focal point apr-10

Focal Point APRIL 2010

1 Northern California Professional Photographers



Northern California Professional Photographers Officers Committee Chairs

and Coordinators Miscellaneous

President Randy Cazinha 925-249-1999 [email protected]

Website Tom O’Connor 925-586-2745 [email protected]

NCPP Sustaining Members receive a 40% discount on advertising rates, and a complimentary link on our NCPP website in addition to other special benefits.

1st Vice President Programs Wayne Miller 925-330-8737 [email protected]

Newsletter - Focal Point Graphics and Layout Editor Tom O’Connor 925-586-2745 [email protected] Coordinator and Copy Editor Denny Weigand 925-336-7994 [email protected]

Send Newsletter information to: Denny Weigand. [email protected] Deadline for submission of articles and ad copy for the May issue is April 25th. Information received after the deadline cannot be guaranteed publication.

2nd Vice President Print Competition Denny Weigand 925-336-7994 [email protected] 3rd Vice President Membership

Hospitality Lisa Duncan 925-284-3878 [email protected]

Classified Ads Per issue, $18 includes up to six lines ($3 each add’l line). Classified ads free to NCPP members, up to three issues.

Treasurer Malcolm Slight 925-330-8737 [email protected]

Membership Denny Weigand 925-336-7994 [email protected]

Newsletter Advertising Annual Rates Back Cover $1000 Page 1 $900 Full Page $800 Half Page $600 Quarter Page $400

Secretary Michael “Mack” McNamara 510-384-5535 [email protected]

Apprentice Membership Ann Gordon 510-222-4115 [email protected]

Night School

Focal Point is published by Northern California Professional Photographers. Articles and comments are invited; publication is subject to space available and editorial approval. Note: Articles are the opinion of the author and do not necessarily represent the position of NCPP. Ads and flyers may or may not have the endorsement of NCPP or its Board of Directors.

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Ramblings from 1st VP 4 - 5 April Program - David Peters 6 2009 Annual Pot Luck & Awards 7 - 8 - 9 Print Competition 11 - 12 Best of Show - March PPC Style 13 Images from March Meeting 14 - 15 Membership Information 16 Coming in May - Gustavo Fernández

• "Living with Social Media" 17 Hire our Members 18 - 19 - 20 NCPP Sustaining Members 21 - 22 - 23 - 24 Calendar - Important Dates - New 26 - 27 Our Neighboring Affiliates 28 Sunset Chart 29

NCPP meeting this month

TUESDAY, APRIL 13TH, 2010

Table of Contents



Spring is here…start growing! How do you start one might ask? Well start by getting out of your comfort zone and doing things that make you stretch a little. Like helping out and offering to help grow NCPP. Well I am too busy, or I have two jobs, or kids, or whatever! Sound familiar like that voice inside is not helping you grow. The real you is stepping up and trying new things, different things, thinking out of the box. I once heard that the sign of insanity is repeating the same behavior and expecting different results. We are all busy with urgent things but are they important? Do these urgent things make the world a better place or help the people around us grow? “The times they are a-changing” –Bob Dylan, was written way back in the 60’s and is timeless. You are either keeping up with today’s technology or you’re falling behind. There is no standing still. If you are green you are growing if you’re ripe you are rotting. Which are you? NCPP had a great speaker, Paul Tsang, in March. Paul is a Master Photographer and covered the art of photography and how to survive in today’s economy. For those who attended know that his tips were great as was his photography. I have been attending several local Meet Up groups in the area and I am very impressed with several of the groups. One in particular is Jules Cafe Photo Peeps Meet Up and PUG group (Jules/Joy Bianchi). The group was around 30-photogs, everyone was friendly and willing to share information about business, what they liked most at WPPI and industry knowledge. The group is made up of mainly professionals with a few up and comers. It kind of reminded me of past NCPP Night schools where everyone was willing to share their experiences about the business of photography. Another favorite is SF East Bay Photography Meetup Group of which Gustavo Fernandez is the organizer. Gustavo is doing a great job pulling in great speakers and the meetings have anywhere from 100-150 attending. While we are on the subject Gustavo will be the NCPP speaker for the May 11th meeting. The NCPP Spring PARTY on SATURDAY March 20th was a great gathering of NCPP members and guests. We had a great time socializing, great food, and the slide shows were a hit. The awards were passed out for the year-end prints competition, people’s choice end of year, print of the year, and photographer of the year. There was even a new member that showed up, John Huseby. John and Todd Gomes were the only Big Kahunas who braved Wayne’s Devil Chicken Wings with my special burnyourass hot sauce. John had tears in his eye and when I asked him why he said that he was just thinking of a sad Lassie movie. : ) Ok Youse Guys (do I sound like a New Yawker) the PdTG had some great outings and if ya want to be part of the Photo detour Gang ya got to ask to join. One great outing was in Corte Madera that Mary Small hosted which was a panoramic view of the SF Bay right from her back yard on a hill just a few blocks from her home. We hiked to the top and about five minutes later the rains came. Richard Stahlberg braved the rain and got a killer rainbow shot before the rest of us made it back after the rains passed…..

Ramblings from the 1st Vice President Wayne Miller (aka PdTG guy)

http://www.meetup.com/SF-East-Bay-Photography-Meetup-Group/members/10470220/�



Ring Mountain – Corte Madera The PdTG also went to Mt. Tamalpais and got some more great images. It was a nice day with some haze in the air but shooting HDR bagged a couple of keepers that you might not have gotten with a single exposure. The view from the observation deck at the top of Mt Tam is breathtaking.

We then drove to another location on Mt Tam and hiked down to Cataract Falls. It was about a mile trek to the falls and well worth the trek. The waterfall consists of 9 separate cascades and with the sunlight filtering through the trees….. well yes it was worth the hike back up the hill too. Thanks to Denny for knowing and sharing this location.

Afterwards we headed over to the Marin Brewing Company for lunch and I had to take these images below with my iPhone to share. Apps were Pro HDR and TiltShift……keep shooting…

Ramblings from the 1st Vice President Wayne Miller (aka PdTG guy)



The Mind. The Heart. The Art. The Art of Influence and the crucial role it plays in our success as Professional Photographers. Learn to increase sessions and sales as well as create more dynamic images through the application of a few basic principles. With 40 yrs. experience operating a successful high end portrait studio in San Rafael, Ca. David Peters, M.Photog, Cr., Fellow, A.S.P., declares influence to be the most crucial skill needed to survive in a very competitive environment such as today. He will share how it enters our business day from the photographic images we present to the business image we project and finally to the way we enter the hearts and minds of the people we photograph. You can visit David Peter’s website at http://davidpetersphotography.net/

NCPP Speaker for April 13th - DAVID PETERS “The Mind. The Heart. The Art"

http://davidpetersphotography.net/�



On March 20th, Wayne Miller hosted our annual Awards Presentations at his home in Clayton. In years past this event has been held at Scotts Restaurant in Walnut Creek, but with the economy as it is it was decided to reduce our cost to attend and have a Pot Luck. It turned out to be really fun with a lot of visiting and laughs.

The annual slide show produced by Michael Van Aukin was a big hit. Every month we see our guest speakers image slide shows, so this was the time to enjoy the many wonderful images our own photographers create. Wayne and Denny shared slide shows featuring work throughout the year by the Photo de Tour Gang.

The end of the year print awards are judged by a panel of judges from another PPC affiliate than our own NCPP. This year it was PPGBA who sent 3 Master Photographers and a CPP, CR Photographer. We in turn supplied the judges for their end of year prints.

The winners are: Member of the Year: Brent Walton Photographer of the Year: Wayne Miller Print of the Year: Tie 1st Place: Wayne Miller - The Longshoreman 1st Place: Tom O'Connor - A Pioneers Wagon Electronic Imaging: 1st Place: Richard Stahlberg - Living Her Dream 2nd Place: Peg Jackson - Sarah Miko 3rd Place: Denny Weigand - Dark Secrets Illustrative: 1st Place: Wayne Miller - Cruzin' at Lou's 2nd Place: Wayne Miller - City Lights 3rd Place: Richard Stahlberg - Street Dancer Environmental Portraiture: 1st Place: Michael Van Auken - Misunderstood 2nd Place: Michael Van Auken - Mary Oros, Sculptor 3rd Place: Paula Buzatu - Afternoon Glow People's Choice Print of the Year: 1st Place: Michael Van Auken - South Paw Blues Congratulations to all of the winners and to all of the other members who entered. The competition was very tough with so many really terrific images entered!!

2009 NCPP Awards Presentations by: Tom O'Connor



2009 NCPP Awards Presentations



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This month we are having PPC style print competition. Bring your images and register them with Denny Weigand. You may enter up to two images. There will be a total of only 20 images allowed in the competition. They need to be registered before 6:58pm. Images entered after that time will not be allowed in their respective competitions. Good luck to all!! If you are interested in volunteering with print comp, please contact Denny Weigand at 925-336-7994 or E-mail Denny. PRINT COMP RULE CLARIFICATIONS: There were questions last month about the re-judging of prints scored 78 and 79. This is correct. Any print scoring 78 or 79 is re-presented to the judges, one at a time, and a thumbs up means the print goes to a score of 80 and a thumbs down means it stays where it was scored. A majority of the judges is required. Also, we have not been following the letter of the law having to do with Automatic Challenges due to a 10 point difference. There is an Automatic Challenge when one or more judges scores are 10 or more or 10 or less from the "Averaged Score" (meaning the score given to the print). It is not a difference of 10 between judges. We will be scoring Automatic Challenges correctly starting in March.

PRINT COMP SEMINAR:

NCPP members had the unique opportunity to spend a day with Tim Mathiesen, M.Photog.Cr., A-ASP, F-ASP, PPA juror, and past president of ASP and PPC on April 1st at the Hilton in Pleasanton.

Tim has been a PPA affiliated juror for 25 years, and is a PPA Jury Chairman. The class provided an extensive overview of the print competition process and the PPA degree program. Tim covered preparation, choosing the best image, the judging process and understanding the rules, the learning tree, shipping, the merit program and a print critique. With all the new rules coming down, this was a great opportunity to get all the new information first hand.

Below is a reference that will be posted at each NCPP monthly print competition to help the judges and so the audience will be better able to follow along.

PPA Print Competition Score Rating: 100-95 Exceptional 94-90 Superior 89-85 Excellent 84-80 Deserving of a merit 78-79 Deserving of a review 77-75 Above average 74-72 Average 71-70 Acceptable 69-0 Unacceptable

Print Competition ... PPC Style




MARCH WINNER'S

1st Place - Lisa Duncan "Cabbage Kiss"

2nd Place - Wayne Miller "1049ft Above Vegas"




Cabbage Kiss By Lisa Duncan This shot was taken just South of Pescadero with the Pigeon Point Light house in the background. On the way to the Light House, I noticed the enormous cabbages in the field and it took my breath away. After the visit at the light house, I asked the client (engagement session) to follow me back around the field and we parked along the busy freeway to get this shot. I used my Canon 15mm f2.8 fisheye on tripod and shot three shots to make a HDR image. The three shots were: Normal Exposure shot 1/500 at f5.0, ISO 100 Under two stops from normal 1/2000 at f5.0, ISO 100 Over two stops from normal 1/125 at f5.0, ISO 100 Then I used Photomatix to process the three images. I used the normal shot to bring the couple back into the image since that offered a sharper image of them. I took the picture in July and that was the perfect time to capture the huge plants.




Print of the Month by Lisa Duncan



Images from March Meeting



MEMBERSHIP NEWS

APPRENTICE NEWS Contact: Ann Gordon @ 510-222-4115

NCPP is in need of two positions to be filled. We are a volunteer organization and it takes participation by everyone to keep it going strong. Ken Johnson, our esteemed Membership Chair and 3rd VP is moving to Arizona. So we need someone who is interested in getting involved more with NCPP to come forward and volunteer. Call or E-mail Denny Weigand if you are interested. Charles Anderson our Night School Chair has had to take a step back for personal reasons. This is a great time to get involved. Night School will be taking on a new format. You can be part of the team that establishes how it will run going forward.

If you have comments or information regarding new applicants, please send them to: Denny Weigand, NCPP Membership Chair: [email protected]

Membership Information





Join Gustavo Fernández for a discussion on tapping into the power of Social Media to project your brand and create rich relationships. This San Francisco based ”Green Photographer” has harnessed the power of the internet to project his brand beyond his Bay Area home base. He will share his insights on how to use this powerful medium to effectively grow your online presence, build social networks, and market your brand. Tap in and learn the secret power of connections!

NCPP Speaker May 11th: Gustavo Fernández - "Living with Social Media"



NEED A RETOUCH SPECIALIST ???

Tired of Retouching? Tired of Wedding Edits? Tired of Enhancing Your Images? Just Plain Tired of Spending Time Behind the Computer? Printing Quality Less Than Desired? Administrative Details Got You Down? Call the Expert!

Call Denny at (925) 336-7994

For Reasonable Pricing and Solutions

Email: [email protected] Web: http://www.digitalwhims.com Member: PPA NAPP AIDG NCPP Telephone: (925) 336-7994

Hire Our Members

http://www.digitalwhims.com/�



Jill Heller (Hager), CPP – Photography by Jill Photographer, Photoshopper and sales-gal extraordinaire!

Great with all aspects of studio work.

Photoshop CS4, ProShow, ProSelect and SuccessWare trained.

Available for your studio work assistance.

Call 925-286-2097 or email [email protected].

Hire Our Members




Glamour Retouch Makeover

Glamour retouching to create that special image for your clients. Sometimes an image needs a little punch to take it to the next level, or a digital make-over for a magazine cover look. Sends us your jpeg marked up for a free quote or sugestions for the glamour makeover. Visit www.wmphotos.com to see some finished images. Special rates for NCPP Professionals. Guaranteed Satisfaction we will make it right or your money back!

Wayne Miller Photography [email protected] Clayton, CA 925-330-8737

Hire Our Members

http://www.wmphotos.com/�




Sustaining Members are companies that manufacture or distribute photographic equipment, laboratories, publishers or firms providing services to photographers. These Sustaining Members also contribute to the welfare of NCPP, with monetary and technical support. Sustaining Members may participate in all NCPP events, however they may not vote or hold office. We encourage our NCPP members to support our Sustaining Members. If you are interested in becoming a Sustaining Member, contact Rick Konlon. 925-253-6079 or E-mail @ [email protected] -Listed Alphabetically- THE ART OF PICTURE FRAMING APF is a full-service wholesale custom framing facility. We work closely with Fine Art and Framing Galleries, Interior Designers, Professional Photographers, Art Consultants, Retailers and others in need of custom framing at wholesale prices. APF specializes in creating custom programs or packages to your individual business or market needs. We offer superior quality with flexible pricing to fit your individual needs. Contact: Mike Moretti 1084 Shary Circle, #B Concord, CA 94518 (Located behind Costco) E-mail: [email protected] 925-689-5177 web: http://stores.apfwholesale.com/StoreFront.bok

NCPP Sustaining Members



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BAY PHOTO LAB Contact: Debbie Thomas E-mail: [email protected] 510-585-7049 web: http://www.bayphoto.com/ 2161 Delaware Ave. Santa Cruz, CA 95060 800-435-6686 fax: 931-475-5257



http://www.bayphoto.com/�



PARTICIPATE

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NCPP

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NCPP Calendar



Our Neighboring Affiliates

http://www.ppgba.org/�

http://ppsvonline.homestead.com/�

http://www.ppscv.com/�



This information is for Walnut Creek. You can obtain sunset times for other locations at http://www.sunrisesunset.com/

Sunset Table

http://www.sunrisesunset.com/�

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