Prints – Roger Lancaster

Roger Lancaster has been a member of NVPS since 2009. His first foray into photography came at the age of 5 when his grandfather, a photojournalist, let him use his old Kodak foldup camera to take pictures of trees! He took a sabbatical right after that and didn’t pick up a camera again until his kids were born and like most parents took a multitude of photos of his first-born, son Scott. As was the case with many parents, his second-born, daughter Susan, ended up with just a fraction of photos of her. And if there had been more kids, it is doubtful that any photographic record would be available. Bunny, his wife, bought him a Pentax 35 mm camera for one of his birthdays in the ‘70’s, but as the kids got involved in sports, music, etc. his interest in photography waned.

During the latter years of his career as an association executive, Roger had the fortune to use a Sony Mavica digital camera, and he was hooked. The idea that you didn’t have to wait to have film processed to view an image was fantastic!  After retiring in 2008, he purchased a series of Canon point and shoot cameras, ending up by trading sides and getting a Nikon D70. That was replaced a few years later by his Nikon D300, which he currently uses.

He considers himself an advanced amateur, and tells people who ask him that it was a hobby that got out of control. Most of his training has come through programs offered by NVPS, his fellow members in the club, especially Dennis Govani, and through tutorials he found on the CD’s that came with subscriptions to some British photo magazines.

Roger favors landscapes, and has a philosophy of bringing the outdoors inside through his images. In recent months he has developed a keen interest in historical objects found in museums and the like. He has won numerous awards through NVPS, including Photographer of the Year for Novice Monochrome Prints in his first year in the club; and most recently Photographer of the Year for Class 3 Color Prints for 2013-14. He has also had numerous awards and exhibitions in juried competitions and has had his images featured in several magazines. He was co-chair for Education and Training for NVPS for two years, and currently serves as the NVPS representative on the Nature Visions Board of Directors.

Roger is a native of British Columbia in Canada and has resided in the DC area since 1974. He and his wife recently built and moved into a new home on 12 forested acres near Waterford VA.

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Digital Images – Patricia Deege

A native of England, Patricia’s artistic journey began in childhood with watercolor painting and a box camera. She worked as administration assistant for the Asian Department of the International Monetary Fund for nine years before marrying and creating a family of three boys. She returned to photography in 1995, having spent several years in Egypt and Germany on assignment with her husband for USAID.  A wealth of incredible photo opportunities, but lack of knowledge, led her to finally attend a photography seminar and the pure poetry of the images presented inspired her to once again delve into the mysteries of the camera and the fascinating art of creating images that “speak” to the heart.

Now retired from the working world and a serious amateur photographer, she is a member of Vienna Photographic Society (1997), Northern Virginia Photographic Society (since 1999), League of Reston Artists and the Vienna Arts Society. Although mostly self-taught, she has gained much knowledge and inspiration from attending workshops, lectures, reading and looking at the images of others.  She participates regularly in exhibits and competitions, winning many awards, among them “Best in Show” at the Claude Moore Photography Exhibit in Herndon, the prestigious Nature Visions Expo in Manassas, and the Vienna Town Photography Show. She was awarded “Photographer of the Year for Vienna Photographic Society in 1998 and 2008. She has been published in the International Library of Photography, several magazines such as Shutterbug and Outdoor Photographer, and in camera club newsletters and websites. She rarely leaves home without a camera and often finds opportunities to photograph in unexpected places; she enjoys creating slideshows and videos which illustrate her travels.

Although her first love has always been nature, Patricia is interested in all aspects of photography, and the digital age and extensive new processing software have added a new dimension to her craft.  From her place behind the lens, she has learned the art of seeing what is often unnoticed and unexpected.  The camera has opened up a fascinating new arena of sights and experiences and her life has thus been greatly enriched.  Imparting that fascination to even just a few other people, when they look at her photographs and feel their hearts gladden and their spirits uplifted, makes all the efforts worthwhile.