• 38 members and 2 guests attended our meeting.

• President Jim Pollock introduced our guest speaker, Chad Barry.

Chad is a former Club member and now a professional photographer who gave a presentation he calls The Rock – A Land Apart, an exploration of Canada’s most eastern province and its inhabitants. Chad showed some of the spectacular photos that he has taken in Newfoundland, including the Cape St. Mary’s bird sanctuary, small fishing villages, Gros Morne National Park, and some of the interesting characters he’s met along the way. The Chatham Camera Club thanks Chad for his entertaining and informative display and looks forward to seeing him again soon.

For more from Chad, check out his YouTube video on
Five Things You Can Do To Improve Your Photography.

• Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 24^th when The Sarnia Camera Club’s Ian Sanderson will be our guest speaker. With the rise in popularity of cell phone photography, Ian will teach us how to improve our efforts.

• Jana Smith will present her travelogue.

• We will review our March CCC Photo Challenge submissions.
(to be submitted by March 15^th by 11:59 PM)
– Novice – Long Exposure (slow shutter photography involving long duration shutter speed to sharply capture the stationary elements of an image, while blurring, smearing or obscuring the moving elements. The long exposure could be either during daylight or night.)
– Intermediate, Advanced, Salon – Macro (extreme close up photography in which the size of the subject is greater than life-size)

• Members are encouraged to bring a print of any size, any subject for display and discussion.

Anyone can take a picture. A person with passion sees the photo before it’s taken.

The Absolute Beginners Guide to Camera Settings.

39 members and 1 guest attended our February 25^th meeting.

• The Club participated in something completely different for us when we held our first Do It Yourself Show And Tell night. Various members showed the rest of the group little tricks, tips and homemade gadgets that they use to make their photography experience a little easier. Among the things we saw were:
– hook your camera strap to just one side to keep it out of your eyes when shooting in portrait mode.
– use part of a pool noodle as a car window, camera rest
– use a business card or a piece of tissue to soften a pop-up flash.
– a home made softbox made of cardboard
– use a drink cozy to protect small lenses when transporting them.
– adjustable clips to hold flowers still outdoors
– a plastic bag can be used to protect your camera in the rain.
– a focusing rail to aid in macro, multiple exposures
– use an old Pringles can as a snoot for your flash.
– use hand wipes to clean the oil and dirt off of your camera.
– mount a stick and some bird feed on an old tripod to photograph birds

For a few more tips and tricks, check out this YouTube video

• We were treated to Patty Arsenault’s photographs of her missionary trip to Uganda in our What I Shoot feature.

Her pictures of the native children, their customs and other daily activities were quite impressive. Thanks Patty. We really enjoyed your presentation!

• Entries from our February Photo Challenge were reviewed with Pat Beaton ( 21 pts), Ryan Carrall (21 pts), and Bruce Hutson (21 pts), getting high marks in the Novice Division’s Windows And Doors category. High points in the Intermediate, Senior and Salon groups went to Wendy McDonald (24 pts), Tere Deslippe ( 24 pts) and Jana Smith ( 23 pts) for their Long Exposure shots. Great job everyone! We saw some excellent work. You can see some of the top scoring shots on our Club Photos page.

• Mike Blazek and Keith Blackwell reviewed some of the prints that were brought in for display and gave high praise to several of them. Our next print display will be held on March 24^th and we would love to see one of your favourite prints, any size, any subject.

• Jim Pollock reminded everyone that his term as Club President will expire after the May meeting and that someone else needs to step into the position. The main duties involved are hosting the meetings, bringing the laptop and projector, and signing a few cheques. As President, you are free to assign some of these duties to any willing participant. Remember, the meetings are laid out by the scheduling committee and the current executive will still be around for help and advice. If you have an interest in keeping The Club going into our 85^th season next year, please give some serious thought into volunteering.

• Our next meeting will feature pro photographer Chad Barry who will provide another of his educating and entertaining photography lessons called “The Rock – A Land Apart.” An exploration of Canada’s most eastern province and it’s inhabitants.

Not everything in every light and at all moments will translate into a great image.

Check out these

Tips for Doing Photography on a Budget

• 40 members, including 1 new one, attended our February 11^th meeting.

• President Jim Pollock introduced our guest speaker, Juraj Dolanjski.

Juraj’s topic this evening was Designing A Photograph, in which he explained that successful photos are not accidents. There is a creative process that is used in the design of such a photograph, in camera. Careful planning, proper exposure, interesting framing and even the weather, all play a vital role in the success or failure of a photograph. The Chatham Camera Club would like to thank Juraj for making the trip from Ancaster to Chatham. Several of our members commented on how much they learned from his presentation.

• Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 25^th when we’ll have some fun with our Do It Yourself Show And Tell, where we’ll have several of our members show us their home made flash modifiers and other gadgets and gizmos that can improve our photos and save us money. If you have something that you’ve made or a quick tip you’d like to share, let us know before the meeting and we’ll fit you in. After the presentation, we will have some time to try out some home made flash modifiers, so bring your camera and a flash to the meeting. If you do not have a flash, we’ll have a couple that you can borrow.

• Patty Arsenault will be our featured presenter in What I Shoot.

• We are asking everyone to bring in a favourite print for display and discussion. Any size or subject matter will do. If you show me yours, I’ll show you mine.

• We will review the submissions to our February Photo Challenge.
Novice – Windows / Doors
( Interesting images of windows and doors, either in combination or individually)
Intermediate, Advanced, Salon – Long Exposure
(Slow shutter photography involving long duration shutter speed to sharply capture the stationary elements of an image, while blurring, smearing or obscuring the moving elements. The long exposure could be either during daylight or night.
All entries are to be submitted by Sunday, February 16^th 11:59 PM

The subject of the picture is always more important than the picture.

The Ultimate Guide to Photography Terms – a Glossary of Common Words and Phrases

41 members and 3 guests attended our January 28^th meeting.

• Dave Noordhoff presented a tutorial on memory cards.

Dave explained what all those numbers and letters on a memory card mean.
For a review, check out this article on Memory card symbols explained – how to understand the info on your new card

• Chris Jorgensen’s photographs were featured in our monthly presentation of
What I Shoot.

Chris’ collection of rodeo, nature, landscape and model photos showed us how much fun a diversified portfolio can be. Thanks Chris! We loved your show. It was one of the best in recent memory.

• Entries from January’s CCC Photo Challenge were reviewed with Bruce Huttson (24.5 pts), Debbie Venne (23.5 pts), and Erica Spotton (2 x 23 pts), getting top marks for the Novice Division’s Crumbling Buildings and Ruins category. High scores in the Intermediate, Senior and Salon groups for their Doors And Windows shots went to Linda Pepper (23 pts), Mike Blazek (23 pts) Dave Noordhoff (23.5 pts), and Jim Pollock (24 pts). Thanks to all who entered. We hope you had fun tracking these photo-ops down. The top scoring shots can be found on our Club Photos page.

• Mike Blazek and Keith Blackwell reviewed some of the prints that were brought in for viewing and discussion. Our next print display will be held on February 25^th and we encourage everyone to show us what they’ve been shooting.

• Our next meeting will be on February 11^th and will feature eleven star master photographer Juraj Dolanjski who will speak to us about Designing A Photograph. This should prove to be a very interesting and informative meeting. Don’t miss it!

Every time someone tells me how sharp my photos are, I assume that it isn’t a very interesting photograph. If it were, they would have more to say.

8 Tips to Minimize Memory Card Problems

• 35 members, along with 3 new ones and 1 guest, attended our first meeting of 2020.

• President Jim Pollock introduced our guest speaker, Richard Beland, who spoke to The Club about Orchestrating The Big Shoot.

Richard’s informative and thoroughly entertaining presentation started off by listing the attributes needed to be a successful, full-time photographer. They included: – Relentless pursuit, Motivation, a daily drive for creative production, Minimal fear, Egocentricity, and Love. Richard went on to speak about production values, his process in setting up a photo shoot, the different styles of lighting he uses, and how he employs The Rule Of Thirds, leading lines and The Golden Triangle to arrange his subjects. Included in his show were many of his outstanding photographs of some of the world’s biggest music stars. The Chatham Camera Club thanks Richard for his outstanding show and for making the drive from Sarnia to Chatham. Plans for his return are already being discussed.
Richard made reference to The Inverse Square Law.
Watch this YouTube video for a review of how that works.

• Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 28^th when our own Dave Noordhoff will teach us all about memory cards.
– Chris Jorgensen will be featured in What I Shoot.
– We will review our January Photo Challenge submissions which are to be submitted by Sunday, January 19th at midnight.
The Novice topic is Crumbling Buildings and Ruins
Intermediate, Advanced, and Salon are submitting Windows and Doors.
– You are invited to bring a print of any size, any subject for display and discussion.

“You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.” – Ansel Adams

6 Reasons You Should Hang Out With Other Photographers

• 42 members and 4 guests attended our December 10th meeting.

• The Club held its annual Buy/Sell night, where many pieces of photo equipment changed hands. Thanks to all of those who participated.

• Our other featured event of the evening involved our members bringing their cameras to the meeting and using provided props to learn about achieving a soft, blurry background. A special thanks goes out to Tere Deslippe and Mary Craig for putting this evening together. Their hard work and dedication makes our club stronger and their efforts are truly appreciated. Photos from the meeting can be found on our
Club Photos Page.

For a review of some techniques you can use to achieve an out-of-focus background, take a look at this YouTube video.

• Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 14^th when music photographer Richard Belland will be our guest speaker. Richard’s topic for this evening will be Orchestrating The Big Shoot.

• January Photo Challenge entries are to be submitted by January 19th by 11:59 PM
Novice – Crumbling Buildings and Ruins (The remains of a building, typically an old one, that has suffered damage or disintegration)
Intermediate, Advanced, Salon – Windows and Doors ( Interesting images of windows and doors, either in combination or individually)

The word “image” comes from the word “imagination.”
It doesn’t come from “lens sharpness” or “noise levels.”

How to Create a Delicious Blurry Bokeh Background in 4 Easy Steps

45 members and 1 guest attended our November 26^th meeting.

• The Club thanked Herman Giethoorn for making new name tags for us all.

• Enough members showed an interest in attending a Christmas breakfast. Arrangements will be made.

• Carson Plant explained when and how to use extension tubes.

You can review the lesson in this YouTube video

• Jim Pollock spoke about an easy way to whiten a subject’s teeth in Photoshop or Lightroom.

• Bill Godfrey was our featured presenter in What I Shoot

Bill showed a slideshow of his birds, nature, scenic and people photographs. Thanks Bill! Your photos were excellent!

• Entries from November’s CCC Photo Competition were reviewed with Bruce Hutson (23 and 22 pts), Jeff Dease (22 pts), and Pat Beaton (22 pts), getting the highest scores the Novice Division’s Perspective / Leading Lines category. Top marks in the Intermediate, Senior and Salon groups for Crumbling Buildings And Ruins went to Linda Pepper (24 and 23 pts), Tere Deslippe (23.5 pts), and Keith Blackwell (22.5pts). You can review the top scoring shots of the night on our Club Photos page.

• Dave Noordhoff and Keith Blackwell reviewed some of the prints that our members brought in. If you’d like to join in the fun, our next print display will be held on January 28^th. Remember, any size print, any subject is more than welcome.

• Our next meeting will be on December 10th when we will have two featured events.
– The first is our annual Buy/Sell night where you can bring in any surplus photo equipment to sell or trade. If you’re in the market for something, it might not be a bad idea to bring some cash along.
– We are also featuring a Bring-Your-Camera-To-The-Meeting event where will be able to learn about how to control Depth Of Field with several stations set up around the meeting room.

An expert at anything was once a beginner.

Be sure to check out Gavin Hoey’s lesson on How To Create Great Bokeh.

• 44 members, including two new ones, and 1 guest, attended our November 12^th meeting.

• President Jim Pollock introduced our guest speaker, Alayne Brisson of Ingersoll, Ontario.

Alayne spoke to The Club about Long Exposure Photography and a bit about Macro Photography. During her presentation, she talked about neutral density filters and how to use them, as well as the variety of equipment she employs to capture her marvelous macro photographs. The Chatham Camera Club extends a sincere thank-you to Alayne for making the trip from Ingersoll to Chatham, especially considering the current winter weather.

For more, check out this YouTube video on Long Exposure Photography Guide and Tips

• We watched a short video about The 25 Most Dangerous Photographs Ever Taken, which showed pictures of daredevils and adventure seekers taking extraordinary risks.

• Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 26^th when our own Carson Plant will teach us about extension tubes.

• Jim Pollock will show us a quick way to whiten teeth in post processing.

• Black And White Photography specialist Bill Godfrey will be featured in What I Shoot,

• We will review our November Photo Challenge submissions.
(to be submitted by November 17th 11:59 PM)
Novice – Perspective / Leading Lines
(the appearance of viewed objects with regard to their relative position and/or distance from the viewer; often has a vanishing point in the image)
Intermediate, Advanced, Salon – Crumbling Buildings And Ruins
(The remains of a building, typically an old one, that has suffered damage or disintegration)

• You are invited to bring a print of any size, any subject for display and discussion.

The camera’s only job is to get out of the way of making photographs.

Lenses 101 – An Introduction to Camera Lenses