luminosity - dona ana photography club · 2020. 8. 19. · henry viii” – an hour-long musical...

Luminosity The Doña Ana Photography Club Newsletter

December 2018

In This Issue…

Photo of the Year

Photographer of the Year

Zombie Walk

Renaissance Faire

How to Edit in Raw

Anne Chase Presents a Monthly Photo Guide

December 2018 Luminosity - The Doña Ana Photography Club Newsletter

Mark Your Calendar…December 4, 2018 - 6:00 pm Photo Club Holiday Dinner St. Clair Winery & Bistro 1720 Avenida de Mesilla; Las Cruces, NM 88005

January 12, 2019 - 9:00 am to Noon Boot Camp Class #1 “Learning About Your Camera” Southwest Environmental Center 275 North Main St.; Las Cruces, NM

January 12, 2019 Submission Deadline for Monthly Theme “Comfort” Send to Themes mailbox to participate.

January 15, 2019 - 7:00 pm Regular Meeting - DAPC Southwest Environmental Center 275 North Main St.; Las Cruces, NM

Doña Ana Photography ClubDoña Ana Photography Club

December 2018 Serving the Community since 1955 daphotoclub.org

Photo of the Year by Carl Maier Maier’s monochrome photo “Symmetry” wins the club’s coveted honor

Carl Maier has taken home the first place ribbon in the Doña Ana Photography Club’s yearly Photo of the Year contest. His monochrome image, titled Symmetry, won ad -miration from club members and, obviously, from the contest’s panel of four outside judges.

Maier described the process of creating his image as painstaking and detail oriented. Three seashells were arranged on a piece of black plexiglass, lit from above and behind, with a fill flash in front.

Once the photograph was taken, however, the work of post-processing began in earnest. Carl notes that he spent the better part of a full day using Photoshop to get rid of scratch marks in the plexi -glass that had been made apparent by his lighting.

This 11 image focus stack was taken with a Nikon D7100 and a Nikkor 105mm f/2.8 lens, set at ISO 200 and 1/200 second. Helicon

Focus was used to produce the final image.

Carl works almost exclusively in black and white, and has become quite expert in this genre. His

photos have consistently been praised for both their drama and their simplicity.

All of us congratulate Carl for his wonderful, winning photo!

2018 Photo of the Year - Symmetry by Carl Maier

mailto:[email protected]

http://daphotoclub.org/index.html


Photo of the Year Blue Ribbon Winners for 2018…

Bonita Vortex by Bob Hamre A Nose for Trouble by Ryan Korpi

Meller’s Chameleon by Dave Brown Osprey by the Rio Grande by Avi Kotkowski

Yuccas in Baylor Canyon by Anne Chase Abandoned by Scott Winans


More Photo of the Year Blue Ribbon Winners for 2018…

Past Their Prime by Debbie Hands Morning Dune by Will Keener

Pollenator by Maria Zucconi Feeling Secure by Ryan Korpi

Alligator Juniper by Dale Taylor Flower Reflection by John Nelson Homeless by Alex Woodcock


Photo of the Year Red Ribbon Winners for 2018…

Medicine Hat Paint by Will Keener Bermuda Watercolor by Seth Madell

Summer, Las Cruces by Carl Maier

Sentinel Yucca by Bob Hamre Renaissance Woman by Alex Woodcock Homeless Vet’s Hands by Beth Waters

The Window by Gerald Guss


More Photo of the Year Red Ribbon Winners for 2018…

Path of the Pope by Terry Gaume

Fall at the Bosque by Terry Gaume

Miss Daisy by Alex Woodcock

Old Shoemaker by Julie SchmittMother and Child by Julie Schmitt

Catching the Sunset by Bill Hanson

Then They Broke My Jaw by Beth Waters


Gerald Guss Named DAPC Photographer of the Year Guss completes a “red letter” year with a coveted title from the club

by Dave Brown

The November 6 meeting of the Doña Ana Photography Club featured the naming of our Photographer of the Year. The winner of that title is based on a combination of quarterly print contest results, and the results of the annual Photo of the Year. This year’s winner is Gerald Guss.

Guss is a Las Cruces native. He works with Kosh Solutions, where he maintains business networks, hardware and software in his role as an Information Technology provider. He has been working seriously on his photographic skills for only about two years, although he has used numerous point and shoot cameras prior to that. His “go to” cameras, which he uses for most of his work, are a Nikon P900 and a Nikon B700.

His subject preferences are all-encompassing, although he does not enjoy photographing people. He prefers taking landscape, nature, and wildlife photos. He also likes to take his time getting the image right in-camera rather than relying too much on post-processing. As for his preferences in software editing, he likes using Lightroom but is getting his feet wet in Photoshop.

Gerald’s selection as DAPC Photographer of the Year caps a good year for him. He recently entered 24 photos in the Southern New Mexico State Fair contest, and garnered 22 ribbons. He also had a show at the

Rio Grande Theatre recently, where he was Artist of the Month during September and October of this year.

Of particular interest, Gerald is red-green color blind. This has obviously posed no limitations on his photographic talent.

When you see Gerald at the meetings, stop by and say “hi.” He is an enthusiastic, engaging and friendly member. The club con gratulates him for his success.

DAPC 2018 Photographer of the Year Gerald Guss

Before and After by Gerald Guss Photo of the Year Blue Ribbon Winner

Cheeky by Gerald Guss Photo of the Year Blue Ribbon Winner


Undead Roam the Plaza...Zombie Walk Pictures by Anne Chase & Seth Madell


zombies everywhere...


Las Cruces Renaissance Faire on November 3rd and 4th The medieval themed weekend was celebrated with Kings and Queens

by Julie Schmitt

What does the annual Doña Ana Arts Council’s Renaissance Art Faire bring to mind for you? The ratapult, smoking dragons, belly dancers? Or Kings and Queens, a chance to dress up in medieval costume, an amble around the lake on a sunny day, great pieces of art? All the above.

Hundreds of folks were enjoy -ing just that on an absolutely perfect fall weekend, November 3 and 4, in Las Cruces. Boy Scouts were giving canoe rides around the lake for a close-up of Magellan, the dragon. Performers were walking around on tall stilts. Inflatable dragons provided a good backdrop for selfies. Armored knights on large steeds delighted the cheering crowds with break-away lances that splintered into pieces with the slightest impact.

Young ones enjoyed the Children’s Realm, where

they got to see live birds of prey (a Bald Eagle, an American

kestrel, and a barn owl). They made mummies with masking tape and yarn, played games and had their faces painted.

Multiple food vendors offered traditional fare like roasted turkey legs, rat-on-a-stick (actually, chicken), BBQ, and hot pastrami with sauerkraut. (Everyone misses the fudge/chocolate/toffee booth – it is no longer present.)

There are now two royal courts, each offering something different. The Crimson Bear Court per -formed “The Wives and Times of Henry VIII” – an hour-long musical tale with modern-day humor (Henry’s wife would not give him the password, so ‘off with her head’).

Main stage entertainers con -tinued throughout the day with Matachinas dancers, graceful aerial dancers intertwining cloth ribbons high above the crowds, madrigal singers, jugglers, and bagpipers.

For those who love unique art, there were abundant choices in jewelry, ceramics, paintings, and

wood. There were also medieval offerings in a variety of forms, including leather goods, swords and armor, foam battle sticks, and medieval clothing.

Best of all was the chance to stroll around the lake, follow the royal procession, or just sit and watch costumed people go by. It was a great opportunity to make some memorable photos.

Photos on this page by Julie Schmitt


More Photos from the Renaissance Faire… Photos on this page by Julie Schmitt and Seth Madell


How to Edit in Raw Format What should I edit in Raw, and what should I edit elsewhere?

by Seth Madell

Let’s assume for a moment that you’re one of those folks who’s bought into the “always shoot Raw” argu -ment. When you end your day of shooting, your SD card is full of Raw formatted files, not JPG files. You’re a purist, and you want to maximize your choices; in doing so, you know that every single one of your photos is going to take at least a little bit of editing.

Why do I shoot Raw?

Let’s go over just why you made that choice, if we can. Typically, cameras will store images in 2 different file formats – Raw and JPG. There are a variety of choices regarding these, including whether you store Large, Medium or Small JPG files; whether your Raw files are 12- or 14-bit files, and whether they are uncompressed or “lossless compressed.” But, with few exceptions, your camera stores either Raw, or JPG, or both.

Raw files are just data. The camera has not processed that data in any way. Raw files are just a dump of data from each of the camera sensor’s photosites – how much light struck each of the photosites during the exposure. Raw files are, for simplicity’s sake, just a long string of numbers. The camera may store metadata along with the sensor data, including the color temperature and other choices made in the menu system. But, Raw files are just data. None of those choices are baked into the file.

JPG files are already processed. Your camera has already made the Raw data into an image. In doing so, it’s chosen a color temperature, exposure, tone curve, and so forth. It has compressed the image into an 8-bit file, decreasing its file size quite a bit. Some of these choices are based on your camera settings (color, for instance, may be set at 5200K because you told the camera to use the “Daylight” setting).

The reason you’ve told your camera to store Raw files instead of JPG files is because you want to make these choices about your photos, instead of out -sourcing the choices to your camera. While it is possible to edit JPG photos after the fact, there is much less latitude in doing so compared to making those choices up front on a Raw file.

Why would anyone NOT shoot Raw?

Simply put, shooting Raw means that there are no actual images on your SD card. Every single file has to be processed before a usable image is achieved. When you shoot a JPG image, you can use that image without any further processing. Although your camera may have made all of the choices about color, exposure, and so forth, at least there are actual images

on your camera card. And it’s not true that you can’t

edit the JPG’s that come out of your camera; it’s only true that your editing choices are more limited.

As a comparison, Raw images are like

undeveloped film taken out of a camera.

There’s nothing there until you develop the

negatives and print the photos. JPG files, on the other hand, are like going to the supermarket to pick up an envelope of photos that you dropped off yesterday. Someone else did all the work for you, but you get photos without the hassle.

Do you want photos without the hassle, or is the hassle worth it? That’s the primary question you have to answer when you decide to shoot Raw or JPG.

What is Raw format good at?

When you shoot Raw, the files on your card contain only data. You eventually get images when you “develop” the Raw files, and you have to do that at some point. Some folks use their software to develop their Raw files from start to finish; they use one piece

continued on page 13


of software to get from the beginning to the end. Lightroom is a great example of this type of workflow. Others will develop and partially edit their Raw files in one piece of software, and will do the rest of their editing in another piece of software. Photoshop is a good example of this; even though it seems like you’re only using one piece of software, all of the Raw development in Photoshop is done by a separate piece of software – a plug-in called Adobe Camera Raw. A variation on this workflow involves editing software that includes a dedicated Raw developer. Raw files opened in software packages like Affinity Photo, Capture One, On1 Photo Raw, and others will automatically open into their Raw development module; processing of Raw files comes first, then the developed Raw file can be edited in the other portions of the software.

My personal workflow involves the use of DxO PhotoLab to process Raw files, and Affinity Photo to perform the rest of the photo editing. But there are as many examples of image editing workflows as there are photographers, and there may be no “right” choice that suits everyone.

There are certain advantages to Raw format, and these should be utilized maximally before developing the data into an image. Raw format is particularly good at allowing the user to choose a specific color temperature (the White Balance of the photo) and to make changes to exposure (especially selective changes, like increasing detail in shadows and restoring detail from otherwise blown out highlights). Raw is also a better environment for noise reduction, lens corrections, and for more esoteric corrections to chromatic aberration, purple fringing, and moire reduction. So, your Raw processing should include at least these edits.

On the other hand, there are certain types of editing that your regular image editor is better at. The user has much greater choice and power in editing when it comes to adding contrast, brightness, sharpening, and other global changes. Certainly, most local changes are easier to perform (and offer more flexibility and precision) when a traditional raster editor is being used. Cropping and straightening are also best performed after Raw development, as are edits such as Transforms, Perspective adjustments, various types of blurring, and so forth.

So, can you suggest a Workflow?

The following is a suggestion. It is my typical workflow, and is not meant to be the final word in editing. However, it works for me and has been a good method to follow. In summary, my file goes from: Raw > Culling of Raw Files > Raw Developer > Export 16-bit TIFF > Raster Editor > Export JPG

My first step is to decide which of the images I will keep. This is called “culling,” and involves weeding through all of your Raw files to choose only the best ones for further work. I use a small (and inexpensive) program called FastRawViewer. (Others use a more popular program called Photo Mechanic, which is

Culling Raw files using FastRawViewer

Raw Development using DxO PhotoLab

Raster Editing using Affinity Photo

Editing Raw Files: continued from page 12

continued on page 14


Image Icons

Historic and Inspiring Photos

that Evoke an Event or an Era

Lunch Atop a Skyscraper (1932) It’s the most perilous lunch break ever captured:

11 men casually eating, chatting and sneaking a

smoke as if they weren’t 840 feet above

Manhattan with nothing but a thin beam keeping

them aloft. That comfort is real; the men are

among the construction workers who helped build

Rockefeller Center. But the picture, taken on the

69th floor of the flagship RCA Building (later the

GE Building), was staged as part of a pro motional

campaign for the massive skyscraper complex.

While the photographer and the identities of most

of the subjects remain a mystery—the photo -

graphers Charles C. Ebbets, Thomas Kelley and

William Leftwich were all present that day, and it’s

not known which one took it—there isn’t an

ironworker in New York City who doesn’t see the

picture as a badge of their bold tribe. In that way

they are not alone. By thumbing its nose at danger

and at the Depression, Lunch Atop a Skyscraper came to symbolize American resilience and

ambition at a time when both were desperately

needed. It has since become an iconic emblem of

the city in which it was taken, affirming the

romantic belief that New York is a place unafraid

to tackle projects that would dishearten less

brazen cities.

twice as expensive and doesn’t offer me any additional benefits.) FastRawViewer lets me flip through each Raw file quickly, and lets me look at the Raw data as if it had been developed (rather than looking at an embedded JPG file, which is what most other culling software provides). I can quickly separate the keepers from the rest of the batch.

My culled Raw files get opened in DxO PhotoLab, which is a dedicated Raw developer. It is not a Digital Asset Management tool, which is to say it does not catalogue my photos. It is not a raster editor, which means it is not used to edit individual pixels, create layers, or perform other more specific edits. PhotoLab does a really good job of developing Raw files.

Inside of DxO PhotoLab, I adjust Exposure as needed. I use the Selective Exposure sliders to recover Highlights that are otherwise blown out and recover details in shadows that might be crushed. I adjust White Balance by picking a proper Color Temperature. PhotoLab will automatically correct lens aberrations such as vignetting, lens softness, fringing, and chromatic aberrations, since these calculations are already available in the database that DxO Labs supplies for a myriad of camera+lens combinations. I perform Noise Reduction (both luminance and chrominance noise) here, also. Once this is done, the files are exported to 16-bit TIFF files in a separate folder. The Raw files remain unchanged, and any edits made to those files are stored in a “sidecar” file.

I open the TIFF files in Affinity Photo, my raster image editor of choice. Inside Affinity Photo, I can make changes that are more specific to each photo. I may apply Curves, Levels, or Brightness & Contrast adjustments to increase contrast and “pop.” I crop and straighten the photos here. I may also make localized changes, such as blurring or sharpening only certain areas of the photo. More artistic changes, like color grading or applying a gradient map can be done at this point. When I’m done editing, I apply some sharpening. [Note: over the years, I have learned that good sharpening is done sparingly. Bad sharpening is done coarsely, and results in unrealistic looking images with telltale halos at the sharpened edges. Back off on those sliders!]

I usually export to JPG files once I’m done. Typically, I export with about 95% Quality, since this compresses the size of the image file without too much loss of detail.

Editing Raw Files: continued from page 13


Constructive Edits

Highlights and features of photo editing software for more interest and best results

An image file stored in RAW format contains only

sensor data; there really is no image in there yet. In

order to turn this file into a usable image, software

called a “RAW developer” must be used. Often,

RAW development is integrated into a software

editing package, and becomes a seamless part of

post-processing. But remember that, without

opening the RAW file in a developer, there is no

image.

All RAW developers perform a couple of common

steps. First, they decode and demosaic the sensor

data. Then, they apply certain color transformations

to the data. Third, they save the data in another

format - JPG, TIFF, or perhaps a software-specific

file format (such as PSD for Photoshop files).

The first step of the process - decoding and

demosaicing - is largely mathematical. The sensor

data is translated from absolute red, green, and

blue photon intensities to a matrix of individually

colored pixels. Defective pixels are also removed

during this translation.

The second step is a matter of interpreting the

colors defined by the first step. The camera stores a

user-defined white balance (color temperature),

color space (sRGB, Adobe RGB, etc), and other

values. The RAW developer can be used to change

those values by setting a different color space, color

temperature, luminance range, and so forth.

Last, the RAW developer converts the data into a

usable image in a non-RAW format. Typically,

images are stored as JPG files (which often

represent the final step in editing), TIFF files (as an

intermediate step, since TIFF is a lossless format),

or as a proprietary format (such as PSD) when

further editing will be done.

The primary benefit of shooting in RAW format, and

using a RAW Developer afterward, is that a

maximum amount of information is available and

can be utilized prior to saving the image in a

compressed format. However, the down side of

RAW is that, without opening the file in a RAW

Developer, there is no usable image.

Anne Chase Will Present a List of Monthly Photo Opportunities New Mexico is full of wonderful places to photo -

graph. At the January 15 meeting, Anne Chase will highlight a variety of locations in our state which are worth visiting and imaging.

Anne will present these suggestions at the begin -ning of the year to encourage exploration of New Mexico. You can then schedule your photographic travel plans for the coming year. Some will be places you have heard of; hopefully, there will be some which are new. You might even team up with other photo friends to visit some of these sites.

Anne will give you some helpful tips about these places, including entrance fees, where to stay, travel times, and best times of year to visit.

In addition to this presentation, we are planning to

give monthly suggestions about local photo oppor -tunities coming up in the following month or two.

Chama River, Early Morning, Abiquiu Photo by Anne Chase


It seems that everyone is telling us to shoot in

RAW instead of JPG. The prevailing wisdom

is that Raw image formats offer more latitude

when it comes to image editing. But, what exactly is a Raw file anyway?

When light strikes the sensor in a camera,

each of the photosites on the sensor (the

miniscule areas that more or less translate

into pixels in our photos) measures the

intensity of the light. The sensor photosite

effectively counts the number of photons that

strike each site, and translates that into a

number. Furthermore, each of the photosites

can only count either red, green, or blue light;

the number that results is the intensity of red,

green, or blue at that single photosite.

When we save an image as a Raw file, it is

that sensor data which is recorded. The

camera does not process the Raw file at all,

and simply stores what is effectively a series

of numbers corresponding to light intensity at

each of the photosites. Along with information

about the camera, lens, settings, and so forth,

the Raw file is simply data without

interpretation.

When we save a photo in JPG format, the

camera takes the Raw sensor data and

processes it. In doing this, the camera is allowed to pick a specific

white balance, exposure level, etc. More importantly, the file is

compressed. Because of that compression, data is discarded.

What’s the big deal, then, with Raw files? Since processing has to be

done somewhere, why not just let the camera do it? Aside from the

obvious choice about ‘who’s in charge?’ there is one other really

important consideration. A Raw file that is processed on your

computer emerges as a 16-bit file. That means that every channel

(Red, Green, and Blue) has 65,536 levels of intensity to choose from.

The JPG format is limited to 8-bit files, and that means only 256

levels of intensity for each channel.

In practical terms, manipulating 8-bit files often results in

“posterization” - the banding that you see in areas of solid colors (like

blue skies, or monotone walls). A 16-bit image contains so many

levels of color intensity that posterization is rare, if not non-existent.

The Shooting Menu

A discussion of camera functions & shooting techniques

beginner and takes a slow and measured approach.

The first half of the class will use a narrative approach to explaining the basics of camera use. The next portion of the class will divide students into small groups, letting them ask specific questions about their personal gear.

Students will then take photos in the Las Cruces Farmer’s Market (right outside our door) and follow up with questions about any issues that arose during the shoot.

Photo Opportunities On December 24, 2018 the

Town of Mesilla will sponsor the annual Luminarias and Christmas Carols on the Plaza. A choir will lead the crowd in Christmas Carols from 5:30 pm until 7:30 pm.

Luminarias placed throughout the plaza and around town will be lit starting at dusk.

Announcements: Cont. from page 17

Upcoming Club Presentations There are no club meetings scheduled in December

and, because of the News Year’s Day holiday, our next meeting will be held on January 15, 2019.

On January 15, Programs Chairman Anne Chase will present a list of locations in and around New Mexico that provide great photo opportunities. Anne will attempt to specify the best locations, subjects, and times for photographs. This can help all of us to plan our various imaging field trips. More info here.

Anne also hopes to provide ongoing guidance (month to month) to highlight upcoming events and locations that afford good photographic possibilities.

The Theme for January is Comfort. Members are encouraged to submit up to 3 photos by sending them to Kristi Dixon for inclusion in the presentation.

Photo Exhibitions Showing through

February 16, 2019 local artist Ken Morgan’s digital imagery Lightning Field is on exhibit at Branigan Cultural Center; 501 N. Main St., Las Cruces, NM. The images depict the artist’s envisioning of a lightning storm at Walter de Maria’s Lightning Field.

DAPC Boot Camp The yearly Boot Camp series begins anew with its

first class for 2019 scheduled on January 12. This class, “Learning About Your Camera,” explores the basics of using a digital camera. Explaining the various buttons, dials, and menus, this class is oriented toward the

Continued on page 16

Announcements…

DAPC is a proud member of the Photographic Society of America. We encourage you to consider becoming an individual member of PSA. For more information, please visit their website at psa-photo.org and see what they have to offer.

President Dale Taylor [email protected] Vice-President Bill Hanson [email protected] Secretary Terry Gaume [email protected] Treasurer Vince Gutschick [email protected] Public Relations Carl Maier [email protected] Programs Chair Anne Chase [email protected] Member Service Fred Moore [email protected] Photo Theme Kristi Dixon [email protected] Newsletter Seth Madell [email protected] Exhibits Open [email protected] Website Debbie Hands [email protected] Member-at-Large Dave Brown [email protected]

About the Cover… Photographer Victor Gibbs Name of Photo New Years Delight Date Taken December 31, 2017 Photo Location Private party on the East Mesa Las Cruces, New Mexico Camera & Lens Nikon D800 Tamron 24-70 mm zoom Shooting Info f2.4, 1/25 second, ISO 640 Additional Info n/a

All photographs remain the copywritten property of the individuals noted, and should not be used without specific permission from the photographer.

About the Photo Club

The Doña Ana Photography Club is a group of

photographers and other people interested in

photography. Our meetings offer technical

presentations, friendly suggestions for improving

your photos, networking, and other activities for a

wide spectrum of photographers and abilities.

Visitors are always welcome to our monthly

meetings and programs, which are designed to

improve photographic skills at all levels. We meet

the first and third Tuesdays of each month (except

December). Meetings are held at the Southwest

Environmental Center; 275 N. Main Street; Las

Cruces, NM. Meetings begin at 7:00 pm and last

about 2 hours.

Visit our website at: www.daphotoclub.org

Doña Ana Photography ClubDoña Ana Photography ClubServing the Community since 1955


https://psa-photo.org/












http://daphotoclub.org/index.html

luminosity - dona ana photography club · 2020. 8. 19. · henry viii” – an hour-long musical...

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