May 2022

From the President...

A special thank you to members who took the time to vote for the Board of Directors slate of candidates during the membership meeting held on April 4th. And a very special "I apologize" to those who tried to log-in to vote and were not able to do so.

When I set up the Zoom meeting, I was not aware that I had to individually allow each member to join the meeting. I thought you would automatically be allowed to join when you logged in. As a result, once I initially opened the meeting and clicked “Allow All” I thought those who joined after that would automatically be allowed into the meeting. That was not the case. As a result, some of you were not able to vote, and a couple of you let me know in no uncertain terms of your anger. It was my mistake for not knowing the process. I will better educate myself on how to set up Zoom meetings should I schedule another one in the future.

The election was held and the following slate of candidates was unanimously elected for two year terms: Holly Chorba, Patty Ferguson, Tom Parker, Tom Ransberg, Todd Taylor and Neil Wicai.

Following the election, the Board had a work session to discuss future plans and to begin work on improving the many support activities and functions the club provides. During the summer the Board will be looking into ways to improve the digital classes and possibly, offering individual classes in lieu of the 10-week course. We will also explore new class offerings. One thought was the possibility of a drone camera class. We will see if there is interest and if there is, find a member who could lead that class.

We will prioritize in-person meetings with the ability to develop an adequate hybrid system so members who are unable to join in person can still enjoy the benefits of membership.

Other activities will be ongoing behind the scenes, such as standardizing our equipment inventory list, establishing a marketing plan, and identifying members who can back up functionaries who perform vital roles for the club. We will also ask our SIG leaders to review the description of their SIG on our website to see if improvements can be made to better describe its purpose. To better assist you, we will explore how to best list the names of members who have volunteered to assist camera club members with operations of their cameras or other photo related challenges they may have. You have already heard from Sue Ready and Julie Howard on how to submit your photos for exhibit in the camera club or GVR facilities.

I can keep going, but rest assured, I will be reporting on what changes we plan on making as things develop. If you have any thoughts on what improvements we can make (other than for me to learn how to set up a Zoom meeting), please let me know.

Have a safe summer wherever you may spend it.

Danny Valenzuela, President

Photo of the Month

The May Photo of the Month is by Alan Medlow, titled Railroad Grain Silos, a wonderful example of great composition, well balanced color and terrific use of water reflection. Congratulations, Alan. (Is it just by chance that these are Ukraine colors? Thanks, Alan!)

The Photo of the Month is chosen from the Photo of the Week series published on the Club's Facebook page each Wednesday. Keep sending the best of your work to Judith Pollard at jmp7741@gmail.com so we may continue to showcase the refined capabilities of the GVR Camera Club members.

Free Arizona Highways Magazines!

The Arizona Highways magazines are still free for anyone who wants them. Please do not return them to the Camera Club — pass them on to a friend or donate them.

A reminder 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.

And as always, If you have photography books you wish to donate, please set them on top of the refrigerator at the club. Your contribution will enrich the library for all members.

Please contact me if you have questions.

Becky McCreary, Librarian

“It’s Summer Time and The Living Is Easy”

This is the time of the year when the snowbirds return to the freezer and activities at the Camera Club start to wind down for the summer. Don’t let your photographic skills stagnate. Spend the summer sharpening those skills.

Here are a few ideas. Shoot pictures of your grandchildren. Have a tea party with some little kids dressed for the occasion. Shoot photos at a local activity such as a parade or sporting event. Shoot a series of photographs around a theme like sunsets or water.

Take the time to learn a new photo editing or multimedia program. Windows 11 has a new video editing program called Clip Champ that will make slideshows and multimedia presentations.

And you can always attend an online SIG meeting. Many of the Club’s Special Interest Groups are meeting over the summer. Check the Club’s Web Page for more information.

We will spend the summer organizing some new SIGs and Workshops for you to explore in the fall. We all look forward to getting back to what can be considered normal again.

In the meantime, stay active, stay sharp, stay safe and enjoy the summer.

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

Closed for the Season

Thanks to all of you who shared your Travelogue presentations this year. They were all well received by a record number of member viewers in spite of, and even because of, the remote presentations brought on by the pandemic. Even so, we all look forward to resuming in-person presentations next season, while also providing remote viewing as well.

I encourage you to get out and photograph your spring and summer adventures so that they may be shared on Travelogue next season.

And remember, 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. You can expect 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

Closed for the Season

Last month we completed our Speaker Series for the season with Sky Island Alliance Program Director, Dr. Emily Burns, who showed us how to become part of a community science project that strives to better understand our regional wildlife. We learned why FotoFauna is so important for monitoring the regional movements of wildlife species.

I believe this program is so important that I am providing the following links for your use, if only just for the candid wildlife shot photo opportunities this program provides.

• If you missed the presentation, or care to see it again, you can find it here.
• Visit the Sky Island PhotoFauna website here.
• Sign up for the FotoFauna Community newsletter here.

As we look toward next season, who knows what fall will bring…No more Covid? New mask mandate? Zoom meetings, in-person meetings, hybrid meetings? Whatever befalls, we’ll be looking to keep you informed and entertained with speakers in the field of photography. 

Do you have a photo interest that you’d like to present, or one of another photographer that you know? Please email me to start exploring a possible Speaker Series presentation. I’d be happy to address your questions and concerns, and perhaps sign up you, or your likely speaker. 

Happy Trails to you, until we meet again!

Holly Chorba, Speaker Series Coordinator

Field Trips

What a successful field trip season we have had! We ran 24 trips, including 2 bus trips, with nearly 400 participants, in spite of the pandemic.

First, let me take the time to express to all the members of the Field Trip Special Interest Group (SIG) our heartfelt appreciation for the support and hard work you have done throughout the pandemic.  We all owe these folks a hearty pat on the back and a "Job well done"!

Sue Rock held down the field trip fort, and thank heaven for her continued support in the future.  Without Sue’s help and guidance throughout the pandemic, we would not have had a successful field trip season.  Linda Gregory, Patty Ferguson, Michele Hamel, Danny Valenzuela, Wally Watson, and Jane Forester acted as both arrangers and guides during this period.  Others helping to make our field trips successful are:  Camera Club Education Coordinator Gene Komaromi; Camera Club Treasurer John Pilger; and Liz Palmer, Morton Spencer, Carl Sparfeld, Todd Taylor, Marilyn Luehrmann, Sharon Gaiptman, Eileen Wood, Phyllis Kenseth, Holly Chorba, Phil Rock, Chuck Gremmel, Linda Dorosh, Joanne Zub and Ellen Fiedler.  If I have missed anyone, I apologize.

Starting the 2022-23 season, there will be some new, as well as some familiar, faces heading up the Field Trip SIG.

Sue Rock has been gracious enough to continue as the Field Trip SIG coordinator for the club's website, which includes  field trip events, cancellations and wait list management, a very integral part of the planning, scheduling, coordinating, and overall problem-solving related to each and every trip.

Patty Ferguson, Michelle Hamel, and I are part of the SIG leadership filling the roles of Facilitator/Arranger/Guide, working with the venues and other guides and arrangers describing and scheduling trips, making transportation arrangements if needed, and working closely with the coordinator ensuring each trip goes smoothly and according to plan.

As one of the facilitators, I have volunteered to be the face of the group to the board and to you, the club members.  As such, I chair the Field Trip SIG, report to the board on the SIG’s activities, and keep the membership informed through the Camera Club Newsletter.

We have tentative plans for a couple of field trips this summer to see how well they are received and attended, so keep an eye out for an email on these trips.

We are always looking for new ideas for field trips, and additional guides and arrangers to help lead them.  Please consider volunteering.  The more people we can count on as arrangers and guides, the greater the number and variety of field trips we can support. Please email me or call me at 618-304-1164 with your ideas.

Sue, Patty, Michelle, and I are so looking forward to working with you to make this coming year one of good times and special places.  We are working diligently to come up with a 2022-23 schedule that we hope will wow your socks off!

Monica Parker, Field Trip Facilitator

Photo Opportunities

Folks must be getting a bit parched in May judging from the number of wine festivals on the calendar. Several of the venues will be transitioning to summer hours or closing for the summer altogether. If you want to escape the daytime heat, you may want to check out Flower Moon Glow at the Triangle L Ranch in Oracle. And you can always count on a shoot-em-up weekend in Tombstone. A couple of car shows, horse races, and walking tours round out the month’s events. All great reasons to get out with your camera and enjoy the 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.

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.

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.

What Place is This – Photographs by Wayne Gudmundson

• Ongoing thru May 29, Mon to Sat 10:00 am to 4:30 pm, Sun 12:00 pm to 4:30 pm
• Master Gallery at the Tubac Center of the Arts, 9 Plaza Road, Tubac, AZ
• Find more information here.

Free First Thursdays - Public Opening Francisco Toledo: Paper Fables

• May 5, 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.

27th Annual Sabbar Shriners Car Show

• May 7, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm - Free
• Tucson Mall at the old Sears parking lot, 4500 N. Oracle Road, Tucson
• Find more information here.

1st Friday Culver's Cars and Custard

• May 6, 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm – Free
• Culver's, 18810 South Nogales Highway, Sahuarita, AZ
• Find more information here.

Sonoita Horse Races

• May 7-8, Gates open at 10:00 am, Post time 1:00 pm – Ticket prices vary
• Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds., 3142 South Highway 83, Sonoita, AZ
• Find more information here.

Turquoise Trail Guided Walking Tours

• May 14&22, 8:00 am to 10:30 am – $25, Registration required
• Presidio San Agustin Museum, 196 N. Court Avenue, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

Flower Moon Glow

• May 14, 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm - $60 per vehicle
• Triangle L Ranch, 2805 North Triangle L Ranch Road, Oracle, AZ
• Find more information here.

2022 Mariachi Festival and Wine Tasting

• May 21, 9:00 am to 9:00 pm - $20 per vehicle
• Patagonia Lake State Park, 400 Patagonia Lake Rd, Nogales, AZ
• Find more information here.

Wilcox Wine Country Spring Festival

• May 21-22, 11:00 am to 5:00 pm - $38
• Willcox Wine County - 157 N. Railroad Avenue, Willcox
• Find more information here.

Public Art & Murals Walking Tour

• May 28, 8:00 am to 10:00 am – $25, Registration required
• Presidio San Agustin Museum, 196 N. Court Avenue, Tucson, AZ
• Find more information here.

5th Annual Sierra Vista Wine, Beer & Spirits Fest

• May 28, 12:00 pm to 7:00 pm – Free
• Veterans Memorial Park, 3105 E Fry Blvd, Sierra Vista, AZ
• Find more information here.

Annual Wyatt Earp Days 2022

• May 28-29, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm – Free
• Downtown Tombstone, 311 E. Allen Street, Tombstone 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