Member, Photographic Society of America
Winner of the 2008, 2011, and 2012 PSA Henricks Award for best newsletter!
Sherm Edwards and Tanya Riseman, Editors, Cable Release, at cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org.
KEY EVENTS
The following scheduled events will be conducted online as Zoom teleconferences, except for the Field Trip. Look for announcements and invitations by e-mail, Meetup, and on the club’s Website.
- March 3 – Speaker Night (7:30 p.m.)
- March 10 – Competition – Open (7:30 p.m.)
- March 12 – Field Trip! – Annmarie Sculpture Gardens, Solomons MD (10:30 a.m.)
- March 17 – Photo Forum (7:30 p.m.)
- March 24 – Board Meeting- (7:30 p.m.)
If Montgomery County Schools close due to inclement weather, Silver Spring Camera Club meetings and outings will be cancelled. See montgomeryschoolsmd.org for closure information during the work week. For Mon-Fri AFTER 5:00 pm & on the weekends, call 240-777-2710 or 311 from within Montgomery County. Sign up for text alerts: AlertMontgomery and choose both a local MCPS school and ‘Community Use of Public Facilities Alerts’. Note that this policy does not apply to online meetings!
For general information about the club, contact us at: info@ssccphotography.org
A list of the club officers and committee chairs, and their emails, is located here: Officers and Committee Chairs
More information is available in the Silver Spring Camera Club (SSCC) Member Handbook:
© 2020 Silver Spring Camera Club and its contributors. Copyright Notice & Disclaimer Policy
PLEASE CONSIDER PROVIDING MATERIALS FOR THE APRIL CABLE RELEASE:
e.g., articles, awards. exhibitions, links, reviews, and letters to the editor, such as appreciation of other members’ articles, photos, contributions to the Club. Let’s reach out to each other as we remain physically separated by the pandemic.
DEADLINE: BY MARCH 24th TO cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org.
MEETINGS AND FIELD TRIPS
MEETING LOCATION
All meetings will be online by Zoom teleconference until further notice. We are hopeful of being able to meet in person again before this Club year is over.
SPEAKER NIGHT WITH CONNIE IMBODEN – REDEFINING THE HUMAN BODY: A 35-YEAR PROJECT
Connie Imboden has dedicated more than 35 years photographing and re-imagining the human form using the reflective qualities of water and mirrors. Her images are captivating, mysterious and at times, otherworldly. Tonight’s program is a reflection of her project and the intuitive process that has fueled her creativity. (Read more.)
As a preview, here are a few of Connie’s images:
COMPETITION COLUMN
Our March topic is Open.
In open competitions, free rein is given to the choices the photographer makes in the creation of the submitted image. Images of any and all subjects or themes, created using any photographic or post- processing methods or techniques, are acceptable. The images are evaluated based upon the judge’s general assessment of their creativity, emotional and/or intellectual impact, aesthetic beauty, uniqueness of subject, and technical skill. The judge need not assign any specific weight to any single attribute of the image.
Members may submit up to two images meeting this definition. The images should be emailed to: competition@ssccphotography.org by midnight on Thursday, March 3. (One important detail – In order to participate in the competition, you must pay the club’s annual dues before the start of the competition.)
Here’s the schedule for the remainder of the year:
- April – Patterns or Geometric Forms
- May – Monochrome Photography
- June – End of Year Competition (special rules apply)
Please refer to the website link for the definition of each topic.
ED PALASZYNSKI – JUDGE – MARCH 10 OPEN COMPETITION
Ed Palaszynski’s photographic journey has taken him into the areas of historical documentation, architecture, motor sports, nature, and fine art photography. He enjoys studying a subject or scene to determine how the light will affect shape, tones, and textures and how the resulting image will look when printed. He has recently completed the first in a series of images for a project called “Life Forms” to answer the question, “What Does Life Look Like?”
Ed’s images have appeared and placed in national juried shows that include the Circle Gallery in Annapolis, Photoworks, Washington Art Works, Delaplaine Arts Center and the Allegany Arts Council. He is a Gaithersburg Camera Club Grand Master, and his images have been seen in online and print publications.
Ed is a past President of the Gaithersburg Camera Club and has served in several Board positions. He is a member of the Maryland Federation of Art and of Nature First, and is an MPA-certified judge having completed judge training for the Maryland Photography Alliance. He has developed and taught numerous photography classes at Montgomery College and workshops for individuals and clients of Mac Business Solutions and Capital Photography.
PHOTO FORUM
Thursday, March 17, 2022 from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
“Photo Forum” is our monthly opportunity to share ideas, images, questions, and inspirations on a wide variety of photographic topics.
This is an online event. We will meet using Zoom – look for the meeting link in an email and via Meetup.
Open Forum Discussions:
Half an hour will be an open forum discussing your photography thoughts:
- What’s on your mind?
- What did you get out of our Speaker Night – Connie Imboden on ‘Redefining the Human Body’? Do you want to apply anything from her talk to your photography?
- “Who’s Art is it, Anyway?” – to be a regular discussion of what constitutes original work when photographing someone else’s art.
Presentations:
- Kent Mason will provide a presentation on his photography in the West Virginia Highlands
If you would like to do a photography-related presentation in any month, just send an email with your idea to (dennisfreeman4510@msn.com) and we’ll discuss/assist/make it happen!
Image Sharing:
We will have member image sharing. This month will be an Open theme – send any images you want! e.g. if you would like feedback on something you’ve submitted to previous contests, help on something you’re working on, etc.
Send up to three images. Your jpg images can be up to 1 MB size each. Send your images to Dennis Freeman before 5:00 p.m., WEDNESDAY, March 16 (dennisfreeman4510@msn.com).
This is expected to be a great evening of sharing and learning. What topics would you like to explore? Topics can be wide ranging, such as photo book reviews, an aspect of your own photography that you’d like to share, reviews or discussion of shows, photo gear, software, etc.
Please join us for a fun and educational evening!
FIELD TRIP – ANNMARIE SCULPTURE GARDEN
Date and time: Saturday, March 12, meet at 10:30 a.m.
Rain Date: Sunday, March 13.
Where: Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center, 13470 Dowell Road, Solomons, MD 20688. Check out the Website.
What: Annmarie is a 30 Acre Sculpture Garden on Solomon’s Island. According to the website: “These diverse pieces are fully integrated into the natural setting of the Garden and provide the opportunity to develop an appreciation for the seasonal changes inherent in outdoor art. Collectively, these diverse works allow visitors to explore the ever-changing shapes and shadows of the forest and the art it shelters.“ There is also an indoor exhibit, but the outdoor art and woods are the best photo option.
Fees: Suggested Donation $5 or more.
Photo Guidelines from the Garden: “We do not place restrictions on photographs taken during a normal visit to Annmarie. As long as you have paid the regular admission fees for all members of your group, you are welcome to explore the grounds and take photographs for personal use. We do ask that you respect the privacy of other guests and do not take photographs of guests not in your group.”
Lunch: Ruddy Duck Brewery and Grill, 13200 Dowell Road, Dowell MD.
Important note: RSVP Trip Leader (philboyer60@gmail.com) so he can make lunch reservations
DIRECTIONS: From Washington DC (about 60 minute drive): Take Route 4 South, Exit 11 off Capital Beltway (to Prince Frederick). Continue on 4 South, following signs to Solomons. Left on Dowell Road at Hilton Garden Inn and Rudy Duck. Garden is less than 1/4 mile on left. Here’s a map.
CLUB NEWS
The SSCC Board met on February 24, 2022. Minutes from the January meeting may be found here. February’s minutes will appear in the April Cable Release.
PHOTOGRAPHERS’ WORDS OF WISDOM
Larry Brauer suggested including in the CR a quote or two from this site: https://photographylife.com.
“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.” ~ Ansel Adams
FEATURES
Our February speaker, Arik Gorban, did a compelling presentation on Infrared Photography. He has kindly provided his notes from this presentation, which you can see here.
To see some of Arik’s images, try this site, or visit his homepage.
MPA PRESENTATION — Essdras M Suarez
“Street Photography and the Decisive Moment”
Monday, March 14, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. EST
Essdras M Suarez is a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner, who has worked as a photojournalist for newspapers for 20 years. Essdras’ presentation will explore the proper structuring and the use of all the right elements needed to create successful street photos. You will look at the most basic of compositions to the more complex. Images will be analyzed, including how the Decisive Moments make them extraordinary.
Don’t miss this FREE webinar. It takes place on Monday, March 14 at 7:00 PM EST. For more information CLICK HERE.
CONFERENCES AND EXPOS
2022 PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY OF AMERICA PHOTO FESTIVAL
Club members have enjoyed this conference over the years and come back with some terrific images. Learn more here.
MEMBER ARTICLES
Editor’s note: It can take considerable effort (and maybe some courage) to put together an article for the Cable Release. If you find something in an article that inspires, intrigues, or informs you, let the author know if you can. You can also send your reactions in a “Letter to the (CR) Editor.” Send to cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org.
COMPETITION RESULTS
HIGH KEY/LOW KEY COMPETITION – FEBRUARY 10, 2021
February’s competition was High Key/Low Key, for projected images only. Lori Lankford was our judge. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic the competition was held remotely over Zoom.
There were two categories judged: Advanced Projected (i.e. digital images) and Novice Projected. No Beginner Projected images were submitted. The Print categories are suspended until we start in-person meetings again. Awards are given for first, second, and third place, and multiple honorable mentions (HM) – the number of awards depends on the total number of entries in the category.
See an image that speaks to you? Let the photographer know next chance you have!
ADVANCED PROJECTED
1st Place: David Terao ~ High Key Portrait
2nd Place: Beth Koller ~ Please Don’t Make Me
3rd Place: David Blass ~ Edison
HM: Michael Tran ~ Snow Monkey Portrait
HM: Wendy Kates ~ Tulip Reflections
HM: David Terao ~ Ballet Reflection
David Terao ~ High Key Portrait
I took this image at Don Becker's portrait workshop in which he was featuring his granddaughter, Kelly, who is a model. The studio set-up used two mono-lights with a white background. In Photoshop, I converted the image to a high-key image and changed Kelly's eye color from green to blue and lightened her hair color.
NOVICE PROJECTED
1st Place: Maude Svensson ~ Low Key Portrait
2nd Place: Marc Auerbach ~ Frigid Day on the Plains
3rd Place: Kay Carkhuff ~ Lydia in High Key
HM: Diane Sanders ~ Magnolia
HM: Maude Svensson ~ High Key Harte
Maude Svensson ~ Low Key Portrait
This is my husband Lars who is also my one and only model (as Brad Pitt is too busy). We had fun and worked hard for this portrait. I had bought a video course on how to make dramatic low-key portraits. After weeks of studying, and after about 100,000 different shots which never really turned out like those in the video course, we finally agreed on a few portraits. This one is a composite that I have worked on in Photoshop to exaggerate his wrinkles and skin characteristics, as well as dark shadows and contrasts. We are still married!
COURSES, CALLS FOR ENTRY, AND EXHIBITS
PHOTOGRAPHY COURSES AND WORKSHOPS
Needed: Someone to author the Classes and Workshop List for the 2021-2022 Cable Release club year. Please let Catherine [ president@ssccphotography.org ] know if you might be interested. This is an opportunity to inspire the learning of club members. In the meantime, we will show some online sources.
Thanks to Joe Willmore from the Shutterbug Excursions Meetup group for this list:
- CreativeLive: (not local but very popular and when I reached out for resources, several of our previous presenters mentioned this). https://www.creativelive.com
- Capital Photography Center: With both virtual and in-person classes, this is a popular resource locally. https://capitalphotographycenter.com
- Art League (located in the Torpedo Factory): Both in-person and virtual classes. https://www.theartleague.org/classes/
- Arts of Great Falls (I’m a photography instructor here): Both in-person and virtual classes. https://greatfallsart.org/school-of-art/
These online course providers are listed in every issue:
- Coursera
- KelbyOne
- Lydna.com is now LinkedIn Learning. For free access through the Montgomery County public libraries, see here.
- Photographic Society of America (PSA)
Also offering free webinars—on photography printing—is Moab Paper. See: https://www.moabpaper.com/moab-tv?rq=tv I have never taken one of Moab’s webinars, but Moab is a main producer of artistic photo papers. Other vendors are offering free webinars, but they tend not to give advance notice, so the ones I have located are offered only in April.
Please let us know of other online opportunities you discover by emailing us at cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org. Especially welcome would be reviews of courses or workshops you have attended.
CALLS FOR ENTRY
by Dennis Freeman
The following offers a number of competitions for your consideration this month. Some of these sources having standing calls for entry, and others are one-time calls. Some offer cash and prizes, and others don’t.
See the full Calls for Entry article here. (Read More)
EXHIBITS AND EVENTS
WASHINGTON POST
Here is a link to the online Washington Post’s lists of D.C., Maryland, and Virginia photography-related exhibits and museums. The various photography-related exhibits appear in different parts of the online paper, making a simple search or link unreliable. You can search within:
Photography section: Photography
Going Out Guide: Going Out Guide
Art Section: Art
Take a look at what our sister camera club, the NIH Camera Club, has going on. Here is a link to their site. There you can find their newsletter, the Cameraderie: nihcameraclub.com
