Berks Photographic Society

Francesco Gola will present “Introduction to Seascape Photography” from Italy in a hybrid zoom session
2024-09-16 19:00 - 21:00 (America/New_York) | Hybrid
In this event Francesco will take us on an engaging journey through the captivating realm of seascape photography. The session will kick off with a comprehensive exploration of the essential gear required to capture the breathtaking beauty of seascapes. From cameras & lenses to tripods & filters, Francesco will provide valuable insights into assembling the perfect toolkit for this genre. Moving seamlessly into camera settings, we can expect to unravel the intricacies of achieving optimal exposure, focus & depth of field in various seaside scenarios. Francesco will demystify the technical aspects, empowering photographers of all levels to master their equipment & create mesmerizing compositions. The heart of the talk will delve into shooting techniques, with a particular focus on the art of long exposure. Francesco’s expertise in this area will shine as he unravels the magic behind capturing the ethereal movement of waves, transforming ordinary scenes into extraordinary visual stories.
Francesco will also share invaluable practical advice garnered from years of hands-on experience. From timing the perfect golden hour shots to navigating unpredictable weather conditions, these insights will prove invaluable to anyone seeking to immerse themselves in the world of seascape photography. Whether a beginner or a seasoned enthusiast, participants will leave the meeting with a heightened appreciation for the art & a toolkit of skills to embark on their own seascape photography adventures.
Francesco Gola is an engineer who’s fallen in love with photography. Born in Italy in 1981, as soon as he started taking pictures he fell in love with long exposures of seascapes. For him, a long exposure is a parallel universe in which to escape from the frenzy of modern life. His passion for the sea & for travel led him to visit some of the most iconic locations on this planet, looking at them with different eyes.
Inspired by the romantic painters William Turner & Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky, Francesco developed a special emotional relationship with nature that is clearly expressed through his seascape photographs.
Now Francesco lives & teaches photography in Milan where he collaborates with companies, sites & magazines for the diffusion of photographic culture in Italy & in the world.

Visit Francesco’s sites to learn more about his wonderful work & offerings: WEBSITE & INSTAGRAM.
This will be a paid event for non-members with a $10 donation. For non-members interested in attending, please register by making your $10 donation at https://store.berksphotographic.org/product/club-donation/.

BPS member and photography educator Valerie Hoffman shares “My Adventure in Norway!
2024-10-07 19:00 - 21:00 | Hybrid
– October 7, 2024 at 7:00 PM: BPS member and photography educator Valerie Hoffman shares “My Adventure in Norway!
Norway is a Scandinavian country encompassing mountains, lakes, glaciers and deep coaster fjords. Its beauty is unparalleled, and so are the photographic opportunities!
Usually the one leading photography workshops here in the states, Valerie says, “In 2022, I had the opportunity to spend 15 days traveling and photographing the beauty of Norway. Join me as I share images and stories from my adventure!”
See Valerie’s website to find out which adventure you can have with her at valeriehoffmanphotography.com/.

“Trust the Process” with Jean Miele
2024-10-21 19:00 - 21:00 | Hybrid
– October 21, 2024 at 7:00 PM: Jean Miele will present via a hybrid Zoom session “Trust the Process”. “Gino” is looking forward to showing some of his photographs as a way to share his own three-part creative process: trusting your eyes, not knowing how things will turn out, & playing a deceptively simple game of “What if?”.
In Gino’s own words: Great pictures, classic stories & poetry, scientific breakthroughs… they all come from the same wellspring of our collective consciousness. Because photography is a visual medium, not an intellectual one, it’s only by trusting our intuition, our bodies – our feelings rather than our thoughts, that we can develop a process that allows us to tap into that wellspring. Trusting what we see – rather than what we think – is how we connect with that Universal source. Developing & trusting a process means regardless of whether we know what to do next, we can engage in picture-making. In fact, not knowing what to do is the best way to proceed.
We are very fortunate to have enlisted Gino. He is a very prominent photographer, artist & educator who is in very high demand. Gino’s photographs explore the borderlands between fiction & reality, & reflect his lifelong interest in perception, spirituality & mysticism. His images remind viewers that moments of perfection are possible & that we create our own reality. He believes every photograph is an act of transformation & that the photographs we make tell us more about ourselves than about what was in front of the lens. Miele’s photographs have appeared in thousands of publications & his original prints exhibited & acquired by collectors worldwide.
Gino is based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He offers workshops & one-to-one mentoring that empower students to realize their own photographic vision. For more info & to purchase original prints, check out: www.jeanmiele.com, https://www.instagram.com/jean_miele/ & www.facebook.com/JeanMielePhotographer.
This will be a paid event for non-members with a $10 donation. For non-members interested in attending, please register by making your $10 donation at https://store.berksphotographic.org/product/club-donation/.

BPS Member Photo Competition & Critique Night "Monochrome Imagery" ********UPDATE*******
2024-10-28 19:00 - 21:00 | Hybrid
Last Minute
UPDATE on BPS October Photo Competition & Critique
“Monochrome Imagery”
By Vince Pellegrini

Because of a medical issue, our scheduled judge for this competition, Lewis Katz, had to step aside. But, no fears. Arrangements have been made for Pete Morton to step in to judge & critique our images on October 28, 2024. Pete is a certified judge who is especially fond of monochrome photography.
In 2019 Pete attended a judge training program and was certified by the Maryland Photography Alliance. He has subsequently judged photography competitions for dozens of camera clubs in numerous states and for the PSA. Pete has given presentations about judging photography, landscape photography, informal portrait photography & advanced Photoshop techniques, among others. Pete was elected to be a PSA Associate. He is active in the PSA Digital Dialogue Study Groups & administers a group focused on monochrome photography. Additionally, he is currently involved in managing a PSA monochrome competition of 17 international camera clubs.
His involvement in judging photography competitions has led to Pete’s philosophy about judges’ comments & suggestions. He believes that photographers should never blindly accept a judge’s critiques. Instead, their input should be carefully weighed & the photographer should decide which comments they agree with. In fact, anyone’s honest thoughts about a photographer’s work can be useful. Pete believes that learning from suggestions of others is how we grow as artists.
Pete accepted invitations to lecture on digital photography at the college level in Cornwall, England & later to teach advanced Photoshop techniques to professional photographers in London.
We have an extremely qualified judge for our Monochrome competition, rest assured.
See you all at 7:00 PM on October 28, either at the GoggleWorks or on Zoom.
ZOOM LINK FOR OCTOBER 28:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82781546515?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 827 8154 6515
Passcode: [REDACTED]

Jonathan Vaines of the UK will present a hybrid zoom session titled “Creative Motivation”
2024-11-18 19:00 - 21:00 | Hybrid
This talk will be an artistic approach to photography, stepping out of the mainstream. Along with individual images, Jonathan will discuss the motivational benefits of working with Projects, Sets & Groups of images. Most of his pictures are created using “in camera” techniques & therefore the focus of the evening will be about “Thinking Inside The Box”. He will take us to a place far away from the reality of life into Visual Art, creating work from simple everyday things around us. Jonathan hopes to inspire us, give us that spark to go out & take a different picture.
Jonathan took his first photograph in 2012, joined his local club to work out what to do & soon moved on. He has had many roles away from the camera in his short photographic life. Jonathan has been the Regional Organizer for the Royal Photographic Society (RPS) for five years & is the Judges’ Secretary for the East Anglian Federation (EAF) of Photographic Societies in Great Britain. He is also an A panel judge and a sponsored lecturer for Paper Spectrum. Jonathan tutors for the RPS and online photo clubs that operate predominantly in North America, running processing method workshops most weeks. He is an affiliate of DxO Labs, the software developer, & Wex Photo Video for everything camera. He is always busy somewhere in the world of camera clubs & photography.
Jonathan’s image making started out as photographing anything. Now he uses the camera to create what he sees as wall art. Multiple exposures along with some sort of camera distortion appears in almost all of his work. He polishes the results in Photoshop & an image does not exist until it’s printed so he is helping keep the ink and paper industry alive. Jonathan finds enjoyment from engaging with every image. He works with thoughts, concepts & projects. For him, it’s not about capturing the moment but it’s about visualization & being able to deliver that in print.

Explore Jonathan’s WEBSITE to explore his world.
This will be a paid event for non-members with a $10 donation. For non-members interested in attending, please register by making your $10 donation at https://store.berksphotographic.org/product/club-donation/.

November 25, 2024 at 7:00 PM: BPS Member Photo Competition Night “Best of the Year” with Henry Rowan as judge
2024-11-25 19:00 - 21:00 | Hybrid
November 25, 2024 at 7:00 PM: BPS Member Photo Competition Night “Best of the Year” with the wonderful Henry Rowan of the PA Center For Photography returning for the fifth year in a row to judge & critique this event. Henry’s image reviews are so educational & inspiring. The top 15 BPS images from 2024 as chosen by Henry will represent BPS in the 2025 International Michael Day Competition.
BPS will again participate in the friendly Michael Day competition with an international group of photography clubs. The other clubs for this year’s event included the Chalfonts & Gerrards Cross Camera Club of the UK, Photo Club Vision of Finland, the Auckland Photographic Society from New Zealand & Fotoincontro Associazione from Italy along with us. BPS & Chalfonts & Gerrards Cross Camera Club of the UK began this event in 2007. Learn all of the history in a future Newsletter.
Visit Henry’s website HERE.

“Photographing the Figure in the Landscape and Abandoned Spaces & Incorporating Textures to Create Digital and 3-D Collaged Images”
2024-12-02 19:00 - 21:00 | Goggle Works Suite 326
December 2, 2024 at 7:00 PM: Rebecca Carpenter presents “Photographing the Figure in the Landscape and Abandoned Spaces & Incorporating Textures to Create Digital and 3-D Collaged Images”.
Rebecca (Becky) will show images from her photo shoots in a variety of backgrounds (desert, ocean, rainforest, mountains, as well as a variety of abandoned spaces) and talk about the many ways to create strong images with a figure in those environments. She will explore ways of using the natural light available or easy to transport lights to add light to the scene, as well as suggesting ways to create strong compositions and tell a compelling story.

Becky has created many digital textures and will also demonstrate ways to “age” a photograph or create vintage digital collage effects with the images, as well as transferring photographs to other surfaces to create a 3-D collage.

December 16, 2024 at 7:00 PM: BPS Member Annual General Meeting
2024-12-16 19:00 - 21:00 | Hybrid

Huibo Huo will present “The Power of Simplicity in Black and White Landscape Photography
2025-01-20 19:00 - 21:00 | Hybrid
– January 20, 2025 at 7:00 PM: Huibo Huo will present “The Power of Simplicity in Black and White Landscape Photography”
Huibo Hou (https://www.huibohou.com), is a landscape photographer based in San Diego, California. She fell in love with photography about 26 years ago as a hobbyist while working in the wireless communication industry. Then life took her in different directions, and she had to set aside her photography pursuit for quite some time. In early 2015, she rekindled her love for photography and gradually became more serious about the craft. Her work has been recognized internationally in recent years with multiple awards and publications. Landscape photography, especially in black and white, is the art medium that she is passionate about. It serves as her creative outlet to express how she observes, interprets, and connects with nature.
Huibo’s presentation, “The Power of Simplicity in Black and White Landscape Photography” will give us a view into her beautiful images. The power of black and white images is often rooted in their simplicity. Huibo’s favorite type of black and white landscape images are the clean, simple ones with just a few essential elements in each frame, leaving space for viewers to imagine and contemplate. In this presentation, she will delve deep into a few ideas and techniques in seeking such simplicity, both in the field and during the postprocessing. Topics include: seeing and composing with essential elements; using long exposure to aid simplicity and create mood; managing tones and textures in post-processing. Whether you are an exploring beginner or an experienced photographer, this presentation can inspire you towards creating impactful black and white landscape images.

March Competition - "A Time to Reflect"
2025-03-31 19:00 - 21:00
March Competition – “A Time to Reflect”
By James Egitto
Our theme for this competition is A Time to Reflect. Sometimes it’s the reflections that catch our eye and inspire our compositions. Maybe it’s a reflection in water, glass, metal, or a pupil. Maybe it’s a mirror image, or an abstract distortion, or a hidden detail, or that double-exposure effect created by a window.
Reflect on what you can create in the next few weeks and show us what you’ve got. Categories are Nature and Pictorial, and the submission deadline is midnight, Sunday March 16, 2025. . The judging/critique will be on March 31.
All members are encouraged to get out and shoot for this competition. If you are new to the club, we hope you’ll give it a try. If you’ve been a member forever and have never entered a competition, now’s the time. If you always enter – do it again! Look around – reflective surfaces are everywhere – lakes, ponds, puddles, plastic, metal, or windows!
You can read all of the details on BPS competitions HERE.
Our judge for this competition is Michael Brown. Here’s some of what Michael had to say when we asked him about himself:
“To me, photography is an exercise of mindfulness – a respect for what I see, and the tools I work with. My photos are an expression of what interests me. I enjoy exploring the subject of my interest with the camera. It is a means for me to better understand the world around me, and it doesn’t matter if thousands of others took photos from the same perspective because the perspective is new to me, the exploration and visualization are new to me.
I’ve been critiquing photographs and portfolios for 15 years. Recently I was certified as a competition judge by the Maryland Photography Alliance which offers and provides guidance, training, presentations, and competition judging to its member camera clubs.
I assess photographs the same way I assess any art, if it grabs my attention, I get closer. If it holds my attention and is compelling, I explore. During exploration, I critique. What do I like or don’t like? Why? How can it be improved, or what would make it better? A photograph has to inform me, tell me something I don’t already know, or provide me a unique perspective to something I do know.
As with all art, critiques of photographs are subjective, therefore prone to error and bias. Yes, there are technical aspects of captured images that can be measured, but what role they play in making an image compelling is up to the viewer.”

Leigh Reeves hosts “How Would You Edit This?”
2025-12-01 19:00 - 21:00
December 1, 2025 at 7:00 PM: EDITING NIGHT with Leigh Reeves

Our member from Australia, Leigh Reeves, will host a special evening where several BPS members will show their own take on how they would edit an image he presents them with.

Annual Members’ Meeting
2025-12-15 18:00 - 21:00
12/15/25 Annual Members’ Meeting
