2022-2023 Schedule

Here’s the tentative schedule for our 2022-2023 season. Stay tuned for more information on the season’s presentations, lectures, workshops, competitions shortly. We hope to see all of you back for our 69th season which runs from September 2022 to June 2023! Each month we have a monthly photo competition where members compete in their group (open to all subject matter) and can also compete in our monthly theme competition, black-and-white competition and our Altered Reality (manipulated image) competition.

2022-2023 Schedule

Saturday, Sept. 17 Opening Day Presentation “Photographers: Be Bigger Than You Think You Are!” with Peter Alessandria, Meeting 10am, Presentation 10:30am

Please join us Saturday Sept. 17, 2022, at 10:30AM for a live online discussion with author, photographer and speaker Peter Alessandria. Peter will talk about his career as a professional photographer, including the challenges he faced when he was starting out. How he overcame those challenges is the subject of his book, “Be Bigger Than You Think You Are: Overcoming Our Self-Imposed Limits to Have the Life We Want.” Peter will also be showing some of his photos and discussing how he got his work published in the newspaper.

Peter started his career as an entertainment attorney in Los Angeles. While he studied law and business in school, working in Hollywood sparked his creative interests and he soon became an amateur photographer and filmmaker as well as attorney. After losing his law practice in 2008 in the Global Financial Crisis, Peter made the leap to pursue his creative passions full-time. Today, he is an award-winning, internationally-published photographer, author, TEDx speaker and filmmaker based in the New York City area. You can find out more about Peter’s work on his websites and social media pages: www.bebiggertoday.com, www.peteralessandriaphotography.com, Facebook, Instagram (@peteralessandria). Copies of “Be Bigger Than You Think You Are!” and Peter’s photography book “New York Cityscapes” can be purchased on his website.

Saturday, Sept. 24 Competition #1

Our first competition of the season! The theme competition is “Roadscapes.” The judge is Chuck Pine. Upload your photos by Wednesday 9/21 at 11:59pm.

Saturday, Oct. 8 Competition #2

Our second competition of the season! The theme competition is “Weathered Wood.” The judge is Lila Pollinger. Upload your photos by Wednesday 10/5 at 11:59pm.

Saturday, Oct. 22 Presentation – “Composing with Intent” with Mark Battista

Mark Battista, Artist and Fine Art Photographer, will share his insight on composition to create images that tell a story, effectively communicate an idea and express an emotion. Come explore ways of taking your photography to a whole new level through the use of compositional strategies to create more visually impactful images. Mark’s years of training and working as a painter has influenced how he arranges elements in his photographic images. Discover ways of composing inspired by master painters of the past and learn how to apply those skills to your photographic imagery.
Topics covered include:

• THE ELEMENTS OF ART
• Line
• Shape
• Color
• Value
• PRINCIPALS OF DESIGN
• Creating a focal point through contrast of tone, color or area of focus
• Point of view/ framing a subject
• Balance and visual weight vs. “Rules”

Mark Battista is a painter and fine art photographer specializing in portrait and still life photography. He graduated from Paier College of with a B.F.A. After working for several years as a fine artist and illustrator, Mark received a M.S. in Art Education degree from S.C.S.U and has served in the West Haven School System as an art teacher for the past 35 years. He continues to work as a fine artist and photographer and teaches workshops and one on one tutoring throughout the U.S. He recently presented several days of workshops at the New England Camera Club Council’s Annual Conference at UMASS College at Amherst and the Booth Museum in Cartersville, GA.

Mark’s artwork and photography has been internationally recognized and has won awards from organizations such as the Salmagundi Art Club in NYC, the New York Center For Photographic Arts, the American Artists Professional League and the CT Watercolor Society. He recently won the Grand Prize and Second Place in an international exhibit through nyc4pa.

Mark is an elected member of the Salmagundi Club, as well as the American Artist Professional League, and the American Watercolor Society. He is represented by the Salmagundi Club in NYC and the Niantic Bay Gallery in Niantic, CT. Feel free to visit his website at www.markbattista.com for more information.

Saturday, Nov. 5 Competition #3

Our third competition of the season! The theme competition is “Neon Lights”. The judge is Phil Echo. Upload your photos by Wednesday 11/2 at 11:59pm.

Saturday, Nov. 19 “Bridging the Creative and Technical Aspects of Photography” with Nick Palmieri

Join us for a presentation from Nick Palmieri on “Bridging the Creative and Technical Aspects of Photography”.

This program looks at the technical facets of taking a photograph and the exciting and challenging creative aspects of photography. This program is filled with ideas and motivation to bridge creative and technical matters related to taking a photograph and reviews everything from pre-visualization to post-processing skills.

Nick Palmieri is an award-winning photographer, who enjoys the creative aspects of many different types of photography. From wildlife to landscapes to portraits and macros, he has spent countless hours exploring a wide range of genres. Since 2009, Nick has been presenting programs and workshops on various aspect of photography throughout New Jersey and beyond. Nick currently serves as a Trustee for the New Jersey Federation of Camera Clubs and is a past President of both the Cranford-Millburn Camera Club and Camera Naturalists Camera Club. In 2015, the New Jersey Federation of Camera Clubs awarded him their Citation, recognizing his contributions to photography in New Jersey.

Within the world of social media, he is a moderator for the very popular Facebook page, “Photography Help, Tips, Techniques, and Critiques.” Nick believes that the art of photography should be fully explored utilizing all the developments in modern technology while maintaining great respect for its deep historical roots.

To learn more, visit his website at www.docnickphotos.com.

Saturday, Dec. 3 Competition #4

Our fourth competition of the season! The theme competition is”Food Photography”. The judge is Anastasia Tompkins. Upload your photos by Wednesday 11/30 at 11:59pm.

Saturday, Dec. 17 Holiday Party

Join us for our annual holiday pot luck celebration. Bring your favorite dish!

Saturday, Jan. 7, 2023 Competition #5

Our fifth competition of the season! The theme competition is “Clocks and Watches. The judge is Rick Kent. Upload your photos by Wednesday 1/4 at 11:59pm.

Saturday, Jan. 21, 2023 Presentation TBD

Join us for a presentation. More details coming soon.

Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023 Competition #6

Our sixth competition of the season! The theme competition is “Graceful Curves”. The judge is Tom Cuchara Upload your photos by Wednesday 2/1 at 11:59pm.

Saturday, February 18, 2023 Presentation TBD

More information soon on February’s presentation.

Saturday, March 4 Competition #7

Our seventh competition of the season! The theme competition is “The Color Purple”. The judge is Gillian Greenhill Hannum. Upload your photos by Wednesday 3/1 at 11:59pm.

Saturday,March 18, 2023 Ron Wyatt – Practical Travel Photography

If you are planning a luxury African safari or just a weekend escape, Ron Wyatt presents his tips for memorable travel photography. In an easy-to-understand, straightforward manner, Ron will teach you the fundamentals of shooting great vacation shots, as well as capturing the flavor of local cultures and capturing landscapes in their best light.  Ron will discuss what you need to do in preparation for your trip and the practicalities of traveling with your photo gear. Selecting the right lenses is always a critical decision before traveling – Ron will offer simple and practical suggestions on which lenses are best for various shooting situations. He’ll discuss “storytelling with your camera”, provide tips for photographing people, and reveal his methods for great street photography. Ron’s presentation is perfectly illustrated with images from his travels to China, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia.

Ron Wyatt’s first experience with photography was an unsuccessful photo documentation of his honeymoon. Armed with a borrowed Instamatic camera, he learned that camera shake will not produce great photos.
Ron, a self-taught photographer has covered the NBA, NFL and Major League Baseball. He also photographed two Summer Olympic Games. His photos have appeared in various publications including USA Today, Black Enterprise Magazine, Time Magazine, Newsweek TV Guide, ESPN and others. He has covered corporate assignments for Six Flags, Eastman Kodak, Continental Airlines, CVS, Pepsico, Verizon, MetLife, Capital One and many others.His photography has allowed him to travel to various parts of the world. He was assigned by Kodak to photograph two Summer Olympic Games, (Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008). His Olympic work was featured in Studio Photography and a 7 page spread in the July 2009 issue of RangeFinder Magazine. American Photo calls him “A Modern Master Of The Olympics.” His work was also featured in Popular Photography and Digital Photographer UK. Ron has worked as a video cameraman for MSNBC, Comcast Sports, News12 and Court TV. Visit www.ronwyattphotos.com for more info.

Saturday, April 1, 2023 Competition #8

Our eighth competition of the season! The theme competition is “Bees”.  The judge is Andrew Kurchey. Upload your photos by Wednesday 3/29 at 11:59pm.

Saturday, April 23, 2023 Waterfall Photography – Gary Thurman 

Gary says “As some of us have learned, waterfalls can be tough to photograph for a variety of reasons. Depending on the lighting and the amount of water flow, areas in the scene can appear blown out and without detail. That silky look that we all strive for in a waterfall photograph can be elusive. You might encounter beautiful waterfall scenes from time to time in your own photography related travels, but do you have troubles capturing that scene the way you like it in your camera? I’ll be passing along some of my “Tip’s & Trick’s” for waterfall photography, as well as answering your questions to help you out. Through trial and error over many years, I finally learned what worked for me, and I’m here to share that with you. So come on along, and let’s have some fun!

Photography has always been a big part of my life since the age of twelve, when I learned to develop my own film and print my own pictures in a friends “darkroom”. Now that I’m retired (after 29 years in the fire service as a Firefighter/Paramedic/Engineer), I have more time to explore, learn, and play with my “retirement hobby”. I live in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, which gives me the opportunity to travel and photograph Oregon’s incredible beauty to share with all of you. I’m also the current Photographic Society of America (PSA) “Waterfall Mentor”, where I help photographers from all over the world with their waterfall photography. I’m primarily a “Landscape & Waterfall” photographer, but have been recently playing around with Portraits as well. f you’d like to see some of my recent images, you can visit my personal website at: http://www.garythurmanphotography.com”

Saturday, May 13, 2023 TBD

More info soon

Saturday, June 110 Awards and Party

Hard to believe the season is over. Join us for our end of season party and awards presentation.