October Meeting

Please note - there's a change in our program. Andy Heatwole had a conflict come up with a client and cannot make our October meeting. We're planning to have him back in November.

Our next meeting is on Thursday, October 17th. Please mark your calendars!

7:00 - 7:15: Introduction of New Members/Guests, Announcements, Member News

7:15 - 8:15: Presentation - "Just Photoshop, no additional software needed." - Tom Delaney

8:15 - 9:00: Image Reviews - Topic: Recent Work.

Don't forget to send your 2 review images (jpg 800 pixels wide) by Tuesday, October 15th via email to:hcphotoclub@gmail.com.

Reminder about our image review process:

When we display your image we'll ask you to select one of these reviews:

1. Critique - You have specific questions you'd like to ask about your image and you want feedback from the other photographers at the meeting. Come prepared with your questions.
2. Show and Tell - You'd simply like to share information about this image with us such as technique or location.

More about our image review process here:

http://hillcountryphotographyclub.blogspot.com/2010/02/new-image-review-process.html

 

Meeting Location: Horizon Bay (formerly Merrill Gardens) in San Marcos. Map and directions available on our club website. When you enter the building, stay on the first floor and walk to the back and turn left. We're in the first room on the right.

About our Program

Tom Delaney, long-time club member and our Vice-President, will cover procedures, tips, and tricks to get the best out of Photoshop. If you're new or unfamiliar with Photoshop, this should provide a good overview of what you can do with the program. For those of you with more experience, you may pick up a trick or two!

October Meeting

Our next meeting is on Thursday, October 17th. Please mark your calendars!

7:00 - 7:15: Introduction of New Members/Guests, Announcements, Member News

7:15 - 8:15: Presentation - "Night Photography: Post-processing" - Andy Heatwole

8:15 - 9:00: Image Reviews - Topic: Recent Work.

Don't forget to send your 2 review images (jpg 800 pixels wide) by Tuesday, October 15th via email to:hcphotoclub@gmail.com.

Reminder about our image review process:

When we display your image we'll ask you to select one of these reviews:

1. Critique - You have specific questions you'd like to ask about your image and you want feedback from the other photographers at the meeting. Come prepared with your questions.
2. Show and Tell - You'd simply like to share information about this image with us such as technique or location.

More about our image review process here:

http://hillcountryphotographyclub.blogspot.com/2010/02/new-image-review-process.html

 

Meeting Location: Horizon Bay (formerly Merrill Gardens) in San Marcos. Map and directions available on our club website. When you enter the building, stay on the first floor and walk to the back and turn left. We're in the first room on the right.

About our Program

We were fortunate to have Andy Heatwole conduct a hands-on Night Photography workshop in downtown San Marcos for our March meeting. He is returning for our October program to demonstrate his workflow and techniques for post-processing of Night Photography images.

Andy has offered to work on our images, taken at the March workshop, during the program! Here are his guidelines:

For the images, I prefer to work with the original RAW files but I will consider JPG/TIFF images and those that have already been edited. For each image submitted, I would like a description of what the photographer wants to see in terms of enhancement or correction. Depending on how many are submitted and the time limit for the presentation, I may have to select only a few to demonstrate.

 

Members can submit their images to me through my dropbox at https://dropbox.hightail.com/heatwole.

Andy Heatwole is a professional architectural photographer and works with clients throughout the US. He was inspired to take up photography over a decade ago when he discovered the possibilities of night photography on the Internet. What started as a hobby became a passionate pursuit and eventually a career. When he's not shooting commercially, he enjoys photographing the landscapes and natural beauty of the Central TX area. For samples of his work, please visit www.bluehourphoto.com.

 

His night photography workshops blend his love for night photography with his enjoyment of teaching it. These workshops serve as an introduction into an area of photography that offers virtually unlimited opportunities for creativity. By demystifying the process, participants gain an understanding of the photographic techniques required for capturing great photos at night. His goal is for each participant to come away some great photos and the skills to continue exploring night photography on their own. All skill levels are welcomed and participants receive personal instruction to meet their specific needs.

Naturescapes 2013 Awards Reception

We held the 9th Annual Naturescapes Awards Reception last Saturday night at the San Marcos Activity Center. The reception opens the Exhibition at the Walkers’ Gallery and also gives an opportunity to recognize the award winners.

About 100 exhibitors, family, and friends attended. We were treated to snacks, drinks and music by the ensemble, Wimberley Friends of Music. Many thanks Linda Kelsey-Jones, the Walker’s Gallery curator, for organizing the reception.

I was pleased to serve as the Master of Ceremonies and was helped by Hays County Master Naturalist Past-President Larry Calvert.

Naturescapes is the only juried exhibition at the Walkers’ Gallery and this year we were pleased to have Chase Fountain as the contest juror.  Chase is a Texas Parks & Wildlife Department staff photographer. His photography has been featured in many publications including National Geographic Explorer Traveler, Men’s Journal, Tide, Prime, Texas Highways and Texas Monthly as well as the Associated Press. He graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University in 1993 with a Bachelor of Applied arts and Sciences degree specializing in photojournalism and fine art photography.

This year the contest received 186 entries from 34 photographers. Chase selected 60 images from 23 photographers. Three of photographers are youth. Images from all the eligible counties: Blanco, Caldwell, Comal, Guadalupe, Hays, Travis, are in the exhibition.

Here’s the complete list of the Naturescapes 2013 Award Winners.

Awards of Merit

Awards of Merit are awarded completely at the discretion of the juror. He decides whether to have any and how many. This year, Chase added a special category of Best Black & White, to give special recognition to two of the images.

• Best Black & White - Cypress Lane – Larry Alford
• Best Black & White - Moonflower – Rose Epps
• Fox – Winifred Simon

Awards of Excellence

The contest has four Awards of Excellence and each wins a $50 prize.

• Hummingbirds – Janet Sanders
  
• Resting Hummer – Michael Zarella
• Wild Lilies – Rose Epps
• Sparring Finches – Carolyn Whiteside

Best Youth

The Best Youth Award is sponsored by the Hill Country Photography Club and wins a $75 prize.

• Nutria – Hannah McGee

Best Natural Waterscape

The Best Natural Waterscape Award is sponsored by the Hays County Master Naturalists and wins a $75 prize. This Award was presented by Larry Calvert.

• Cypress Creek Waterfall II – Michael Penn Smith

Best in Show

The Best in Show Award is presented to the Exhibition’s top image and wins a $100 prize.

• Longhorn Sunset – Michael Penn Smith

Congratulations to all the Exhibitors and especially to our Award Winners. The contest just gets better and better!

There are 60 beautiful images on display. The Naturescapes Exhibition will be in the Walkers’ Gallery until November 8th. Be sure to go see it!