This Weekend At Library

Flagpole Photographers Invite The Public To Annual Exhibition And Competition

The Flagpole Photographers Club Annual Exhibition and Competition will take place Saturday, March 31, from noon to 4 pm, and Sunday, April 1, from 1 to 4 pm, at C.H. Booth Library.

The public is invited to come view and vote on their favorite photos for the People’s Choice Award. Voting will take place on Saturday. Come see the great amateur photography work from club members, meet some of the photographers and vote for your favorite photo.

Refreshments will be served.

Anyone who is a current member of the club and has participated in at least three monthly competitions will be eligible to submit photos. The club meets once a month and usually has a guest speaker who then provides critique and judging for the competition. The last three meetings were fun and informative.

January Meeting

Members of Flagpole Photographers Club assembled at C.H. Booth Library for the club’s first monthly meeting of the new year on January 18. Guest speaker and member Tom Coryat gave a hands-on introductory class of GIMP, a freeware digital photo editor.

Mr Coryat demonstrated examples of cropping, adjusting brightness and contrast, as well as how to stitch together photos to make a panorama and how to add and remove items from a picture.

The theme of the January competition was “Children” and was judged by Brad Stanton of Brad Stanton Photography of Danbury. Mr Stanton also provided helpful critique and photo tips while judging the entries. The winners of the January competition were as follows: first place prints, “Tenderfoot” by Paul Vuto; second place, “Fast Foot Ollie” by Anne Eigen; third place, “Two Girls” by Rota Buonanno; and honorable mention, “Yes” by Ed Siciliano. In the Digitally Enhanced division first place went to “Spoonful” by Amy Martin, second place was “Participation” by Anne Martin, third was “Stephanie” by Darwin Bacchiocchi, and honorable mention went to Jim Talarino.

After the competition, members celebrated the 80th birthday of one the club’s longtime members, Darwin

Bacchiochi. Anne Martin and Jim Talarino (both previously professional bakers) teamed up to make a

creative cake with a film canister, spilling out film, with pictures of Mr Bacchiochi.

February Meeting

Steve Wronker from Castle Craig Camera Club was the guest speaker and offered a thorough presentation on Backyard Bird Photography.

Mr Wronker started out with a slide show set to relaxing music with his award-winning bird images. After that, he shared some of the little props, hints and tricks he uses to capture those birds.

Mr Wronker shoots strictly digital images, and just about every image was shot from his office window into his yard or a neighbor’s property. Mr Wronker’s presentation covered everything from what types of food to use for various birds to different types of feeders, water and housing can be utilized.

Winners of the February “Expressions/Faces” competition were as follows: Prints — first place, Paul Vuto, “Oh My”; second place, Paul Vuto, “Afraid of Water”; and third place, Rita Buonanno, “Bros.” In the Digitally Enhanced division, first place went to Cindy Vavrek for “Blown Away,” second place was Darwin Bacchiocchi’s “How Sweet It Is,” and third place was Deb Connolly’s “Selfish.”

March Meeting

Frank Gardner from Candlewood Camera Club was the guest judge in March, and critiqued the slides produced by members for the monthly competition (there is no guest speaker when slide competitions are held).

The first place finish went to Tom Coryat for “signs of spring”; second place was Don Brooks, with “Elegance”; and third place was Bob Berthier, for “Red Shouldered Hawk.”

The next Flagpole Photographers Club meeting will be on Thursday, April 19, at 7:30 pm, at Cyrenius H. Booth Library. The category for the April competition is BW prints.

The club, a non-profit organization, meets regularly on the third Thursday of the month. Membership is $20 and is open to anyone with an interest in photography, regardless of level of experience. High school students can join for free. Family and guests are always welcome.

For more information contact John Tucci, the club’s current president, at 270-8576.