November Theme: Light Trails

We all know that photography is, in its simplest terms, capturing light. What makes photography fun and interesting is the many ways in which we can go about capturing that light. This month’s theme is “Light Trails”. This type of subject matter can be interpreted in a few different ways.

The first thing one thinks of when they hear “light trails” is a slow exposure taken at night of cars driving down the street or perhaps a ride at the amusement park with lots of colourful lights swirling about to make nice patterns. Well, although these are great subjects that will produce light trails, you should also keep in mind that all photography is using light, day or night. So, with that in mind, a trail of light can be made anytime, depending on what type of subject you wish to shoot. A popular method used in photography is lens painting, which uses a slow shutter speed to create a blurred image where you may or may not be able to see what the subject actually is.

Try different techniques when getting light trails. Use your imagination, and “wow” us with your results. And keep in mind, even if you are not a member of the Owen Sound Camera Club, try this theme out and feel free to post some of your shots on the Club’s Facebook page at facebook.com/theoscc.

October’s “Monochrome” Theme

The term of monochrome usually means black & white or grayscale. But it may also be used to refer to a combination of shades of one colour like green, red, etc. This challenge would like you to explore some of these colours. Here are some examples of how you can achieve this;

1) Use your macro lens to get in close to an object like a flower of one colour. Use shadows and textures to compose an interesting picture.

2) Take a picture of an object on a background of the same colour, i.e., Green frog on a green leaf.

3) Experiment with Blue Light to get a monochrome dusk or dawn shot.

4) Take a picture through a diaphanous material of one colour, i.e., Coloured glass or sheer curtain.

5) Convert the picture to sepia tones.

Use your imagination to shoot unusual pictures while remembering techniques like Mik’sang, Impressionism, Lens Painting and using a variety of lenses.

Post submitted by Lynn Reket. Look for some sample images on our Facebook page in the coming days.

Autumn Colours Theme

The Camera Club had their first outing for the new season with a small membership present to try shooting for our theme “Fall Colours.” The idea was to shoot creatively for an old theme using techniques we learned over the past few years at workshops and seminars. We were to focus on the colour wheel and try to capture complementary colours, gradient shades of one color or monochrome. Ideally, we wanted our members to think outside the box. So this outing was an opportunity to “create” some non-traditional Still Life scenes of fall colours. Here are some examples to watch for. Try shooting “outside the box” and bring in your favourite five pictures at our next meeting on October 11, 2011.

You can see some of the images at http://on.fb.me/pteFvx

Submitted by Lynn Reket

Photo Walk

On August 14, the camera club held a photo walk, or what was intended to be a photo walk. The premise of a photo walk is to stroll along and shoot photos of whatever catches your eye, and the idea is not to stop for any longer than the time it takes to snap the picture. Photo walks are usually enjoyed by groups of people. This wasn’t the case for ours.

The weather was not the best for enjoying a nice walk, but fortunately for the four of us who did show up, the shooting conditions were quite good. It was an overcast day that provided for nice, even light, so harsh contrast wasn’t a concern. Of those in attendance, three were club members. You can see some of the images they captured in a special gallery by clicking on this link.

Great Folks, Great Syrup

Spring has finally sprung here in Grey County and along with it was the annual flow of maple syrup.

At a recent maple syrup event in Kemble two of our members, Lynn and Bert Reket, found friendship in a young lady from Toronto who is a blogger for Today’s Parent magazine. Amanda Factor posted a story about her visit and added some pictures by Lynn and Bert. You can read the post at the following link: Amanda Factor from Today’s Parent

March Meeting

We’ve made a change to our plan for the upcoming meeting. We were going to do a presentation on the workflow involved in digital photography but the opportunity has come up for us to share with you a great documentary film.

The movie we’re going to show is called Born Into Brothels. Its a story about a film maker who traveled to Calcutta to show what happens in the daily lives of the children living in the red light district. This film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2004 and is well worth the look.

You may be wondering why we are showing this film at a camera club meeting. The film maker gives each of the children a camera to capture and share their vision of the life they’ve been born into and some of the images they produce are just stunning. If you enjoy a good documentary and amazing photos, you won’t want to miss this meeting.

February Meeting

Don’t miss this meeting on February 8. Rob Cotton will be speaking about the history of photography. Rob works at Foto Art in Owen Sound, where our meetings are hosted. He’s not just an all around good guy, but he also puts on seminars for those looking to learn more about the various aspects of photography, from the basics of the digital camera to optimizing your digtal images. You can see more information about this and find out when these seminars take place on Rob’s Facebook page.