Discusson Group Notes March 27, 2009

This meeting was the same, but different. We went back down to seven but to make up for it we went longer and covered more ground. Some of our usual suspects didn't show up but Tylene and Lyle made up for that. Make yourself comfortable, this is a long set of notes.

This was the second meeting at Denny's on K and 20th W and it worked out so well that we decided to make it permanent.

As members were still gathering Lyle started it off with a short story of a nude shoot the club had several years ago. What better way to start off a meeting?

Terri set up her laptop and showed us some of her Willow Springs shots from the previous weekend. She's getting it down pat. Lyle suggested that, in order to show motion while panning, you should start in time-variable mode with about 1/30th to 1/50th (I hope I got those right) second and adjust the time up or down from there.

Lyle gave us a several tips for shooting at the race track. He said that motorcycles sometimes go off the track at the sharp left turn past the Budwiser Chalet when they go too fast, especialy at the big national races toward the end of the year. He said that you can also get real good human-interest shots in the pits with the tired expressions of the drivers and the little kids staring up at them. He said that another place to get good motorcycle photos is on the North side of the Poppy range where bikers like to jump the hills and "catch air."

We talked about the beginner's workshop and Tylene said that the last one was about 2 years ago. Lyle mentioned that the club had some Canon 20D workshops when those cameras first came out.

Art showed off his portfolio to both Tylene and Lyle, both of whom were quite impressed.

Don gave us an update on the Prime Desert Woodland Preserve. He also suggested the desert preserves east of Palmdale http://home.earthlink.net/~photo_johns_1/sites.htm (see In or Near the AV, East, AV Sanctuaries) which have cactus, desert tortoises, and many other things of photographic interest.

Don also talked about his use of Flikr http://www.flickr.com/ which has some of the photos he lost when his hard drive crashed. Someone explained how he might be able to download them back to his computer but that photos sized for the internet would never have the quality of the originals. From there we went into a long discussion on data storage.

Art passed around copies of his idea for changing the "Creative" competition category to "Illusory" and we discussed that. There was a concensus that it was a good idea so I'm reprinting it below for everyone to see and consider. Of course, someone asked him if he could do that for all the categories which brought a smile to everyone, except Art. Tylene showed us a notebook cover with a little girl in tulips and described it as creative because there are no tulips that large (i.e. an unreal situation).

At the previous meeting the idea was brought up that the club could use more social interaction time. Therefore I brought up the idea of changing the Friday Night Discussion Meetings from "photography first, social second" to "social first, photography second," similar to the club breakfasts which are great meeting places but often have little photography content. The discussion on this was lengthy with pro's and con's but the concensus emerged to keep it pretty much as is with me being a little less insistent on keeping people on track. Photography discussion was the reason for starting this group and is likely the glue that has kept it going this past year. Plus, if we didn't keep to the subject then I would have less to write about. By the way, I want to thank all those who've come to me and expressed their enjoyment in reading these notes.

All that said, we did recognize a need for socialization and so went on a long discussion of what the club does now and what it might do in the future to provide more social time for members since our regular meetings are usually too busy to give people much time to talk to each other. Lyle led the discussion on some of the club's current and past social events:

• The annual installation of officers in June used to be staged as a banquet but that ended because of the expense. It could still be done as a potluck.
• The AV Fair has always been a great social event for those who participate through setup, teardown, take-ins, hangings (photos, not people), and manning the display.
• The Poppy Festival takes less time and people than the fair but there is a lot of opportunity to meet and talk with other members by volunteering to help out, or at least stopping by to visit with the people manning the booth.
• Field trips can be great social events. For a while some of us in the Discussion Group were planning local field trips, such as the one to Cantil, which provided great opportunities to spend time together. As the principle instigator of these I took the hit for dropping the ball (my excuse was too many other commitments) but we agreed to get back to doing more of these.
• The monthly LPA Breakfasts (dates and locations listed on the LPA web site front page) are a great place to meet and greet.
• In the past different people have had parties at their homes for club members. Terri brought up the idea of BBQs so we volunteered her to head up that effort. Possible locations were Apollo Park, Saddleback Butte, and Lancaster Park. She'll keep us posted on the LPA Forum and other ways.
• Lyle emphasized that the best way to socialize with other members is to volunteer in anything pertaining to the club.
• As I write this I realize that the club forum is also a way to socialize even though it doesn't offer any face-to-face time.

Don said that he would like to take a group to the Poppy reserve later in the spring to photograph Mojave Green snakes which he says are quite common there. I liked the idea but there were a couple of "Yucks!" expressed.

Tylene, Terri, and Lyle recommended more get-togethers after photo sessions to discuss and learn from the experience.

Terri brought up the fact that the following morning at 6:30 AM the solar power people would be hoisting a two-ton receiver onto one of the towers erected near the tracks and about Ave H. Lyle reminded us that this would be a good photojournalism opportunity, though no one really wanted to get up that early the next morning.

My special thanks to Tylene and Lyle for joining us and adding their experiences and knowledge to the discussions.

Denny's worked out so well that we decided to make it our permanent location. So, if you can join us, come to Denny's at Ave K and 20th West. Our core hour is 7 PM to 8 PM but most people now arrive by 6:30 PM and we usually go to at least 8:30 PM. Anyone can drop by at anytime and stay for as long as they like (you don't even have to buy anything).

Glenn Olson
Coordinator and Moderator
glenn@glenn-olson.com
816-8278

Creative vs. Illusory

The title "creative" is narrowly defined in the LPA Photo Competition Class Definitions. However, the photograph of anything in an unsuual way can be creative and this word can be applied in so many more areas in photography than those listed in the definitions. There are, however words that more accurately describe LPA intentions. ILLUSORY is one such word.

Illusions can be natural or manufactured. An example of natural illusions is eddies rising from the desert floor that appear to be lakes of water in the distance.

Manufactured photographic illusions are partly stated in the present creative class definitions such as those reflected from mylar, double exposures, and zoomed images.

Computer manipulations or any other post-production alterations that are fabricated and that require viewers to question the realism portrayed by the photograph are by definition illusionary.

As in the current creative definition, when examples are used profusely, there must be a single word that more succinctly describes intent and one that agrees with such examples accurately and completely.

The word illusory seems to fit more accurately with the intentions presented in the present CREATIVE definitions.

It would serve the LPA members well if the CREATIVE category is replaced by the more concise ILLUSORY definition as exemplified below.

ILLUSORY (or ILLUSIONARY or ILLUSION) --- Photographs of subjects that appear to be unreal and computer or other manipulations of photographs, that when viewed results in the challenge to our sense of reality.

Good picture taking,

Arthur Barnett

Light is our most important tool