Robert Thoresen
Helen Phillips garnered the judges’ first place votes of a picture taken on the club’s first “Doors of Tucson” field trip to Barrio Viejo in fall 2010. October’s contest theme was “The Color Blue”. The door is at the Elysian Grove Market which was vacant at the time. Helen likes to make her photos look like a painting so she used “Topaz Simplify” in Adobe Photoshop with a water color setting to achieve the effect. Camera used: Canon Power Shot A2000, f/3.2, 1/125 sec, ISO-100, fl6mm, aperture 3.34375, no flash, modified with Adobe Photoshop.
This month’s contest resulted in another first time event, a three-way tie for second place. John Standquist’s second place photograph was taken in the summer of 2013 at a beach house in Corolla, NC during a family vacation. The balcony above the pool was a great place to watch the grandchildren enjoying the warmer water of the pool. John was attracted to the surreal blue swirling around his granddaughter when she started her water ballet. Camera used: Nikon D300, f/11, 1/500 sec, ISO-200, fl105mm, aperture 4.9, no flash.
Lisa Teman-Rosenberg took her second place photograph with an iPhone at the Monterey Marine Museum in California. The facility has very impressive reef exhibits but no sea otters; but they are everywhere in the bay and visible when one looks from the piers. Lisa considers blue her favorite color and she became mesmerized at the fluidity of the jellyfish. Camera used: Apple iPhone 4S, f/2.4, 1/20 sec, ISO-320, fl4mm, maximum aperture, no flash.
The PCQC made an overnight photo shoot to the Phoenix Botanical Garden in February 2014. Many of the Dale Chihuly glass sculptures on display were colored hues of blue. This particular installation caught Patricia Thoresen’s eye as the afternoon turned into evening. After multiple shots from all points of view, she chose this image because of the composition and use of the grid of thirds. The solid round sculptured forms were the anchor for the slender blue glass vertical forms. A third second place resulted. Camera used: Sony, NEX-5R, f/4, 1/60 sec, ISO400, fl20mm, aperture 3.6, no flash.
The Photography Club of Quail Creek has a monthly photo contest for its members and also schedules numerous photo field trips throughout the year. Meetings are the second Wednesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at the Madera Clubhouse. Room assignment for 2015 will vary due to various event conflicts. Guests and those interested in joining the club are encouraged to attend. Consult the club’s continuously updated website at http: www.pcqc.org for additional information. Also read “What’s Happening” for club meeting and event announcements four to five days prior to the event.