OffShoot Photography Society

We believe that the image is everything!

News

Last Monday Night

Last Monday three of our members, Kevin Grace, David Sisk and John Wiles, demonstrated their approaches to editing their work using three different software packages. Their processes and tips in each software were really worth learning and using.

Next Monday Night

Next week we have a talk by Scott Hurd entitled Living and Working as a Professional Photographer in Namibia. Scott decided to leave the UK to realise his dream as a photographer in Namibia. His work ranges from lodge and hotel work to mining and construction and he is regularly employed by both local and international companies.

 

He presents Photography and Photoshop training courses all over Namibia and his clients range from schools to anti-poaching units, from private groups to national newspapers. 

 

Please don’t expect to just sit back and be entertained on his events. Expect to be involved, expect to be asked to think and expect to go away buzzing.

 

This meeting starts at 19:30 and not 20:00

 

IPF National Shield Autumn 2021

Thank you all for your submissions, which are now being evaluated by our IPF Committee.

Congratulations to all our members whose images have been selected and the best of luck on November 14.

 

Competition results and feedback via Zoom on Sunday 14th November at 14:00.

 

An Audience Attendance Zoom form for the National Shield 2021 is available on the IPF web site.

https://irishphoto.ie/ipf-shield-audience-application/

 

Chat Moderators Still Wanted

 

As most of you will know, Noreen, Marie and Richard have been doing the Zoom chat moderation since we went to virtual club meetings. They are happy to continue this role, but it would be good to get one or two other members involved to share out the rota. The work involved is minimal so put your name forward please email secretary@offshoot.ie

 

AGM

 

The AGM of Offshoot Photography Society will take place on Monday 6th December 2021 and you are asked to make a special effort to attend. 

 

We asked you for volunteers to serve on the committee in 2022. Sadly, the response has been disappointing. 

 

OffShoot is a thriving club and our members are a great bunch of people and we want to look to the future and develop. This is your camera club and we have all sorts of roles; committees, subcommittees etc.; something for everybody willing to help. Everybody is important and it’s up to you how you want to help. 

 

Membership of the committee is not only essential for the good governance and development of Offshoot – it can also be fun!

 

Please indicate your interest to committee@offshoot.ie

Club Competitions

Our next and final competition of the year is called "Autumn Colours”

 

You can interpret the theme as you wish from falling leaf colour, portraits in the landscape, shooting low down to capture fungi and other natural wonders, or wide angle to capture a more expansive landscape.   The possibilities are endless so use your imagination and experiment.   You can use almost any lens from a Macro to a Zoom so there’s something for everybody.

 

Our Judges for this competition are Eamon and Christine O’ Daly from The Outdoor Studio.

 

Have a look at Eamon and Christine’s websites www.outdoorstudio.ie and www.skerriesphotography.com

 

Please submit your images by Midnight Sunday 14th November. Judging will take place on Monday 29th November 2021.

 

As usual, save your images in JPG format, and name them with your Level Number, Membership Number, and image title –

 

example L2-987-Autumn Leaves.jpg

 

You may submit two images for this competition, to make sure that everybody receives useful feedback Please upload your images to the dropbox link:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/request/LyWxUgcbcGiOCmGN2kgq

  

If you have any questions, please contact competitions@offshoot.ie

 

To give you some advanced warning, the first Club Competition for 2022 is proposed to be an Open Theme competition for Monochrome images. The entry date will be in late January – full details to follow in due course

Outings 

 

Even if you are suffering from Zoom fatigue and are missing the human interaction you can still join other members on outings. Outings are a great way to socialise with fellow members, visit new places and even take some photographs so do come and join us.

 

Look at the schedule at the end of the Newsletter for outings.

 

However, registration for Outings will be continued to facilitate contact tracing in the event that we experience a Covid outbreak within the group. Look at the schedule below for all outings and dates.

 

Special Outing – Portrait Masterclass

 

This is special because it’s indoors!  This is an afternoon for beginners in the art of portraiture in a fully equipped studio. It’s on the afternoon of 28th November. It’s a Sunday and limited to 10 members so get your name on the list or for a reserve or for the next course.

Accessing Video Recordings of Meetings

You can access recordings of past Zoom meetings in the Videos section of the Member's Area at https://www.offshoot.ie/member-area/. You will need to log in to the website to see the content of this section of the site.

Every member has a log in to the site. If you don't remember your login details go to https://www.offshoot.ie/login/ and select the 'Forgot your password?' link. Enter the email address you received this newsletter with and reset your password. Once you've reset your password you can log in and catch up on speakers you missed. Happy catching up!

Shoot With Me – Autumn 2021 Programme

 

The Autumn Shoot With Me programme is now well under way with over 70 members participating. Thanks again to the group leaders and we hope everyone enjoys the experience. The SWM Showcases are currently planned for 13 and 20 December.

 

Thoughts for today

 

“When I photograph I make love.”
– Alfred Stieglitz

 

“ If you can’t feel what you’re looking at, then you’re never going to get others to feel anything when they look at your pictures.”
– Don McCullin

 

“It is my intention to present – through the medium of photography – intuitive observations of the natural world which may have meaning to the spectators.”
– Ansel Adams

This Week's Flickr Theme

Theme of the Week returns!

 

Our recent survey asked if you wanted to retain the weekly theme on our Flickr site. The answer is yes. For those who may not have engaged with this yet here's how it works. Each week a theme/topic is set. During the week you shoot or process an image in that theme. and load it on the Flickr site. One image will be selected as the "theme pic of the week" and published in the following week's newsletter.

 

Why bother? The theme pic gives you an opportunity to explore and try out many different styles and types of photography. It increases the variety of images on our site and is an excellent opportunity to expand your creativity and photography skills and you get your picture in the weekly newsletter!

  

Please note this is not a competition. The image chosen each is selected to encourage and inspire us. It may be the most technical but could also be selected as the most unusual, the most creative, the funniest or the one that appealed to us the most. The pictures are selected by a different member of the team each week to ensure varied viewpoints.

 

So, the theme for this week is: FORMAL PORTRAIT

 
The formal portrait differs from the snapshot or event shot in that there are generally only 2 elements in the shot: the subject (who is generally aware that they are being photographed) and a neutral background. The subject is the story and the photograph tries to capture some aspect of the subject and their personality. In some cases a relevant background may be used to add to the portrait e.g. the blacksmith photographed in the forge or the chef in the kitchen. Lighting, pose, expression, and props can all be used to strengthen the formal portrait.
 
7 questions to ask:
 
7 poses for formal portraits:
 
8 tips:
 
Famous portrait photographers:
 

Will you use natural light, flash or bounce light off a reflector? We look forward to seeing your images. 

What's On

Here are the next scheduled meetings and events for the Society:

Members will be able to attend our outings by registering for specific outings. Keep up to date with the latest events at https://www.offshoot.ie/whats-on/.

Member's Photo of the Week

Just a note for new members – if you want any of your pictures considered for the photo of the week, you just have to post them to the OffShoot Flickr group at:

https://www.flickr.com/groups/offshoot_society.

There’s also the latest images published on Flickr that are displayed on the OffShoot home page.

 [Note. To join the Offshoot Flickr group, you must first be a Flickr member. Then send the email address used to join Flickr to webmaster@offshoot.ie. You will get an email when you have been added to the group. Please be patient as this is a manual process.]

Theme "In the style of Ray Metzker" by Jean Hartin

Non Themed "Irish Cottage in Autumn" by sineid2009

From the OffShoot Website
Club Outing - Cloghlea Woods
On Tuesday 2nd November ten members attended the outing. We had perfect weather conditions for the venue. The Autumn leaves were glistening from the earlier gentle rainfall and there was…
Read more...
Club Outing - Coliemore Harbour Sunrise
On Saturday 30th October nine members arrived to catch the dawn at Coliemore. The weather was dry but, ideally, it would have been much better to have some high clouds…
Read more...
Interesting Videos

If you come across one you want to share let us know at newsletter@offshoot.ie.

Why I Love 50mm for Street Photography (and a look at Elliott Erwitt's new book) by Framelines

ORTON EFFECT TUTORIAL | Woodland Photography by Ben Kapur

IPF Links & Events

Irish Photographic Federation Web Site:

https://irishphoto.ie/

Most recent news and articles posted:

https://irishphoto.ie/news/

Distinction Sittings and Availability:

https://irishphoto.ie/distinctions/assessment-dates/

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