FOCUS ON KIRKIEKIRKINTILLOCH CAMERA CLUB NEWSLETTER

NOVEMBER 2015

A Look Back at the 1st Monthly Competition

A bumper submission meant that judge Hunter Kennedy had his work cut out. Congratulations to the winners – Eric Mair in the B Section print , Jim McBride, A Section print, Alan Cameron Monochrome print and Gordon Baird/Ian Tully joint winners of the digital images section.

A number of the DPI’s are already on the club website and so here are a selection of images from the print submissions.

The honour of top print on the night went to Jim McBride with Magical Morning, shot at Loch Ard. As judge Hunter Kennedy commented, this is the quality of light you can get in Scotland if you get out of bed early enough!

Continued ...

A modern portrait shot was how Hunter described “Naz” before awarding it second place with 19 points. Author Alan Jones explained the shot was taken in Kelvingrove Park.

Of her image “Passenger” Fiona Brims explained “this was one taken from a set shot at Boness Railway on a steam train. Based loosely round a vintage bride and being " ditched" . Taken with Ambient light only with an 85mm Lens at f1.8 ISO 800.

Says Brian “this image was taken at a classic motorbike event at East Fortune racetrack. Although the bike is leaning away from the camera and the riders face is hidden by the black visor, I think the image still works due to the light, the shape of the exhaust pipes and of course the sense of speed. The technical stuff… well it was shot on a Canon 5D Mk2 with Sigma 70-200 2.8 at f13, 1/100sec, ISO 100 on shutter priority”.

Some other top images submitted included:

@ Jim McBride

@ Alan Jones

Shock!! We often associate Brian Cathie with photographing excellent portraits but here he is photographing something that moves…very quickly!!

NEWSLETTER | November 2015

“I just waited for some nice natural light, didn't need fill flash. Asked Naz to think of something precious in her life and composed the shot as she relaxed”. ISO100 135mm f5.6 1/200. Canon 1Ds Mk3, 28-300mm lens. Raw conversion with Lightroom, then adjustment layers in Photoshop.

@ Fiona Brims

@ Brian Cathie

Brimilsvellir Church by Alan Cameron

@ Alec Cameron

NEWSLETTER | November 2015

The Monochrome section also saw some fine images, with top place being awarded to Alan Cameron’s “Winter Wonderland” - strong composition said judge Kennedy - and second place to “Spyder” by Alan Jones.

1st Monthly Competition Continued..

With “Scarlets Try”, the top print in the B Section, Eric Mair demonstrates his rugby shots are reaching professional standard. Hunter commented “fantastic shot – drama, action, power, great composition”. Eric lets us into his secret. “This was taken during the Glasgow Warriors-v-Llanelli Scarlets match at Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow in September. I am fortunate enough to have managed to obtain/blag a photographer's pass for the season which means I have pitch-side access. I was crouching behind the advertising barriers at the try-line and was lucky that the action came my way. It was shot at ISO200, Aperture 3.5, Shutter Speed 1/1250 at 70mm on a 70-200 f2.8 lens, handheld. The camera body was a Nikon D7100. The image is cropped to about a sixth of the original picture. A full set of over 170 images from the game are available to view on my web-page www.photoboxgallery.com/ericmair”

Runner up in the B Section was Ian Doig’s “Uphill Struggle”

“Boats” by Paul McAllister

“The Mountain Runners” by John Logan

Alan tells us that GN Spyder was shot at Bo’ness hillclimb this year. “The most challenging aspect was getting a good clean background. I normally set up for panning these cars with a slow shutter speed but moved up to the courtyard and the cars zoomed into view with no chance of locking focus for panning so had to crank up ISO and quickly grab

focus.” ISO400 300mm 1/800sec f5.6 Canon 1Ds Mk3 with 28-300mm lens. Raw conversion in Lightroom then adjustment layers in Photoshop.

@ Paul McAllister

@ John Logan

@Alan Cameron

@Alan Jones

@Eric Mair

@Ian Doig

Elliott Erwitt

Photography is an art of

observation.

It has little to do with the things

you see and everything to do with

the way you see them.

NEWSLETTER | November 2015

I very much enjoyed Malcolm Allan’s piece on judging in the last club newsletter, and it made me question once again my reasons for embarking on the road to becoming a photographic judge. My experiences and observations as a camera club member over many years prompted me to investigate the strange and (sometimes) secretive process of photographic judging! Eventually, after some thought, I decided to attend a judging course much to the surprise of my fellow club members, who asked WHY?

So let me try to explain.

“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” Charles Caleb Colton, Author and writer.

Firstly, I have always enjoyed looking at other peoples’ images, in fact you could say that I’m extremely nosey to find out what talented photographers were capable of producing - so that I could copy or imitate their ideas to improve my own photography!

“No Matter how good you get…. you can always get better….” Tiger Woods, Golfer

Secondly, when assessing and processing my own work, I always tried to improve or change the image to resemble, as best I could, the scene I saw when taking the original shot. This reflected methods and tips I had heard judges frequently suggest in their deliberations, so I thought, - “I could do that!”

“Value those who give constructive criticism, without them, you will never reach your full potential” Unarine Ramaru, Journalist.

Thirdly, over many years of entering club competitions, it became apparent that assessment of images by judges

were based on standards of technical ability, alongside creative and artistic input. More apparent however, was that the allocation of marks was highly subjective and varied widely from one judge to another. Allied to this, I noticed that individual judges’ critique also varied wildly, ranging from downright insulting to highly positive.

WHAT I LOOK FOR AS A JUDGE IN CLUB COMPETITIONS;

For me, the essence of competent judging is to give positive comments and constructive remarks to encourage progression and improvement in club photographers, whatever their level. Negative critique, where appropriate, should be used sparingly and with care.

Initially, I look for competency and originality when assessing images.Basic photographic technical skills are the first areas to be carefully looked at;

1. Composition;Is the image well composed with interesting features well positioned within the frame. Composition should seem natural and well balanced to give a pleasing or dramatic effect on the image. Avoid distracting features or bright tones in the backgrounds.

2. Exposure; Is the image correctly exposed? Is it too bright with little or no detail in the highlights or too dark with no shadow detail?This can often be corrected at the processing stage especially when shooting in Raw format which allows for greater adjustments.

3. Focus and Sharpness;A very basic yet vital area of technique which often gets neglected. Images should be sharp ‘where they need

to be’. What I mean by this is that photographers must decide where they feel sharpness is important. For example, in general a landscape image with a strong foreground such as a boulder (aka an Alan Cameron!) should be sharp from front to back by using a suitable depth of field.A nature image of a bird or animal, or a portrait of a face, should be razor sharp in the eyes with a small depth of field to render the background softer and out of focus so that the main subject stands out more effectively.

4. Subjectivity;When the technical areas have been assessed, it then becomes a very subjective decision as to how the final marks are allocated.Various factors can affect the separation of images for scoring the competition;

Does the image have an emotional element which appeals to you?Does it have the “wow” factor?Does it set off a memory or past experience in the viewer?Does it record some fine detail which the eye would normally not see?And finally, is the image one that you’d thought “I wish I had taken that!”

And so, after taking into account all these variables, a mark or score would be finally allocated to each and every image.

In conclusion, as a photographic judge, my main aim is to encourage, advise and develop through constructive criticism, everyone who enters club competitions. If I can achieve this aim with some success, then club photographers, as Tiger Woods said, “can always get better”.

Neil MacGregorNov. 2015

“I Confess.... I’m a Photographic Judge”by Neil MacGregor

NEWSLETTER | November 2015

Get To Know Your CameraStuck on using Auto Mode? Unsure of the relationship between Aperture and Shutter Speed and what the heck does Wide Open mean?

If you are still getting to grips with camera knowledge, would you be interested in the club running a couple of informal workshop evenings on Basic Camera Skills?

Two sessions are suggested, to be led by Paul McAllister and Ian Tully,

Photo Advisory Night – 12 Nov, 7.30 at the ClubhouseThe club will hold an initial advisory night on the 12th Nov. Members are encouraged to share their pictures and get friendly and constructive advice from the clubs judges. Aimed in particular at less experienced members and those who do not currently enter work into club competitions, but open to everyone.

SPF PDI Championship Sunday 22nd Nov at Stirling Management Centre, University of Stirling. Entry fee £5. Although Kirkintilloch do not currently enter this national competition, here is a chance to see the best digital images from many clubs across the country.

Upcoming Events

Camera Basics: Covering camera modes, understanding of the relationship between aperture and shutter speed, and ISO. Depth of field. Getting it Right: Raw v JPEG, Exposure including metering, an understanding of dynamic range, the importance of the histogram, exposure adjustment, and an explanation of white balance.

Each session will be no more than 2 hours and be held on a Thursday night subject of course to sufficient interest from members. A small contribution to clubhouse costs of £2 per session is suggested.

Please email Ian Tully if you are interested, ianrtully@gmail.com.

5 Way CompetitionThe Club will compete in the annual “5 Way” competition on 26 November. This is a competition involving the clubs in the North Central Area of the Scottish Photographic Federation – Cumbernauld and Kilsyth, Airdrie and Coatbridge, Stirling, Falkirk and Kirkintilloch. This year it will be held at Falkirk.

The entry comprises 5 Prints and 5 DPI’s. Because of the relatively early staging of the competition our entry is drawn from last year’s submissions to club competitions. The next issue of the newsletter will feature more detail of our entry and report on how we faired.

In the meantime any member is welcome to attend on the night and support the club.

Beginners’ Workshops

A two night workshop on basic camera skills. Dates to be finalised dependant upon demand. Contact Ian Tully.

KCC has a small library (in the T bar area) with titles on a variety of aspects of photography, e.g. Harry Bensons People, Robert Fox, The Iraq campaign 2003, Colin Prior and Magnus Linklaters Highland Wilderness. Photographing People by Jack Scholfield, National Geographic -Through the Lens.

Club Library

Some of the books may be a bit out of date, but the principles of photography are still sound. KCC had a book printed, with a limited run, in 2011 entitled "As we see it". This was a collection of photographs from our own members collated by Brian Cathie.

Why not have a look and perhaps borrow a book for a couple of weeks. Marjorie AllanLibrarian

From the Red Road Flats to the Cairngorms

Since the last newsletter we have had two excellent speakers at the club. In a late change to the billing, Chris Leslie presented a talk on “The Glasgow Renaissance” on 12th October and Mark Medcalf visited us on 2nd November to enlighten us on “What Makes a Good Wildlife Photograph”.

Chris is an BAFTA young talent award winning photographer and he

A Look Backby Bobby Hogg

Email ianrtully@gmail.com with your news, stories and information for the next newsletter.

SUBMIT CONTENT FORTHE NEXT ISSUE JAN 2016

kirkintillochcamera club

Founded 1951

The clubs website is a valuable resource for members. Here you can find or add news and intimations, get guidance on entering competitions, check past competition results and see a selection of the best images, read the club newsletter, and view galleries of members’ pictures.The website is a good showcase for the club and for

regaled us with tales and fascinating images from conflict zones in the Balkans - and the Red Road flats in Glasgow! Our timing was good as Chris had just spent the previous day photographing the explosive demolition of the flats and had then returned to photograph the aftermath of the demolition. What was remarkable was the way he was able to find, capture and communicate the human dimension to these stories.

From Camouflage Netting to Rubber Dinghies!

Mark’s type of photography was quite different but equally inspiring. His focus was firmly on the natural world and his skill, knowledge and patience has rewarded him with awards for his stunning animal portraits. What was great about Mark’s presentation was that he was eager to share insights into his approach, gear, etc rather than simply show his images - educational as well as inspiring!

At the end of November/early December we have two club nights to look forward to.

On 30th November we have a repeat of last year's "15 minutes of fame" where members have an opportunity to put in some digital images or short videos, share them with the club, explain their inspiration, technique, etc. and, if they're up for it, invite some audience feedback. This night was a great success last year. If you have any material you would like included

then please don't be shy and pass your images or videos to Bobby Hogg by 23rd November.

The following Monday, 7th December, we have another club night basically on the theme of post processing. The idea here is that any member show us the results they have achieved by developing previously issued raw files. If this idea works it will be interesting to see how different photographers interpret the same start files. To

make this idea work we will need about six or eight raw files for people to work on and, of course volunteers to have a go and do the post processing. So we are looking for a loan of six or eight raw files which don't all have to be "great". Donations please to Bobby Hogg by 16th November and volunteers, please step forward! And photo editors, please be prepared to share how you achieved your results - software used and a flavour of the adjustments you applied.

Keep Up To Date on the Club Websiteindividual members’ work, so why not add a gallery or update your existing one.

The Club’s website can be found at www.kirkintillochcameraclub.wordpress.com. Contact Alan Cameron at alan.cameron@virgin.net.

Looking Forward - Help is Neededby Bobby Hogg