A Notch Above Photography Club
Minutes
September 8th, 2018

The meeting kicked off at 1:10 with the following members present:
Tim, Mary, Robert, Bob, and Scott. We were pleased to welcome new members Bill H., Carol D., and Katherine G.

After each member provided brief introductory comments we reviewed our upcoming meeting topics and Tim asked for other suggestions — especially from our new members. He suggested that we might repeat topics covered earlier if they particularly interest new members. This is an opportunity for other more experienced members to become involved in presenting topics they are already comfortable with.

Our next order of business was to discuss and finalize plans for a September field trip. Sabbaday Falls was chosen as a location. We will enjoy a pot luck picnic cookout and lunch first, and then take photos at this very scenic location. This event will take place on Friday September 14th starting at 1 PM. Further details will be disseminated via email.

A Fall Foliage Walk will take place in the Franconia Notch on either Tuesday Oct. 9th or Thursday October 11th. Details will follow before our next meeting, which will be on Oct. 13th.

Bob, our Club Treasurer, reported a balance of $230.09 in our bank account.

Tim kicked off our inaugural Quick Focus presentation with a discussion of Histograms. He gave a basic explanation of what Histograms are and how they can be used, especially when it comes to not clipping shadows or highlights. Quick Focus will be a monthly event
lasting 10-15 minutes or less, and will be on introductory topics aimed more at our novice members. Members with more experience are encouraged to lead a Quick Focus discussion of their choice.

Scott presented an introduction to Corel Painter which is a versatile program for those interested in digital art and photo painting.
This program allows the user to create free hand art using a variety of exciting features and options including over 30 brush categories which can easily incorporate the use of various papers, textures, patterns, and gradients. Perhaps the most interesting feature is the ability to autopaint a photograph. With this feature a photograph can be rendered as a painting in various styles such as Oil, Pastel, Impasto, Watercolor, etc. Best of all, this can be done even if the user has absolutely no artistic talent because Corel Painter does that for you.

Tim provided a discussion and demonstration of Selections and Masks. He first explained the relationship between selections and masks and why we need to use them in Post Processing. This was followed by a brief demonstration in Photoshop and then a series of short videos explaining the essentials of masking in On1 Raw 2018, including the power of the Perfect Brush and Quick Mask to replace a drab and uninteresting sky. Masking is not a simple concept to grasp for a novice, however, with On1 the process is greatly simplified and more efficient.

As the meeting approached conclusion, votes for our monthly photography contest were tallied with Tim emerging as the landslide winner with
his image “Windmills at Zaanse Schans, Holland.” That was a beautiful black and white image, Tim, well done!

Our topic for the September – October photo contest is “Sunrise or Sunset.”

The meeting was adjourned at 3:45. Thanks to one and all, especially our new members, Bill, Carol, and Katherine.