Oct 3-10 Weekly Photo Challenge

This week's Weekly Photo Challenge is to illustrate your favorite verse or quote with a photograph:

 Photo by Wendee Schmitke

 Photo by Merry Parks

 Photo by Kelsey Ensz

 Photo by Jill Van Well

Photo by Mary Fast

Sept 26-Oct 3rd Weekly Photo Challenge

This week's Weekly Challenge theme is The Number Seven:

 Photo by Lisa Preston

 Photo by Jill Van Well

Photo by Lindsay Button

October Meeting Recap

This month Jill & Wendee led us in a discussion on Lifestyle Photography which was really helpful.  Afterall, we all take photos of our families and kids!  Here's a quick recap of what they went over:

What is lifestyle photography?

• The opposite of still smiles and cheesy poses
• When stories and images of life intersect
• Documenting daily life
• Capturing the little moments
• A reflection of reality
• Capturing moments that make TODAY wonderful
• Random, but very real to your family
• A true depiction of life in its natural setting as it unfolds in front of your eyes

What should we try to capture?

• Everyday stories
• Life happening right in front of you (which means the ugly stuff too!)
• Special toys, time-era items, important objects, and the people that belong to them
• Relationships: Remember the grandparents, the cousins, friends, pets...
• Think about the big picture, and the details

How do we capture these moments?

• Keep your "photo capturing device" (cell phone, point and shoot, SLR) handy and accessible!
• Get to know your camera settings
• Be a fly on the wall; observe, don't try to control or manipulate the situation
• Take a couple shots, and then stop and enjoy the moment
• Embrace imperfection. Life is not perfect...our photos do not have to be either
• When in doubt, (Is this the right setting?  Is this good lighting?) shoot!
• All that said, it is important to train your eye for good lighting, backdrops etc.
• Don't make things more complicated than they need to be. Just take the picture.
• Change your perspective, not your subject
• Be weird, be you
• Wait for those expressions...be patient

September's Golden Hour Field Trip

Here's some highlights from last month's Golden Hour Field Trip:

Photo by Alysun Peters

Photo by Angie Bell 

 Photo by Jill Van Well

Photo by Meg Wright

Photo by Jill Van Well

Sept 19-26th Weekly Photo Challenge

This week's Weekly Photo Challenge theme is Learning and Education:

 Photo by Kelsey Ensz

 Photo by Wendee Schmitke

 Photo by Merry Parks

 Photo by Jill Van Well

Photo by Lindsay Button

Sept 12-19th Weekly Photo Challenge

This week's Photo Challenge theme is Fruit & Nuts:

 Photo by Jill Van Well

 Photo by Kelsey Ensz

 Photo by Merry Parks

Photo by Lindsay Button

Photo by Renee Sonday

September Meeting Re-Cap

What our Group is About

Our group is for women to learn and enjoy photography together.  We are open to anyone regardless of skill level, all that is required is a desire to learn and grow.  You do not need to own a fancy DSLR camera to participate.

Meeting Dates and Times

This year we will be meeting on the first Wednesday of the month from 9-10:30am at Trinity Lutheran Church (320 SE Fir Villa Rd).  The church nursery is right next to our meeting room and will be available for you to use if you bring your children.  Please help your children tidy the room before you leave at the end of the meeting.

Meeting Topics

Each meeting will focus on one topic that we will talk about and sometimes practice.  We are looking for volunteers to be on a group panel or two as well as people who might be interested in leading a particular topic.  If you are interested in helping in this way please let Kellie know!  Potential topics this year include: Lifestyle Photography, Black & White Photography, Natural Indoor Light, Night Photography, Bokeh, Photographing Children, Macro Photography, Portrait Photography, and Sports Photography.

Field Trips

We try to plan one field trip each month which is sometimes child friendly and sometimes not depending on the subject/location/time.  It is pretty much impossible to schedule a date and time that works for the entire group but we will do our best to make sure as many people can come as possible.  If you have a fun idea for a field trip please share it, we’re always looking for fun new spots and ideas!

Weekly Challenges

Weekly Challenges are optional and fun to participate in.  Each meeting we will assign the Weekly Challenges until the next meeting and they will also be posted on our Facebook page.  Please share your Weekly Challenge images on our Facebook page and/or Flickr.  It’s fun to see everyone’s images!  If you would like a real critique please mention it in the comments section so everyone knows that you are looking for it.  If you’d rather just share and not ask for critique that’s fine too.