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.
Contents
KEY EVENTS
The following scheduled events will be conducted online as Zoom teleconferences, except for the Competition and Field Trip. Look for announcements and invitations by e-mail, Meetup, and on the club’s Website.
- November 7 – Speaker Night: Brian McGuckin (7:30 on Zoom)
- November 14 – Competition: Open (7:30 p.m. at Northwood Presbyterian Church)
- November 16 – Field Trip: Graffiti Warehouse, Baltimore (10:00 a.m.)
- November 21 – Photo Forum (7:30 on Zoom)
- November 28 – Happy Thanksgiving!
2024-2025 Calendar
See here for this season’s calendar, which will be updated as information becomes available. It includes Speaker Night, Competition Night, Photo Forum, Board Meetings, and Field Trips.
If Montgomery County Schools close due to inclement weather, Silver Spring Camera Club meetings and outings will be canceled. 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.or
A list of the club officers and committee chairs, and their emails, is located here:
More information is available in the Silver Spring Camera Club (SSCC) Member Handbook: SSCC-Member-Handbook-2024-2025.
PLEASE CONSIDER PROVIDING MATERIALS FOR THE NEXT CABLE RELEASE:
If you’d like to share an article, announcement, or Letter to the Editor about anything photographic please email them by November 24. Email items or questions to Sherm Edwards and Tanya Riseman at cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org.
DEADLINE: BY November 24th TO cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org.
MEETINGS AND FIELD TRIPS
MEETING LOCATION
For the 2024-2025 club year, the second Thursday meeting of each month will be in person, at Northwood Presbyterian Church (https://www.northwoodchurch.com/). The address is 1200 University Blvd., West, Silver Spring, Other meetings will be on Zoom. The in-person meeting will be Competition Night if the judge agrees, otherwise it will be Photo Forum and Competition Night will move to the third Thursday on Zoom.
SPEAKER NIGHT — Brian McGuckin — From Teaching to Touchdowns, a Photographer’s Journey
Thursday, November 7, 2024, at 7:30 p.m.
Brian McGuckin has been a professional photographer since 2007. His passion for other cultures and experiencing the world has taken him to over 25 countries across four different continents. From red carpets, to the NFL, to the roundabouts of Carmel, Brian loves capturing the world as he sees it through his eyes. Sharing his love for photography and education, he offers personal lessons and workshops throughout the year.
Brian is in his 25th year of teaching in Carmel Clay Schools where his passion for images and storytelling are incorporated into his classroom with hopes of inspiring students to experience the world through their own eyes.
COMPETITION COLUMN
Our November 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 for the Projected competition. Look here for details on Projected submissions. Projected images should be emailed to: competition@ssccphotography.org by midnight (11:59 p.m.) on the day of the month’s Speaker Night.
Remember:
- Send projected image submissions to competition@ssccphotography.org
- Format: JPEG, 1000 KB (max)
- File Name: Level~Maker’s Name~Image Title.jpg Example: Advanced~Tom Jones~Washington Landscape.jpg . The tilde “~” character separates the 3 subfields of the file name
- Level: Novice, Intermediate, or Advanced (see below); capitalization not required.
- Maker’s Name: spaces allowed. Please use the same name throughout the year to aid record keeping.
Members may also submit up to two images meeting the definition for the Print competition. Look here (Section IV) for details on submissions. A label template for Print submissions may be found here.
One important detail – In order to participate in either competition, you must pay the club’s annual dues before the start of the competition.
As you may have heard, the Club has changed the competition levels starting in September 2024. The new levels are Novice, Intermediate, and Advanced. To see a list of all 2023-2024 Club members with their tentative competition level assignments, separately for Projected and Print, click here. For details on what this change means for you, click here.
Here’s the schedule for the remainder of the year:
- December – Humorous
- January – Open
- February – Found Abstract
- March – Open
- April – Abandoned
- May – Monochrome
- June – End of Year Competition (special rules apply)
JUDGE JOHN HOOVER – OPEN
Thursday, November 14, 2024, from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
For five years John worked as the Director of Photography at the Metropolitan Center for the Visual Arts (VisArts), a non-profit community arts center located in Rockville, Maryland, starting first as a volunteer and then moving into a full-time staff position. The photography program at VisArts originally began as a traditional darkroom facility staffed with volunteers and offered a handful of photography classes for adults. John worked diligently to expand the scope and capabilities of the program.
For his work at VisArts John was awarded the 2007 Excellence in the Arts and Humanities Award by the Montgomery County Arts and Humanities Council, recognizing the contributions he made in improving the Photography Department to the point of national recognition among professional photographers and industry specialists.
After serving for four years as an Adjunct Professor of Photography at Montgomery College in Rockville Maryland, John transitioned into the position of Instructional Lab Coordinator for the Photo Program.
The focus of John’s photography is Portraiture, Travel, and Architecture.
PHOTO FORUM
Thursday, November 21, 2024, from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m.
Join us for discussion on topics including: What’s on your mind, photographically? Opinions, Observations, Questions, Exhibits, Reviews, etc.
November’s planned presentations:
- “A Photographer goes Birding” – Sherm Edwards
- “The SSCC Facebook Page, Groups, etc” – Gerry Woods
- “iPhone,SLR,and Compact Comparisons” – Norm Bernache
You may send up to 2 images you would like get feedback on or just share.
NOVEMBER FIELD TRIP — GRAFFITI WAREHOUSE
Leader: Phil Boyer 301-204-5549
What: One of Baltimore’s iconic attractions.
When: Saturday, November 16, 2024, 10:00 a.m. Allow time to find parking, and don’t leave anything valuable in your car.
Where: In front of the Graffiti Warehouse, located at 128 North Ave. (It is also behind the Motor House Art Center, which is located at 120 North Ave.) The alley is at the intersection of North Howard St. and West 19th Street.
To Photograph: Graffiti, street scenes, city life, possibly artists at work.
Questions? Call Trip Leader at 301-204-5549, or email at philboyer60@gmail.com.
Lunch: Sabatino’s Little Italy, a Baltimore Institution. Best homestyle Italian in this area; homemade pasta to die for. Prepare to skip dinner and gain 5 pounds. Bonus: Waitress will call you “Hon.”
To Bring: Tripod/Mono Pod and a lack of shame (you’ll be photographing some odd stuff and random people).
Share your images from the trip: With the SSCC Facebook Group (see below), on Meetup, and/or send to cablereleaseeditor@ssccphotography.org for inclusion in the next month’s Cable Release.
CLUB NEWS
Mid-Atlantic Photographic Society of America Chapter Meeting
The meeting will be at Leisure World Maryland Clubhouse 1 on Saturday November 9 from 9 a.m. to about 3 p.m. A speaker will discuss creative uses of AI. Tell the guard at the Leisure World gate that you are there for a photo meeting. rossmoorcameraclublw.com.
REVITALIZED FACEBOOK PRESENCE
By Gerry Woods
As you’re probably aware, the Silver Spring Camera Club (SSCC) has had a dedicated Facebook (FB) Group for over eight years. The group currently has over sixty members. At the July meeting, the SSCC Board of Directors voted to “revitalize” our “FB Group Page” and create a brand new, separate “Facebook Page.”
What is the difference between a “Facebook Page” and a “Facebook Group?” “Facebook Page” is typically used for a business or organization to tell its story, reach new audiences, and promote its products and services. For example, a restaurant may have a Facebook Page to advertise its location, hours, menu, and contact information. A Facebook Page functions very similar to a website.
A “Facebook Group” is a special type of Facebook Page. It is intended for a group of people to connect around a shared interest to have online discussions and share resources, information, and ideas. Group members can share comments, images, and videos easily with other members of the group.
FB Group members are encouraged to share personal photos they have taken, such as during a vacation or other travel, or a photo they entered into a club contest, including those that did not win or place. Photos taken at SSCC events, such as field trips and club picnics, are encouraged as well. FB group members are invited to post information related to photography education, techniques, and equipment, along with any questions you would like to have answered by other group members.
You can access the SSCC FB Group on your computer by going to the Facebook website. You can also access the FB Group by smart phone or table by downloading the free Facebook App. It’s easy to join the SSCC Facebook Group. Just search for the Silver Spring Camera Club Group “Groups” on Facebook. When you find our group, click on “Join Group.” You will be prompted to answer three simple questions, and one of the FB Moderators will approve your request. If you have any questions, please send an email to gerrywoodsdc@gmail.com.
OCTOBER 5 FIELD TRIP — WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
Several SSCC members led by Phil Boyer met near Nationals’ Park for urban street and architecture photography. To quote Wendy Kates, “Who would have thought that one of the most interesting features of the Navy Yard was the O Street Sewage Plant?”
