Discussion Group Notes December 5, 2008

We had five intrepid photographers with a lot to speak of this time.

First we went through Lee's and my photos. We talked about the parades and the tree lightings. We talked about lenses and old cameras: Brownies, Instamatics, and such. Terri talked about the pet photography workshop. Ansel Adams is a recurring subject, this time being the points laid out by Sharon in the LPA General Forum, "For all the Novice's Out There.." It makes a good read.

Then Terri brought out her small Olympus camera which she's had for a couple of years. She's finally learned about its Program Mode, histogram, exposure compensation, white balance, focal points, and etc. I had to admit that I still know little about Julia's Canon pocket camera even though I bought it last spring. Terri also described her discussion with her relative about how many pixels does your camera need (as opposed to how many Pixels can dance on the head of a pin).

I described my problems with rechargeable AA batteries for the small Canon. I found four bad (out of six) within a few days of each other. I then bought four Lithium Ion batteries but they lasted about five minutes on a charge. Then I bought four NiMH batteries and they work just fine. The ones sold by Kodak seem to be about the best I've found, though I'm no expert.

I finally remembered to ask about putting out LPA flyers at Bianco's and received a warm "yes." I think Terri was going to look into finding some of these. I'll also add some of my flyers on the Friday discussion group meetings.

This coming Friday I hope to have some of my terrible Rosamond Parade of Lights photos and ask for some serious help. Between Lee, Terri, and I we're getting consistent at having a laptop running to go through digital photos rather than just paper. This will make it easier for anyone who just wants to drop in and ask for help with their photos. Welcome to the 21st Century.

Refrain: We meet each Friday at Bianco's Cafe at the South end of the Lancaster Market Place, behind and across the street from Movies 12. The core times are from 7 to 8 PM but there's typically someone there from 6:30 to at least 8:30. Bianco's will keep the lights on for you.

P.S. There will not be a discussion group meeting on December 26 but I plan to be there all other Fridays through the holidays.

Glenn Olson
Coordinator and Moderator
glenn@earthlink.net