The following are the biographies of the members presenting on March 23rd:
Ursy Potter
Ursy has belonged to NVPS since 2004. She was a potter for 35 years before deciding to dedicate her creative energies to photography. She admits the change in disciplines has been a challenge. Her ceramics were always made with usefulness in mind--they were three-dimensional and sculptural. Her interest in photography is voiced in her concern for her country, her species and her place on our glorious planet.
Ursy's print presentation will reflect two interests of hers. She plans to show the members of NVPS the Grand Canyon as seen through the eyes of a kayaker, swallowed up by the Colorado River. This is very different from the usual panoramas of the Grand Canyon taken from the South Rim at dawn.
Her other theme involves her recent photographs taken in Mexico showing her reflections about our neighbors to the south.
Wayne Wolfersberger
Wayne has been a member of NVPS since the late 1980's. He started taking pictures when he was a kid on family vacations. He was fascinated by animals of all sorts and took pictures of wildlife when he traveled to national parks and other places where there were "critters" lurking about.
He considers himself a pro, but not a full-time photographer. Wayne has taught photography classes for 11 years. He has had many images published (on calendars, postcards and in magazines, including four images in Natures Best) and sold hundreds of exhibition prints. He has done wedding photography and a variety of other types of assignments. However, his major passion is nature photography. This probably results from his professional training and education as a biologist-naturalist. He worked and received training from a commercial photography firm during college and worked for the U.S. Navy in photography during the Viet Nam War. He worked for US Fish & Wildlife Service for awhile and then as a part-time adjunct professor at VA Tech. Before he retired he taught biology full time in Fairfax County. Currently he works for the U.S. National Park Service during the summer and teaches photography classes--basic and advanced--during the spring and fall for Fairfax Adult and Community Education.
Wayne uses Nikon cameras and lenses exclusively. He has not shot film for over two years. His favorite gadget is a bean bag which he uses as a cheap tripod. He says it is helpful to steady his camera and to cut vibrations especially for telephoto shots. He uses it on car windows when the car is a blind and also on the ground for low shots.
His future photography plans include more photo exhibits (he's had three in the last year and a half) and writing magazine articles and a book.
Wayne has been married for 39 years. He and his wife, Donna, have two daughters. One is an environmental scientist living in Australia and the other is a government professional, living locally.