GSCCC. 1. Great lighting + careful exposure Doi Suthep Temple Monks at Evening Prayers, Chiang Mai, Thailand

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GSCCC G U L F S T A T E S C A M E R A C L U B C O U N C I L S T A T E S OF O K L A H O M A, T E X A S, L O U I S I A N A, M I S S I S S I P P I & F L O R I D A VOLUME Lii NUMBER 1 JANUARY

Here are five elements to consider, whatever our chosen subject may be, that directly impact the quality of your photography. 1. Great lighting + careful exposure. 2. Engaging composition. 3.

I believe the more you can integrate any of these five elements into your images the more satisfied you will be with your photography.

Great lighting + careful exposure Doi Suthep Temple Monks at Evening Prayers, Chiang Mai, Thailand Pwo Karen couple isolated on a dark background enjoying a laugh together.

Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography.

1 GSCCC G U L F S T A T E S C A M E R A C L U B C O U N C I L S T A T E S OF O K L A H O M A, T E X A S, L O U I S I A N A, M I S S I S S I P P I & F L O R I D A VOLUME Lii NUMBER 1 JANUARY Key Elements that Directly Impact the Quality of Your Photography By: Kevin Landwer-Johan We all want to make better photos. But how do we improve? What are we striving for? Here are five elements to consider, whatever our chosen subject may be, that directly impact the quality of your photography. 1. Great lighting + careful exposure. 2. Engaging composition. 3. Careful timing. 4. Resonant color and/or tonal range. 5. Intuition. I believe the more you can integrate any of these five elements into your images the more satisfied you will be with your photography. I also know that it is no easy task to include each of the five in a single photo! 1. Great lighting + careful exposure Doi Suthep Temple Monks at Evening Prayers, Chiang Mai, Thailand Pwo Karen couple isolated on a dark background enjoying a laugh together. Careful use of natural light and exposing for the skin tones was vital for this photo. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, know light. Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography. George Eastman, founder of Kodak Light is the substance and essence of photography, not of photographs, but of photography. Where there is no light it is impossible to make a photograph. Light is the raw material of photography. We ve all been aware of light since before we were born, but for most people, this awareness remains in their subconscious mind. If you want to become a truly creative photographer you must begin to consider the light with your conscious mind. Learning to see light and be aware of changes in light is one of the most significant actions you can take to improve the quality of your photographs. Controlling your camera to expose well and capture

P a g e 2 G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R the light the way you see it, or how you imagine it will look in your photograph, goes hand in hand with seeing the light.

The more you are able to see and appreciate the light you have to work with when you are photographing, the more creative you can be and the more interesting your photographs will become. 2.

Now, to consult the rules of composition before making a picture is a little like consulting the law of gravity before going for a walk.

2 P a g e 2 G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R the light the way you see it, or how you imagine it will look in your photograph, goes hand in hand with seeing the light. Many factors affect the quality of light. The more you are able to see and appreciate the light you have to work with when you are photographing, the more creative you can be and the more interesting your photographs will become. 2. Engaging composition I had ample time to experiment with the composition of this sea gypsy fisherman. Now, to consult the rules of composition before making a picture is a little like consulting the law of gravity before going for a walk. Edward Weston, photographer Composition is how you arrange the elements within the frame of your photograph. It s about what you include within your frame and what you leave out. You can control your composition by choice of lens, your point of view from where you take our photograph and sometimes by moving the physical elements you are photographing. Rules of composition have generally originated from those studied by classical painters and have been around since before the camera was invented. You can study them, rigidly apply them, and at times still not achieve engaging compositions. The more the chosen subject material within your frame is carefully chosen to show a meaningful part and is suitably balanced, the more engaging your compositions will be regardless of whether you follow the rules or not. Unconventional compositions can produce interesting results. 3. Careful timing I had pre-composed, pre-exposed and prefocused for this photo. A good element of luck made it more interesting. To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as of a precise organization of forms which give that event its proper expression. Henri Cartier-Bresson Henri Cartier-Bresson s famous term (and book title) The Decisive Moment sums up what is regarded as another essential element in creating good photographs. The moment you choose to Like any artistic creative form of expression, knowing the rules so well you apply them as second nature, will produce more compelling, engaging results.

V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 3 open the camera shutter has a significant influence on the quality of the photographs you make.

This image is part of an on-going series I am making of the tricycle taxi riders in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Be prepared Being prepared and anticipating action, time of day, weather, seasons, etc.

We ve been visiting the same markets for a number of years and I m used to the flow of the activity there, so it s easier to predict the action than when visiting for the first time.

3 V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 3 open the camera shutter has a significant influence on the quality of the photographs you make. Depending on your chosen subject, this could be a split-second decision or it may even take weeks and months of planning to finally reach the right moment. This image is part of an on-going series I am making of the tricycle taxi riders in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Be prepared Being prepared and anticipating action, time of day, weather, seasons, etc., are all part of creating photographs at the right time. Frequently when we take photography workshops to the local fresh markets I capture fleeting slices of life. We ve been visiting the same markets for a number of years and I m used to the flow of the activity there, so it s easier to predict the action than when visiting for the first time. Whatever situations you find yourself in, it s important to observe what s happening around you and anticipate when the most interesting action to photograph will take place. If you prefer taking landscapes or cityscapes you will need to be aware of the weather patterns and seasons. Planning ahead for when the angle of the sun is best for your chosen scene will result in richer, more pleasing photographs. The best sports photographers typically will only photograph one sport. They know the game, the teams and maybe even the individual players. This allows them to more easily anticipate the action and be prepared, having the right focal length lens on their camera and having it focus on just the right spot when the most interesting action happens. Anticipate the peak of action Composing your image in anticipation of the action you hope to capture is a method employed by most of the best street photographers and photo journalists. Finding a location that will afford you an interesting composition, with strong elements to support your subject, good lighting, and a pleasing background will inevitably help you produce more captivating photographs. There s nothing wrong with shooting on the fly, but if you are able to incorporate as many of the five elements we are discussing into your photographs the more satisfying the results will be. 4. Resonant color and/or tonal range The ability to see the quality of color and it s different relationships is an art, as well as a skill that must be honed through continual exercise. Nevada Wier, travel photographer, and author Where light is the essence of photography, color and tone (tone only when you work in black and white) are the expressions of reflected light captured by your camera. Color and tone are what you see when you look at a photograph. You do not see light, you see what the light is reflecting off, and this is represented by color and tone in your photographs.

P a g e 4 G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R By resonant color, I mean color which affects the viewer because it is significantly incorporated into the photo.

Choosing to compose to exclude or include subjects of contrasting or complementary colors can greatly affect the look and feel of your images.

that color. At other times you may wish to include something of a strong contrasting color to add impact.

4 P a g e 4 G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R By resonant color, I mean color which affects the viewer because it is significantly incorporated into the photo. The same goes for a resonant tonal range in your black and white photos. Color relationships Being aware of the relationships of the various colors in your images. Choosing to compose to exclude or include subjects of contrasting or complementary colors can greatly affect the look and feel of your images. If you see an object within your frame that is not pleasing to you because it breaks the harmony of the image you wish to make, you are then better off considering how to compose the shot to exclude that color. At other times you may wish to include something of a strong contrasting color to add impact. The absence of color in a photograph leaves a far greater reliance on the tones in the image to make it work. To create resonant tone in black and white photos it s vitally important to pay careful attention to the light. Even a black object, when photographed in certain lighting conditions, can appear as it is white, or a white object may appear black. Strong harsh light produces very bright highlights and dark shadows. Technical purists say that you must show a full tonal range, from black to white and a substantial variance of grays, in your black and white photographs for them to be acceptable. I don t agree. I don t believe a good photograph can only happen if it adheres to a set of technical rules. Shooting in hard light and exposing for the highlights can produce powerful black and white images with little or no grays at all. A lot of popular street photographers employ this technique very well. 5. Intuition Photography is the art of observation. It has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them. Elliot Erwitt The first four elements I have discussed can be learned by careful study. This last one can be more of a challenge for many people. Some will achieve it effectively with a relatively little study. Others will labor over the technical issues so much that any intuition is substantially blocked out of their photography experience. Knowing our camera intimately, how it functions, what dials to use to set the exposure, (and understanding why you need to) where the essential settings are in the menus, Kayan long neck girl shows her neck just after having her neck rings removed. and when you are best to adjust them, will free you up to be more intuitively creative with your camera. For some people, this is easier than for others. If your brain is preoccupied with trying to figure out how to use your spot meter so you can expose for the highlights, for example, you will be distracted from really connecting with what you are photographing and the situation. The more using your camera becomes second nature, the freer you will be to connect with your subject and follow your intuition as you make your photographs. Learning to use your camera so you can make well-exposed photographs intuitively will free you up to focus on creating photographs. Images that convey not just what you saw, but the way you saw it and your experience of that moment in time. (continued on page 10)

5 V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 5 Judged January 2018 Mono Projected Judged by Dallas CC Title Maker Club Score Award Rock River Falls Vic Prislipsky National Park PC 14 1st Dark Side of the Schroom Jim Clemons Lafayette PS 13 2nd New Orleans Trumpet Player Gene Bachman Louisiana PS 13 2nd Boquillas Grand-Ma Patrick Hoffpauir Beaumont CC 12 3rd Quill Pen Scribe Bob Bozarth Oklahoma CC 12 1st HM Spiral Towards the Light Sharon Prislipsky National Park PC 12 2nd HM Color Projected Judged by Dallas CC Title Maker Club Score Award Bald Eagle Taking Off From Water Mark Lagrange GNOCC 15 1st Bantam Rooster Kathy Weir Beaumont CC 15 2nd Hummingbird Profile Pat Leger Lafayette PS 13 3rd Hungry Babies Jane Ashley Houston PC 13 1st HM All Alone Linda Medine Louisiana PS 13 1st HM Antelope Canyon Darrell Evans Beaumont CC 12 2nd HM Photojournalism Prints Judged by Oklahoma CC Title Maker Club Score Award Not a Fair Fight Frank Richards Dallas CC 14 1st Milk Run in Romania Julia Mann National Park PC 14 2nd Storm Approaching Shawn Ducharme Lafayette PS 13 3rd Airing Out of the Bowl Renee Pierce Louisiana PS 13 1st HM Pickoff at First Patrick Bullock Louisiana PS 13 2nd HM Photojournalism Projected Judged by Oklahoma CC Title Maker Club Score Award Ride'em Cowboy Tom Bush Louisiana PS 15 1st Crash of Asiana Paul Swepston National Park PC 14 2nd Wave Runner Ron Shue Cowtown CC 14 3rd Hush Scruffy! Cynthia Parish Beaumont CC 13 1st HM Carving From My Heart Linda Medine Louisiana PS 12 2nd HM

P a g e 6 G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R Monochrome

Schroom By Jim Clemons Lafayette PS Monochrome

6 P a g e 6 G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R Monochrome Projected 1st Place Rock River Falls By Vic Prislipsky National Park PC 10 Clubs Participating Monochrome Projected 2nd Place Dark Side of The Schroom By Jim Clemons Lafayette PS Monochrome Projected 3rd Place New Orleans Trumpet Player By Gene Bachman Louisiana PS

V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 7 Color

Weir Beaumont CC 10 Clubs Participating Color

7 V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 7 Color Projected 1st Place Bald Eagle Taking Off From Water By Mark Lagrange Greater New Orleans CC Color Projected 2nd Place Bantam Rooster By Kathy Weir Beaumont CC 10 Clubs Participating Color Projected 3rd Place Hummingbird Profile By Pat Leger Lafayette PS

8 P a g e 8 G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R PHOTOJOURNALISM Prints 1st Place Not A Fair Fight By Frank Richards Dallas CC PHOTOJOURNALISM Prints 2nd Place Milk Run In Romania By Julia Mann National Park PC 5 Clubs Participating PHOTOJOURNALISM Prints 3rd Place Storm Approaching By Shawn Ducharme Lafayette PS

Swepston National Park PC 7 Clubs Participating

9 V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 9 PHOTOJOURNALISM Projected 1st Place Ride em Cowboy By Tom Bush Louisiana PS PHOTOJOURNALISM Projected 2nd Place Crash of Asiana By Paul Swepston National Park PC 7 Clubs Participating PHOTOJOURNALISM Projected 3rd Place Wave Runner By Ron Shue Cowtown CC

P a g e 10 (continued from page 4) Learning to use your camera so you can make well-exposed photographs intuitively will free you up to focus on creating photographs.

10 P a g e 10 (continued from page 4) Learning to use your camera so you can make well-exposed photographs intuitively will free you up to focus on creating photographs. Images that convey not just what you saw, but the way you saw it and your experience of that moment in time. Conclusion I haven t met many people who enjoy photography that don t wish to improve their craft. There s such a great feeling of satisfaction in producing good photos, especially when you see a growing improvement in the results. I believe as you study the five elements I have outlined in this article, and learn to include them in your photography you will be pleased to see great progress in the images you create. G S C C C N E W S L E T T E R C o m p e t i t i o n C l u b To ta l s Mono Projected Club Total Beaumont CC 21 Cowtown CC 37 GNOCC 34 Houston CC 40 Lafayette PS 45 Louisiana PS 43 Northlake CC 12 Oklahoma CC 42 West Bank CC 36 Color Projected Club Total Beaumont CC 50 Cowtown CC 40 GNOCC 45 Houston PC 44 Lafayette PS 41 Louisiana PS 43 National Park PC 36 Northlake CC 21 Oklahoma CC 39 West Bank CC 36 PJ Projected Club Total Beaumont CC 45 Cowtown CC 48 Dallas CC 40 Lafayette PS 40 Louisiana PS 48 Northlake CC 12 PJ Prints Club Total Cowtown CC 47 Dallas CC 49 Lafayette PS 47 Louisiana PS 51 National Park PC 35 All winning images are Displayed on the GSCCC Website.. Take A Look!!

V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 11 https://www.facebook.com/groups/260653404312222/ THANK YOU!

11 V o l u m e L I, I s s u e 1 P a g e 11 THANK YOU! Thanks to all the participants in the competitions and Congratulations to the winners for those magnificent images. Special thanks to last months competition judging clubs: Dallas Camera Club and Oklahoma Camera Club And last, but not least, thanks to our officers who keeps this Club going Convention New Iberia, LA Thursday, April 19 - Saturday, April 21 Register at Convention website GSCCC Officers President Gene Bachman 1443 Westchester Drive, Baton Rouge, LA gbachman@cox.net (225) Competitions Vice President.Larry Blackwell Plano, TX larryblackwell@sbcglobal.net (214) Services Vice President...Renee Pierce Baton Rouge, LA webmaster@laphotosociety.com (225) Secretary-Treasurer.....Rose Parker 300 Valencia Drive, Luling, LA parker52@cox.net (985) Temporary Editor..Carol McCreary 425 S. W. 53rd St, Oklahoma City, OK tcmccreary@cox.net, (405) Directors Carol McCreary, APSA, EPSA 425 S. W. 53rd St, Oklahoma City, OK tcmccreary@cox.net, (405) Tess Cottaage Pichon Rd, Lacombe, LA, tc01hm@aol.com, (985) Tim McDonald 8205 Cantebury Dr., Orange, TX, Timmc@gt.rr.com, (409)

GSCCC. 3 Good Reasons to Use Layers in Photoshop By: Sarah Hipwell

GSCCC. 3 Good Reasons to Use Layers in Photoshop By: Sarah Hipwell GSCCC G U L F S T A T E S C A M E R A C L U B C O U N C I L S T A T E S OF O K L A H O M A, T E X A S, L O U I S I A N A, M I S S I S S I P P I & F L O R I D A VOLUME Li NUMBER 11 NOVEMBER 2017 3 Good