to your innovations in photography.