Happy New Year to everyone.

John Knox gave us an inspiring look at how to make an ‘Audio Visual’ presentation last night.

By using software it seemed to be a realistic idea to put a series of still images into a very viewable experience, that can be used via a projector or on a DVD player, through a TV.   In my opinion it has much greater impact than a straight video show.

We also had the benefit to see a high quality AV relating to Holy Island a group of members had worked on. They have made many others over the past few years and regularly take them around other clubs and care homes etc.

If there are up to five members who would like to set up a further (self funding) group in order to learn more of this subject and perhaps work on a AV project, then please let me know.

There are a number of software packages available, I ‘Googled’ and came up with the following which offers a free trial:-

http://www.photodex.com/slideshow/eid9343?gclid=CJ7hxurk3rQCFcjKtAodxCcAhA

$69 –  about £43

I started to issue the recordable DVD’s, members who could not make it hopefully will come along next week and pick up their copy.

As a reminder of what this is about I copy below details that I put in my report dated 06.12.12.

” The idea is that I would ask you all to copy images onto these and when I have put them on the ‘data base’ I will return them to members for using the next time they are required.

Meantime it would be helpful if you would set up folders on your PC based on the subjects of the club’s competitions – Digital, Colour Print, Portrait, Monochrome and set subject.

Then copy your images into these categories (jpegs only) – they do not need to be the ones that were in the competitions, they can be anything that you think worth considering, but if they are then you might have amended them based on the judge’s comments. They can be ones that you have taken over the last eighteen months or earlier if they are special.

Please re name the file names as follows:-  club number and short title

e.g.      00 Short Title.jpeg

For those that have already supplied me with images, I would be grateful if you would also re do them on the above basis so that we have uniformity and make it easier to load down the files onto a new data base.

If you wish to ‘op out’ of this exercise, please let me know and I will withdraw your CD and use it for new members who join us in the new year.

Then when you get your CD’s copy these folders onto it. I use a free programme for this – Ashampoo Burning Studio 6 –  Google it if you want to use it. It is a more efficient way that ‘cut & paste !’.”

Next week – We have Judge Brenda Thomson, who give us her views on our submitted Monochrome efforts.

Also please bring in your copy of the DVD so that I can start on the data base.

Clive

The night photographic outing on 20th Dec. major update

Last night it was discussed and some members are going to go into Edinburgh by train, so Joe Fowler who will guide us around Edinburgh has decided that members going by car meet outside Fisherrow Centre gates by 6.30pm, for car sharing – leave cars outside Fisherrow Centre or they could get locked in.

The idea is then for everyone to meet up at the top of the Waverly Station steps ( by Balmoral Hotel) at 7pm.

There was an enjoyable evening last night when 28 members had the club’s annual Christmas Dinner at the Ravelston Hotel, where not only the restaurant had been modernised, but the food has much improved.

Further to my comments of last week regarding building a digital image of members work, I have tried to work out a way of making it easier for both the members and myself.

To this end I have ordered a supply of CD-RW ( rewritable) discs and utilised a recycled set of ‘plastic jewel boxes, one for each member.  I will set these up and bring them along to the club meeting on the 10th Jan. ( I am away on the 3rd.) The idea is that I would ask you all to copy images onto these and when I have put them on the ‘data base’ I will return them to members for using the next time they are required or you have updated or added to your images.

Meantime it would be helpful if you would set up folders on your PC based on the subjects of the club’s competitions – Digital, Colour Print, Portrait, Monochrome and set subject.

Then copy your images into these categories (jpegs only) – they do not need to be the ones that were in the competitions, they can be anything that you think worth considering and those you might have amended based on the judge’s comments. They can be ones that you have taken over the last eighteen months or earlier if they are special.

Please re name the file names as follows:-  club number and short title

e.g. 00 Short Title.jpeg   –  Please select up to 5 images per subject.

For those that have already supplied me with images, I would be grateful if you would also re do them on the above basis so that we have uniformity and make it easier to load down the files onto a new data base.

There are at least five benefits to obtained by doing the above.

1. Enabling the selection of images for external competitions and giving advise on how to improve them.
2. Provide a good selection of images that can be used on ‘Critique Evenings’
3. New images that can be used for a regular update of our club room gallery, the Library exhibition and open days.
4. Images for use on the web site.
5. Give one to one advice to members on how to improve their work.

If you wish to ‘op out’ of this exercise, please let me know and I will withdraw your CD and use it for new members who join us in the new year.

When you get your CD’s copy these folders onto it. I use a free programme for this – Ashampoo Burning Studio 6 –  Google it if you want to use it. It is a more efficient way that ‘cut & paste’ !

Please remember to bring your two monochrome prints to the meeting on the 3rd or 10th Jan.

If I didn’t see you last night, then Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Clive

The last meeting at Fisherrow for 2012 was a good fun evening with a quiz set up by Anita  and Ross, which we thank them for the effort they put in. Everyone was a winner – with the ‘Christmas Cracker’ answers  we now know that the first viable photo was taken in 1827 and the first long exposure was 8 hours and that Sam Fox has had the most ‘boob’ exposure!

The ‘Four Way’ competition hosted by Stirling C.C. on Wednesday 5th Dec. proved to be a bit of a disaster for us as we came third, at least we were ahead of Haddington CC, Edinburgh just piped Stirling to the post by a single point.

Our problem was that we did not have enough images to choose from, so it is  essential that we now re examine our procedures and way of operation.

Firstly we must build a full data base of members images, as I have been requesting, we want everyone to join in and co operate and let me have any images that you feel would be worth looking at. This can go back to last year, so will everyone again look through their images and let me have digital images in jpeg format. Either via a CD or e-mail.

Please ensure that the file name is set out as follows – club number and short title

e.g. 00 sunset delight.jpeg

We are now going to set up a small panel, consisting of two committee members and another –  they will appraise the data base and select possible images, we will then make contact with the selected members and if thought advisable, to suggest some improvements. With respect to Print entries we will then request for the selected print to be brought in and again discuss any changes and re print. To start with Joe, myself and Jennifer will tackle this task.

All work that is submitted to external competitions must be the total work of the submitting member although help and suggestions will be given and hopefully taken on board.

Our next external competition is the ’12 Way’ on Sunday 10th Feb. Therefore we will need to send in our entries by the end of Jan. so there is not much time if we are to make a better impact  and get us back up where we ought to be.

Jim Tod has come up with a proposition about holding some workshops outwith our normal meetings, I have done this for Portrait Workshops, which I hope to resume early next year.

So long as they are self funding (room hire in the region of £5.60 per hour) and it is lead by one person in charge and I am fully informed, then it will then go under the ‘banner’ of the club and be covered by the club’s insurance.

The club laptop/projector can be used, so long as they are cared for and locked away after the session.

So if a group want to get together let me know and we will take it from there.

Next Thursday (13th Dec.)we have our Christmas Dinner at the Ravelston Hotel, Musselburgh – 7 for 7.30pm.

The night photographic outing on 20th Dec. will be lead by Joe Fowler who will guide us around Edinburgh. Meet outside Fisherrow Centre gates 7pm, for car sharing – leave cars outside Fisherrow Centre or they could get locked in.

Clive

I think that we had a very successful evening last night, everyone brought in a print, all of which would require extra work, which was exactly what was needed. All members were able to discuss the various issues and make comments as to how they could be improved.

We therefore had everyone on a group basis discussing photos and hopefully picking up ideas and guidance which they can utilise in their own ‘learning curve’.

We will build this exercise into next year’s syllabus.

Next week we have another ‘relaxed’ meeting, which we will again have on a group basis, a quiz, based on photography. This is the last Fisherrow meeting for 2012, the following week we will be having our Christmas Dinner at the Ravelston Hotel.

On Thursday 20th December we can meet up at the gates of Fisherrow and Joe will lead a trip into Edinburgh ‘he knows the hot spots’, where we can capture some of the night life!

Remember that we will be taking in submissions for the ‘Monochrome’ comp. at our first meeting in 2013, on Thursday 3rd Jan. If you cannot make this meeting we will also take in ‘late entries’ the following week 10th Jan.

Thinking Caps on – You have until 7th March to come up with ‘an abstract’ print image, which can also include an image which may not be true abstract but is somewhat ‘way out’. Look around you and rise to this challenge. The competition will be judged by Jennifer who was the winner last year, when we had a good number of some very inspirational entries.

It looks like we will be getting some ‘frosty’ opportunities this week, so rap up warm and get out there.

Clive

The twenty members who visited the Beeslack Camera club last night had an excellent evening listening to an illustrated talk by Charlie Waite, the well known landscape photographer. He gave a lot of informative advice, the main one being to see in your mind what the image that you want to end up with and then take time and care to get it right, especially with the light. Try not to compromise, take time for as long as it takes or go back another day. If things are not right, don’t waste time in taking the image.

His mono images were  superb, although some of our judges would not think so! His main point was that if you want to take mono select the subject for that purpose, don’t take colour image and then just try it in mono.

Much food for thought.

Remember that our first competition in the New Year is for Monochrome Prints, so start thinking about this and get two prints ready for submission.

Next week we are back at Fisherrow where we have our ‘experimental’ evening when everyone needs to bring along a print and to repeat myself from last week:-

” It does not need to be mounted and in this case ‘size does not matter’. Neither does it need to be of competition quality, just one that you like or would like to have advice on.

We will then be setting up seven table and the idea is to have a group at each table (headed by a member of the committee) hopefully all will discuss each of the images on the table and after about twenty minutes to move to another table”.

See you all next week – picture in hand!

Clive

Please remember that there will not be a meeting at Fisherrow next week, 20 members will be visiting Beeslack Camera Club at Penicuik to hear a talk by the Landscape photographer Charlie Waite.

For those members who do not want to go directly to Penicuik, meet at Fisherrow Centre to leave at the 6.45pm the latest. Those sharing cars, leave cars outside the Centre car park or they will ‘get locked in’.

The following Thursday 29th November we will be running with a new idea and want everyone to take part.

The plan is that everyone will need to bring in a single printed image, it does not need to be mounted and in this case ‘size does not matter’. Neither does it need to be of competition quality, just one that you like or would like to have advice on.

We will then be setting up seven table and the idea is to have a group at each table (headed by a member of the committee) hopefully all will discuss each of the images on the table and after about twenty minutes to move to another table.

I hope that this will prove to be a friendly and entertaining exercise, so please sort out an image and join in.

We are still interested to hear from members with comments and ideas that will help us devise next year’s syllabus, so please give it some serious thoughts and send me an e mail.

Last night we had Michael Thomson, President of Haddington CC back again, this time judging our ‘Human Portrait Competition’. He gave us his views and pointed out areas that would have improved the image, getting the right background was one of the main areas, where they distracted from the main subject.

‘Depth of Field’ is what needs to be considered – this depends on the focal point, the ‘F’ setting and the distant from the subject. In general a ‘wide aperture’ (low number)i.e. F7.1,F5.6, F4.5 will usually ‘blur’ the background, depending upon the distance, but it is essential that the focus point is the persons eyes.

If you try to ‘blur’ the background via Photoshop, a lot of care needs to be made when selecting the area to be adjusted.

I have put the details of the top six entries on the web site under ‘Competitions’, so have a look. If I had had CD’s I could have put the images on!

Hope to see you all back at Fisherrow on the 22nd November – please remember to bring along your print image.

Clive

Welcome to everyone, especially to our new members.

Please note that in two weeks (22nd Nov) there will not be a meeting at Fisherrow as the 20 members who purchased tickets will be visiting Beeslack CC to hear a talk by Charlie Waite.

Christmas dinner –  we now have 25 members, but there is still room for other, we have to pay for the meal in advanced, so please let David Howie have your £21 asap.

We are invited to a joint 4 way competition by Stirling & District Camera Club on Wednesday 5th Dec – there is a notice on the board – please put your name down if you want to support MCC – we can then sort out transport.

However, this is causing Del a problem, as we have not had sufficient CD’s with images from which he can choose, for those that have not yet done so please put your recent comp entries on a CD and bring it along next week – this is really important as Del has to send off our entries by the 24th Nov, so please make a real effort.

Next Tuesday we are having a committee meeting where the main subject will be next year’s syllabus.

This is your club so please give this some thought and send me an e mail with any ideas that you might have regarding subject matter, thing that you like and even those which you do not think much of. Contributions and ideas from members is what will keep this club viable and interesting for the year ahead

Last night we had Sandy Cleland from Edinburgh Photographic Society who was  back again following his judging of our Digital Image Comp on 4th October.

Sandy is a highly qualified photographer and for those that missed last night, look at his superb images on the EPS site and you will see what I mean. His photos  of dragon flies among other wild life images are something really to strive for. (http://www.edinburghphotographicsociety.co.uk)

What a fantastic insight into his skills as a photographer, the range and quality of his images were outstanding, he learnt his skills with film cameras, where you really had to be in control of the camera to get such results, now he has converted to digital, he still uses the camera mainly in manual mode, which reflects the stunning results.

First thoughts are that it ‘puts one of bothering to take pictures’  – but it is really an inspiration to take control of the camera, rather than ‘point & shoot’. Lets’ all take on board some of his advice and improve our output.

Next week we have Michael Thomson President of the Haddington CC who will be judging our ‘Human Portrait Comp.‘

Clive