Sunday, June 9, 2013

Come see the great Programs at NECCC

The NECCC conference has a great line up of speakers this July! Find out more and Register Here.

Here are the descriptions of the general interest programs. 

David Akoubian (GA) Chance, Necessity or Inspiration - the Why's of Composition
One of the most common questions I get when people are looking at my images, or while at a workshop or class is “Why did you compose the image that way”?  There are really 3 scenarios that come to mind when composing:  chance, necessity or inspiration.  Chance may have put you into the spot and it happens to be the only composition.  Necessity dictates the composition where there could be obstructions that need to be excluded or objects included in the frame.  Inspiration refers to your vision or translation of a scene beyond the ordinary.  This program will focus on these 3 scenarios and examine how to successfully create an image when presented with any situation. (Sponsored by Tamron) (B, I, A)
Mark Bowie (MA) Night Over the Northeast
Mark Bowie has undertaken an ambitious new project to photograph New York State and New England at night.  He will debut it here and share the thought processes and techniques used to produce spectacular nocturnal images of the region’s mountains, woods, waters, cities, villages and coasts.  He will cover: equipment considerations, determining nighttime exposures, focusing in the dark, “painting” with artificial light, photographing fireworks and lightning, long exposures, multiple exposures, timed intervals and time lapse sequences.  He will discuss shooting exposures only seconds long to eight hours, with tips on photographing the landscape in relation to the stars, moon, planets, meteors and other celestial objects.  He will also cover innovative night image processing techniques.  Experience the awe and wonder of the Great Northeast under the Light of Midnight. (B, I, A)
O. Truman Holtzclaw, APSA (CA) Wide Angle Magic, The Good, Bad & Ugly
The magic and pitfalls of using the wide angle lens will be explored, explained and illustrated.  Learn some simple hints on how to make the wide angle lens and important and enjoyable part of your photographic experience. Learn how to use and not use a wide angle lens, the positives and negatives of using the wide angle, how to have fun with the wide angle lens and finally, how to bring home winning images.  (B, I)
Stephen Johnson (CA) Twelve Steps to Improve Your Digital Photography
Common problems make for common grief. In this lecture Stephen addresses many of the problems that come up for people, often with the user not even knowing what is going wrong. These issues are covered with clarity and in context so that their purpose and problem causing potential is understood and able to be applied to a photographer's workflow immediately.  Due to time constraints, Part I will be presented and includes the importance of monitor calibration, using RAW to preserve bit depth, imitating RAW capabilities with the camera histogram, how to use the histogram, and color encoding grey balance. Steve will also cover how to customize RAW presets for interpretation and data preservation, and the use of metadata to name, label, add keywords and archive your files. (Sponsored by Canon) (B, I)

Vincent Laforet (CA) Making the Leap to Digital Video: an Introduction
In this program, Director/DP Vincent Laforet will introduce the class to some of the basics of making the transition from stills to motion.   He will discuss the basic camera settings, as well as affordable tools that will help you "up the production value" as they say, of your videos.    We will conclude by watching a few scenes from some of the most famous directors/movies and discuss the decisions the directors made and why.   This class is aimed at entry level to mid-level experience levels in video. (Sponsored by Canon) (B, I, A)
Joe LeFevre (NY) Making Nature Time-Lapse Movies
The latest digital cameras offer excellent opportunities for visual expression.  One technique that is especially well suited to digital capture is time-lapse photography, where hours of elapsed time are condensed into seconds or minutes.  In this introductory session, Joe will cover all the basics of making nature time-lapse movies including necessary equipment, choice of subject matter, field techniques, and post-processing software options.  The principles you will learn can be applied to other types of time-lapse photography besides nature.  Please join Joe for an informative session on a technique that you will enjoy trying because it’s just plain fun! (B, I, A)
Deborah Sandidge (FL) Long Exposure Creativity
One of the fascinating aspects of photography is the ability to convey the passage of time, or to create a sense of motion through the art and technique of long exposure.  You can create beautiful long exposure images at the edge of night and beyond, and capture surreal photos during the brightness of day. By the use of neutral density filters, you can calm the crashing waves of an ocean, softly blur clouds across the sky, and create the impression of emptiness on busy walkways and streets.  This changes everything, the reality, the mood, and the drama of a composition, allowing you to create expressive, fine art imagery.  Join professional photographer and author Deborah Sandidge as she guides you through creative techniques for photographing and enhancing long exposure imagery. Deborah teaches several online courses at BetterPhoto.com, along with photography workshops and presents seminars throughout the year. (Sponsored by Nikon) (I, A)

David H Wells (RI) Making Exceptional Travel Photographs
Making exceptional travel photographs requires a photographer to be good at a wide variety of photographic genres, varying from street photography, to still life work to portraits. The best travel photographers are on a life-long journey combining two of their favorite passions: travel and photography. Similarly, they are versatile in their skills and fluid in their process, using minimal gear to achieve maximum of results. An inveterate traveler, David Wells has distilled his working technique and gear down to a bare minimum. The presentation will explore his working strategy and his gear, to help attendees achieve the maximum in image quality while using the minimal gear. Topics covered will include being in the right place at the right time, understanding how the time of the day affects the quality and direction of light, the importance of varying shots, position and angle, portraying people, visualizing spaces, stopping action vs. showing motion, thoughts on tripods, the magic of twilight, the appropriate lenses, some basics of flash, the power of silhouettes, the importance of working your situations, and putting it all together to get “the moment.” (Sponsored by Olympus) (B, I, A)

Ron Wyatt (NJ)  From Minor League to the Olympic Games: What it Takes to be a Successful Sports Photographer
Join sports photographer Ron Wyatt as he discusses capturing the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat in sports photography. Whether you're an ambitious beginner, or a seasoned pro, Ron will cover equipment, camera set-up, and how to plan a shooting strategy. He’ll also emphasize the importance of knowing the game, how to have fun photographing sports and what it's like to cover the Olympic Games. Ron will help the family photo-bugs prepare for capturing action on and around the field. This is the perfect seminar to learn the basics of sports photography, and see images of milestone sporting events captured by a true pro. (B, I, A)

The New England Camera Club Council (NECCC) is a non-profit umbrella group for camera clubs in the New England states (Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont).  The Council was established in 1937 and incorporated in 1963. The Council sponsors a variety of events and services for the photographers of New England including an annual three-day photography conference each July at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, MA, which is one of the largest in the United States.  Over 1000 photographers from the U.S. and other countries attend our conference.  Attendees range from beginner to professional photographer. Find out more and Register Here.