Author Archives: Art Arizpe

July 2016 Program

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

Walk in My Shoes

We hope you join us at our next photo club meeting on Thursday, July 21st, 7:00 pm at Brookdale San Marcos North (formerly Horizon Bay). Come a little early if you want to visit with your friends, and find your name tag.

Tom Bender will present “Walk in My Shoes”.

Tom is a Native Texan who transitioned to Maine, and back to Texas. He also transitioned from film to digital during that time. He returns many times to the places and objects he has photographed; to observe the time lapse – a couple of minutes or several days – and reflect changes in light and the mood as he captures the images. When he moved to Wimberley, he also moved more into digital photo art, some of it is surreal.

This move is evident in his phone booth series, the violin series, and many more of his recent works. While some of his surreal Bender_1images invoke questions, they are never dark. Tongue in cheek would be the better description.

Tom is a “self taught photographer” whose training was due to a fortuitous collection of mentors. His first mentor, the most influential, taught him to see the details in reflections and in the shadows. Perhaps more importantly, he taught Tom how to capture those details on film. That profound experience shaped the next 45 years of Tom’s artistic journey and resulted in a true love of art. He is active in the Art Guild of the Kennebunks, the Wimberley Valley Art League, and the New Braunfels Art League.

Critiques: Your Natural World

You may send 2 images to share in the Critique portion of the meeting. Please re-size your files to 1000 pixels on the long side, and name them FirstName_LastName_1.jpg, etc. Email them to hcphotoclub@gmail.com by Tuesday, July 19th.

You may ask for a critique, or simply “show and tell.”

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

Congratulations to Nancy Naylor and Rose Epps.!

Both won awards at the Austin Shutterbug Club Show this month.

Rose won “Best Contemporary”.

Nancy won “Best of Show”.

Naturescapes 2016

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

The contest deadline is next Monday, June 27th!

Please be sure to get your entries submitted. Visit the contest’s web page for complete information.

Here is the front of the the contest’s promotional postcard featuring Tom Hausler’s beautiful “Ladder-backed Woodpecker“.

Naturescapes 2016 Postcard

Grab your cameras, go outside, and take some photographs! Please help us spread the word about the contest and we hope to see your entries soon!

June 2016 Program

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

Photography: Design and Connection

We hope you join us at our next photo club meeting on Thursday, June 16th, 7:00 pm at Brookdale San Marcos North (formerly Horizon Bay). Come a little early if you want to visit with your friends, and find your name tag.

Kevin Tully will present “Photography: Design and Connection”.

Shirley 2

Shirley 2

Design (composition) is a practice that embodies the learned and the instinctive. We are surrounded by design in our everyday lives. Photography, a family member with the other arts, depends on design to succeed. Kevin believes “that to truly make good art, be it photography or sculpture, requires finding and making connections: personal and aesthetic. Finding and pursuing one’s personal aesthetic becomes a force that drives the creative process.”

Kevin is the Other Gallery Director at A Smith Gallery in Johnson City Texas. He has been a practicing Artist, Builder and Designer for over thirty-five years. He has designed and constructed buildings, landscapes and furniture as well as produced fine art, graphic design and photography.

Critiques: Recent Work

You may send 2 images to share in the Critique portion of the meeting. Please re-size them and name your files as follows, and email to hcphotoclub@gmail.com by Tuesday, June 14th.

To prepare your images:

Please re-size your files to 1000 pixels on the long side, and name them 1FirstName_LastName.jpg. You may ask for help with editing your image, or simply “show and tell.”

Naturescapes 2016

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

We started accepting entries on May 2nd. The entry deadline is June 27th.

The contest is now in its 12th year and is co-sponsored by the Hill Country Photography Club and the Hays County Master Naturalists.

Goals of the contest and exhibit include increasing public awareness of the importance of protecting our natural world and giving photographers at all levels of experience a chance to capture, share, and receive recognition for beautiful and inspiring images. Suggested subjects include natural scenery, wildlife, plants, and people and pets in the natural environment.

The contest is open to resident and visiting photographers of all ages. A $100 prize will be awarded for Best in Show, $75 for the best Youth Category photo, and $75 for the best Natural Waterscape photo. Up to four $50 Awards of Excellence will be presented for the next most outstanding photographs. Additional Awards of Merit will be presented at the discretion of the contest juror.

We’re very pleased to have the team of John and Kendra Abbott as our jurors. John and Kendra are professional nature photographers, educators and outdoor enthusiasts based in Austin, Texas.

Please visit the contest’s web page for complete information.

Here is the front of the the contest’s promotional postcard featuring Tom Hausler’s beautiful “Ladder-backed Woodpecker“.

Naturescapes 2016 Postcard

Grab your cameras, go outside, and take some photographs! Please help us spread the word about the contest and we hope to see your entries soon!

May 2016 Program

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

The Modern Darkroom

We hope you join us at our next photo club meeting on Thursday, May 19th, 7:00 pm at Brookdale San Marcos North (formerly Horizon Bay). Come a little early if you want to visit with your friends, and find your name tag.

If you are a Photoshop user, or want to learn more about how to use Photoshop, you don’t want to miss this meeting. Mark Heaps will share some useful techniques in Photoshop. He will address the areas of interest you shared in response to the recent email enlisting your help in directing this program. Mark is highly qualified as an Adobe Community Professional certified in Photoshop.

Mark snapped his first picture at the age of four. His grandmother provided him with a camera and film so he could explore the world around him. As he got older he picked up a guitar, a skateboard, and a can of spray paint and skated his way into the world of art and design.

Spaceman

Spaceman

Today he’s an Adobe Community Professional certified in Photoshop. He’s the former Executive Director for Houndstooth Studio and has held lead positions with Duarte, Google, and more. Mark’s images, and design solutions, have been utilized by such brands as Apple, Nokia, Google, and more. He’s recently been helping National Geographic photographer Merlin Tuttle with his images of bats and also maintains a studio in South East Austin where he supports the growing community of photographers in central Texas. He is an author, instructor, teacher, and most importantly husband and father.

Critiques: Topic: Street Photography

You may send 2 images to share in the Critique portion of the meeting. Please re-size them and name your files as follows, and email to hcphotoclub@gmail.com by Tuesday, May 17th.

To prepare your images:

Please re-size your files to 1000 pixels on the long side, and name them 1FirstName_LastName.jpg. You may ask for help with editing your image, or simply “show and tell.”

Naturescapes 2016

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

The opening of the Naturescapes 2016 Photography Contest and Exhibition is almost here!

We will start accepting entries on May 2nd. The contest is now in its 12th year and is co-sponsored by the Hill Country Photography Club and the Hays County Master Naturalists.

Goals of the contest and exhibit include increasing public awareness of the importance of protecting our natural world and giving photographers at all levels of experience a chance to capture, share, and receive recognition for beautiful and inspiring images. Suggested subjects include natural scenery, wildlife, plants, and people and pets in the natural environment.

The contest is open to resident and visiting photographers of all ages. A $100 prize will be awarded for Best in Show, $75 for the best Youth Category photo, and $75 for the best Natural Waterscape photo. Up to four $50 Awards of Excellence will be presented for the next most outstanding photographs. Additional Awards of Merit will be presented at the discretion of the contest juror.

We’re very pleased to have the team of John and Kendra Abbott as our jurors. John and Kendra are professional nature photographers, educators and outdoor enthusiasts based in Austin, Texas.

Please visit the contest’s web page for complete information.

Here is the front of the the contest’s promotional postcard featuring Tom Hausler’s beautiful “Ladder-backed Woodpecker“.

Naturescapes 2016 Postcard

Grab your cameras, go outside, and take some photographs! Please help us spread the word about the contest and we hope to see your entries soon!

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

Congratulations to Mike Zarella!Mike Zarella His photo of a baby gator sunning on its mother’s back was awarded 1st Place in the Wildlife Vertebrates Refuge category of the 2016 Migration Celebration Nature Photo Contest sponsored by Friends of Brazoria Refuges and jurored by Kathy Adams Clark and Tim Timmis.

April 2016 Program

Hill Country Photography Club Posted on by

Collecting Evidence – Thoughts on Travel Photography

We hope you join us at our next photo club meeting on Thursday, April 21st, 7:00 pm at Brookdale San Marcos North (formerly Horizon Bay). Come a little early if you want to visit with your friends, and find your name tag.

Our guest speaker this month is Jim Nix. About Jim: “I’m an Austin-based traveler, photographer and wanderlust sufferer. I love to go new places and capture expressive and colorful photos. I am inspired by traveIreland-Dublin-River-Liffey-Four-Courts-sunset-HDRl, photography, discovery and just wandering around with my camera – even if it’s close to home. I share my photos, experiences and learnings on my blog at http://nomadicpursuits.com/ and in turn, hope to inspire the same in others. I happily post-process my photos to capture not just how the scene looked, but how it felt to me. Thus I utilize techniques such as HDR, split-toning and more. There’s a kind of magic that happens when you get out there and create something. It’s a beautiful world, and I invite you to see it through my eyes.”

Critiques: Topic: Before and After

Many members find doing “Before and After” images to be helpful in learning from others how they achieve certain end results. Please send your 2 pairs of images for this month’s meeting by Tuesday, April 19th, to hcphotoclub@gmail.com:

Please re-size your images to 1000 pixels on the long side, and label as follows:

1FirstName_LastName_Before.jpg
1FirstName_LastName_After.jpg
2FirstName_LastName_Before.jpg
2FirstName_LastName_After.jpg