with John Gregor

Sponsored by Hunts Photo

Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs has invited the Champaign County Camera Club to join them for this exciting webinar.

Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world. It covers over 31,000 square miles and stretches 382 miles east to west and 160 miles north to south. A typical photographic trip around the lake takes about a week, but even a week is not enough to take in all the sights. John Gregor has been around Lake Superior 8 times. He has spent countless trips exploring and photographing both the North Shore and South Shores. In this presentation he will share with you some of his favorite locations. 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

with Ben Knoot

Sponsored by Hunts Photo

Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs has invited the Champaign County Camera Club to join them for this exciting webinar.

Ben’s goal while guiding is to provide a memorable, exciting and successful experience so that other people can enjoy photographing earths beauty as much as he does. Ben has been published by several organizations including, Natures Best Photography, Audubon, Ranger Rick, NANPA, Wildlife Photo Magazine and the BBC. His deep love and passion for nature has guided and will continue to guide the way he chooses to live his life, with a sense of wonder and curiosity of all things new and exciting.

 Register in advance for this meeting:

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

by Jennifer King

Sponsored by Hunts Photo

Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs has invited the Champaign County Camera Club to join them for this exciting webinar.

A photo subject can be the same, yet captured in so many different ways. What makes one photograph stand out above the others? It is simple, a great composition. Understanding how our vision responds to an image is the first step in achieving success. From the basics of line, color and form to the use of more advanced techniques, we will explore and discuss different artistic approaches used to create better photos and help you become a better photographer. Creativity spreads… come and catch it!

BIO

Jennifer King is an internationally acclaimed landscape and fine art photographer with a passion for teaching and inspiring photographers around the world. She draws on her fine art and design background to bring an artistic approach to nature photography.

Jennifer is honored to be a Moab by Legion Master Photographer, Singh-Ray Filters Ambassador and one of the premier black and white photographers in the country. She is recognized as 1 of 15 Amazing Women to Follow by 500px, and is the Founder of PHOTOGRAPHERS for the FIGHT AGAINST BREAST CANCER (pfabc.org), an industry wide organization bringing together the biggest names in photography to raise money for breast cancer research. You can find her photography, tutorials and interviews in

Shutter Magazine, Camera in the Wild, Photography Talk, VIA Magazine, SmokyMountains Journal of Photography, Wild Planet and more!

On Thursday, April 6 @t 7P (CDT) the Springfield, Illinois Camera Club will host a presentation by SICC members Kerry Wright and Cyndi Gallo Callan on "An Introduction To Infrared Photography." The intent of the program is to give all attending an introductory overview of infrared photography (IR), with the hope it will encourage some in the audience to delve deeper into this fascinating genre of photography.

Kerry will begin his presentation by giving an example of what can be accomplished with IR by showing some of his own IR photographs, along with photographs found online. This will be followed by a short, 7 minute YouTube video by Rob Shae, an infrared photography expert known for his excellent explanations of IR basics.

Following the video, Kerry will demonstrate the process of taking IR photos using a HOYA R72 IR filter (720nm), dealing with the white balance, and processing the photo in Lightroom and Photoshop. A custom profile in Lightroom may be needed along with swapping the red and blue channels in Photoshop.

The Hoya R72 filter can also be used on a mobile phone using an adapter. Kerry will demonstrate this setup on his iPhone.

Next up will be Cyndi, whose interest in IR began earlier this year when someone in the global photo forum group she belongs to posted a handful of infrared photographs from the photographer's  converted Olympus EM5 II camera.  The images that caught Cyndi's attention  were part of a “dreamlike” challenge she was involved through the global photo forum group. 

The SICC purchased a point-and-shoot camera modified for infrared photography about 10-12 years ago. Cyndi will use the club’s camera as the base for her presentation. She will talk about what she has learned from her own reading and experimentation, including information that Life Pixel, the company that converted our club camera, focuses on in their Modified  Camera Quick Start Guide. Cyndi will show some of the photos she taken and processed to give club members a basic understanding of what can be done with the club’s camera, whether it is straight out of the camera, or with some edits using channel filters. 

Champaign County Camera Club members are welcome to attend this meeting. The virtual doors to meeting open at 6:45P, and the presentation by our speakers will begin by 7:10P. The Zoom link for this presentation is:

Jeffrey Wu is a Canadian professional wildlife and nature photographer accredited by Professional Photographers Of Canada (PPOC). Jeffrey specializes in African wildlife photography, and spends 10 months of every year photographing primarily in Kenya and nearby countries. Jeffrey is an artist, author, educator, conservationist, and also a world-renowned photographic competition judge. In this inspiring live event, Photo Masters founder Ian Plant will talk with Jeffrey about his approach to making artistic wildlife photos that stand out from the crowd.

with Molly Isaacs

Sponsored by Hunts Photo

Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs has invited the Champaign County Camera Club to join them for this exciting webinar.

Spring is coming. It's time to start planning for your spring season photography. What are your favorites to photograph, flowers, landscapes, baby wild animals, macro? Think about trying something new. Let Mollie Isaacs inspire you!

Mollie will be presenting presenting "Get Your Creative Groove On". Regardless of what you enjoy photographing - flowers, birds, landscapes, abstracts, macro, wildlife, and more - this webinar will help you be more creative in your approaches. You will come away with easy yet powerful techniques to catapult all of your photography to a higher level.

Are you working on that commitment to improve your photography and continue to develop your own unique style? Southwestern Michigan Council of Camera Clubs and Hunts Photo are committed to helping you achieve that by providing a great line-up of creative and inspiring speakers. We are very excited to bring you this years presenters and once again want to thank Gary, Noah, and Hunts Photo for partnering up with us to provide these wonderful opportunities. Please remember you must pre register for these free presentations and you will be sent a link to log in.

GET YOUR CREATIVE GROOVE ON
Great images come from more than just tripping the shutter at the right time. They come from inside of YOU - your skills, your talents, and your creativity. Every child is creative - the problem is how to remain creative once we grow up. This program will help you find that creative child that lives within you. Mollie will help you learn how to:

- become more observant
- use Light as a creative tool
- use Shutter Speed and Camera Angles as creative tools
- always be ready for the unusual or the unique
- make simple post-processing techniques your best friend

You will see Before and After images that walk you through the entire creative process. See eye-opening improvements with just a few simple, easy-to-do steps using Lightroom or Adobe Camera RAW.

Regardless of what you enjoy photographing - flowers, birds, landscapes, abstracts, macro, wildlife, and more - this webinar will help you be more creative in your approaches. You will come away with easy yet powerful techniques to catapult all of your photography to a higher level.


BIO: Mollie Isaacs is a professional photographer who specializes in Nature, Wildlife, Flowers, and Abstracts. She is passionate about photography, and loves nothing more than to share that passion by teaching others. Early in her career she studied with Ansel Adams and Joyce Tenneson. She has won the Kodak Gallery Award 14 times, considered by some to be the “Oscar” of photography. Her work is in the Permanent Collection of the International Photography Hall of Fame, and has been exhibited at Epcot Center in Disney World, and Grand Central Terminal in New York City. She runs Awake The Light Photo Workshops & Tours, offers online Webinars, and personally leads photo workshops around the country and beyond.

Read more about her and see her work on www.awakethelight.com

Check out her Facebook page at this link https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100052590138793

On Thursday, March 16, at 6P CDT (note one-hour earlier start time) the Springfield, Illinois Camera Club will host a presentation by photographer Andrew Robertson. Andrew is a London-based photographer who always has had a keen interest in travel and adventure. While his main focus and passion is landscape photography, living in London, Andrew’s work also crosses into urban, architecture and street photography. Honored as Landscape Photographer of the Year at the prestigious British Photography Awards in 2020, Andrew’s award-winning photography has been published in a number of magazines and books. 

Our speaker’s presentation will cover his development as a photographer. He will talk about the process by which he approaches his work generally, and will discuss specific images in detail, including the thought processes he went through in making these images and, in retrospect, some of the choices he could or should have made differently. Andrew hopes this analysis will help fellow photographers think more objectively about how they approach their own work.

We hope you will join us for this special, across-the-pond, presentation by Andrew Robertson who will be live from London at 11P GMT (the UK does not begin daylight savings time until the last Sunday in March. For this reason, the time difference between London and CDT is only five hours right now instead of the usual six hours).

Andrew's program on March 16 will begin shortly after 6P (CDT), and the virtual doors to our meeting room will open at 5:45P (CDT). The Zoom link for the meeting is:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/8328656302

Meeting ID: 832 865 6302

One tap mobile

+13092053325,,8328656302# US

+13126266799,,8328656302# US (Chicago)

Champaign County Camera Club Members are invited to attend. There is no cost for this program. Examples of Andrew's photography can be seen in the lead story in the March 12, 2023 issue of The Lens, SICC's twice-monthly newsletter. The newsletter can be downloaded here:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/o98amokanrgtz5h/230312%20The%20Lens.pdf?dl=0

We hope you will join us for this special presentation on Thursday, March 16 @ 6P!

Randy von Liski, president, Springfield, Illinois Camera Club

Great storytelling can help your audience connect emotionally with your images. Understanding how to weave a narrative into your photography can be confusing. How can one photo tell a whole story, with a beginning, middle, and end?

JP Stones has spent the last 5 years photographing the same group of Mexica, also known as Aztec, dancers. In that time, he learned how connected the Mexica are to their mythology. To stories passed down across generations. That’s when he decided that, as these stories were so vital to Mexica culture, they needed to play a bigger role in his portraits. See his website at jpstonesphotography.com.

TOPICS IN JP’S TALK

• How much of a story can one photo really tell?

• How being more intentional can change your approach to photography.

• How photography can be about making an emotional connection as well as creating beautiful work.

• How thinking in stories can help guide your entire creative decision-making process.

Visitors, this meeting will be on a Zoom video call from your internet connected device. To request the link to join the call, email: membership@peoriacameraclub.com

Sponsored by Hunts Photo

Daytime long exposures

Generally, most of the images we make during the day are shot with a short exposure. Since there is a lot of light, a long exposure might not seem necessary. But have you ever wondered how to create these surreal photographs where clouds are moving in streaks or the ocean is milky or the waterfalls are silky, or people appear as ghosts of the past? It’s all about long exposure photography. Long exposure photography helps you to create truly dramatic and other worldly images taking you away from reality. If you want to move away from ordinary, ‘as you see it’ kind of images, long exposure photography opens up a whole new world and brand new shooting opportunities.

In this presentation, Padma Inguva will share techniques and tips to make fine art photos with long exposures. She will discuss

1. Camera settings,

2. Filters,

3. Apps and other tools

4. What techniques to adapt to achieve very long shutter speeds during day time.

Bio:

Padma is a New Jersey based photographer who enjoys and creates fine art images using both camera and post processing skills. While she specializes in floral and architectural photography, her outside the box mentality led her to try creating exceptional images in mid-day’s harsh light. Thus, her passion for long exposure photography was born. You can catch her at the Jersey beaches spring, summer, fall looking for broken pilings and piers.

Description

Join SIGMA’s Marc Farb and Noah Buchanan for a technical discussion and pictorial view about SIGMA’s vast and varying line of powerhouse products from a commercial photographers angle of view. Learn about the company’s heritage – including its humble beginnings, its loyalty to Japanese culture and craftsmanship, and its dedication to “Made in Japan” – and the evolution of the SIGMA brand today. Marc and Noah will also discuss the Art, Sports, and Contemporary lines of lenses, as well as how SIGMA is meeting the needs of mirrorless camera users with conviction while offering some of the industry’s most popular lenses, from ultra-telephoto to macro.

Registering
Registration is below. After you register for this class, you will receive a confirmation email that will include information about how to access the online class. A reminder will also be sent 24 hours and 2 hours prior to the class.

Layout of the class
The class will begin promptly at the time listed. The majority of the class will be a presentation on the topic, followed by a short Q&A. During the class, you are welcome to type in questions in the Questions box. We will do our best to answer those questions, but if we can’t answer them on the spot, feel free to ask them at the end.

Class Recording
We will be recording this class! The video will be available about 24-hours after the class for all attendees, so don’t worry about taking unending notes. We will send this link rewatch at any time.

Can’t attend the class?
If you can’t attend the class but still want to watch the video, no problem: Just sign up for the class! You don’t need to attend and we will send the video link the next day!

Description

For nearly a decade Venus Optics has been creating lenses that expand what’s possible. Macro lenses that go beyond the traditional 1:1 magnification, ultra wide angle lenses that don’t distort, and lenses that transmit 8x as much light as a “fast” F/2.8 aperture lens.
Join us as we explore options that will let you see and share your world through a new lens (pun intended).

Registering
Registration is below. After you register for this class, you will receive a confirmation email that will include information about how to access the online class. A reminder will also be sent 24 hours and 2 hours prior to the class.

Layout of the class
The class will begin promptly at the time listed. The majority of the class will be a presentation on the topic, followed by a short Q&A. During the class, you are welcome to type in questions in the Questions box. We will do our best to answer those questions, but if we can’t answer them on the spot, feel free to ask them at the end.

Class Recording
We will be recording this class! The video will be available about 24-hours after the class for all attendees, so don’t worry about taking unending notes. We will send this link rewatch at any time.

Can’t attend the class?
If you can’t attend the class but still want to watch the video, no problem: Just sign up for the class! You don’t need to attend and we will send the video link the next day!

Joe Norton, a member of the Decatur Camera Club and the Crystal Lake Camera Club will present his Wildlife Photography Safari to Tanzania & Kenya this past February. His presentation will include the focus and planning for his most recent safari, the logistics of packing and travelling to Africa, what his day to day experience was like, what you can expect on safari, as well as sharing a number scenes and wildlife images from his trek. Joe’s program will actually bring you on safari as if you were actually there, and may surprise you with some of his insights into being on safari from an expert wildlife and nature photographer’s perspective.

There club opens their meeting online Zoom at 7pm for a social time, and the program will begin on or before 7:30pm.

They have extended the invite to all CCCC club members.

On Thursday, November 17 at 7PM, the Springfield, Illinois Camera Club will host a Zoom presentation by Jim Nix, a travel photographer, Skylum (Luminar) Ambassador and YouTuber based in Austin, Texas. His photographic interests include broad cityscapes, landscapes, and intimate street photographs. 

Jim has a colorful and expressive style and a strong preference for shooting at the edges of the day, where soft light and shadow help create the dramatic and moody sentiments his photographs embody. He loves to convey his artistic vision through editing tutorials, which he publishes several times a week on YouTube, and he encourages his viewers to experiment with their editing techniques in order to find their own creative voice.

Jim will talk about his photographic journey ... how he got started, his inspiration for photography and teaching photography, his role as a Skylum ambassador, and then will introduce us to the resources available to photographers on his website including helpful photography travel guides for 25 cities and places in the United States, Europe and Australia.

After the introductory, Jim will get to the main subject of his program and do a few unscripted edits on his photos so we can watch, learn and compare with our own techniques from an experienced professional. Jim already has several unscripted editing videos on his YouTube channel. 

Lastly, Jim will show a few of his favorite photos from his recently completed trip to Iceland, and will finish his presentation with a Q&A.

Description

Find out how the Canon R System was developed, what it offers, and what makes each model unique. The RF mount will be discussed along with the RF lenses & adapters. Camera emphasis is on the R5, R6, R7, and R10 – as the real functionality of these cameras will be revealed.

This class is for anyone who is considering purchasing an R System camera or wants to learn more about them! We will follow the class with a Q&A so bring any and all mirrorless Canon questions you have.

Registering
Registration is below. After you register for this class, you will receive a confirmation email that will include information about how to access the online class. A reminder will also be sent 24 hours and 2 hours prior to the class.

Layout of the class
The class will begin promptly at the time listed. The majority of the class will be a presentation on the topic, followed by a short Q&A. During the class, you are welcome to type in questions in the Questions box. We will do our best to answer those questions, but if we can’t answer them on the spot, feel free to ask them at the end.

Class Recording
We will be recording this class! The video will be available about 24-hours after the class for all attendees, so don’t worry about taking unending notes. We will send this link rewatch at any time.

Can’t attend the class?
If you can’t attend the class but still want to watch the video, no problem: Just sign up for the class! You don’t need to attend and we will send the video link the next day!

Description

Underwater Fine Art Portrait Photographer, Educator, WPPI Grand Master, and Canson Infinity Ambassador, Cheryl Walsh addresses the most important but rarely discussed product of being a true photographic artist: the final print. Cheryl will discuss how years of frustration with printing her own photographs drove her to find the answers to successful printing, contributed to her growth as a photographic artist, and ultimately has taken her business to the next level.

Registering
Registration is below. After you register for this class, you will receive a confirmation email that will include information about how to access the online class. A reminder will also be sent 24 hours and 2 hours prior to the class.

Layout of the class
The class will begin promptly at the time listed. The majority of the class will be a presentation on the topic, followed by a short Q&A. During the class, you are welcome to type in questions in the Questions box. We will do our best to answer those questions, but if we can’t answer them on the spot, feel free to ask them at the end.

Class Recording
We will be recording this class! The video will be available about 24-hours after the class for all attendees, so don’t worry about taking unending notes. We will send this link rewatch at any time.

Can’t attend the class?
If you can’t attend the class but still want to watch the video, no problem: Just sign up for the class! You don’t need to attend and we will send the video link the next day!

moderated by Hunt's Photo

Description

In this virtual workshop, OM System rep Mike Amico will take you on a journey through some of his favorite images from the past few years. Mike will talk about what inspired him and go over both the equipment and techniques used to “get the image” and create those captures. Join this class to get a better understanding of camera features and the types of lenses and accessories that can be used to create some great images.

Registering
Registration is below. After you register for this class, you will receive a confirmation email that will include information about how to access the online class. A reminder will also be sent 24 hours and 2 hours prior to the class.

Layout of the class
The class will begin promptly at the time listed. The majority of the class will be a presentation on the topic, followed by a short Q&A. During the class, you are welcome to type in questions in the Questions box. We will do our best to answer those questions, but if we can’t answer them on the spot, feel free to ask them at the end.

Class Recording
We will be recording this class! The video will be available about 24-hours after the class for all attendees, so don’t worry about taking unending notes. We will send this link rewatch at any time.

Can’t attend the class?
If you can’t attend the class but still want to watch the video, no problem: Just sign up for the class! You don’t need to attend and we will send the video link the next day!

The Springfield, Illinois Camera Club will host a Zoom presentation by Larry Reis on " Noting Nature As A Photographer" In addition to being a photographer, Larry is both a naturalist (expert on natural history) and phenologist (a branch of science dealing with the relations between climate and periodic biological phenomena, such as bird migration or plant flowering.)

Their presenter is the author of Noting Nature, Observations and Lessons from the Midwest's Metamorphosing Landscape (SP 2010, Rivertown Fine Books), and is the resource manager of the Winneshiek County Conservation Board in Fort Atkinson, Iowa. Larry has worked as a naturalist teaching environmental education in northeastern  Iowa for over twenty-five years, with free time spent birding, rockhounding, fishing, hunting and hiking outdoors.

While much of Larry's camera work is focused on bird photography, butterflies, insects, plants, fish,

wildlife and more are all found in his Flickr photo stream.

What sets Larry apart as a photographer is how he uses his extensive knowledge of natural phenomena to find the wildlife he photographs, and to educate the viewer through the written comments included with his photos. In a presentation full of examples, Larry will explain how his background as a naturalist and phenologist influences his photography and helps him prepare for shoots. Larry will give his own insights on how being a better observer of nature can improve your own opportunities to photograph nature. Lastly, he will share his personal observations on how climate change is impacting the natural environment around us.

Please download the attached .pdf for more details on Larry's presentation. 

The Springfield, Illinois Camera Club wishes to invite all of your members to this special Zoom presentation. No pre-registration is required. Larry's program on October 20 will begin shortly after 7P, and the virtual doors to our meeting room will open at 6:45P. Here is the meeting link:

Leica Sport Optics Nature Sales Manager Whitney Lanfranco is a long-time birder, guide, and user of optics. She firmly believes choosing a new pair of binoculars should be fun, not overwhelming. Join her as she explains the ins and outs of optics and how to pick the right pair for you!

moderated by Hunt's Photo

Registering
Registration is below. After you register for this class, you will receive a confirmation email that will include information about how to access the online class. A reminder will also be sent 24 hours and 2 hours prior to the class.

Layout of the class
The class will begin promptly at the time listed. The majority of the class will be a presentation on the topic, followed by a short Q&A. During the class, you are welcome to type in questions in the Questions box. We will do our best to answer those questions, but if we can’t answer them on the spot, feel free to ask them at the end.

Class Recording
We will be recording this class! The video will be available about 24-hours after the class for all attendees, so don’t worry about taking unending notes. We will send this link rewatch at any time.

Can’t attend the class?
If you can’t attend the class but still want to watch the video, no problem: Just sign up for the class! You don’t need to attend and we will send the video link the next day!