OffShoot Photography Society

We believe that the image is everything!

News

Freedom at last?

The sudden relaxation of the bulk of regulations almost took us by surprise. After two long years we can look forward to the real possibility of physical meetings and work is in hand to make the dream a reality.

 

Covid, however has not gone away and in this past week a handful of members have tested positive or are close contacts. But, Yes, we will be back so keep watching this space.

Last Monday Night

We were treated to a presentation by Neil McShane who showed us how he sees and executes his images in black and white. He uses film rather than digital to capture some great monochrome landscapes, most of which are on the Boyne walk close to his home in Navan. The trick is to see our image in monochrome rather than colour, a technique which took him 5 years to learn!  

Next Monday Night

OffShoot member John McComish is our speaker for next week’s presentation. Back in early 1974 John was researching the Vietnam War in preparation for going to live in a small village in southern Laos (see his previous 12th October 2020 presentation). He came across photos by the war photographer Robert Capa and found his work and life so interesting that John then purchased a second-hand Pentax SLR camera and took up photography. Like most good stories, the life of Robert Capa is a fascinating mix of truth and myth - John will leave you to decide which is which!"

Shoot With Me

 

We are almost there and on schedule to kick off the Spring SWM in the first week of February. It is a great and very enjoyable way to make your contribution to the success and vibrance of the club for 2022. You can join any group of your choice, you will socialise, you will enjoy the experience and you will learn. 

 

There is no special skill involved, just enthusiasm and a desire to get out shooting and socially interacting with a group of likeminded club members. 

2022 Annual Subscription Fees Now Due

If you haven’t paid your annual subscription for 2022 please do so as a matter of urgency. The deadline is 28 February 2022 and for renewing members your subscription of €50 is now due.

Payment can be made by PayPal at https://www.offshoot.ie/subs or bank transfer. Please email treasurer@offshoot.ie for BIC and IBAN details.

Our Club Exhibition is Returning

We are pleased to advise that we are now planning for our exhibition to return in 2022. It will be held in the DLR Lexicon over 6 weeks commencing on 12 July.

Further details will be advised when the planning is further advanced.

IPF Distinction Sitting Update

The Irish Photographic Federation has announced the date for the first distinction sitting of 2022. The sitting will be on Saturday 26 March 2022. As with previous sittings, this will be an online assessment and will include Licentiate, Associateship and Fellowship panel assessments.  The application forms are available on the website, and images – including unmounted A4 prints - must be with the distinction secretary by 8th March

Club Competitions

Next Club Competition – “Monochrome”

There is one week to go before closing date (Sun 6th Feb) and the number of images entered as of now are very low.

Our next competition will be a Monochrome competition with an OPEN theme – which means using differing amounts of light instead of different colours to capture and represent images. It includes black and white but can also be achieved using varying shades of other colours like sepia or cyan.

You can interpret the theme as you wish from landscapes to people and anything in between. Street and architecture also work well in monochrome.

Our judge for this competition is Gerry Andrews FIPF, ARPS, AFIAP from Dublin Camera Club. (See note below)

Website: www.gerryandrews.com / https://www.flickr.com/photos/gerryandrews/

Please submit your images by Midnight, Sunday 06 February 2022. Judging will take place on Monday 14 February 2022. As usual, save your images in JPEG format and name them with your Level Number, Membership Number and Image Title:

L2_001_Mono image.jpg

You may submit two images for this competition to ensure everyone receives useful feedback in a reasonable timeframe.

Please upload your images to the Dropbox Link below:

https://www.dropbox.com/request/OrQrMDWhsCHVkzqTm9XQ

Club Competition Themes for 2022

To help you plan your photographic journey through the year ahead, it is proposed to have 5 Club Competitions with the following themes and timings:

  • February: Monochrome (open)
  • April: Abstract
  • June: People (Street / Sports / Candid / Silhouette / Portrait)
  • September: Smartphone (open)
  • November: Reflections
This Week's Flickr Theme

 

This is not a competition rather an opportunity to learn a bit about an area of photography or try a different type of photography. The photo selected each week can be picked because it's technically excellent or equally because it's unusual, funny, creative or thought-provoking.

 

To enter your shots just upload from your Flickr page to the OffShoot Flickr page before 7 PM the following Friday. Please title your shot with the theme of the week + your own title. 

 

Wishing you an enjoyable and educational 2022 from the Flickr theme pickers.

 

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!

  

This week's theme is   The Blue Hour

 

The Blue Hour happens when the sun’s elevation is between -4 degrees and -6 degrees, just below the horizon line either before sunrise or just after sunset. So, this week that’s between 7:15 and 8:15 in the morning and between 5 and 6 in the evening. It gets a little earlier each morning and a little later each evening as the year progresses. It is a time of day which gives unusual light to your outdoor photographs. Give it a try and if you give an extra half hour you might get also get some good sunrise or sunset shots.

 

1.   For ideas Google: blue hour photography images

 

2.   Blue hour photography guide

https://www.format.com/magazine/resources/photography/blue-hour-photography

 

3.   Blue hour photography guide 2

https://photographylife.com/blue-hour

 

4.   Photopills guide

https://www.photopills.com/articles/blue-hour-photography-guide

 

Upcoming themes

  • Texture
  • Weather
  • Shallow DoF
  • Night Time

 

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.]

Themed - Post Covid Party Shoes by Hilda McInerney

Open Theme - Reine Red Huts by Paul O'Brien

From the OffShoot Website
Club Outing - Winter Birds
On Sunday 23rd Janaury it was bright and the sun broke through the clouds warming the earth beneath. The 15 members who crossed the wooden bridge on to the Bull…
Read more...
Club Outing - Portrait Masterclass 2
On Saturday 22nd January 10 members arrived at the N.G.C.C. Studio. We had a very informative talk from Richard, an introduction to studio lighting, the equipment, camera settings, working with…
Read more...
Interesting Videos

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

Bird & Wildlife Photography Tips - Tony & Chelsea Northrup

 

Simple and Effective LIGHTROOM Edits for Birds! - Stefano Ianiro

Accessing Video Recordings of Meetings

You can access the recordings of past Zoom meetings from the OffShoot website.

These videos are available in the Videos section of the Member’s Area at https://www.offshoot.ie/member-area/. You will need to login to the website to see the content of this section of the site.

Every member has a login 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 login and catch-up on speakers you missed. Happy catching up!

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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