Carl Wegener’s Macro Lighting Kit – Photo by Richard Hudson
We had a great meeting Wednesday night. Following Peggy Boike’s presentation on macro photography, Bryan Leonard shared information on his macro gear that included extension tubes, macro couplers for reversing lenses, close-up lenses and tele-converters. Carl Wegener also brought his tabletop macro lighting kit. Bryan will make a more complete presentation on macro next year. Here is a pdf of Bryan and Carl’s presentation.
Photo Backup and the Cloud
Those of us who live in Hudson Township have been promised an upgrade to fiber optic cable from our provider, Baldwin Lightstream. Ted Johnston, IT professional and former member, is one of their customers whose installation has been completed. Ted says that the new fiber that Baldwin is laying gives you a synchronous connection. Translation: Most cable and DSL connections are asynchronous. The upload and download speeds are VERY different. Before the switch he had 75Mbps download and 4Mbps (or so) upload on their cable service. After the switch to fiber, he now has 75Mbps both upload and download. Why this matters: When backing up photos to “the cloud” you use the upload speed. This switch just increased the speed he can backup photos by almost 19 times. To give you a comparison- to get a 50Mbps synchronous connection at his office in Plymouth, Comcast quoted $450 per month. Most people will not notice this increase in upload speed, but photographers backing up to the cloud certainly will. A few years ago, Ted gave a presentation to the club on storage backup and the cloud. You can still download it from our Learning page. These days, he is recommending Backblaze for cloud storage.
Phipps Annual Call for Artists
The Phipps Annual Call for Artists deadline in July 1. The Phipps seeks submissions from visual artists in Wisconsin and Minnesota for exhibition opportunities in 2021-2022 in the galleries of the Phipps and in four public exhibition programs in 2020: Hudson Hospital & Clinic; Westfields Hospital & Clinic in New Richmond, WI; Croixdale in Bayport, MN; and Woodland Hill in Hudson, WI. Submissions for individuals and groups will be accepted, so this could be a great opportunity to make a submission for yourself, or to partner with someone else. Click here for details.
Fireworks
2017 Booster Days Fireworks Composite – Terry Butler
Hudson Booster Days fireworks will be on Friday, July 5 at dusk. This year I will be taking the walking path on the south side of town that eventually parallels the I-94 bridge. Feel free to join me…bring your tripod and bug spray. The Booster Days parade will be on Saturday, July 6 at 11 am. The parade could be another opportunity for getting those street photography photos that we need for the August Salon. Stillwater fireworks will be on July 4 at 10:00 pm. Continue reading
Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and Bird Sanctuary Group Outing
On Wednesday, May 15, 6:30 pm, Dave Johnson will show us how to get the best results with your flash equipment, indoors and out. Dave has long had a passion for teaching photography, having taught at several colleges and universities in the upper Midwest. He’s done presentations at Spring Break and area camera clubs. He is currently manager of the wedding and portrait division of National Camera Exchange. He’s a member of the PPA and was awarded the MNPPA’s annual “Addie Award” for outstanding service to photography. Bring your camera and speed lights for hands-on activities after his talk.
One of the things I will be thankful for this Thanksgiving is that again this year we will have our year-end celebration in the comfort of a member’s home. Invitations will be emailed to all members during the weekend after Thanksgiving. Be sure to RSVP before December 16 so we have enough liquid refreshments on hand. With all the contributions by members be prepared for a feast!
Mary Johnson and two friends will be displaying their photography at Oakdale Nature Preserve for the month of December. Most items are for sale. On Saturday, December 8, there will be an “Indoor Market”. Mary and her friends will be there during that time, as well as crafters selling their work. Mary says that “this has been quite a learning experience to compile and print and frame a bunch of my favorites, but I have enjoyed the process! Hope some of my fellow photography club members can come!” Oakdale Nature Preserve is located at 4444 Hadley Avenue N., Oakdale, MN. Their weekday hours are 9 AM to 4 PM, Saturdays are noon to 4 PM and Sundays are 1 to 4 PM.
We will visit the Little Log House Pioneer Village this Sunday and will meet up with members of the St. Croix Valley Photo Club. This will be a great opportunity to photograph a wide variety of subject matter.
Start gathering some of those things in your camera bag that you would like to turn into cash at the January 2 meeting. We will have some extra tables set up and following the program the sale will begin. I also have a few good books and some interesting freebies.
This presentation is co-hosted by our club and the Phipps Center for the Arts and is part of the Heart of the River: Celebrating the First 50 Years of the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway.
At the same time Craig Blacklock will have pieces in the lobby and Gallery One. This special exhibit “Heart of the River” will begin September 14 and will end on October 21. Please share this with your friends and family. Craig Blacklock’s photographs are noted for technically perfect, impeccably clean compositions, making complex subject matter easily seen. Most of Blacklock’s 18 books have depicted the interface of water and land. Most notable, are: The Lake Superior Images; A Voice Within—The Lake Superior Nudes; Minnesota’s North Shore; Apostle Islands — From Land and Sea; and Pictured Rocks — From Land and Sea.
Craig will present many of the photographs from the book, telling some of the hows and whys behind the images, along with his impressions of the rivers, and suggesting what we, as individuals, must do to protect them into the future.
At our meeting on Wednesday, September 5, 6:30 pm, Kent Johnson of Midwest Imagery will give a presentation on Photoshop that will include some of his time-tested methods he uses in his workflow to make his images pop. Kent is a professional photographer who makes images of landscapes, wildlife and people. Kent’s fun and informative classes will help you learn to shoot and retouch like a pro. You can see his work 
