 |
|
Many of these photographs were shot by members who attended the 2009 spring wildflower field trip at Key West Club on Saturday April 11. Members unable to attend have provided additional images to this collection.
Galleries of monthly, annual and End of Year competition winners.
My love of nature goes far beyond my love of capturing it and communicating it through photography. And yet the process of making photos gives me great joy, all the more since digital capture and editing has liberated us from the confines of film.
Despite all the opportunities for creative expression provided by photography, I create very little fine art imagery, preferring to take a more photojournalistic approach in seeking out and revealing to myself and others the beauty and wonder of the natural world just as it is. It’s enough, for me, to simply reveal the colors of an insect or the glow of backlit leaves, and if there’s any art being expressed, it’s the work of nature itself.
'Pete' Cross
Gallery 1: Iceland Crossing
Gallery 2: Field Day of Past
Starting in 1975, I have had many wonderful opportunities to visit an extraordinary country that is guaranteed to trip your shutter at every turn in the road. Leading trips through Iceland and making numerous short visits have given me the opportunity to explore the challenges of nature photography. There are incredible opportunities in a country that is very safe and has the highest standard of living per capita in the world along with a constant low sun angle, clearest air in the Northern Hemisphere, vibrant colors, and photogenic sheep, horses, and people (95% speak excellent English).
As the equipment has changed, so has the way we construct our images and how we look at a scene. Now we can experiment at no additional cost by instantly seeing the results of each shot. I remember in 1975, I took 14 rolls of film (x 36 = ~500 images) for a two-week tour. No one has ever taken their first trip to Iceland with enough film! Now we can easily become overloaded with thousands of images to review, but it still pays in both satisfaction and time to get the picture “right” before you click the shutter.
Even after 40 years, I am still learning how to capture nature thru photography. My painting and drawing skills are limited, but the world is full of beauty. My camera is a wonderful way to explore this world, and to show others what I see. And since life is a series of changes, I'm also beginning to appreciate and explore the beauty in man-made objects too.
My wife and I grew up in Virginia and will always call it home. But Colorado is our favorite destination. We travel there not only to visit a daughter and new granddaughter, but because of the free spirit, the mountains and grandeur of the place. These few photographs - all from Colorado, were chosen to provide a glimpse of the culture and natural beauty of the state.
Like many club members, I enjoy photographing nature. Most appealing to me is the freedom and spontaneity of shooting living subjects with a handheld camera. That can involve setting aperture and shutter speed on five pounds of equipment with one hand while a meandering fly laps sweat from the back of the other. But it becomes true sport when easing a kayak toward a wading egret or past an osprey building its nest. Muddy knees, wet britches and chiggers are all badges of a proper outing. I reserve the tripod for stationary subjects in low light, for merged images requiring multiple exposures, and the occasional bursting balloon. Many of these creatures are from my yard. The egret was on Lake Albemarle and the osprey on Lake Moultrie in South Carolina. The green turtle catching its breath and the mangrove cuckoo are both from St. John, USVI.
Julaine Gray
Chris Hogger
Mike McCollister
Jim Sullivan
This site is maintained by the Charlottesville Camera Club. All images are property of our members and protected by copyright. For more information please email us at info@c-villecameraclub.org
