March 2020 Meeting

Next Meeting Thursday March 12, 2020

Loyalist College Pioneer building room P13

7:30 – 9:30

Guest Presenter: Donna Edmonds

Contemplative Photography

Some of you may remember Donna from her presentation last year called Finding My Photography Style. 

Donna is a mostly self-taught photographer and a very motivated learner. She describes herself as a sponge for knowledge in photography and life in general. She also very much enjoys teaching and doing presentations in the hope of encouraging and inspiring others to keep shooting, learning and enjoying their own photography.

Tonight Donna is going to speak to us on the topic of Contemplative Photography which is essentially about the art of seeing and photographing what the visual world has to offer us. She is also going to speak about visualization and how when we begin with seeing what we normally wouldn’t see as we travel through our everyday lives, we can then become more perceptive and aware of the world in terms of photographic images.

“My goal for my presentations is to entertain, inform and inspire fellow photographers in a format that I know will appeal to all skill levels. I am passionate about encouraging and inspiring photographers, especially those who may be feeling uninspired, discouraged or that they think that they cannot produce good photographs from their everyday lives and the world they live in. My Contemplative Photography presentation is not about showing you my “best” photos but about how you can enjoy the process of photographing anything, anytime, anywhere.”

Monthly Theme

This month our theme is “Pictures that tell a story. Don’t worry if you see an error message after the upload. It is just a glitch on the website that we can’t seem to get rid of.

February 2020 Meeting


Next Meeting Thursday February 13, 2020

Loyalist College Pioneer building room P13

7:30 – 9:30

Guest Presenter

Learning to see

a photographic journey

Raymond Vos

Everyone has a different motive for taking photographs. Some people simply want to record their lives and preserve memories. Others take an artistic approach and want to capture what they are seeing. And some want to tell a story or convey a message. In this particular presentation I want to tell my story of my involvement with my Kenya charity: The Kenya Initiative: From Street To School through my photography. I want to share how my photography has both helped convey my own experience in Kenya and how that experience has pushed me to become a better photographer. I use my Kenya photos for presentations at schools, churches and even Photography clubs! I have regular displays of my Kenya photos at restaurants in Kingston and in my own Art Gallery. There is a supreme satisfaction of selling a framed photo and also knowing that the money will allow Kenyan students to continue their studies in Primary school, High School, College, and University. Photography for me not only tells a story, but makes a story. It makes a story happen in someone’s life!

Monthly Theme

This month our theme is “Unexpected”. Don’t worry if you see an error message after the upload. It is just a glitch on the website that we can’t seem to get rid of.

January 2020 Meeting

Next Meeting Thursday January 9, 2020

Loyalist College Pioneer building room P13

7:30 – 9:30

Guest Presenter

The County Photographer

Phil Norton

Phil Norton, 62, comes from the old days of film and darkroom photography with a career in magazine and newspaper journalism. But he’s staying current by embracing the new technology, adding the likes of drones and Instagram to his toolkit. 

His work has evolved from an artistic style to documentary and visual storytelling and now back to fine art. For magazines and blogs, he uses the written word, audio and multimedia to enhance the still pictures.

In the 1980’s, with an environmental science degree from Penn State, he focused on issues about energy, air pollution and water. In Quebec he was the editor of a bilingual weekly newspaper, and as a freelancer for Harrowsmith Magazine, he won two National Magazine Awards for articles on acid rain and forest dieback. Similar work along with travel and biographical features were published in Canadian Geographic, Time, National Geographic Traveler and regional publications like Adirondack Life.

At the dawn of the 21st century, he worked in the Photography Department of The Montreal Gazette where he was at the forefront of learning Adobe Photoshop and digital photography and archiving.

As more and more people flocked to DSLR’s and smart phone cameras, he moved into personal tutoring and leading Photography Adventures, week-long group trips to all points of North America. Currently his County Outings business, and a partnership with the Drake Devonshire Inn, offer private winery and birding tours in Prince Edward County.

On November 14, Norton will bring you up to date with some of documentary stories he is pursuing, including a “Then and now” project revisiting the places and people from his bicycle camping tours of 1979-80, as well as the “2020 Vision” and the “Pulse of America” projects prior to the US presidential election next November, and his ongoing Energy Documentary about climate change. Also featuring his drone project, “Vertigo” for an upcoming home studio exhibition of vertical aerial panoramas.

Monthly Theme

This month we have an Open Theme so you are free to two your TWO best images of 2019 to share. Don’t worry if you see an error message after the upload. It is just a glitch on the website that we can’t seem to get rid of.

December 2019 Meeting


Next meeting Thursday, December 12, 2019

Loyalist College, Pioneer Building, Room P13 

7:30

This will be an informal evening of member’s show and tell of the favourite gear and photo gadgets, a yard sale of gear we want to sell, and a smorgasbord of Christmas snacks and goodies brought in and shared by our members. We will also feature slideshows created by our members. So go through your camera bags (and closets) to find gear to show off or sell, get to work on your slideshows, and bake up your favourite snacks to share. It is always a fun evening.

Our theme this month is “Photo Fun” and the image upload album is open.

click here to upload your images

Camera Cleaning and Camera Care Presentation

Douglas Banks will be on site to clean your camera sensors and lenses. All cleaning takes place onsite and will be ready for you by the end of the meeting. Cameras are $20 and Lenses are $10. Bring cash. Please make sure that your camera battery is fully charged. This is a fantastic service at a great price!

Douglas will also be giving us a short talk on caring for your camera.


November 2019 Meeting Update

Next Meeting Thursday November 14, 2019

Loyalist College Pioneer building room P13

7:30 – 9:30

Phil Norton was scheduled to present at our November meeting, but due to a family emergency he will be postponed to a later date. Our program coordinator, John Wolf, scrambled and booked us a fantastic replacement:

Steven Rose : Antarctic Expedition

Steve has always had a love for the outdoors. “Waking up in a tent means that I must be somewhere good” says Steve.  “Photography is a passion for me and I enjoy sharing outdoor experiences with people who might not venture off of the beaten track through my pictures and taking them out on photography adventures.  Elevating someone’s photography skills by sharing my knowledge is a great joy.”

Steve has been presented with many awards  over the years and had his pictures used in magazines, books, and calendars, but his best moments are still seeing the excited looks on a persons face when they get “the shot”.  

He works with One Ocean Expeditions as “The photographer in residence “ which has taken him to many off the beaten track destinations Antarctica being one of his favourites.

He enjoys canoeing, kayaking, diving, snowboarding, skiing, and mountain biking, when not taking pictures, but then again the camera is always with him even in these pursuits. 

November 2019 Meeting

Next Meeting Thursday November 14, 2019

Loyalist College Pioneer building room P13

7:30 – 9:30

Guest Presenter

The County Photographer

Phil Norton

Phil Norton, 62, comes from the old days of film and darkroom photography with a career in magazine and newspaper journalism. But he’s staying current by embracing the new technology, adding the likes of drones and Instagram to his toolkit. 

His work has evolved from an artistic style to documentary and visual storytelling and now back to fine art. For magazines and blogs, he uses the written word, audio and multimedia to enhance the still pictures.

In the 1980’s, with an environmental science degree from Penn State, he focused on issues about energy, air pollution and water. In Quebec he was the editor of a bilingual weekly newspaper, and as a freelancer for Harrowsmith Magazine, he won two National Magazine Awards for articles on acid rain and forest dieback. Similar work along with travel and biographical features were published in Canadian Geographic, Time, National Geographic Traveler and regional publications like Adirondack Life.

At the dawn of the 21st century, he worked in the Photography Department of The Montreal Gazette where he was at the forefront of learning Adobe Photoshop and digital photography and archiving.

As more and more people flocked to DSLR’s and smart phone cameras, he moved into personal tutoring and leading Photography Adventures, week-long group trips to all points of North America. Currently his County Outings business, and a partnership with the Drake Devonshire Inn, offer private winery and birding tours in Prince Edward County.

On November 14, Norton will bring you up to date with some of documentary stories he is pursuing, including a “Then and now” project revisiting the places and people from his bicycle camping tours of 1979-80, as well as the “2020 Vision” and the “Pulse of America” projects prior to the US presidential election next November, and his ongoing Energy Documentary about climate change. Also featuring his drone project, “Vertigo” for an upcoming home studio exhibition of vertical aerial panoramas.

Monthly Theme

We all learned so much from Phillip Sun’s presentation last month. This month we are trying to put into practice some of the things we learned. This month we are specifically trying to capture backlit fall colours. Don’t forget to upload your best two images to our theme gallery. Don’t worry if you see an error message after the upload. It is just a glitch on the website that we can’t seem to get rid of.

October 2019 Meeting

Next Meeting Thursday October 10, 2019

Loyalist College Pioneer building room P13

7:30 – 9:30

Special Presentation

Work the Light

Philip Sun

This program is designed to help the photographic club members to  better understand  the concepts of light, and train their visual senses toward seeing the light. This presentation will be divided into four parts:

  1. In the first segment, Philip will discuss on how and where to look for the light.
  2. In the second segment, he will talk about the different lighting effects.
  3. In the third segment, he will talk about how to make use of nature’s elements to help enhance the quality of your images.
  4. The fourth segment involves post processing.

Here is Philip’s bio:

I used to belong to three camera clubs: The Toronto Guild (now known as Toronto Digital Photo Club), The Toronto Camera Club, and The Chinese Canadian Photographic Society of Toronto which I am currently an honorary member. I was a multiple Gold Medal Winner when I competed in PSA(Photographic Society of America) world’s Salon competition, and was ranked in PSA’s World Top Ten Who’s Who in years 2004, 2005 and 2006 consecutively. My most coveted prize was a gold Medal in the CAPA competition with a perfect score of 10-10-10 with my image “Wild Horses”, also I was awarded a Gold Medal in the salon competition hosted by RPC (Royal Photographic Society) which is one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious camera clubs. I had just retired from conducting workshops in North America. I am also an experienced photographic judge and a full time lecturer.  

June 2019 Meeting

Next Meeting Thursday June13, 2019

Loyalist College Pioneer building room P13

7:30 – 9:30

Explore the world of Documentary Photography and the Personal Project!

Whether it’s around the corner, or in a far corner of the world, the documentary photography project has been a mainstay of images for the past century. Join Rob Skeoch and explore some of his most recent projects and gain the knowledge to start your own project, spoken through your own voice. If you have a camera and at least one lens, you’re well equipped to tackle your first documentary story.

ROB SKEOCH

ROB SKEOCH (1959-), is an award-winning photographer whose work has appeared in magazines and books published around the world. He grew up in Burlington, Ontario, and began making photographs for the high school yearbook in 1974. He’s remained in love with photography since then, working at a number of newspapers, freelancing for years, and currently working on a project of portrait work.

As a storyteller, Rob uses photography to tell the story as he finds it on the streets. Working in the tradition of photography greats Robert Frank and Walker Evans, Rob creates portraits of people on the streets, in Hamilton, Toronto or New York City. A lover of all genres of photography, including the work he does with Sony of Canada and the latest digital cameras, Rob also uses historical equipment in the fulfillment of his vision of photography.

This commitment to his art has taken him around the world, and around the corner, in search of great images that will contribute to the story of mankind, the focus of his work.

Spirit of the Hills Photo Contest

Spirit of the Hills is delighted to announce a juried competition themed ‘Sharing’ open to all residents of the Northumberland Hills area. The winning photographs will be exhibited at the Festival of the Arts on October 25-26, 2019.

Categories:

  1. Land, Water, Sky
  2. At the market/at the fair/on the farm
  3. Sports/Recreation

Prizes:

  • $100 first prize in Adult category; $50 second prize in Adult category
  • $100 first prize in Youth 19 and under category; $50 second prize
  • Winning photographs will be promoted on SOTH website, Facebook, and elsewhere

Click here for more info