APAC Photoclub Submissions: November 2012: dltphoto

Last month saw the massive APAC Seminar here in Abbotsford. I enjoyed it, it's great to see all the reps and all our customers, at least a good hand-full of them all in one place. Also this year I had one of my images showcased and printed by Lens & Shutter. So proud! hahahahah

"motion blur" which was supposed to be titled "when two atoms collide"

First up for the evening was the assigned category "wheels". A previous shot which readers may have seen in a previous post from Barkerville. maybe.. I don't recall if I posted this shot... anyways. Its pretty obvious. It's a Wheel. Purely the title is the only thing that can save this shot! "It's got some wheel flare"... Wheel. Get it? Real Flare?...ha hahah. no. sorry. I wasn't expecting any great numbers and got punished suitably.

Assigned Topic  "Wheels",  "It's got some wheel flare" score 22 ( from 30)

Next up, A Phone shot. ooooooooh. Curses!

Abstract, "New Horizons". score 6

 It was a shot that I thought was kind of interesting. I did apply a cross-processing action to it to give it this interesting cyan/ greenish look. It was featured more recently in my "favourite shot" for September, which I showed the original capture along with the cross-processed version.
Architectural, Abstract and kinda Artsy. Perhaps the type of shot a designer may use in a Loft space to create form and interest within the minimal space.... Something like this!!!

Image ripped off from google images... thanks whomever you are.

"Abstract:  images extracted from a larger reality or subject. An abstract image is, usually, independent of pictorial references and reduced to form, colour ,tones, texture and line." ( APAC Guidelines for Category)

Since I got such a low score for this image I quizzed the Judge at the end as to why it didn't do well. Apparently it didn't fit his description of Abstract. Really. So I asked him what he thought the photo might be of and after 4-5 attempts of guessing it wrong, he then suggested that this image is an Abstraction, not an Abstract. Oh Dear and Really?? An ABSTRACTION not an ABSTRACT. This should be the point where I storm out and knock over some chairs in disgust.
This fills all the criteria that I can see.

Images extracted from a larger reality, CHECK ( its a big building)
Independent of pictorial references, CHECK ( no story line here)
Form, Colour, Tones, Texture and Line, CHECK, CHECK, CHECK, CHECK and CHECK MATE!

Someone suggested I submit it again, since another Judge might lap it up. Personally, I want to show new images. I dislike seeing the same image re-posted.


My third image for the evening is definitely one my readers have all seen before. I was testing the theory that things in three's always do well, according to CAPA rules and other fellow club members. For the sake of attempting to score well, which apparently didn't work, I did remove some items from this image in order for them not to be distracting for the judge. It would appear to be necessary if you don't want to get caught out, point wise, with irritating things they don't like in the image. It can make all the difference to some Judge's, but apparently not this ummmm Judge.

 This happens to be a "real camera" shot from my Nikon D200 with the "Highlander" lens.

Architecture, "get to the point", score 7

"Architecture: images depicting  buildings, structures, interiors and  surroundings, whole or in part, that
emphasize design or functionality." (APAC Guidelines for Category)


It would appear that the Projection system for the club has been fairly bad recently so I may have to start printing to get the right image judged. Although, It probably wouldn't matter and at the end of the Day it makes no difference to me. I still enjoy all three images. That guy wants to look at nasty overdone HDR's and overly PS'd images... that's his choice, have at it.

APAC Photoclub Submissions, September 2012: dltphoto

Well, Its photoclub season again. This means submitting new images to be critiqued and butchered by "experienced" judges in the photo judging industry!.. Hahahahah, not really! well maybe somewhat.

So the Judge for this first month was Francois.. no, Francoise... umm I forget, lets call him Frank for short. Frank was very specific about how he wants to see images. He wants them "RAZOR SHARP", and I quote "images need to be Razor Sharp".
Fortunately  my images were "RAZOR SHARP", sadly one was of a sunset type scene. Frank suggested if your going to submit Sunset Scenes, it had better be spectacular because he's seen them all. Wonderful! this exhibition night should be interesting.

Sunset on Lake, score 8

First up was my shot in the Landscape category, As you see I scored an 8, which is really not a bad score in the photoclub world. I guess the only way to have scored a 9 or 10 would have meant that my image needed to be "spectacular". Its not your stereo typical sunset, its bold and vibrant. Actually it shows very little of the sunset since its just a reflection/ ambient shot. 

So, feeling pretty good about myself so far. Next up a Film Marco shot I did which I featured in a previous post "Pink Wheat". Having enter film images before and watching them being judged up against digital images and imaging wizardry, I have decided to enter them through the digital process without people knowing its film. The Judges are now so used to manipulated images that they aren't able to assess film images the way they should.

Needless to say my second entry into the "macro" category scored me a repeated 7. I didnt expect to score so well anyways. Its a random shot with shallow depth of field that really makes the image kind of messy, since the wheat was blowing in the wind, it was a case of rapid shooting to get one good one. Perhaps if I attempted some better selective cropping it could work better. I am really not a "special effects" type person, I enjoy good "razor sharp" images that I can capture in the camera and tweak mildly in programs like Lightroom. I am soooo not a heavy filter on top of filter type of guy. I am going to keep sticking to my plan and the photography I enjoy. Good "razor sharp" images as close to out of camera as possible and hopefully they will look "spectacular". Is that OK Frank?

 We did have an assigned topic for this month, "though a window", but alas I didnt have anything I thought really worthy that might score well. No need to put in something I personally wouldn't have scored well. This was a pic I considered but it wasn't crying out to me.

July 2012: Favourite Shot: dltphoto

This months star image for me was featured on a previous post, I just love the lines. The depth of field worked perfectly to draw my eyes toward the triangles. Rumour has it, that things in three's are the key to a successful image, which I am not entirely sold on at this time.

Camping 2012, Digital, Part 3: dltphoto

the last of the DSLR Pics, Sorry to bore you all!.

Wells, BC

Somewhere in Wells, BC

Camping 2012, "Nostalgic Version, Part 3":dltphoto

The Final installment...
Leaving Barkerville but rather than doing a wicked 10 hour journey in one stint we decided to have one last night at Green Lake, fortunately our 'normal' camping spot was still available!

Tourist Centre, 100 mile house

Camping 2012, Digital, Part 2: dltphoto

Here are some shots from my DSLR, Nikon D200.

Camping 2012, "Nostalgic Version, Part 2":dltphoto

So as I mentioned I had at least one blank roll.. well darn it I ended up with two! That means that the Voitlander will either undergo surgery or it will have to be retired. Everything seemed to be operational! Alas, that's the biggest loss of frames I have ever had... as I said I am not too cut up, i did shoot most things with a couple of cameras. Its disappointing but I will live.
We opted for not staying at one location this year and headed from Green Lake to a place called Barkerville, another 5 hours from Green lake, up past Quesnel in the Middle of NOWHERE. Currently Its the furthest I have traveled within BC since I have been here... This province is pretty darn big!

Williams Lake Tourist Centre

All of our Rigs...

Camping 2012, "Nostalgic Version, Part 1": dltphoto

So since I have been so amazingly nostalgic since getting the two cameras from the UK, which were my dads, I thought it be fitting that for this holiday I would use the Cameras that my dad would have used for his holiday time. Now, as mentioned before, the film processing and film technology is far superior than back in his time, so the results I am getting maybe far greater than he ever got. Not to mention that I have surpassed my father in the art of photography. For him it was a hobby, the guy who was always relied on to take pics, not that he was a wealthy man who could afford many cameras, in fact quite the opposite. The Turners were a very stereo typical working class family were dessert at dinnertime was a massive luxury. I still see the little house my dad lived in back in Taunton with Uncle Norman and Granddad Sidney and Grandma Daisy, sadly I can only remember growing up seeing Uncle Norman, I have no recollection of my Turner Grandparents.... anyways.. i got off track!
So, I am using his camera's to record our holiday! Again, I am likely to be a little less frugal with the amount of shots during the vacation than he might of been, being that film and other costs would of have been maybe out of his reach.
The two camera's I used are the  Pal M4 and the Voitlander BL. I grabbed some of the oldest film I had in my fridge in the hope that I might add a bit more character to the shots with some fogging and discolouration, but alas that didn't seem to effect anything, also I used a little black and white also...None of the images are edited anyways on the computer, just scanned and saved low enough rez for the blog.

Barkerville BC, Artistic View: dltphoto

As you saw on the previous post a few of my "Promotional" style shots, well here are just some of my more artistic renderings...

Thought I would throw a B&W in here...

Barkerville, BC: dltphoto

Somewhere way up in the middle of nowhere on the road that takes your hours to get there is this wonderful little town called Barkerville, Established 150 years in a time when Gold was in them there hills....
This is an excellent place where people have restored an old Gold Rush town and have made it into a wonderful destination for  people, willing to do the drive, to mooch around and look at some of the old buildings that made up this Western style town.To make it even more enjoyable they have capped it off with people in full dress for the time period wandering around pretending to be characters from that period, really quite the photographers paradise!
Since I hadn't really read to much up on it, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. I certainly didn't imagine it being as large as it was. The buildings were wonderfully rustic, not like the good old brick I am used to from good ole England. The Only thing I missed or would have liked was the occasional tumble weed to go rolling down the main street!! that would have made it priceless

Here are some of my favs to give you some character feel to the place

Barkerville, BC. Instagr.am:dltphoto

http://instagr.am/p/M9tYPBK3z0/