Photographers at all levels benefit from candid and constructive criticism of their work. In these Focus Groups of fellow photographers, you can improve your eye, your visual style and technical skills by sharing current work for discussion. Most of the groups have a specific area of interest, such as nature or fine art photography. Groups usually meet monthly in members’ homes or other convenient locations, though all meetings will be virtual using Zoom until it is prudent to meet in person.
Participating in a Focus Group requires commitment. You should join a group only if you are willing and able to actively participate in meetings and assignments.
Facilitator: Steve Schroeder
We share our work and engage in candid and constructive discussions about it. The goal is to enjoy the benefits of diverse approaches and views to help each of us become a better photographer. All types of photography are discussed and all levels of expertise are welcome. Each meeting will have a theme for the shared images. Some meetings will include “mini-classes” on subjects of interest. We meet on the 3rd Wednesday of each month.
Facilitator: Terri Nickerson
This group is for photographers who are serious about nature photography, including wildlife, natural landscapes, and all the other attractions of the great outdoors. Members should have suitable equipment, including a lens of at least 300mm. They should also be comfortable with manual and semi-manual (i.e., aperture and shutter priority) shooting modes, or be willing to quickly learn to use these modes. We meet on the 2nd Monday at 7 pm with photo outings from time to time.
Facilitator: Frank Moccaldi
In general, landscape photography shows spaces within the world, sometimes vast and unending, but other times microscopic. Landscape photographs typically capture the presence of nature like grass, mountains, water and trees but landscapes can also focus on man-made features, such as buildings, boats, and piers. In this Focus Group, we will learn the different ways we can improve our landscape photography by improving our knowledge of the following tips and techniques:
- Use of wide angle lenses
- Proper Fstop, Shutter speed, and ISO to get everything in focus
- What filters to use
- What compositional rules work best with landscapes
- What lighting is best
- More advanced topics such as High Dynamic Range (HDR) may also be covered
Each month, we will concentrate on a topic, such as: sunset, water, or grass. We will then share and critique our photos in each monthly focus group meeting. We will also take a few fieldtrips and go out on location together to practice our skills and techniques. Meeting Days TBA
Facilitator: Camille Neville
Minimalist photography is a form of photography that is distinguished by extreme simplicity. This style emphasizes the use of a minimal number of compositional elements, such as: color, objects, shapes and textures. The aim of minimalist photography is to express a concept, or a distinctive visual experience, in a very simplistic way, that will elicit an emotional response from the viewer.
In this Focus Group, we will learn about the history of Minimalism and discover both the classical and contemporary Masters of this art form. We will also learn about different theories, tips, and techniques that will help us in the making of our own minimalist photos, such as:
Simplicity
Negative space
Composition
Isolation
Color
Lines, shapes and geometry
The members of the group will be asked to take their own minimalist photos each month and share them with the rest of the group for critique.
For some examples of Minimalist Photos see https://exposureschool.com/minimalist-photography/
We meet the 1st Monday of every month @1pm.
Facilitator: Myrna Walsh
With their drama, force and weight, black and white images tell different stories than traditional color pictures. Many of these powerful images have defined how we see the world. We explore street photography, landscapes, portraits and abstracts, all in black and white, through sharing and constructively critiquing our photographs. We meet on the 3rd Thursday of each month.
Facilitator: Chris Ruggio
This group was created to accomodate the overflow of folks who could not get into the "Black & White Photography" Group (which is now filled).
In this group we explore the fundamentals of shooting and preparing monochrome images. There are monthly themes followed by a group critique of the shared photos. Each month we will also have a short presentation to build our skills.
We meet on the 2nd Thursday of each month.
The Fine Art Photography Focus Group is primarily a critique group that explores producing images which fulfill the artistic creative vision of the photographer. The goal is to improve artistic creativity while building a body of work appropriate for fine art venues such as juried shows, gallery submissions, books and/or slideshows or even for your own enjoyment.
This group openly welcomes and encourages digital image manipulation in addition to staged photography techniques. Each session involves group critique and discussion of images submitted monthly from personal work. Members are urged to work with favorite older images as well as newly taken photographs.
Currently, this is a self-directed group that is managed by its members. The general format is to present 2-3 images each month of your own work and support each other in detailed discussion of our successes and failures.
The group also encourages it's members to:
• Determine areas or topics of interest they wish to explore
• Review the works of other Master Photographers (and Artists) to help spark new ideas and creativity.
• Complete creative exercises to see subjects differently and generate ideas.
• Share new and emerging technical skills with other members.
Prerequisites:
This group is appropriate for the intermediate to advanced photographer who already knows the general rules of composition and knows how to make full use of their cameras. They should also be knowledgable about how to get their images onto their computer and have some familiarity with one or more post processing applications, such as: Photoshop, Lightroom, Elements, On1 Raw, Topaz, or Lumiere.
If you are already a competent photographer and are ready to move to the next level of creating images that reflect your own unique vision and style, this group is for you.
