Focal Points Magazine - The Magazine of the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter Camera Committee by John Nilsson

Focal Points Sierra Club Angeles Chapter Camera Committee December, 2021

Focal Points Magazine

Contents

Due to current directives from The Sierra Club, we will be holding our December 12, 2021 meeting on-line. I will be contacting everyone when the time comes with instructions as to how to access via Zoom.

12 Meetings and Outings 22. Joe's How-To 22. Member Photos 74. Black and White Pages 82. Contributor's Bio's 196. Notes and Announcements

Focal Points Magazine

106. Photo of the Month

Published monthly by the Angeles Chapter Sierra Club Camera Committee, John Nilsson, Editor. Questions and comments can be directed to John at 213-266-2224 or information.sccc@gmail.com

107. Parting Shot

Cover Photo Credit:

Delicious Colors ©2021 John Clemment, All Rights Reserved Taken at Red Mountain Viticulture-Kiona Vineyards near Benton City Washington. The Lemberger grape leaves turn a variety of brilliant colors of reds, oranges and deep purples and many shades in between. This symmetrical grouping caught my eye. Camera Olympus OMD E-M1 MarkII Lens-12-40mm F2.8 2

Notes from the Chairman

Best Wishes for a great Holiday Season spent with lots of friends and documented by lots of photos!

Leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures, kill nothing but time. 3

Cover Story:

Above: Foggy Moods at Col Solare Winery - after heavy rains all night the low scudding clouds with little openings for shafts of sunlight to pop the vineyard colors at Red Mountain viticulture region. Above Right: Lenticular Light - Our local Rattlesnake Mountain ridge is the location for some pretty amazing lenticular clouds as it compresses the moist rushing air into some amazing cloud formations. I did an hour and a half time lapse of the evolution of this cloud. This is just one image of about 700 recorded. 4

A Wild Fall in the Pacific Northwest Wild and windy is what best describes our fall weather this year. After a scorching summer and a dry September, fall came roaring in with torrential rains, winds exceeding 50 MPH and our local mountain had winds up to 90+ mph. Clouds during these weather changes can produce some amazing lenticular formations. The fall colors were second to none this year and have gone on for over three weeks. Enjoy my local wanderings from my back yard to the vineyards to the Horse Heaven Hills. 5

AboveLeft: Stormy Light Badger Canyon - 1winds were just starting to push out the stormy weather with a lot of dancing sun rays. Middle Left: Color Pocket - on Wenas Creek west of Yakima Washington. Below Left: Lenticular Sunset - the next day as the high winds continued in the 50-60mph I set up in the wind shadow of my SUV to record this 3-image vertical panorama. Above Right: 7. Lenticular Sunset IV- a 6-image vertical panorama of the clouds formation. Below Right: Lighting the Path. 6

SIERRA CLUB ANGELES CHAPTER CAMERA COMMITTEE

MAY 2015

SIERRA CLUB ANGELES CHAPTER CAMERA COMMITTEE

MAY 2015

Above Left: Devine Reflections. Above Right: Waves of Light - across these altocumulus clouds, or popcorn clouds as we call them here. Below: Fall Patterns across the vineyards on a rainy day.

SIERRA CLUB ANGELES CHAPTER CAMERA COMMITTEE

MAY 2015

Cosmos Fall - my garden continues to bloom into November

r as the cold snap has not hit yet. It’s due this week.

Meetings and Meetings and Outings Outings

Sierra Club Camera Committee --

December 9, 2021 Meeting

Member Show! Get together up to ten of your best shots this year and put them on a thumb drive. You’ll have your five minutes of fame when you share in our zoom meeting. More information on the next page.

Zoom Link

Where:

In the comfort of your own home via Zoom

Provided before the presentation See you there!

When: 7:00 PM

What:

The Zoom platform has recently been upgraded to provide high security and ease of operation. Be certain to download or upgrade to the latest vesion before the presentation!

Member Show!

Six times a year the Camera Committee offers a program of interest to our members and photographers and photo-lovers in general. In December, we present The MEMBERS Show - a variety of photographs from our members. The Zoom Members Show will feature up to twenty (20) Camera Committee members presenting a selection of their best or favorite images. This might be a photo essay or travelogue or collection on a theme. This is a non-critical, non-judgmental, non-contest event. It’s a celebration of our committee’s talents. Come and see what we’ve been up to! Submission details to follow, but you can start now to select your most compelling photos and compose your segment. The brave and talented Joe Doherty will manage the submissions and the Zoom program. Viewers will be able to submit questions and comments during the event using Zoom’s chat function.

NOTE: Instructions for the Member show. Members will be able to show up to ten images at the Member Show on December 9. “Bring” your images to the show by uploading them to the following Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/request/hUI5zRkpBvU1zyJKR6fn The projector/Zoom share will be run by Joe Doherty. Each photographer will have 5 minutes to talk about their images and receive feedback as they are shared with the group. The images should be sized to 1440 pixels on the long side, in jpg format. If there is a particular order to the images they should be labeled using numbers (01, 02, 03, .. 10) at the beginning of each file name. We can only guarantee time for 20 photographers.” 15

Joe’s How-to

Joe’s How-To Finding Your Place

Canada Geese fly in before dawn? What color will the sunrise be? Are the high clouds going to remain gray? How is the fire recovery coming? Did the oak survive? Is the buckwheat in bloom? What raptors will I see? Will the deer and the bobcat be visible in the meadows? Are the pelicans and cormorants warming together on the same snag? Will the Great Blue Heron appear on the west or east bank of the pond? Have the spiders been busy? Are the lupine in bloom?

By Joe Doherty

Learning to make photographs is like learning to ride a bike. It involves falling down a lot, with bruises to the ego, to the body, and to the equipment. So it’s important to find a place where you can safely fall down a lot, get back up, and do it all over again. I’ve talked with a few other photographers about their places, and they share the same things in common. The place is somewhat close to home, and the photographer has an ineffable attachment to it. For one friend the place is Yosemite. For another it’s a suburban creek. I have two such places: Malibu Creek State Park, and the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve. Both of them are within 30 minutes of my front door in the pre-dawn hours.

Each of these variations challenge me as a photographer. On any given day they dictate what I’m going to photograph, but over the long haul I get at least two chances to photograph everything. When I get something right the first time, I can try it again under different circumstances. More often, though, it takes me several attempts to “get it right.” Getting it right locally is important for two reasons. For one, to the extent that my photography has any style it is because I’ve developed my eye through repeated attempts to capture the changing mood of one place. The second reason is that when I travel I don’t typically have the luxury of making repeated trips to the same location. If I can successfully photograph birds at dawn in New Mexico, it is because of dozens of visits to Sepulveda Basin.

Figure 1. Sepulveda Basin, 2006 What makes a place “my place?” For one, I have a lot of anxious anticipation about what I’m going to find when I get there. Oh sure, I know where the trees and the trails are, where the sun rises and sets, where the water is, and where to park. I have a good idea about the natural history, when the wildflowers bloom, etc. What I don’t know on any given day, though, would fill volumes. How much trash was trapped in the creek after last week’s storms? Will there be fog? Is it thick or swirly? Will the 18

In addition to learning how to think about a location, it’s important to use your place to work on technique. Like anything else, the repeated and diligent application of craft will improve your enjoyment of the art you create. Sometimes this involves seemingly mundane activity, like sitting on your couch blindly changing lenses until it becomes second nature. The less mundane are the things you can only practice and learn in the field. Composition is one of these. I used to think there are rules to composition, but following them led me to make some really awful pictures. Now I see them as suggestions, and I focus instead on the arrangement of objects within a frame to tell a story. This leads me to ask the question in the field, what is the story? Is one object the primary subject? Is the story about the tension between two objects? Or is it about the harmony created by three or more objects? Once that has been decided, frame it, shoot it, take it back home and see if it works. If

Figure 2a and 2b: Sepulveda Basin and Bosque del Apache So what did I learn, specifically? I’ll break them down into two broad categories. They are: learn the location (the light, the mood, the facts, and the timing) and learn the technique (composition, exposure and focus, and gear). To be clear, when I say “learn the location” I don’t mean that your place is the only location you should learn. But the things you learn about your place will prepare you to shoot the places with which you are unfamiliar. For example, I know how the morning light strikes the crags at Malibu Creek State Park during all four seasons, how the atmosphere changes the mood of the light, what sort of foregrounds I’m likely to find given the conditions, and what time I need to arrive to get the shot. I need to know (or at least deal with) those same things wherever I get a sunrise shot: El Capitan, Alabama Hills, or Downtown Los Angeles. They are part of my mental checklist for a location when I don’t have the luxury of time.

The same is true when I shoot at the Sepulveda Basin. I know how light and fog (and its absence) affect the mood of the place, how the recent fire denuded the shore of the pond, and that I need to arrive before civil sunrise if I want to capture the magic. This checklist translates directly from the San Fernando Valley to Bosque del Apache in New Mexico, a very important flyway for Sandhill Cranes and Arctic Geese.

Figures 3a and 3b. Malibu Creek State Park, nine years apart. 19

it didn’t work, go back and do it again. And again. And never show the earlier images to anyone.

with all of your energy directed towards making a photograph and not fighting your equipment. So give yourself a challenge. In one minute or less set up your tripod, put your camera on it, switch lenses, compose a shot, and make the exposure. (That’s about how long it took Ansel Adams to set up and shoot “Moonrise, Hernandez, New Mexico.”) Do this for different types of shots: macro, near-far, telephoto, landscape, etc. At the beginning you’ll fail, and it will be frustrating. But eventually you won’t even think about it. And the less you think about the gear, the more you can think about the work.

The same wash-rinse-dry repeat pattern holds for learning exposure and focus. Modern cameras will get the settings right most of the time, but the hallmark of a “place” is that it sometimes requires you to take control. What is the optimal shutter speed for a bird rising from the water? How do you isolate leaves using a combination of close-focus and wide aperture? What is focal point and f-stop for a near-far composition? What exposure will keep the highlights from blowing out but give you detail in the shadows? All of these are best learned through repeated failure rather than a YouTube tutorial.

Learning something new isn’t comfortable, especially for adults who are very competent in other areas of their lives. A child who falls off a bike will cry a bit before getting back on. An adult handed a camera will avoid using it because it’s difficult to learn, and then curse it while on vacation. Both of them need a place to practice and improve that is safe but challenging.

Finally, having a place that you can return to again and again is the optimal way to break in new gear. The last thing you should worry about in a new location is how to change the settings on your camera, lenses, or tripod. They should become extensions of your hands, like an artist’s brush,

www.joedohertyphotography.com

This Month’s Member Photos

Larry Miller

Sunrise on the Rivo Alto Canal in the Naples section of Long Beach 24

Seed pods of a red-eyed wattle shrub in Rancho Palos Verdes

Rock formations on the Laguna Beach coastline

The Star Fountain at the A

Adamson House in Malibu.

Susan Manley

Denizens of the Valley of Fire

Some pandemic downtime fun. This is a necklace of brightly colored 1” cotton pom poms laying on a glass pane, with another glass pane above it that has water droplets on it. That top pane was cleaned really thoroughly, and then I wiped it down with RainX, before taking the shot with my 90mm macro.

Wild Boar - proof pigs can fly.

So, even though the bobcats beat us on our last photo trip, I was able to shoot this feral house cat hunting up at Sepulveda Basin. They work just like the bigger cats, only I don’t have to fear being eaten.

A Sea Otter pup taking a nap on mom’s belly

Great Basin Blonde Tarantula (try spotting one of these while driving a truck!). You may ask, why does a tarantula cross the road. Answer, for love. And he’s a handsome bugger, isn’t he?

My last submission for SCCC included some Milky Way shots from Trona Pinnacles. But looking the other way, I took this 1 hour composite shot of the north star. I didn’t perform the stacking until recently, and when I did, I noticed something odd about it; green stars? There are no green stars. It turns out that I focused the individual images so well that stars closer to the middle of the image fell on single pixels. I’m not normally much of a pixel peeper, but to find out where the green was coming from required it. As many people may know, the sensor is covered by a filter with red, green and blue patches covering it, with a red patch over one pixel, a green patch over the next, and blue over another pixel. The first step in converting data straight off the sensor is converting it to an image where each single colored pixel is converted to pixels with all 3 colors in each pixel. That’s done by mathematically mixing the colors of the pixels in the vicinity of the pixel in question. In this case, those are black, so any black pixels surrounding a single illuminated green patch pixel, get some green and the pixel itself stays green, even if there are no green stars! And since the filter pattern includes 2x as many green patches as either the red or the blue, the green pixels predominate. That, was a tough one to figure out and explain. I hope that explains it. Anyway, I sure do like the way it looks! 37

The Nevada Northern Railway Museum in Ely, Nevada,

is a must-see for any train enthusiast, and even non-enthusiasts who love photographing something different. The museum is the railyard of the nearby mine that was abruptly shut down in 1983, with an expectation to re-open. When the mine re-opened, the railyard did not, and everything was in stasis. Rather than sell the yard for scrap, the company deeded it to a non-profit museum, and that’s why it exists today. Employees run and maintain the engines and the rails, give rides to tourists, and allow people like us to walk anywhere we like as long as we (a) look both ways when crossing the track, and (b) don’t climb on the engines. Also, there are a couple of famous cats named Dirt and DJ (Dirt Junior).

SIERRA CLUB ANGELES CHAPTER CAMERA COMMITTEE

MAY 2015

SIERRA CLUB ANGELES CHAPTER CAMERA COMMITTEE

MAY 2015

Zion National Park Having lived in the Colorado Mountains most of my life, I have always harbored a great deal of pride about the beauty of Fall in the Rockies. A recent trip to Zion National Park with my old friend Basil and Brent Paull where we were lucky enough to hit the absolute peak of color in the Park shook my beliefs to the core about the number one destination for fall color. The beauty of this spectacular National Park is incomparable and the canyon of the Virgin River on a very special fall day like this one must be one of the top items on any landscape photographer’s bucket list.

SIERRA CLUB ANGELES CHAPTER CAMERA COMMITTEE

MAY 2015

SIERRA CLUB ANGELES CHAPTER CAMERA COMMITTEE

MAY 2015

The Windmill photos are submitted to illustrate the theme of “Clean Renewable Energy”. They were taken on a recent fall day in the desert.

Balanced Rock in late afternoon from White Domes Road

Good eats. Dry year means bighorn sheep are often close to paved roads where sheet runoff has resulted in more plant growth. 48

I visited Nevada’s Valley of Fire State Park in November, doing a number of backcountry hikes. This is a park where you can choose any canyon at random and have a wonderful wilderness experience.

Exiting the lower end of Pastel Canyon

Late afternoon light on sandstone slickrock, with Gibraltar Rock in the background.

Whale Eye Arch from ‘Eye-of-the-Whale Canyon.’

Lichen-covered rock in the narrows of upper ‘Eye-of-the-Whale Canyon.’ 49

Utah Blue Roads - The Path Less Traveled In late October, I set out for Hurricane, Utah from Denver to meet up with Brent Paull and John Nilsson for a photo workshop. My choice was Interstate the entire way or take a back road. Since I was alone in a Jeep, there was no choice!!! Heading south on Hwy 24, I came to a fork in the road at Hanksville, Utah. Choosing Hwy 95, then taking 276, I was heading toward Bullfrog. Burr Trail Road was in my sights. The following is a description and an item on the ‘do again bucket’ list . 50

Located just outside the northeast region of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Bullfrog, the Burr Trail offers excitement for the adventurous explorer. Views of features like the Henry Mountains, Waterpocket Fold, the Red Circle Cliffs, Long Canyon, and Pedestal 52

Alley await the traveler who wishes to explore this interesting road. To fully enjoy the journey always be well prepared. Make sure you have plenty of water, a first aid kit, and proper footwear. 53

From the SCCC Fall Colors Trip

This month we are in Northern California, enjoying the wonder of the big trees and the small mushrooms and other fungi nurtured by the soil around them. There is much I need to learn about these organisms, including their names, but I wanted to share some of my early shots with you.

Beverly Houwing

After not traveling for over a year, I finally made it back to Africa. I went to one of my favorite national parks in Zambia, Kafue National Park. We stayed at a couple lodges in the center of the park of the eastern border along the Kafue River. There we could drive in the park or boat to see different animals and scenery. Our last stop in Kafue was in the far north of the park called Busanga Plains. The area is a huge floodplain that dries out, except for a good number of channels and then it is completely under water after the rainy season. We were there at the end of the dry season. The last stop of the trip was at a lodge on the Zambezi River near Livingstone.

A Pied Kingfisher comes in for a landing on a tree branch along the Zambezi River.

A male lion walking across the open grassland on the Busanga Plains. He has to leap over water and cross many channels that flow throughout the area. The lions here are thriving with 22 in the pride.

Back to Africa!

A hippopotamus in the Kafue River makes a huge, gaping yawn while the sunset reflects golden and orange ripples in the water.

A herd of lechwe traverse the water channels that crisscross the plains by leaping over them.

Left - Top: The trees and lush green vegetation are reflected in the still water of the Kafue River in Kafue National Park, Zambia. This part of the river has many small islands and large boulders that make it tricky to navigate. Left - Bottom: An amazing sighting of a pack of wild dogs on the Busanga Plains. There are 8 adults and 9 pups, which are these cute little guys. The following day we tracked them down and watched them hunt (and catch) a young Hartebeest. This Page Top - Four Yellow-billed Ox-peckers perched on the back of a Roan antelope in the Busanga Plains. This Page Bottom - Sunset on the Zambezi River.

Beverly Houwing, hts Reserved

Jeff Gottesman

Marbled Godwit with Willet friends

American Avocet

Marbled Godwit

Double-crested Cormorant

Great Egret

Sleepy Hollow Farm

Autumn

In Vermont

I saw a photo of Sleepy Hollow Farm 20 years ago and I promised myself I would travel to Vermont someday to capture this beautiful location. During my first visit in early October, overcast skies provided soft, even light. A few days later, I returned to find morning fog that added drama to the scene. Moss Glenn and Warren falls are located in the Green Mountains and are easily accessible along Route 100. 70

Moss Glen Falls

The Black and White Pages

From the summit of Mt. Starr, which is above Mono Pass and Mosquito Flats at the end of the road in Rock Creek. The view is looking south towards Ruby Lake, Mt. Abbot and Bear Creek Spire.

John Fisanotti Nikon D3000 Nikor 20mm f/2.8 F/6.3 @1/100, ISO 100

Griffith Park to Metropolis

John Nilsson Leica M-10Monochrome Macro-Elmar-M1 90mm f/22 @ 1/250 ISO 1000

Wild Burros Monument Valley

John Nilsson Leica M-10 Monchrome Zeiss 35mm f/13@1/500 ISO 800

Contributor Bios

Steve Anderson

John Clement

Steve worked primarily in the conventional

John began his career in photography in the early 70’s after graduating from Central Washington University with a double major in Geology and Geography. Since then he has earned a Masters of Photography from the Professional Photographers of America. He has received over 65 regional, national and international awards for his pictorial and commercial work. His photographs grace the walls of many businesses in the Northwest and has been published in numerous calendars and coffee table books. He has provided photographs for Country Music Magazine and for Northwest Travel Magazine. He has supplied murals for the Seattle Seahawks Stadium and images for The Carousel of Dreams in Kennewick, WA. Current projects include 17 – 4x8 foot glass panels featuring his landscapes in Eastern Washington for the Pasco Airport Remodel. Last year he finished a major project for the Othello Medical Clinic where almost 200 images were used to decorate the facilities ranging in size from 24” to 35’ in size. His work can be viewd at:

medium of Black and White silver-based photography for many years as he explored the natural landscape of the local San Gabriel Mountains and his beloved High Sierra in California. In the last 20 years he has engaged in digital photography as it has opened up new avenues and excitement about making images of the natural scene. His interest in photography began in junior high school when he developed his first roll of film from a Kodak Brownie camera. He became very interested in combining photography and traveling adventures as a member of the Highlanders, a mountaineering club at Pasadena City College. His work turned more serious during military service as the landscape became his focus of attention. Steve’s interest in the environmental movement, starting in his college days, led him to actively seek ways of using his photography to help in a personally significant way. He joined the Mono Lake Committee 40 years ago and has been an active leader in the Sierra Club since 1981. He served as the chairperson of the Camera Committee of the Angeles Chapter for 5 years.

www.johnclementgallery.com John Clement Photography Face Book Professional page The Kiona Winery in Benton City, and at Allied Arts Gallery in Richland, WA.

Steve’s images have appeared in Sierra, the Southern Sierran, Images of the West, A Portrait of Bodie, and the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter Schedule of Activities. Some of his monochrome images were significant contributions to help save Mono Lake. He has had work shown in a number of local galleries. Steve was the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument Artist in Residence in 2015. Steve has published four photography books that are available through Blurb.com. “My images sum up my feelings about the grandeur of nature. It is never just one thing that touches me when I try to capture a moment, but always a vast array of emotional and photographic textures. Most of my images are therefore complex and detailed.” Email: sandersonimagery@outlook.com Viewingwebsite:www.pbase.com/spanderson 84

JW Doherty

John Fisanotti

Joe Doherty grew up in Los Angeles and developed his first roll of film in 1972. He has been a visual communicator ever since. He spent his teens and twenties working in photography, most of it behind a camera as a freelance editorial shooter. He switched careers when his son was born, earning a PhD in political science from UCLA specializing in American politics and research methods. This led to an opportunity to run a research center and teach at UCLA Law, where he became best known as an empirical bankruptcy scholar. After retiring from UCLA in 2016 he continued to consult, but now he and his wife Velda Ruddock spend much of their time in the field, across the West, capturing the landscape.

As a youth, John’s interest in photography stemmed from an interest in astronomy. His first photos were attempts to photograph the night sky using a folding Kodak camera, that once belonged to an uncle. Later, John used a 35mm rangefinder camera to photograph nature, particularly the San Gabriel Mountains above his home in La Crescenta. After high school, John sold his telescope to purchase a 35mm SLR camera outfit. John was a photography major in his first three years of college. He has used 35mm, 2-1/4 medium format and 4x5 view cameras. John expected to be a commercial photographer. His personal work leaned heavily to shooting landscapes and outdoors. In 1977 John changed majors. After graduating from California State University Los Angeles with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Urban Studies in 1979, John’s first post job college was in a commercial photo laboratory. In 1980, he pivoted from photography and began his 32-year career in public service. John worked for four Southern California cities in city planning, community development and redevelopment, and concluded his career as a Project Manager for the Culver City Redevelopment Agency. During these decades, he continued to shoot outdoor scenic images whenever possible. After retiring from public service in 2012, John has pursued his astronomical and photographic interests. Beginning in 2013, John has been a telescope operator for the 60" reflector telescope at Mt. Wilson Observatory. And John has increased his photographic portfolio concentrating on outdoors, landscape, travel and astronomical images. Beginning in 2018, he has expanded his repertoire to include architectural and real estate photography. Occasionally, John has been fortunate to have photographs selected for various exhibitions or publications. He currently shoots with Nikon DSLR cameras. John’s photographic websites: Landscape, Travel and Astronomical images http://www.johnfisanottiphotography.com; Architectural and Real Estate photography are at http://www.architecturalphotosbyfisanotti.com. Contact John at either jfisanotti@sbcglobal.net or fisanottifotos@gmail.com. 85

Phil Witt

Velda Ruddock

Phil Witt has been photographing nature since he got his first SLR camera in the late 70s. An avid birder, he is a volunteer at the Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary of NJ Audubon in Bernardsville, where he coleads the photography workshop series. He is currently on NJ Audubon’s Board of Directors. He is a past president of the Camera Naturalist Photo Club, and program chair of the Somerset County Camera Club. He judges photography competitions and presents instructional programs at photography clubs throughout New Jersey. He received the NJ Federation of Camera Club’s 2017 Citation for service to photography in the state.

Creativity has always been important to me. I received my first Brownie camera for my twelfth birthday and I can’t remember a time I’ve been without a camera close at hand. I studied the social sciences and art, and later earned a Masters degree in Information and Library Science degree. All of my jobs allowed me to be creative, entrepreneurial, and innovative. For the last 22 years of my research career I was Director of Intelligence for a global advertising and marketing agency. TBWA\ Chiat\Day helped clients such as Apple, Nissan, Pepsi, Gatorade, Energizer, and many more, and I was considered a leader in my field.

He and his wife enjoy traveling the world for photography--Antarctica, the Galapagos, Tanzania, Iceland, Costa Rica, among others.

During our time off, my husband, Joe Doherty and I would travel, photographing family, events and locations. However, in 2011 we traveled to the Eastern Sierra for the fall colors, and although we didn’t realize it at the time, when the sun came up over Lake Sabrina, it was the start of change in our careers.

When not birding or photographing, he is a (mostly retired) forensic psychologist, specializing in legal cases and court testimony. https://philwitt.smugmug.com

By 2016 we had both left our “day jobs,” and we started traveling – and shooting nature – big and small – extensively. Our four-wheel drive popup camper allowed us to go to areas a regular car can’t go and we were – and are – always looking for our next adventure.

Susan Manley

Paul Reinstein

Susan Manley has more than 35 years experience as a photographer. Her career consisted mainly working in a Communications Department writing and shooting a wide variety of public relations and photojournalism photos. Since she retired approximately ten years ago, she switched her focus onto nature photography including landscapes and wildlife in America.

I have two lifelong hobbies; photography and fine woodworking. My father fostered both those interests. At 14, right before I went on a 1 week backpacking trip around Yosemite Valley with my friend Joe (16) who could drive, my father taught me the basics of using a camera on an Olympus camera that shot half frames on 35mm film. Can you imagine allowing a 14 year old to do that in today’s world? By 20, I was fully independent. In my 20s, I bought a Minolta SRT101, and I also started dabbling in woodworking as a way to have simple furniture while working my way through college (Biochemistry, UCLA). I even had a simple B&W darkroom for a while. I shot mostly landscapes. After getting my degree, I decided I didn’t like working in that field, so I went back to school, and worked my way through a masters degree (Electronics Engineering, CSULB). I spent the majority of my career at The Aerospace Corp, working mostly on electrical power systems for rockets and satellites for the Air Force, NASA and the NRO. During that time, when not working, I began focusing mostly on fine woodworking, shooting occasional snapshots. By 50, my woodshop was enviable, my wife and I were flipping homes on the side, I was a manager at work, and digital cameras reignited my interest in photography. When the music stopped in real estate, we built our own home in Mar Vista. Then, my boss, and his boss both died unexpectedly (and independently), a huge layoff was announced, and I was retired. I got my general contractor’s license, and tried that for a couple of years. I retired fully at 60, earlier than I would have imagined.

ssnmanley@Yahoo.com

By 2016, I had amassed a number of bird photos, just by happenstance, so I decided to see what I could get that number up to, just for fun. That turned out to be eminently satisfying, albeit expensive, and now I spend much of my time shooting birds locally or travelling worldwide to do so. My big birding trips so far include the Galapagos and the UK, and my list is presently up to about 350 species, and I have a small presence on Instagram and on Flickr https://www.flickr.com/photos/preinstein54/. I’ve sold a few images upon request, several of my friends have my images on their walls, and I still dabble in woodworking, including making my own frames.

Jeff Gottesman

Wiebe Gortmaker

I first became interested in photography back in high school sometime in the last century. My father worked for many years in a professional camera store in Pittsburgh (Kadet Photo Supply) where he did the picture framing.

I am based in Boulder, Colorado and consider myself a full-time hobbyist. After retiring from the airlines, I have devoted a high percentage of my time to travel and learning photography.

I spent a few summers working in that camera store mostly doing shipping and receiving but every chance I got, I would be talking with and learning from the salesmen who knew everything about cameras and photography.

In the past few years I have moved from travel photography to primarily wildlife and landscape photography. Prior to the airlines, I spent considerable time in remote areas of Alaska and Central and South America. I am now able to revisit those places with a focus on photography.

At the end of the summer they gave me a used Pentax Spotmatic 500 and there began my love of photography. I did all the shooting and darkroom work for my high school yearbook and later as a photographer and writer for college newspapers. At the same time, I developed a love of nature and graduated college with a degree in Geology (with several electives in Photography). That was where all the environmentalists spent their time.

I have lived in Colorado since college and spent a lot of time flying, hiking, and climbing in the wild places in my back yard. With my new hobby I am looking at these places in a new way, trying to preserve the image and feelings I have of the wildlife and landscape. This process motivates me to learn and discover.

The love of nature and photography were a perfect match and after retiring from IT a few years ago (there was a career change somewhere in there) I’ve returned to those early loves and am able to spend a lot more time on photography, enjoying workshops and especially the Sierra Club trips :).

Wiebe is concentrating on his photography at this time and is not currently active on social media. He does plan to have a website together in the near future.

My photos can be seen at https://www.jeffgottesmanphotography.com/

Joyce Harlan I have always loved photography! First to document and save photos of my sons. We had little to no money for film developing in the beginning but I kept shooting. Every year my husband would ask me what I wanted for Christmas/birthday and I would always say “develop my film”!! After several years he finally did, but everything was yellow but the memories were there. From there, when I was coaching downhill skiing for Westside Special Olympics, I took photos of my athletes and created a book for each of them. The pure joy I saw on their and their family’s faces was priceless!

Allen Johnson I'm a PhD in psychology with a passion

for photography. I'm also the author of several books: a memoir on France entitled "Pardon My French" and two novels: "The Awakening" and "Spike, Benny, and Boone."

Finally, I was at Mammoth skiing with my family (grandkids!!) and we had lunch at Bergers Burgers. They had the most gorgeous landscape photos on they walls. I asked the waitress about them and she said they were by Vern Clevenger and that he often came in for lunch after skiing and she would point him out for me. She did, I asked about workshops and he said “absolutely”. That was it!! I took one workshop from him and many, many more with Mountain Light in Bishop with Jack Dykinga, John Shaw, Jerry Dodrill, David Meunch and Jeff Foote. One of the most memorable was their ten day inaugural rafting the Grand Canyon trip with Jack & Jerry. Over the years I have been blessed to travel the world with Muench Workshops (Cuba, Yukon, Mongolia, Alaska) Visionary Wild (Botswana, Kenya, Patagonia, Greenland), Aurora Expenditions (Antarctica), and Nathaniel Smalley (Iceland, Maine fall color). Photography mixed with travel has been my favorite soul food for a long, long time. And will continue to be for as long as I am able. Sadly, I am missing a trip to China in April and Uganda in June to see the gorillas. But I’ll get there as soon as it is safe again.

Butch Mazzuca

John Nilsson

I was born in Chicago IL and attended the University of Dayton. After graduation I served four and half years as a helicopter pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps.

I have a fond memory from my early years of my father dragging me to the Denver Museum of Natural History on a winter Sunday afternoon. He had just purchased a Bosely 35mm camera and had decided he wanted desperately to photograph one of the dioramas. I distinctly remember the display was of several Seal Lions in a beautiful blue half-light of the Arctic winter that required a tricky long exposure. The transparency he showed me several weeks later was spectacular and mysterious to my young eyes. Although the demands of Medical School made this photo one of the first and last he shot, at 5 years old I was hooked.

My last official ‘work' position was President & CEO of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co-Denver. I Retired in 1999 and moved to Vail where I taught skiing, a “fundamentals of photography” class at our local community college and wrote (still do) commentary for the Vail Daily Newspaper. I Started taking pictures in 2008 when my wife Bobbi “talked me” into traveling to Africa (we returned seven more times! ) My images have been published in Shutter Bug Magazine, Sarasota Magazine, Travel Africa Magazine (5 times) and Africa Geographic (6 times including two photo essays) I consider myself a generalist although African wildlife and landscape photography are my favorites.

The arrival of the digital age brought photography back to me as a conscious endeavor - first as a pastime enjoyed with friends who were also afflicted, and then as a practitioner of real estate and architectural photography during my 40 years as a real estate broker. Since retiring and moving to Los Angeles, I have continued my hobby as a nature and landscape photographer through active membership in the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter Camera Committee and my vocation as a real estate photographer through my company Oz Images LA. The camera is now a tool for adventure!

www.OzImagesLA.com dtlanow@gmail.com

David DesRochers

Larry Miller

In the summer of 2000, David traveled from New Jersey to Montana to visit Glacier National Park. With camera in hand, he attempted to capture the amazing wildlife and beautiful landscapes. Although his photos were somewhat disappointing, the experience inspired him to study the art of photography and travel the world to witness and capture the wonders of our natural world.

I bought my first SLR camera in 1985 to document hikes in the local mountains that I did with friends. My first Sierra Club Camera Committee outing was a wildflower photo shoot in the Santa Monica Mountains led by Steve Cohen in 1991. Since then the SCCC has introduced me to many other scenic destinations, including the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, the Gorman hills, Saddleback Butte State Park, East Mojave National Preserve, the Eastern and Southern Sierras, Point Reyes, the Big Sur Coast, the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, Red Rock Canyon State Park, Tejon Ranch, and Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada. At the same time, my own photography trips gradually expanded in scope over the years to include most of the western National Parks and National Monuments, with the Colorado Plateau becoming a personal favorite.

David is a member of the North American Nature Photography Association and an Associate Naturalist with The New Jersey Audubon Society. Over the past 15 years, David has shared his knowledge teaching workshops, leading tours, and writing articles. David’s photos have been recognized in several international competitions and have been published in books, magazines and on calendars. David is an accomplished public speaker and has appeared at events including the New England Camera Club Council Annual Conference (2014 & 2016), the Connecticut Association of Photographers and New Jersey Audubon's Birding Festival.

Photography is an avocation that took a backseat to my career during the 32+ years that I worked as a radar systems engineer at Hughes Aircraft/ Raytheon Company. Since retiring in 2013, I’ve been able to devote more time to developing my photographic skills. Experiencing and sharing the beauty of nature continues to be my primary motivation.

David's experience judging photo competitions has taken him as far as Budoia, Italy to judge the Bio Photo Contest. In 2014, David was awarded the New Jersey Federation of Camera Clubs Citation in recognition for his contributions to the advancement of the art and science of photography in the state.

www.desrochersphography.com

Thomas Loucks Tom has been a longstanding amateur photographer, but only in recent years has he had more serious time to devote to the hobby. He garnered first place in National Audubon’s 2004 Nature’s Odyssey contest and has placed well in several contests by Nature’s Best, Denver Audubon’s Share the View, and the Merrimack Valley’s George W. Glennie Nature Contest. He has two images of “Alumni Adventurers” on permanent display at Dartmouth College. He is also the incoming President of Mile High Photo Club in Denver (2021-2022) where he currently serves as VP and as a Director. His photographic interests are landscape, wildlife, and travel photography, though his favorite subjects are alpine landscapes. Recently retired, Tom is looking forward to spending more time on photography and other outdoor activities. He recently signed up as a volunteer with Denver Audubon to assist with field trips and hopes that those will soon resume.

Basil Katsaros A native of Denver, Colorado, I first attended Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon. Not understanding humidity or seeing the sun for 30 days, I transferred to the University of Colorado. During my junior year, a roommate needed money and sold me his Pentax 35mm camera. That moment launched my interest in photography. My interests and knowledge were expanded by the Nikon School of Photography. In the earlier days, subject matter centered around my twin sons with travel photos and Christmas cards. As a real estate appraiser, I used photography in much of my work. I must admit, however, the 70’s primarily utilized a Polaroid as film was too time consuming for client demands. I have since graduated to two Nikon digital cameras and too many lenses. While attempting to downshift in work, I occasionally use my photography skills to testify as an expert witness in real estate. My interests include travel, landscape, and wildlife photography. I’m not smart enough to have a website, maybe someone can show me how. Most images are for personal enjoyment and mainly remain in my computer. My goal at this time is too not only become a better photographer, but to conquer Photoshop!!!

Peter Bennett

Karen Schuenemann

My mother’s father was a studio photographer on the Coney Island Boardwalk, my father’s father was an artist in Germany, and my father was a filmmaker and amateur still photographer in New York, so naturally I decided to pursue a career in music. Luckily after hearing the error of my ways, I picked up my father’s old Nikkormat and haven’t looked back since.

Karen Schuenemann is a Nature and Wildlife photographer frequently found exploring the parks and wetlands of Southern California. In 2015, she left her retail management job to pursue her passion for Wildlife Photography. Her work focuses on “Urban Wilderness” and she spent over 100 days photographing the Red Foxes in her neighborhood in 2020 during the COVID 19 pandemic. She recently was awarded a Highly Commended Award-Bird Behavior in the 2018 Wildlife Photographer of the Year sponsored by the London Natural History Museum. Her work was exhibited in Davos, Switzerland at the World Economic Summit in 2019. In 2017 she was the Professional Honorable Mention in the National Audubon Contest. Her work has hung in the London Natural History Museum and has been included in shows at the San Diego Natural History Museum, The G2 Gallery, Palos Verdes Art Center and Armenia Conservation Show. She has been published in Nature’s Best, Audubon Magazine, USA Today, NANPA, Shadow and Light Magazine, and American Photo Magazine. In addition, she has garnered numerous awards from Best in Show in Los Angeles County Fair to Honorable Mention in the National Park Contest. She enjoys writing about her photographic adventures and has written articles for NANPA and enjoyed being a judge in several photography contests. She was the 2019 President for the Photography and Digital Artists group of the Palos Verdes Art Center and was the volunteer Faculty Coordinator for the NANPA High School Scholarship Program in Tennessee. She currently leads workshops to a variety of locations from Bosque Del Apache, to the Grand Tetons to Africa and Central America with her company, Wilderness At Heart Photography, LLC. She enjoys teaching classes at Samy’s Cameras in Los Angeles and Tuttle Cameras in Long Beach.

From 1998 to 2014 I ran my own stock agency, Ambient Images, which specialized in photos of New York and California. In 2015 I formed Citizen of the Planet, LLC, devoted exclusively to the distribution of my stories and work that focus on environmental subjects such as water and air quality issues, fossil fuels, drought, green construction, alternative energies and urban farming. My editorial work has appeared in numerous publications and books, and I am privileged to have my fine art prints hang in museums, the California State Capitol and many other private institutions and collectors. I’ve also had to opportunity to have worked with many local environmental organizations including FoLAR (Friends of the LA River), Heal the Bay, Algalita Marine Research Foundation, Communities for a Better Environment, and the LA Conservation Corps. I have been an instructor for over ten years at the Los Angeles Center of Photography (formerly the Julia Dean Photo Workshops). I love teaching photography and having the opportunity to pass on what I was given from all the amazing teachers I’ve had the honor to learn from.

Karen currently celebrates life with her husband and two dogs in St. George, Utah. 93

Bob Beresh

Bob Cates

Los Angeles is where commercial photographer Bob Beresh will always call home, but having recently relocated to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, he is truly a global creative. His commercial photography includes work for clients in automotive, aviation, corporate executive and business portraiture, architecture, and product work. Bob’s photos are influenced by his observations in nature, travel and sports to deliver memorable images.

Bob Cates led his first Camera Committee outing in 1975 as co-leader with Allan Der, so his roots go way back. He has chaired the Angeles Chapter History Committee since the mid-70s, and as such has archived tens of thousands of photographic images, many from his own documentation of Club outings, but also images donated from hundreds of Club members. He is primarily a nature/landscape photographer, but is also drawn to macrophotography— primarily of botanical subjects. Since 2015 he has lived in Pasadena and frequently may be found haunting the grounds of the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens.

Bob served two years as US Forest Service Artist in Residence to interpret and showcase the beauty of the Angeles National Forest and is past Chairman of the Sierra Club Camera Committee, Angeles Chapter.”

bentriver.co bobbereshstudio.com

Causes, Notes, and Announcements

Notes and Announcements Sierra Club National Chapter Has authorized limited and controlled day and overnight outings. However, in-person indoor meetings are still on hold due to Covid-19 Let’s all look forward to the 2022!

Susan Manley Writes: fyi ----- Forwarded Message ----From: Marina Scarr <birdphotoinfo@gmail.com> To: Marina Scarr <miniminsk@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 5, 2021, 12:03:01 PM PDT Subject: Jeffrey Munoz of Distinctive Expeditions & Rainforest Photo Tours Hello: Attached are 3 notarized affidavits concerning thefts by Jeffrey Munoz who you may know is a Costa Rican nature photography tour leader/guide. These affidavits (attachments not included due to personal information) have been delivered to the Organismo de Investigacion Judicial (OIJ) in Costa Rica which is the equivalent of our FBI for their consideration in bringing criminal charges against Munoz. The OIJ has advised that the complaints are currently being investigated. The same documents have also been delivered to the Instituto Costarricense de Turismo (ICT) which is the Costa Rican Bureau of Tourism. (One of the Affidavits is in Spanish because it was prepared by the Costa Rican Consulate and outlines Munoz’ theft of a Canon 500mm lens.) While I have had no personal dealings with Munoz, it seems time that he be exposed in an effort to spare fellow nature photographers from falling prey to one of his schemes. Please click on this link and read the reviews from some of his victims. https://www.trustpilot.com/review/distinctiveexpeditions.com. While this email relates specifically to Munoz, unscrupulous practices are becoming more commonplace and several tour leaders have recently been outed on social media. Please do your due diligence when choosing a workshop leader or guide. Don’t simply rely on name recognition and/or assumed reputation. Check the reviews closely and obtain referrals from other photographers. Closely read the fine print of all cancellation and refund policies. Finally, remember that travel insurance can act as a safety net. Thank you in advance for your time. Marina Scarr

Joe Doherty Writes: I was awarded 1st Place (Photography - Color) in the Yosemite Sierra Artists 50th Anniversary Exhibition (online) for my Fall Color photo at North Lake in 2020. The link to the exhibition is here: https://yosemitearts.com/ysa50/

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Velda Ruddock and Joe Doherty are pleased to announce that they are both publishing calendars this year. In her work, “Flowers in a Time of Quarantine,” Velda includes photographs that she created in response to the pandemic shutdown. “It became essential for me to look for beauty where I could. Often that was through flowers. Photographing them in my studio was surprisingly intimate, and the flowers themselves seemed to express how I‚ WE‚ felt during this time of isolation, how we missed others, or might be bored, how we looked for order in our lives, and how we learned to be excited about small things now, like the way the sun hits our face.” The collection of photographs Joe includes in “The Public’s Land 2022” are drawn from his travels near and far. This is the 4th in a series of calendars in which he celebrates land that is owned by the public, and managed for the public, by local, state, and federal agencies. Thus the subjects include grand national parks and local wildlife reserves. “These places would not exist without a political and cultural effort to preserve them for future generations. The Sepulveda Basin is as worthy of that effort as Yellowstone, and perhaps needs it more.

The calendars can be ordered from https://joe-doherty.squarespace.com/ordering

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Get out there and get involved! Our natural world is under attack and we all need to fight to preserve the things that we hold dear.

CONTRIBUTE

YOUR TIME, YOUR DOLLARS.... OR BOTH! Do you know anyone who would like to become a member of the Sierra Club Camera Committee? We are seeking new members to share their outdoor experiences and photographs. If you have a friend or acquaintance whom you feel would benefit from and add to our membership, please ask them to join us at our next meeting.

Membership costs only $15.00 per year - a tremendous value! To join or renew, please mail a check for $15 (payable to SCCC): Wesley Peck, SCCC Membership 3615 Gondar Ave. Long Beach, CA 90808-2814

More members - More to share 103

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The Members’ Choice Photo Contest What’s your favorite photo in this Focal Points Magazine? Continuing with this issue I am asking all members to vote for their favorite photo. Here’s how: 1. Please e-mail me at dtlanow@gmail.com (Heading: Member’s Choice) and let me know your choice for the best photo by the 20th of the month in which the issue is published. 2.

In your e-mail, give me the page number, the name of the photographer, and a brief description so I can identify your choice.

I will tally up the votes and announce the winner in the next issue and republish the photo with a paragraph from the photographer about how it was captured, where, when, and even the dreaded mire of camera, settings and lens. This should be a fun feature!

..........John Nilsson, Publisher

Wanna Go on a Hike? Just in case you didn’t realize it........... The Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club has literally hundreds of outdoor activities that Sierra Club Camera Committee members can attend.

You can find these activities at http://angeles.sierraclub.org/activities If you have an idea for a trip that the Camera Committee might like to plan for, tell a leader. They are always open to ideas of new places to go, new places to shoot. See the end of the newsletter for a list of contact information for the leaders. CST 2087766-40. Registration as a seller of travel does not constitute approval by the State of California. All participants on Sierra Club outings are required to sign a standard liability waiver. To read the liability waiver before you participate on an outing, go to: http://www.sierraclub.org/outings/chapter/forms

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Focal Points

Angeles Chapter Camera Committee Magazine November 2020

Focal Points Sierra Club Camera Committee Magazine December, 2020

Focal Points Sierra Club Camera Committee Magazine January 2021

Do you enjoy receiving your monthly copy of Focal Points Magazine, as well as full membership to the Sierra Club Camera Committtee and access to our extensive programming and trips? If your answer is "Yes" and you want to continue receiving Focal Points Magazine, please send us your check for $15.00 and your full name and email address for a yearly subscription to: Sierra Club Camera Committee c/o Wesley Peck 3615 Gondar Ave. Long Beach, CA 90808-2814

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Photo of the Month

Early snow and frost left Lee Vining Canyon full of aspens with green leaves and brown leaves, and very few yellow or orange leaves. So I spent some time photographing the creek.

Joe Doherty

Nikon D850 Tamron SP 24-70 F2.8 @ 42mm f/8, 1 Sec, ISO 30 106

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The Parting Shot

OK... and who pays the fine on this one? Leader Contacts

Carole Scurlock, Leader

626-794-5207

John Nilsson, Chairman

Allan Der, Leader,

714-892-4857

cscurlock@charter.net

213-266-2224 Leader, Editor - Focal Points Magazine information.sccc@gmail.com

Steve Anderson, Leader

sandersonimagery@outlook.com

ader@sprynet.com

Ed Ogawa - Treasurer

714-962-2054

ed5ogawa@angeles.sierraclub.org

Wesley Peck, Membership

562-420-8543 wesdpeck@gmail.com NOTE: Send membeship Checks to Wesley at 3615 Gondar Ave., Long Beach, CA 90808-2814

Alison Boyle, Leader, Co-Chair: Outings alisoniboyle@icloud.com

John Boyle, Leader jboyle6300@gmail.com

310-994-1019 310-828-6300

Velda Ruddock - Communications Chair vruddock.sccc@gmail.com

Joan Schipper, Leader, Co-Chair: Outings joanschipper@ix.netcom.com

323-828-8334

310- 500-5995

Susan Manley - Programs ssnmanley@yahoo.com

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