Special Saturday Edition - January 30th

We finally returned from Dallas and Scott Kelby's Photoshop for CS4 for Digital Photographers Class. We promised Scott that if he would pose with the 4 of us we would make him an honorary "Okie from Muskogee"!

Special Saturday Edition - January 3

Friday - January 29th

"Lunch Anyone?" by Joanne Myers for Class B's General category.

"Mesa Verde National Park" by Herman Kirby for Class A's General category.

"Featherman" by Mika Conn for Class B's General Category

Thursday - January 28th

"Osage Princess" by Robert Atchley for Class A's General category.

Honorable mention, "100 Years of Alaskan Railway" by Haskell Stephens for Class B's General category.

"The Big "V" " by David Stiles for Class B's General category.

Wednesday - January 27th

"My Time of Year" by Duane Cain for Class B was awarded a 3rd place in the Nature category.

"The Old Ways of Life" by Julie Keifrider for Class B General/Pictorial category.

Class B entry to the General/Pictorial category by Yvonne Myers is titled "Red Headed Centipede.

Tuesday - January 26th

First Place in Class A was "Santa’s Little Helper" by Mandy Lundy.

Here's what the judge had to say:

This is just an outstanding portrait of this baby wearing the Santa hat, it is another example of less is more. Look how simple this image is the feathers in the foreground and the white drop behind the baby, they are non-competing with the subject and as a result it is impossible for us to see anything except the baby sitting there smiling at us. Technically the image is well done. Exposure is first rate, beautiful catch light in the eyes, nice soft shadowing involved, and it is difficult to get a pleasant smile on a young child’s face like this. The maker has succeeded in doing that. Just a touch of a nice smile and a gaze into the camera resulted in an outstanding child portrait.

This is the last of the Best of the Best of 2009!

Monday - January 25th

First Place in Class B is "The Stare" by Robert Atchley

Here's what the judge had to say:

The maker has done a fantastic job of photographing this grizzly bear. I don’t know where the photograph was taken but you have done a fabulous job with it. There are dangerous animals to start with and you are really close here. I don’t know how you pulled it off. You took your time and did a good job. We can see the pie shape of the grizzly’s face and every hair on it. I like how all of surrounding area is all greenery and a few flowers. It really provides a nice shot of the habitat that the bear lives in and does not compete with the image of the bear. Finally the posture of the bear in the frame is very good, the fact that the bear is entering on a diagonal line strengthen the composition. I like how you have place the face of the grizzly just a little off center, that coupled with the diagonal line of the back makes it a really strong composition. The lighting here is very good it appears that you had some diffused or overcast light, no harsh shadows, a lot of detail in the fur and the vegetation. An outstanding shot of this grizzly.

Friday - January 22nd

Second Place in Class A was "Waterfall" by Mandy Lundy.

Here's what the judge had to say:

The vertical panoramic format works extremely well here as does the black framing. The color is vivid, the light is beautiful, no harsh shadows, just very soft illuminating light that allows us to see all the detail in the falls, the water, and the leaves in the surrounding area. The shutter speed was just perfect to give the water a little blurriness to give the water motion.

Thursday - January 21st

3rd Place in Class A was "Into the Vortex" by Cliff Moore.

Here's what the judge had to say:

Wow. This image has real impact. The color just knocks your socks off. This image stood out from all others due to its rich vibrant color. It is also a very technically difficult photograph to get. Often times infrared triggers are used to shoot at a very high shutter speed to capture action like this at a critical moment. I am not certain of the techniques the maker used. There are some star lights, highlights that show in the water droplet that are about to enter the water. The exposure is right on the money. The composition is good with the droplet off center with the rule of thirds and I like the magnification. High magnification shows all the details of the scene in the water. Very well done.

Wednesday - January 20th

Here is another Honorable Mention in Class A, "Steven and Megan" by Cliff Moore.

This is what the judge had to say:

This is a fine wedding portrait; the bride is beautiful of course. What I like about this picture is the soft focus that the maker used, it gives the couple a dreamy look that they are feeling in the moment. A really fine wedding portrait, beautiful catch light in the lady’s eyes, the composition is very good. Seeing the eyes of the lady and the gentleman is composed looking down perhaps kissing her forehead. It is different, something we don not see very day, very refreshing, and I think a very effective wedding photograph.

Tuesday - January 19th

"Portrait of a Frog" by Mandy Lundy was a Honorable Mention for Class A.

Here's what the judge had to say:

The colors, lighting, and exposure are all first class, just absolutely excellent. This image is tack sharp where it needs to be sharp and that is on the eyes and face of the frog. I think it is very effective how the maker got on the frogs level to make this image not shooting down but straight at the frog. That is very effective with any wildlife or birds you are photographing remember that, it really strengthens the image. The background is out of focus and does not compete with the primary subject the frog. I think the back border helps set of the rich color in the scene.

Monday - January 18th

Now we switch to Class A. This is our first Honorable Mention, Midnight Milky Way by Kevin Steele.

Here's what the judge said:

This is really an original image. We don’t often see images like this. I like the way he has possibly used some external light sources to illuminate the tree on the right and roof line of the building on the left during this night time exposure. Did a very good job on exposing the various stars in the sky and the exposure was quick because we do not see any star trails in the sky. Just a really nice, fresh, and original image that we do not see very often but is very effective

Friday - January 15th

Second Place in Class B is "Winter Home" by Anita Barnes.

Here's what the judge had to say:

I like the wonderful high key effect that the maker used in this image showing al of the light or bright tones and concentrating in that aspect, very effective. It almost converts the image to a black and white, there is pale yellow color in the siding of the home. The fact she has three prominent trees is very effective. The tree tops fall at a diagonal across the frame strengthens the composition. This is another example of less being more, it is a very effective scene. Nothing to complete with the line of the trees and the building. It results in a very effective image almost a class that approaches fine art.

Thursday - January 14th

Class B's 3rd place winner: "Simple Rose" by Julie Keifrider.

Here is what the judge had to say:
This is a beautiful rose. I like the way the maker has come in close to the subject with a slightly out of focus non-competing background. The colors here are excellent and it appears that the image was made under overcast lighting that which defused the light and allows all the details to be seen, particularly in the flower. There are no harsh shadows, just a beautiful well done rose. The image is a vertical that shows of the vertical line to the stem of the blossom. Also note this is a very simple image, it is not complex and as a result it is very effective.

Wednesday - January 13th

Today's Class B, Honorable Mention goes to Anita Barnes, her winning photo was entitled "Feather". Here's what the judge had to say:

This is a striking image of the colorful feather. I am impressed with the detail that the maker was able to capture in the image of the feather and I like how the maker selected the light non-competing background so all the details of the feather are all we see and concentrate on. A lot of times less is more in photography. The more simple an image the more effective it is. Sometimes when we get to much in the image in the background or foreground we lose its true meaning so keep this in mind. The simpler you can make an image the more effective it can be

Tuesday - January 12th

Best of the Best 2009

"Just Before Sunset" by Patricia Stiles for Class B.

Here's the judges explanation of why it was given a honorable mention:

This is another very well composed image. I like the use of the horizontal format to use the length of this dam that is shown horizontally in the frame. The colors here are outstanding. The exposure is perfect. Normally I would suggest you go for a panoramic format on a shot like this to include just the dam. You have such a beautiful sky that it really adds to the image as is. The tree on the left serves to frame the scene the most important part of the image, on the right we have the powerhouse for the dam. Again the colors are well saturated, very striking, very effective, giving the image a lot of impact.

Monday - January 11th

Starting today, I'm going to show the Best of the Best from 2009. I'm also including what the judge wrote about the photo. The first one won Honorable Mention for Class B. Jeff Williams New England Fishing Village.

This is a beautiful seascape. The thing I like most in this image is the composition. The maker has placed the two skiffs, one red, one white, off center that is our main center of interest. That is complemented by the lobster cage in the foreground and the red building on the left. I might take a little off the top of this to get rid of some of the gray sky the next time you print it. Overall it is a very nice image even though there was a gray sky the soft lighting allowed you to bring out all the details of the interesting aspects of the scene, the pilings on the left and the building on the left. Very well composed image.

Friday - January 8th

Today's photos are from a photography seminar that Robert Atchley and I went to in December at Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, TX that hosted Rick Sammon.

This is an Aoudad it comes from the deserts of Morocco, western Sahara to Egypt and Sudan. These animals were all over the preserve, they owned the place and were quite obstinate at times not letting the vehicles pass down the roads.

This is a Waterbuck from the Savannah regions of Africa south of the Sahara.

This is a Gemsbok from the arid country of Nambia and eastern South Africa.

This just in, if you have Photoshop this Class is a Must!

Come Spend The Day With Me in Dallas, Texas Learning “Photoshop for Digital Photographers”

Scott Kelby is coming to Arlington, Texas. . . so go here:
http://www.kelbytraininglive.com/photoshop-for-digital-photographers.html

If you would like to participate go to the link and sign up today. Yes, I know it's the day before our Natural Falls State Park sponsored event with Jerry Poppenhouse, but that's ok, we'll just have to come back Friday night!

Thursday - January 7th

"Wildflowers" by Margaret Brown for Class A.

"Rump Roast" by Joe Baucom for Class B.

"Frozen Falls" by Joanne Myers for special comp 'Water'.

Wednesday - January 6th

"Waterfalls at Yellowstone" by Jan Baucom for special comp 'Water'.

"The Professor" by David Stiles for Class B.

"Waterfall" by Diana Fields for special comp 'Water'.

Tuesday - January 5th

"Evening Shadows" by Mika Conn for Class B.

"Natural Falls" by Patricia Stiles for Class B.

The Club is sponsoring a Photography meeting at Natural Falls on January 30th at 8:30 AM, Jerry Poppenhouse from Bartlesville is going to be speaking on the "Art of Seeing". Then we will go out to the Falls and see what wintery scenes we can get. Contact me if you are interested, we have a couple of spots open, cost is $25.

"Generations" by Robert Atchley for Class B.

This was taken on Robert's and my first trip to Woolaroc last spring. That's where we heard Jerry Poppenhouse speak the first time.

Monday - January 4th

As you can see, I still don't have that definitive photo yet of the Snow Geese. We arrived around 2:15 on Saturday afternoon to only find the geese on the water in a secluded spot. Plus this time everyone and his uncle was running around the preserve.

We patiently went from spot to spot around the preserve to only find hunters setting up their decoys, oh boy, we knew we weren't going to see any geese up close today! After circling the entire preserve a couple of times we came back into the main area and just as we were leaving a small group of geese were crossing the road in front of us. No great shots, but we had fun for a few minutes anyway!!!

"Little House in the Prairie" is what I hope this was titled, by Amy Stephens for Class A. The title was too long to save so I don't know the last word for sure.

"Golden Canna Lily" by Anita Barnes for Class B.

Happy New Year 2010!

Happy New Year one and all!

Tomorrow the Muskogee Shutterbug Club is sponsoring a photoshoot at Sequoyah National Preserve at Vian, Oklahoma. We'll meet at my office, 510 N. York St. at 1:30 to divide up sides and head to the preserve. Robert Atchley and I will show everyone around the preserve and hopefully the Snow Geese will cooperate!

I can't wait, as this will be my 4th trip in the last month down to the preserve, and I haven't been disappointed yet. . . Still don't have that one defining photo yet, but I know it's out there waiting for me!!!!!!

Come join us for the afternoon, and just maybe the sunset will be fantastic as well!