April 2022

From the President...

It is hard for me to believe I am about to complete one year as your club president. I clearly remember when I was asked to serve as president. I was worried that I did not know enough about the operations of the club to be effective. What did I know about how to secure and train monitors, publish a newsletter, keep the website functioning, coordinate field trips, set up club educational events, and the many other activities of the club? Extraordinarily little or almost nothing.

I soon learned that I did not have to personally do any of the many functions the club provides its members. The reason is because we have volunteers to do all those things, and more. They unselfishly give of their time and talents to make sure we add value to your photography efforts.

So, the Board dedicates this newsletter to the volunteers that have stepped up and kept our club relevant during this Covid-19 challenging year. Look for the names of over seventy (70) volunteers listed below in this newsletter. Please take time to read their names and thank them when you see them.

The only worry about publishing this list is that if someone is left out who deserves to be recognized it would be unfair. If you have helped the club this past year and we missed recognizing you please do not be shy, let us know and we will surely recognize you next month.

Thank you volunteers for all you do.

Danny Valenzuela, President

THANK YOU!!!

Camera Club Volunteers

Listed below are names of volunteers who have given of their time and talents as board members, monitors, SIG leaders, newsletter publishers, proofreaders, committee event coordinators, field trip coordinators, web site and technology coordinators, classroom instructors and much more. Thank you for spending your time with us, teaching us, inspiring us, encouraging us, challenging us, and keeping our club open.

The GVR Camera Club thanks you for the hours you devoted and the encouragement and help you have given unselfishly. Your efforts have made a world of difference in what we have accomplished. There were many challenges this year, yet it turned out to be a great year, thanks to your dedication.

Dale Brokaw

John Brookheart

Bruce Bundgaard

Judy Calvert

Rick Calvert

Patrick Caniff

Dean Chaussee

Holly Chorba

Albert Crawford

Cliff DeJong

David Erickson

Joan Fellingham

Patricia Ferguson

Claudia Fleming

Jane Forster

Paul Forsyth

Ron Friesz

Larry Fuglesten

Marilyn Gaizband

Sharlene Gillies

Alvin Gore

Linda Gregory

Margaret Grost

Joanne Guillaume

Michele Hamel

Kevin Hannah

Stephen Herron

Chuck Hill

Kim Holmes

Julie Howard

Gary Kattge

Gene Komaromi

Bryan Lavender

Susan Lavender

Pat Lindemann

Bruce Magnuson

Becky McCreary

Paul McCreary

Michael McMinn

Becky Michel

Millard Mott

Bonita Mott

Sandy Ostroff

Monica Parker

Tom Parker

John Pilger

Grace Pitzer

Judith Pollard

Robert Puttock

Tom Ransburg

Sue Ready

Judy Restad

James Roberts

Phillip Rock

Susan Rock

Sam Schaen

Jerry Seeds

Larry Springford

Ronald Stein

Nancy Stroman

Robert Swan

Todd Taylor

Jane Utz

Danny Valenzuela

Coleen Walker

Wallis Watson

Wendell Werner

Neil Wicai

Jane Winkenwerder

Russell Wolfe

Eileen Wood

John Yeager

Craig Zimmerman

Stan Znamierowski

Board of Directors Election

GVR Camera Club board of directors election will be held at our Annual Membership Meeting on April 4th at 1:00 pm Arizona time. All members are encouraged to attend virtually via Zoom. You may join the meeting with the link provided here.

The nominating committee has selected a slate of six candidates to fill six vacant board positions for two year terms. Additional nominations may also be presented for consideration. The selected slate of candidates is listed below.

Steve Carr

I was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, but have lived in six states and eight cities since then. I spent most of my working career in engineering and retired in 2016 from the Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation in Savannah, GA. It was shortly before retirement, that I resurrected my long-neglected interest in photography, taking a certificate course from the University of Michigan through Coursera, procuring a digital SLR, and making use of it to record the people and places around Savannah.

In my youth, I’d been an avid photographer, working solely in black and white, developing and printing out of a darkroom that was at times my bedroom and living room.

In 2018 my wife and I decided it was time to change venues. After a freak snowstorm in Savannah, we agreed that wherever we moved it would have to be somewhere below the Mason-Dixon line and farther west. When she told me that the Center for Creative Photography was in Tucson, AZ., that clinched the deal. We arrived here in May of 2018, lived in Tucson for two years before deciding we would like a little slower pace of life, and moved to Green Valley (Desert Hills III) in March of 2020, right before the Covid lockdown.

I joined the Camera Club not long after we arrived, and started attending the Fine Art and Studio SIG, hosted by Sandy Ostroff, and then added Wendell Warner’s Black and White SIG, and Mike McMinn’s Bird Photography SIG, as well as dropping in on the Hit Me with Your Best Shot SIG from time to time. What a life saver these groups have been during the last two years.

My interest(s) in photography are wide ranging, if it will hold still long enough or even if it won’t, I’ll shoot it, but I find myself strongly drawn to fine art and black and white photography.

My interest in becoming a board member stems from a desire to support this great organization in whatever capacity I can and hopefully give back a little of what I’ve gained from my association with some of the most talented photographers I’ve ever met.

Holly Chorba

I’ve enjoyed getting to know members of the club and photogenic sites in the area through Club activities since 2004. I’ve been a “snowbird” from northern New York State to Green Valley since my retirement from secondary education. My interests in people, ecology, biology, travel, and photography have been served both by my career and through the Club. Field trips, Travelogue (which I hosted for 10 years), the board for several terms and two terms as president, Multi-Media SIG and Speaker Series Coordinator have been particularly great ways for me to learn, serve, and teach while enjoying the friendships formed with many active members. I’m continually impressed with their talents and dedication. It’s a privilege to belong to the Club, to share and enhance our photographic knowledge and interests and broaden our friendship circle.

Patty Ferguson

I was born and raised in Lima, Peru and moved to the states when I was 12 years old. I moved to Green Valley December 2008 after 21 years in Law Enforcement with the LAPD.

I joined the camera club in 2010.  I love planning and leading some of the field trips the club offers as well as monitoring when my golf game permits it. I also enjoy hiking in our desert and swimming.  

I am looking forward to being part of the Camera Club board and helping meet the needs and wants of our members.

Tom Parker

I joined the Camera Club shortly after my wife, Monica, and I moved to Green Valley from Trenton, Illinois in 2019. We’re full-time residents, living in Traditions at Desert Creek.

An Atlanta, Georgia native, I have a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Marketing from the University of Georgia and a Master of Science degree in Logistics Management from the Air Force Institute of Technology. I served as an Air Force commissioned officer in a variety of transportation and logistics assignments for over 24 years, retiring in 1998 as a lieutenant colonel. Following a brief stint as a contractor at the Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site in Colorado, I became an Air Force civil service employee at the United States Transportation Command, serving as a supervisory transportation specialist for 15 years, retiring in 2018.

I took a long break from photography (Remember when you’d take your film to the one-hour photo booth? That was me!). The Camera Club has opened my eyes to the world of digital photography and post-production. I’m still very much a novice going through a fascinating period of discovery via several Special Interest Groups (SIGs), Showtime and Travelogue presentations, and many of the club’s field trips (which also serve as a great way to see Southern Arizona and learn about its remarkable history). Using the club’s equipment, I’ve been able to digitize a lifetime’s worth of photos and slides, with plans to digitize our video cassettes. I thought I should give back to the Camera Club some of what it’s given me, so I recently volunteered to identify photo opportunities for the club’s monthly newsletter, and volunteer as a club monitor. I want to keep the club relevant, innovative, and exciting for its members, and hope serving as a board member will help us achieve that goal.

In addition to the Camera Club, I’m a member of the GVR Cycling Club, Computer Club, and the Green Valley Gardeners. When we’re not traveling, Monica and I enjoy the wide variety of live entertainment available at GVR, the Community Performance and Arts Center, and the many venues in Tucson.

Tom Ransburg

In 2010 I retired from the Federal Government working in IT. Following a period of “snowbirding” from Indiana and Michigan, in 2019 my wife and I became full time Arizonians. I am a veteran and have been in Green Valley, off and on, since 2003, participating in many GVR activities and clubs since 2010.

Hobbies include music, motorcycle touring, tennis and of course, photography. I bought my first SLR while in Germany which was a Pentax Spotmatic and was thrilled to acquire a 135 mm telephoto lens.

How things have changed as I now have a couple of Cannon DSLR’s and a 400 mm telephoto lens. I learned proficiency using the ProShow Producer program and have submitted several Show Time presentations.

Over the years I have served on various boards including treasurer of an HOA in Indiana and activities coordinator/newspaper editor of a local motorcycle club. I’m currently President of the GVR Tennis Club; treasurer of my local HOA managing 145 properties; and helping to coordinate the Camera Club monitors on the Signup Genius application.

Neil Wicai

I’ve been a member of the Camera Club since early in 2018 after my wife, Ellen, and I moved to Green Valley from Taos, New Mexico. Born and raised in a suburb east of Cleveland, Ohio, I got my BSEE degree from Ohio University in 1965 and have spent most of my career in technical sales and marketing. Ellen and I enjoy the arts, travel to family, socializing with our newfound friends and neighbors, and all the activities that GVR has to offer. I am currently the editor of the Camera Club’s newsletter that you receive each month. Other than that, I spend my free time reading a good book, learning how to be a better photographer and spending far too much time doing genealogy.

Photo of the Month

The April Photo of the Month is by Denise-O'Brian, a post processed stylized rendition of a photograph taken on the Josephine Saddle Madera Canyon Trail. Congratulations, Denise.

The Photo of the Month is chosen from the Photo of the Day series published on the Club's Facebook page from the 26th of the previous month to the 25th of last month. Keep sending the best of your work to Judith Pollard at jmp7741@gmail.com.

Free Arizona Highways Magazines!

Arizona Highways magazine was first published by Arizona Highway Department July 1921 as a 10-page pamphlet promoting development of good roads in the state. After nine issues it ceased publication December 1922. It was then relaunched in April 1925 in the magazine format that we enjoy today. The circulation in all 50 states and two-thirds of the world’s countries, numbers over 200,000.

So that others may enjoy the magazine, I have taken Arizona Highways magazines from the Library shelf and along with donated copies, made them available to members during the month of April. Please stop in and take some (no check out). Enjoy the great photography and articles and pass them on if you don’t want to keep them. Please do not return them to the Camera Club. I will take those that are left at the end of the month to White Elephant. Enjoy!

If you will be gone for the summer, please check your bookshelves and if you have any Camera Club Library books, please return them before leaving. Also, if you have books that were checked out before we closed for Covid-19, please return them to the library. Please contact me if you have questions.

Becky McCreary, Librarian

Years ago in the 1990s, while I was still working in Instructional Technology, I attended a conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Keynote Speaker was a futurist named Alfred Toffler. To sum up his presentation, he said that Technology would become intrinsic to our society. He said, “The illiterate of the 21st century would not be those who couldn’t read and write, but those who couldn’t learn, unlearn, and relearn with technology,” and surmised that problems arising from that concept would throw us into “Future Shock”.

I hate to tell everyone but Covid and the technology we used during the crisis has driven the GVR Camera Club into a kind of future shock. The sharing of knowledge between members is the biggest asset offered by the Club. We obviously have to make some changes in the methodology for that sharing.

As Education Chair, I get emails asking me to get rid of all the Zoom activities as everyone wants to get back to face-to-face learning. I get other emails from members telling me how wonderful it is to attend activities in their slippers, or how nice it is to attend a meeting anywhere or any time. It’s a dilemma that is being faced by educational institutions and training facilities all across the country. The answer for everyone may be something called Blended Learning. Blended Learning is one of the top search items on YouTube. I’d like to suggest the GVR Camera experiment with Blended Learning in the fall. Take a look at a Camera Club PSA on the concept here.

In our proposed Blended Learning methodology, participants will attend a pre-recorded lecture on YouTube or participate in a Zoom meeting in place of the old Sage on Stage lecture method. Participants could go back and review the material as many times as necessary to gain an understanding of the topic. The online activity would be followed up by a hands-on session or sessions, where participants would show and share some mastery of the topic, with an incentive for attendance.

Some of the Club’s Special Interest groups, like Multimedia and Lightroom, are already using Blended Learning techniques. Hopefully, next fall, we can get over the shock and get on with the show. I’ll try to keep everyone posted as we try things out.

This Month's Club Activities

Jump to SIGs

Jump to Travelogue

Jump to Field Trips

Jump to Photo Ops

Jump to Showtime

Jump to Speaker Series

Check the club calendar here for the latest information on all club activities.

Travelogue

Monday, 4/18 at 7:00 pm

This month's Travelogue will feature several encore presentations of some of the best Travelogues of the past. Join us via Zoom.

Beauty in America

by Richard O'Neal

Wonders of Hawaii

by Kevin May

Antarctica

by Sam Schaen & Marilyn Gaizband

Birds of Africa

by Linda Gregory

Trip to Another Land, California

by Paul and Becky McCreary

Mongolia

by Grace Pitzer

Find more information and register to join this presentation on the Club's website here or via your Travelogue e-blast announcement. The Zoom link to attend will be provided in your confirmation email after you register.

If you have a program to share, drop off your thumb drive with a .mov or .mpeg4 show in the Travelogue Drop Box located outside the Camera Club door, or email it to me at traveloguecc@gmail.com.

Paul McCreary, Travelogue Coordinator

Showtime

Closed for the Season

Thanks for your participation in and viewing of this season's Showtime presentations. Look forward to another great Showtime season starting in December. In the meantime think about putting a show together yourself for all to see next season.

Chuck Hill, Showtime Coordinator

Speaker Series

Thursday, 4/21 at 2:00 pm

Emily Burns

Getting Started with Sky Island FotoFauna

Sky Island Alliance Program Director, Emily Burns, will share how to become part of a community science project that strives to better understand our regional wildlife. You’ll learn why Sky Island FotoFauna is so important for monitoring the regional movements of wildlife species for conservation and how you can help grow our binational FotoFauna network of over 300 volunteer cameras operating in the Sky Island region. Then, she’ll walk you through how to select a motion-activated trail camera that’s best for you, how to find a good location in your backyard, and how to submit your findings at the end of each month.

Find more information and register to join this presentation on the Club's website here or via your Travelogue e-blast announcement. The Zoom link to attend will be provided in your confirmation email after you register.

Holly Chorba, Speaker Series Coordinator

Field Trips

2021/2022 Season

As we are near the end of this field trip season. We need to start planning for the 22-23 season. We have 4 types of jobs in the Field Trip group. Facilitator, Coordinator, Arranger and Guide. Please consider joining the Field Trip group as one of these positions.

The Facilitator is the face of the group to the club members and board, runs the group meetings, and reports to the newsletter, the board and the Field Trip group.  I am doing this job currently and we are looking for a new Facilitator for next season.

The Coordinator uses the event database to make sure all the complex pieces of running a field trip are working together. This includes: working with the arranger to provide the description of all the parts of the trip; getting membership to sign up for the trip using various emails; coordinating the payments and reimbursements with the club treasurer; limiting registrations to the maximum amount of participants; monitoring and coordinating waitlists and cancellations, making sure each trip is full and paid; requesting photos for publication; reminding participants at intervals of their upcoming event, solving problems that members have prior to the trip and other tasks that might come up for various trips. I am doing this job and will continue next year. 

The Arranger works with the venue to describe and schedule the field trip for the members via the coordinator. We are looking for arrangers.

The Guide meets the participants on the day of the field trip, brings the participants to the venue, pays the venue, and stays for the field trip. The guide must work with the treasurer to receive the money to pay the venue. The arranger and guide are most often the same person, but not necessarily. We are looking for guides. 

And before this season ends, join the group, meet some new friends and add to the fun. Find more information and register for one or more of the field trips here or with the links in one of our Field Trip e-blasts.

Bird/Nature Trips

04/05/22– Madera Canyon Santa Rita Lodge for Hummingbirds-Wait List only

Tucson Windows and Doors Trips

04/12/22 - A walking tour of several blocks. Explore the area on either side

                 of the Tucson Convention Center. Always a fun trip.

Photo Opportunities

There’s quite a bit happening this month, although several outdoor events are starting to wind down in advance of hotter weather. If you’re up for a day trip or overnight excursion, you might want to check out the events in Gold Canyon, Globe, Wilcox, Tombstone, and Sonoita. If not, there’s still quite a bit to do right here in Green Valley and the Tucson area, including a folk festival, county fair, a garden tour, car shows, the art museum, and Canoa Ranch events. Take advantage of these opportunities and have fun!

Gadsden-Pacific Division Toy Train Operating Museum

• Ongoing, Sundays from 1:00 to 4:00 pm – $5
• 3975 N. Miller Avenue, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

34th Annual Arizona Renaissance Festival & Artisan Marketplace

• Ongoing thru Apr. 3, Saturdays & Sundays 10:00 am to 6:00 pm - Ticket prices vary
• 12601 East US Hwy 60, Gold Canyon, AZ
• Find more information here.

Dinosaur Discovery

• Ongoing thru May 15, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm daily – Free with Zoo admission
• Reid Park Zoo, 3400 Zoo Court, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

Raptor Free Flight

• Ongoing thru Apr. 10 - 10:00 am daily except Wed. – Free with museum admission
• Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, 2021 N Kinney Road, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

Pima Air and Space Museum

• Ongoing thru May, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm – Ticket prices vary
• 6000 E. Valencia Road, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

Tour of Historic Canoa Ranch

• Every Saturday in April, 9:00 am to 10:30 am - $5
• 5375 S. I-19 Frontage Road. Green Valley, AZ
• Find more information here.

37th Annual Tucson Folk Festival

• Apr. 1-3, times and events vary - Free
• Jacome Plaza, 101 N. Stone Avenue, Tucson, AZ plus five other stages.
• Find more information here.

AZ Poppy Fest 2022

• Apr. 1-3 and 9, times, events, and fees vary
• Globe, Miami, Roosevelt Lake, and Peridot Mesa
• Find more information here.

Fourth Avenue Spring Street Fair

• Apr. 1-3, 10:00 a.m. to dusk daily - Free
• N. Fourth Avenue. Tucson, AZ - Check event map and street fair parking on-line.
• Find more information here.

Free First Thursdays at the Tucson Museum of Art

• Apr. 7, 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm – Free, reservations required
• Tucson Museum of Art and Historic Block, 140 North Main Avenue, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

Tumacácori Bird Walk

• Apr. 9, 8:00 am to 11:00 am – Free with entrance fee
• Tumacácori National Historical Park, Tubac, AZ
• Find more information here.

Spring Garden Tour

• Apr. 9, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm – $15
• Six private and unique gardens in the Green Valley area
• Find more information here.

Annual Blessing at Sonoita Vineyards

• Apr. 9, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm (Blessing at noon) – $25
• Sonoita Vineyards, 290 Elgin-Canelo Rd. Elgin, AZ
• Find more information here.

Tombstone Rose Festival and Parade

• Apr. 9-11 (Parade is on April 10), 10:00 am to 4:00 pm – Free
• Rose Tree Museum and Allen Street, Tombstone, AZ
• Find more information here.

Willcox West Fest Chuck Wagon Cook Off & Ranch Rodeo

• Apr. 15-17 – Fri. noon to sunset, Sat. 8:00 am to 7:00 pm, Sun 8:00 am to noon
• Quail Park, 1138 N Quail Drive, Willcox, AZ 85643
• Find more information here.

Oracle Spring Run Benefit Car Show

• Apr. 16, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm – Free
• 1470 N. Justice Drive, Oracle, AZ
• Find more information here.

Birding Canoa Ranch

• Apr. 19 and 26, 7:30 am to 9:30 am - $5
• 5375 S. I-19 Frontage Rd. Green Valley, AZ
• Find more information here.

Rodders Days Car Show

• Apr. 23, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm - Free
• Pima Community College Downtown Campus. 1255 N. Stone Avenue, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

Pima County Fair

• Apr. 21 to May 1, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm - Events and ticket prices vary
• 11300 S. Houghton Road, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

We are always looking for recommendations for future photo opportunities. Please feel free to contact me If you have suggestions for upcoming events of interest.

Tom Parker, Photo Op Coordinator

Special Interest Groups are fun and informative. Any member of the Camera Club is welcome to attend any of the SIGs. Most all are meeting only via Zoom.

Click on any of the links listed to get more information on each one.

Multimedia SIG
Black and White SIG

Studio and Fine Art SIG

Hit Me with Your Best Shot SIG

Photoshop/Lightroom SIG

Field Trip SIG

Photoshop Elements SIG

Bird Photography SIG

Rebel Rousers SIG

Monitor Notes

Monitors typically welcome and check in club members, answer the phone, and inform those seeking information about the Club. We are all indebted to the dedicated team of monitors who volunteer to keep the Camera Club open. Many thanks to all of you.

We are always looking for additional monitors. Help us provide all the benefits the Club offers to its members. As you take advantage of the Club's activities and its extensive digital processing equipment, consider sharing the effort in providing these services by volunteering as a monitor.  You are not expected to know how to use the equipment. Training takes about an hour.

Contact: gvrcameramonitors@gmail.com for more information.

Green Valley Recreation Camera Club

The GVR Camera Club was established in the early 1970’s as one of many Green Valley Recreation organizations to serve its members and our community. Our main interest is photography, both still and video imaging. The Club has grown into one of the largest camera clubs in the country with over 750 active members.

The Club is located on the 2nd floor of the west wing at the Santa Rita Springs GVR Recreation Center. You may contact us at:

PO Box 1423, Green Valley, AZ 85622 or gvrcameraclub@gmail.com. 

Neil Wicai, Newsletter Editor - neilwicai@gmail.com - 575-224-1238