Editor's Note: Our president Kevin Egan is dealing with a medical issue that takes him away from his duties. We wish him speedy recovery and to return soon.

Monthly Program

February 7th: Dream - Believe - Create with John Barclay

John Barclay is an award wining freelance photographer based in Bucks County, Pa. He is a passionate photographer and enthusiastic workshop leader. He presents his inspirational programs to audiences around the world.

 John’s work has been published in a number of books and magazines and is treasured by a number of private collectors.  Recently, John was the recipient of an excellence award from B&W Magazine and was chosen by Dewitt Jones to participate in his www.healingimages.org program. You can see his work and view his workshop schedule at www.barclayphoto.com

Dream - Believe - Create

Why Dream - Believe - Create?  There was a time when I felt I could not create anything. My self-talk was, I am not a creative person: I’m not smart enough; I can’t do this.  

After seeing images projected at the first workshop I took, I dreamed of becoming a good photographer.  Primarily with the help of well known accomplished photographers Tony Sweet, Nancy Rotenberg and later Dan Sniffin, I was able to chip away at the negative self talk and believe that I could create worthwhile images.  Thus Dream - Believe - Create has become the centerpiece of what I teach in my workshops. I believe that everyone has dreams and can achieve their dreams if they would just believe they can. I also believe that when you truly believe, you will be liberated to be able to create.        

The process and journey required to create images feeds my soul and brings me great joy. My goal in this presentation is to inspire you to capture the essence of the subjects you are drawn to using the creative medium of photography. This might entail capturing a small intimate portion of a scene.  It might involve more creative techniques such as multiple exposures the  “slide sandwich” or camera movement for a more expressive interpretation. I will also touch on the digital darkroom including the popular HDR (High Dynamic Range) technology and how having a keen understanding of these can help you achieve your artistic vision.  Numerous examples will be shown which include traditional nature scenes as well as more abstract and urban compositions. We will explore the beauty in both the grand scale as well as more intimate details.  The ideas presented in this program have application to any genre of photography.

Like Ansel Adams, I believe that photographers bring to their images their own journeys: their sense of the world; their experiences and their passions. For me photography is simply another medium of artistic expression, visual poetry if you will.

My hope is that after spending a couple of hours together you will leave inspired to create images that rise above the ordinary!

A few examples of John's work:

Education & Training

February 14th: Color in Photography

In our February 14th Education and Training session, we will be exploring color in photography.  The good use of color in your images can evoke emotion and adds a dynamic element to your images that can be pleasing to the eye.  We’re very pleased that Don Becker, a professional photographer and long-time instructor and technical director at the Washington School of Photography will be joining us to present how to use color to create striking images, and how to use colors together in both complimentary or contracting ways.  We hope you can join us for this presentation that will help us get a better understanding of color in our images as we prepare for the upcoming Color themed competition in May.

The Education and Training Coordinator for 2016-2017 is Chuck Campbell.

Competition

February 21st: Judging by Josh Taylor

Josh Taylor has presented photography workshops at the Smithsonian National Orchid Show, U.S. National Arboretum, U.S. Botanic Garden, Brookside Gardens, Sarah P. Duke Gardens, American Horticultural Society Garden School, Adkins Arboretum, and Longwood Gardens.

In addition to being a Canon Camera instructor, Josh speaks at camera and garden clubs, judges photographic competitions, and exhibits his photographs in gallery shows. He is a member of Garden Writers Association, National Association of Photoshop Professionals, and member and past president of the Northern Virginia Photographic Society. Josh was voted best garden club speaker in 2005 and was a judge for the 2009 Garden Writers Association National Media Awards and the 2010 Mid-Atlantic Nature Photography Expo. Longwood Gardens selected Josh as its Instructor of the Month (October 2010) and was a selected photographer to assist the public in photographing Bruce Munro’s Light: Installations (2012). His web site is at Joshuataylorphotography.com

Josh’s passion for the craft of photography is the inspiration for his photographic images. His compelling images of architecture, garden and outdoor subjects convey his passion.  He hopes that his images will inspire, captivate, and teach others to experience his joy and love of photography. Through his insight and visual perception, common sights in the man-made and natural environment become more meaningful and take on greater significance. In other words, the ordinary becomes the extraordinary through Josh’s photographic vision and personal style. In his work, he wants the viewer to see that a “good” photograph doesn’t just happen; rather, it is made by the photographer.

Josh was the judge for the December 2015 Monthly NVPS Competition.

Competition Themes for 2016-2017

Note: The Board reaffirmed that there will be three themed competitions per program year, but there will be no theme competitions in the months of December, January, and February. 

Competition Schedule for Spring 2017 

February 21, 2017 - No theme. The judge will be Josh Taylor.

March 21, 2017 - The theme is Drag the shutter - Show us your best shutter drag. Whether capturing motion in waves or panning cars zooming by, we want to see you get creative with this topic. Slow down your shutter speed to show a sense of motion or action. Note: to further clarify March’s themed competition, we will allow any photo which shows any movement due to a slow shutter speed, with or without flash, including photos of moving objects taken without moving the camera or lens, such as waterfalls.  Please contact competitions@nvps.org if you have further questions. The judge will be Peter Manzelli.

April 18, 2017 - "Oldies"- there is no two year time capture time constraint and there is no theme; knock you self out on the old film images or some early digital images from the early 2000's. The judge will be David Blecman.

May 16, 2017- The theme is Colors - Life is a stream of color. Red, blue, yellow, and a billion pigments in between… For this theme we ask you to show us color-inspired photographs. Scenes, details, narratives or moods. Subtle tones or Technicolor daydreams, color must be a primary component of your image.  For the Monochrome Print category, instead of producing a black and white photo, show us a color other than black along with white, i.e., red and white, blue and white, etc. The judge will be Mary Ann Stetton.

At the end of May, a separate End of Year competition among all of the monthly winners will be judged by Nikhil Bahl; the winners will be announced at our annual End of Year Banquet in early June.

Competition Themes for 2017-2018

The themes for 2017-2018 are:

• Faceless Self Portrait:
  This is not your normal selfie. Be creative and express your identity by taking a photo of yourself without your face.
• The American Experience –Americans at Work:
  For this month's themed contest, show us your best photos of Americans at Work. This may be of a single person, or multiple people, at work. The person or persons and the work being performed must both be clearly evident in the photo. Let’s showcase Americans at Work by demonstrating their emotions, determination, strength and pride!
• Visible Emotions:
  Some of the most powerful photographs are those that have captured emotions. Photographs that have impact and tell a story, show individuals with visible emotions. For this theme, photograph a person that shows us clearly visible emotions. This could be happiness, surprise, anger, sadness, excitement, pride, fear or disgust.

January Competition Results

The full list of competition results is available on the NVPS web site at http://nvps.org

Digital - Class 1
1st Place- Mary Paula Neumann – Ghastly Remnant the Great war
2nd Place- - Kirk Johnson – Eiffel Tower and Tuilerries Garden
3rd Place- Kacy Turner – Snow Leopard on Sunny Day
HM- Willa Siegel- Bermuda Rocks!
HM- Laurie Kuyk - Peachy

Digital – Class 2
1st Place- Lynn Cates - Lotus Blossom
2nd Place- Nicole Hockett - Everything Nice
3rd Place- Bill Millhouser - Take Off
HM- George Karamarkovich - Red-Tailed Hawk
HM Tom Pratuch – Light and Shadow

Digital – Class 3
1st Place- Tom Brett - Steely Gaze and Hands
2nd Place- Ginger Werz-Petricka - Galactic Swirl
3rd Place - Alan Goldstein - Gone Fishin’
HM- Wayne Guenther - Bemused
HM – John Telford - Knee Arch

Color Prints – Class 1
1st Place- Tracy Sarang - Fields of Gold
2nd Place- Joan Barker - Cannonballs
3rd Place - Silvia Jorgensen - The
HM - Shannon Jordan - Sunset on the Gorge

Color Prints – Class 2
1st Place- Clark Barker - Waterfront
2nd Place- Norm Stewart – Arcadia Fall Among the Reeds
3rd Place- Eva Lanyi – Uh-oh

Color Prints – Class 3
1st Place- Jim Williams – Little Blue House
2nd Place- Bill Corbett – Golden Hen
3rd Place- Fran Bastress - Cathedral Rock
HM - Ed Ruggiero – Bubble Wrap
HM - Tom Brett – Quiver Trees

Monochrome Prints
1st Place- Ginger Werz-Petrika - A View Near the Bridge
2nd Place- Stan Bysshe  - Ram Tough
3rd Place- Karol Murray - Fort Point
HM- Dennis Govoni- Starry Night
HM- Gorgette Grossman - Light the Mansion
HM- Ron Taylor - Air Forces Reflections
HM- Mark Chen - Farm Road
HM- Roger Lancaster - Upperville Horse Show

First Place images from January:

Additional winning images are available for viewing at http://nvps.org/gallery/v/competitions/2016-2017_Competition_Winners/

Class 1 Digital Mary Paula Neumann Ghastly Remnant the Great War	Class 3 Digital Tom Brett Steely Gaze and Hands
Class 2 Digital Lynn Cates Lotus Blossom
Class 1 Print Tracy Sarang Fields of Gold	Class 3 Print Jim Williams Little Blue House
Class 2 Print Clark Barker Waterfront
Monochrome Ginger Werz-Petrika A View Near the Bridge

Competition Judges for 2016-2017

The Co-VPs Competition for 2016-2017 are Bill Millhouser and Judy Graham (competitions@nvps.org)

Rules of Competition Change

The Final 2016 Rules of Competition are now available on the NVPS website. The changes to the rules are summarized below:

• Members competing in each Class (1, 2, and 3) can enter a maximum of three images per competition. One image can be entered into each of the three competition categories:
• Color Prints
• Monochrome Prints
• Digital Images

• All prints must be mounted. 
• Mounting is to consist of a Polystyrene or Foam Core Backing Board either 1/8 or 3/16 inches in thickness (Please note that 3/16 is required for print submissions to Nature Visions), and a Mat Board of at least a 4 ply thickness (.05 to .06 inches). 
• The Mat Board must be white. 
• Mounted prints must not exceed 20 inches in height or 40 inches in width to accommodate the light box.

The complete Rules of Competition are at http://nvps.org/home/?page_id=500. You can also download a PDF file of the rules at the top of the page (http://nvps.org/home/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/RulesofComp_Sept-2016-final.pdf). The sections of rules that have been changed are: Section 1.B. Number of Competitions; Section 1.C Eligibility; and, Section 1.E Presentation of Prints.  If you have any questions, please contact Bill Millhouser or Judy Graham, the Co- VPs of Competition at competitions@nvps.org.

Details for preparing prints and digital images can be found at:
Prints: http://nvps.org/home/?page_id=500 (Section I.E)
Digital images: http://nvps.org/home/?page_id=4239

Competition Pages on NVPS Website

We appreciate the constructive feedback we have been receiving on the competition pages of our website. We are in the process of working with the NVPS web team to make a number of changes so it is much easier to navigate, and find the requirements for competitions

Competition Image Use

The NVPS Website has a gallery of past Competition winning images at http://nvps.org/gallery/v/competitions/. If your image placed first, second, third or received an honorable mention in a club competition, it is eligible for this gallery.  Images are not posted automatically, you must specifically provide consent for your image to be included in the gallery.

To have your winning image included in the gallery, email competitionwinners" at "nvps.org and provide the following information:

Your name
Image Category (digital, color print, monochrome print)
Image Class (1, 2, or 3)
Competition Date

Digital Winners: When you upload your image for the competition, you can check the box to grant permission for it to be posted if it wins.  

Print Winners: send a digital version of your print, sized as if it were for digital competition.

The FotoFax newsletter is usually finalized during the weekend immediately following the monthly club competitions.  If your image is a first place winner and you send it in before the Friday following competition, your image will be forwarded to the editor for inclusion in FotoFax.  If you have not provided permission before that deadline, another winning entry may be used.

Forum

February 28th: If It Moves, Shoot It – with Stan Bysshe

Stan Bysshe will be presenting this month's Forum. He is also displaying his prints for this month's Members Gallery. Please see below for Stan's biography and examples of his work. - Editor

The Forum Coordinator for 2016-2017 is Kirk Johnson.

Upcoming Forum Presentations:

Members Gallery

February 28th: Digital by Jeff Hancock;
                           Prints by Stan Bysshe

As a Navy brat, Jeff Hancock grew up in many places in the U.S. and overseas.  It was in Japan where he was given his first camera, a point and shoot 35mm.  When he moved to Hawaii, he was asked to choose an art elective in high school.  He chose photography over glass blowing in 1987 and the rest is history.  He shot for the newspaper, the yearbook, and was president of the photography club. His first professional gig was for a surfer who paid him $40 for a roll of black and white.

Jeff’s been a member of NVPS since 2008.  He took over as digital projectionist in 2010 and added his own flair to the job, keeping the announcements part of the meeting from becoming a snooze fest with visual jokes and quick Google fingers.

Jeff’s had a lot of side jobs in photography.  Some of the highlights include Cadillac Track day events, a Rolling Thunder motorcycle tour, Santa Claus visit to an adoption agency, a Pilates instructor, a state delegate campaign appearance, a one-year old’s birthday party, and a wedding, though he doesn’t make a habit of it. His primary customer since 2011 is Gadsby’s Tavern Museum, the subject of his portfolio project last year, and other city of Alexandria museums.  He’s spent so much time in Alexandria that he’s on a first name basis with Alison, Mayor Silverberg.

When he’s not shooting a paid gig, Jeff has wide photographic interests.  He’ll take his camera to anything he or his family are doing.  He also seeks out wildlife, nature, motorsports, still lives, in-camera abstracts, drones, family photos, fireworks, you name it.

Jeff processes primarily in Lightroom, though he’ll grudgingly hit the “edit in Photoshop” menu item if he really has to.  He suspects he’ll spend more time there now that he has a backdrop set with a green screen.

Jeff’s has been published in the Alexandria Gazette, the Huffington Post, and dcist.com.  His work has been recognized in Joseph Miller’s Abstract exhibit and Nature Visions Expo.

Examples of Jeff's work:

Although Stan Bysshe has been taking pictures since the early seventies, it wasn’t until the take-off of digital photography that he became passionate about the photographic process. It has been a slow, sometimes painful and certainly continuous learning process. But with retirement, it beat the heck out of playing golf. Like many of you, in the film days, he dabbled in the darkroom, however there just wasn’t time to become a photographer. Now that he has the time, Stan enjoys planning photo shoots, thinking about how to make an image and then processing it, and finally printing it. For him, the ultimate endpoint for a photograph is the print. However he still doesn’t consider himself completely knowledgeable about any of those steps; there is always something new to learn. 

The biggest influence on Stan’s photography has been the natural world, especially marine reef ecology. He has been a certified scuba diver for forty-five years and stopped logging dives after two thousand. For the past three decades he rarely dove without a camera and seldom took images unless he was underwater. So he supported his habit by photographing and writing for dive magazines, dive shops and tourist boards. More recently however, maintaining and traveling with dive gear, underwater housings and strobes as well as cameras simply lost its glamour. So about five years ago he decided to explore the natural world on land. That meant learning about new habitats and animal behaviors and photographing without flash. Not surprisingly, birds in flight caught his eye. They aren’t that different from fish on a reef! This has lead to studying capturing subjects in motion.

Stan has mostly shot with Nikon, but truly has no preference, other than he is now trapped by the lenses he owns. It’s not the camera! Most of his post-processing initially was with Aperture and now Lightroom. He is Photoshop illiterate; another project in the making. However with photographing nature, processing takes a backseat to an image that allows the subject in its environment to be the art. Stan prints with a ten-year-old Epson Stylus Pro 3800, took a mat cutting course and watched Bob and Willa intently, but has now found it easier to order precut mats and recycle them as he mounts prints for exhibit.

The prints were chosen simply because they were images that he enjoyed taking, either because of the challenge or the memorable location. The underwater images were all published at one point but have never been printed before. 

Examples of Stan's work:

The Member's Gallery Coordinator for this 2016-2017 is Ron Taylor.

Field Trips

February 11th: Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.

The NVPS February Field Trip will be to the Library of Congress, 10 First Street SE, Washington, D.C., on Saturday February 11th, from 2:30 to 5 p.m. This is an afternoon shoot as the west setting sun comes through the windows then. (Sunset is at 5:45.)

We will meet at the entrance just before 2:30 but if it is a nice day you may want to start with some shots outside. Planning for dinner afterwards is in the works but that may not be possible due to it being a Saturday night in D.C. 

The Great Hall of the Library of Congress is the centerpiece of the Italian Renaissance-style building. The ceiling, 75 feet above the marble floor, is decorated with stained-glass skylights surrounded by aluminum-leaf decorations. The triangular vaults contain the names of the world's leading writers and thinkers. In the marble floor is a large brass inlay of a compass rose, surrounded by the twelve signs of the zodiac.

Field Trips 2016-2017

The schedule is subject to change.

Field Trip Coordinators for 2016-2017 are Stan Bysshe and Jim McDermott, field-trips@nvps.org

Board of Directors

A full list of all current NVPS Board members and their club contact information also can be found at: http://nvps.org/home/?page_id=23

Membership

2016-2017 Membership Dues

We’ve had a number of new members join the club in recent weeks! Thanks to all who have spread the word about NVPS and the wonderful benefits of being a member.

In order to participate in the monthly competitions your membership dues must be current. Membership dues for the 2016-2017 year are as follows:

There are three forms of payment. Checks and cash are preferred by NVPS:

• Check: Make out your check to NVPS. Complete and print out the Membership Application (http://nvps.org/home/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/NVPS_application_2016-2017.pdf. Please either mail both to our Treasurer, Tom Brett, 4216 Wynnwood Dr, Annandale, VA 22003 or bring your membership application and check to a meeting.
• Cash: Complete and print out the Membership Application (http://nvps.org/home/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/NVPS_application_2016-2017.pdf) with your current information and pay our Membership Coordinators (Patty Healy or Paula Neumann) or our Treasurer (Tom Brett) at any meeting.
• PayPal: Use the link on our website: http://nvps.org/home/?page_id=114. Please note that NVPS must pay a fee for this method of payment!

Questions, please email membership at membership@nvps.org.
Membership looks forward to seeing you at future meetings!

Stay Connected with NVPS

EMAIL: If you are not already receiving NVPS emails, there are two ways you can sign up to join the list. Click on the following link and sign up by entering your name and email address. Click on join the list. http://nvps.org/home/?page_id=31. Or you may stop by the Membership desk at the next meeting and they will be happy to assist you. It's important to note, you will receive an "opt-in" email from nvps.org. If you do not receive it, check your spam folder. Please respond to this email within 72 hours or the verification link will expire.

FACEBOOK: If you are on Facebook, please join the NVPS private group. Search on Northern Virginia Photographic Society Social Group and request to join. Members post everything from their photos to interesting articles on photography to requests for recommendations. You will find the group informative and fun!

Patricia J. Healy
Membership Coordinator

Announcements

Notice: The information about workshops and events not sponsored by or affiliated with NVPS are provided as an informational courtesy to Members. Individuals should review the detailed rules and conditions for contests and gallery shows to determine what impact entering an image has on the photographer's rights and ownership of the submitted images. Review the descriptions of workshops to see whether participation in a particular workshop would actually meet your personal learning goals. NVPS attempts to screen events for legitimacy and quality; however NVPS does not recommend these events and cannot assume responsibility for their ultimate quality. We recommend due diligence and encourage you to share your experience with other club members.

Composition Lecture of interest to Photographers

David Blecman will speak at the Vienna Photographic Society meeting about composition and how to photograph windows Wednesday, February 1, at 7:30 p.m.  Details, meeting location, and newsletter are at vpsva.org .

David Blecman is an internationally recognized photographer and instructor, having taught and mentored in over a dozen countries on three continents to photographers, models, and makeup artists. He is a member of the Professional Photographers of America.

He has recently just announced a brand new mentoring program to help take photographers from where they currently are, to the road to excellence.

David has photographed projects for some of the biggest retailers in America, and has photographed some of the most recognizable celebrities over the past many years.

David continually speaks at modeling and photography venues, serves as a judge in the Miss America pageant system as well as photography and art competitions, teaches at modeling agencies, and leads fashion photography, wildlife, and landscape photography workshops in The Bahamas, Caribbean, the Americas, and Europe.

David can be reached at david@posneg.com, 410.465.8585, or from his website; www.posneg.com

Members' News:

Wayne and Judy Guenther

Wayne and Judy Guenther were selected for the “Student Showcase” in Jim Zuckerman’s online publication Photo Insights  January 2017 edition. Jim Zuckerman is a world-renowned travel photography teacher and guide. Eight of the Guenthers’photos from their recent tour to Cuba with Jim were featured. This edition of “Photo Insights” can be viewed at https://issuu.com/jimzuckerman/docs/photo_insights_january__17  Two of the feature photos, “Have a Cigar” and “Caddy” are below.

Bob and Willa Friedman

Bob and Willa Friedman are among the featured artists in a show at the Site 3 Gallery at the Torpedo Factory. On November 19 the Alexandria City Council issued a statement on community exclusivity. The show features work by artists of the Torpedo Factory and the Art League that focuses on this theme. It will run through February 28. If you visit the Torpedo Factory stop by and look see the show. It is on the third floor near the elevator.

Bob Friedman Old Town at Night	Willa Friedman Rainbow House
	Bob Friedman Street Musician

Georgette Grossman

Georgette Grossman had her image, Man/Dog Bonding (right), juried into the themed exhibition (Habits) this January at the Art League Gallery, 105 North Union St., Alexandria. The show was juried by Rebecca Chaperon.  The Art League Gallery holds monthly juried exhibits and special exhibits including solo artists, student shows, and the Patrons' Show. Exhibits are free and open to the public. All artists can become members and submit work to our monthly exhibits, juried by noted fine art professionals from throughout the Washington area and beyond.

The Northern Virginia Review will publish two of Georgette’s favorite images in Volume 31 of the Review in March – “A Man and his Dog” and “Quiet Lunch”. There will be a reception at the Ernst Cultural Center on the Northern Virginia Community College Annandale Campus  on March 21 from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Georgette's photos:

A Man and His Dog

Quiet Lunch

Fred Siskind

Fred Siskind will be presenting his program Macro Photography in the Field at the Silver Spring Camera Club on Thursday, February 2.

Exhibitions/Competitions

Seventh Annual Joseph Miller Abstract Photography Exhibition
May 6 – May 29, 2017

The Joseph Miller Center for the Photographic Arts takes great pride in announcing its Seventh Annual juried abstract exhibit. All interested photographers are invited to submit entries for this much anticipated spring event.

Submissions to the First Annual JM Abstract Exhibit were limited to local NVACC-related clubs; however, over the years, because of the influence these exhibits have had in encouraging and promoting abstract photography and due to their reputation, recent JM Abstract Exhibits have been attracting entries from national as well as international photographic artists.

The Joseph Miller Center will begin accepting entries for the upcoming Seventh Annual Exhibit on Saturday, December 24, 2016. The deadline for submissions will be Friday, February 17, 2017. A detailed prospectus containing all relevant information regarding the exhibit will be posted on the Northern Virginia Alliance of Camera Clubs website at www.NVACC.org

Announcements of workshops, exhibitions or contests are provided for information purposes only. There is no actual or implied endorsement by the Northern Virginia Photographic Society.