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!

Greg Lasley Presentation

Greg Lasley, a local wildlife photographer will be speaking at this month's Hays County Master Naturalist Chapter meeting and we're invited! The meeting will be held on Thursday, March 22^nd, from 6:30pm to 8:30pm, at the Wimberley Presbyterian Church, 956 FM 2325. A map is available here.

Greg’s Texas Wildlife Portraits  was published by Texas A&M Press in late 2008. The book is an eclectic collection of Texas wildlife images from birds to mammals, insects, and reptiles. Each image in the book was taken by Greg in the wild and in Texas. In his program of the same title, Greg explains how the book came to be and outlines his own evolution into the world of birding and later wildlife photography. Many of the images from the book are part of the program and Greg explains how many of the images were taken and the circumstances and background behind the shot.

In 2009, Greg also served as the Naturescapes Juror.

The chapter meeting starts with a social time from 6:30pm to 7:00pm and you're encouraged to bring snacks.

I think you'll enjoy Greg's program and I hope to see you there!

Free Photo Expo Coming to Austin in May!

Just Announced
AUSTIN PHOTO EXPO 2010 - May 15 & 16

What is Austin Photo Expo?
This is Austin’s largest gathering of photographic manufacturers in one place for two days only.
Check out the expo demo floor for all the new cameras, lenses, and accessories. Representatives will be on hand to explain how their products work best for you.

And don’t miss out on the FREE lectures. Each lecture should cost you at least $30, but this week-end all of them are free. Check out the great line-up under the speaker’s button. Learn tips on how to take better portraits, nature shots, macro, lighting techniques and more. There are three rooms for seminars, and they are on a first come first seated basis.

CONTACT INFO@AUSTINPHOTOEXPO.COM
TO GET INFO ON UPDATES.

Website: http://www.austinphotoexpo.com/index.htm

Photoshop 4 Creativity Tour - San Antonio

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center
Room: 103
200 E. Market St
San Antonio, TX 78205
Phone: (210) 207-8500

At long last, you can spend a day with the photo realist genius of our times, Bert Monroy. While you may not be able to draw like Bert does (no one can, he's truly the master) in this seminar you'll be able to learn the techniques he's developed over the years to create realistic images that boggle the imagination.

It's the perfect seminar for Photoshop users, photographers and illustrators alike! Different from any seminar offered before, Bert will show you features that are underused and even overlooked by most people, yet powerful enough to make any imagined effect a reality.

More information here.

NANPA Texas Hill Country Regional Event

North American Nature Photography Association
Texas Hill Country
April 16-19, 2009

Located in the heart of the beautiful Texas Hill Country, Fredericksburg is a historic German community. There are numerous sites for photography in the vicinity, including: Pedernales Falls State Park, Enchanted Rock State Park, the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historic Park, and beautiful private ranches set up for nature photography.

This event is being presented in partnership with the Texas Hill Country Nature Photography Alliance.

More information here.