David Wilkins, our President, welcomed over 47 members to our End of Year Competition, S4C/PSA Photography Celebration, and Installation of Officers.   

The 1st place winners for the 2012-2013 competed for the Year End - Members Choice Awards.  All results for the competition can be seen on the LPA website.  Congratulations to ALL the Winners!  Each will received a certificate and ribbon, and will be awarded an acrylic plaque with their name, and the title of winning photo.

Thank you to Chris Wilkins and Wayne Staley, Competition Chairs for the past two years.  They will be notifying those of you who won your second LPA in your blue ribbon this year, in your level, as you will get to move up July 1.

Douglas Wade, our Vice President, welcomed roughly 39 members to our May General Meeting this evening.

The meeting started off with Christine Wilkins introducing or judge, Noella Ballenger for this evenings “Abstract” competition.

A professional nature and wildlife photographer and writer, Noella Ballenger's experience has included photographing some of the world's most pristine and spectacular locations. Traveling extensively, she has searched for pockets of beauty throughout the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Africa, Europe and the South Pacific. Noella has lectured throughout the United States and New Zealand. She celebrates her 24th year of teaching photography and her 27th year as a member of the American Society of Media Photographers. Her work has been published in Gardens & Landscapes, Natural History, Petersen’s Photographic, Zoo View, Lapidary Journal, Westways, California Highways, True West and many other magazines. In addition, her work has been selected for inclusion in the Smithsonian Guide to Historic America: Pacific Coast States, American Sampler, Focus on New Zealand (New Zealand); Great Mysteries: Ghosts (England); Death Trap: The Story of the La Brea Tar Pits, Ghost Towns of the American West, The Audubon Guides, Simple Prayers and Blessings, La Purisima, Erosion, The Pueblo, Encyclopedia of Native Americans and many other books. Ballenger's photographs are installed in the Kaiser Permanente, Ming Avenue Medical Offices, in Bakersfield, CA, Los Angeles Children's Hospital, Plastic Surgery Clinic, Brotman Medical Center; UCLA Medical Center's Tiverton House, Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, and in private collections around the world.

Douglas Wade, our Vice President, welcomed nearly 40 members to our April General Meeting this evening.

The meeting started off with Douglas Wade introducing our guest speaker George Hutchison, or “Hutch” as he is commonly referred to. His Program Presentation was called “Elements of Award Winning Images”, which many seemed to thoroughly enjoy!

Hutch has had a lifelong passion for photography, growing up with a father and grandfather who were both avid photographers. The advent of digital photography in the 1990's further stimulated and broadened his interest. He is an award winning photographer active in many local photography organizations, and a frequent judge and/or presenter at clubs and competitions in Southern California. Hutch is available for portrait, architectural, product and event photography, as well as private photography workshops, tours or coaching. Hutch says “Photography is an art, and any form of art is subjective to the viewer. Some may call an image excellent while others see it as ordinary. However, both experts and people with utterly no knowledge of photography usually agree when they lay their eyes on a good image”.

David Wilkins, our President, welcomed nearly 60 members to our March General Meeting this evening.

The meeting started off with Christine Wilkins introducing or judge, Stuart Lynn for this evenings “Close-Ups” competition.

Stuart Lynn is the president of the Southern California Council of Camera Clubs (S4C) and Competition Chair of the Coachella Valley Desert Camera Club (CVDCC). He has been awarded the HonS4C and DFS4C honors by S4C for his work in supporting S4C’s activities and for his photographic achievements, the latter including medals and other awards in S4C’s end of year competitions. He has several times won Photographer of the Year and Image of the Year awards in CVDCC competitions and is an experienced competition judge. He has also won Best of Show at the Riverside County Fair (Date Festival). He has chaired or co-chaired several international photographic competitions recognized by the Photographic Society of America (PSA). Rocking trays in his father’s darkroom at the early age of 4, he inherited his father’s passion for photography. As a teenager, he could not be separated from his camera. His professional career in academe inhibited his favorite hobby so it was with considerable pleasure that he could resume his interest upon retirement. He was an early adopter of digital photography – enabling him to combine photography with his professional background in the computing field. He has also developed many computer systems to support photography club activities and competitions, including support for international competitions.

David Wilkins, our President, welcomed over 60 members and 5 guests to our February General Meeting.

The meeting started off with Douglas Wade introducing our guest speaker “Eric Curry” with his light painting project called “American Pride and Passion”.  Eric has been a photographer all his life.  He graduated from the Art Center College of Design.  He started the project “American Pride and Passion” after the passing of his father-in-law, who had a collection of old tractors and farm equipment on his property.   He would light paint the equipment with mag lights and floodlights while taking multiple long exposures and stacking them together in Photoshop.  From there, his photo subjects progressed to planes, trains, automobiles, and even a submarine.  Eric likes to create an “iconic image” and tell a story using vehicles, houses, people and dogs.  He likes to include an element of surprise or humor that is not obvious at first.  Most of his props are “borrowed”.  He said “If you don’t ask, the answer will be No”.   Eric’s book “Painting with Light: Lighting and Photoshop Techniques for Photographers“ includes many of the photos, stories, and techniques shared this evening and is available through Amazon and his website at www.ericcurry.com.  Check out his video tutorials too.  Eric was thanked for sharing his interesting and inspirational program and presented with a Certificate of Appreciation, and a check for travel expense.

David Wilkins, our President, welcomed nearly 65 members to our January General Meeting this evening.

The meeting started off with David Wilkins introducing or judge, JoAnne Stolte, for this evenings “Pictorial” Competition. Since 1998, Joanne has been deeply involved in regional photo clubs, currently serving as president of S4C, the coalition of southern California camera clubs. She lives in Glendora, where she formerly served as Vice President of the Glendora Color Slide Group. She is also a member of the Pomona Valley Camera Club, and is General Chair of the S4C International Exhibition. JoAnne is very active in the Photographic Society of America (PSA).

David Wilkins opened the festivities and welcomed over 60 people to our annual holiday party. 

The room was transformed into a holiday dinner/party celebration with festive music filling the air, and volunteers scurrying around to transform the senior center into a party atmosphere, all in less than 45 minutes.  Gotta love our volunteers! 

The aroma of holiday food filled the air as volunteers brought in ham, party potatoes, and warm rolls, and the visual appeal kicked in with the sight of a green salad and a red jell salad.  The aroma of hot apple cider and fresh coffee topped it all off.  The desert table was filled with cakes, sweet/salty pretzel bits, and chocolate candy.  Oh yum!!!

David Wilkins, our President, welcomed 36 members to our November General Meeting this evening.

The meeting started off with David Wilkins introducing our program speaker, and long time LPA member, Don Bennett. Don shared with us a slide show of his images of 5 different trips to Alaska, Africa, and the Sandhill Cranes of Nebraska. He explained how he “got around” by vehicle and tour guide in both Africa and Alaska, and was able to shoot many beautiful animals, some African tribal people, as well as gorgeous sunrises and sunsets. In order to shoot the Sandhill Cranes , of which there are many thousands, he had to rent a 4’x8’ wood shed for accommodations. He had to stay in for a set number of hours, and not leave, in order to comply with the restrictions of the area.  Several different camera bodies and lenses were brought  for these shoots.  He even had a 500mm lens in Africa to capture animals in the far distances since leaving the vehicle was not an option.

Don ended his presentation with answering questions, and giving a bit more detail on the logistics of his travel. Thank you Don!  We all enjoyed the show!