Rene Martens
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We did not have a class in April as the date fell on the Anzac Day holiday. Our next session, on Thursday 23 May, is our final session for the first half of the year and the last chance for members to send in photographs for discussion until September. I’m looking forward to receiving photographs in my inbox over the coming weeks and to seeing you all on May 23rd.
Rene Martens
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I began our March session with information about our recent Cruise to NZ - it should be on every ones to-do-list! Milford Sound is an amazing place, leaving you feeling so small. I showed a photo that if you zoomed in you could see a large sloop at the base of the mountain! Another photo had a helicopter in the clouds - again you had to zoom in to see what the black dot was in the photo. Anyway - if you get the chance, go and enjoy a wonder of our earth.
We then discussed a number of interesting images that were sent in by class members. I missed one from Paul, so will have to hang on that one until our next class in May. Click on this link to see the March 'Photo Submissions'. After discussing how to use Histograms on our camera devices, we had a short break. We went through a couple of videos about mistakes - well not really mistakes, just things to look out for when taking photos. The last video was on iPhone Landscape photography by Emil Pakarklis and his iPhone Photography School - if you want some great tips and learning, then Emil's paid online learning website is well worthwhile. We will not be having a class in April as the date falls on the Anzac Day holiday, so the last session for the first half of the year is in May - hope to see you all then. As always - look at the U3A Benalla Website under 'Session Resources' to see all the videos we have watched over the course. Rene Martens Session 1 2024 - "It was good to see some new faces as well as some old (well not that old lol)..."22/2/2024 It was good to see some new faces, as well as some old (well, not that old!), at our first photography class for 2024. We began by discussing the images submitted for discussion by some class members. You can view photos sent by David, Jan, Heather, Helen, Paul and Rina by clicking on this link: I then showed the group this page and the links to Session Resources and Photo Submissions, explaining they are a great way to look through what we have done and revise (or look up) new information as per the video links at the site. I do hope they stay up from last year’s classes. (Editor’s note – they will!) We then previewed three videos which class members can watch in full on the ‘Session Resources’ page.. The first video ‘Photographers Who Got Caught Cheating’ was about 'fake' photography and how it affects competitions. Photos submitted for any publication, as well as for TV, need to be 'real' photos. Even the small changes described in the video cannot be sent to papers/TV/Magazines etc. The next video –‘Using Your iPhone As Your Second Camera for Travel Photography’ - was again quite long and is to be continued at home. iPhones, indeed, any smart phone that has a camera, should really be thought of as a second camera, as we carry them around with us most of the time. Last in the videos ‘Getting Better Photographs from your Phone Camera (including for large prints)’ provided some information about making better phone photos. While we can use our phones to create some lovely photos, we also need to consider their limitations at the same time. Anyway, hoping to see you all at the next class next month.
Rene Martens June 22, 2024 At the beginning of our last session of U3A Photography for 2023 we talked about images supplied by some members of the group. Thank you for sending them in. I then went over a few things that we had discussed over the year, but especially two things: 1) look around and don't just grab a photo and 2) that a photo is only the capture of light being reflected by things that we see. Also, we do need to think about what we want to get out of a photo, not just take a photo.
We then went into AI 'photography', which is becoming more prevalent in our society both professionally and from a social point of view. I went through my thoughts on this as I am only just 'dabbling' with it. An AI photograph can be difficult to distinguish from a photo that has been taken with a device and is, therefore, quite the talking point with professional photographers and even magazines like Australian Geographic. Anyway, we will see what the New Year brings, with photography sessions being offered again next year at U3A. Rene Martens It was good to see the class again in late October and to discuss photos sent to me by Anna and Heather. Their photographs were very good. I did mention though, that when we photograph artwork, we should credit the artist if we intend to use it on social or other media. We then had a look at three videos which seemed to be helpful. The 'Depth Of Field' video appeared to be of particular interest to those who attended, so have a look at it as well as the other two. The Android Camera Apps were also interesting - there seems to be quite a difference in how you can use the phone Camera as opposed to a Camera itself. After these videos, we discussed a couple of AI apps in Nightcafe and Adobe Firefly. I demonstrated some examples, then added an Elephant to a photo I had taken at the Benalla Botanical Gardens. It seems that photography AI Applications, as well as ChatGP applications, will need to be embraced as they become more widely used in our society. It will, however, be more difficult to know if a photograph was made by a person or by AI. We ended the session with a screening of some photos from my recent camping trip to Stringybark Creek. Rene Martens It was good to start up again in September for the second half of the course (well for me lol) and to see the turn out to the Photography class on Thursday. We talked about the photos that were sent to me before starting discussions and sitting back to watch the videos. I hope the lollies I brought helped those in the class to stay awake. We discussed the use of soft boxes and also the framing in the photos. Hopefully this has helped you to look further into how you want to take some photos. I'd like to emphasize again the importance of really 'seeing' what you want to grab and not just grabbing a photo. The videos watched during the session stimulated further thought about photography, with notes from our discussion included below in Session 5 resources:
We had some issues with some of the speech speeds of the presenters, so I am glad these are on video so they can be watched again and again so that you can hear what the presenter has to say. (It can also be helpful to go into Settings at the bottom of the YouTube screen and change 'Playback Speed' to .75). I had another video which didn't work on the day - so will look at this another session in the future.
Great to see everyone and hope you all will come to the next session in October. Rene Hi all,
I do hope to see you all on Thursday with all those smiles and questions as well. Now that the weather seems to be warming up a tad, hope that you have been able to get out and enjoy the weather and possibly grab a few photos. I haven't received many photos as yet (not that it really matters as I can show heaps of mine lol) and hope I can get a few more before Thursday. Regards Rene Martens 0414 779 548 [email protected] A reminder that Photography classes with recommence on the 28th of September from 10 to 12 in U3A Room 1. I will be sending out an email to class members in a week or so with further information.
Rene Martens Our Photography class is now on a break, resuming in late September. Click on Rina Caddy's atmospheric photo below to see our photo submissions to date.
Our May 25 session was my last class for Semester 1 - I advised those who attended that it was my last one before a break, however that I would be returning in September. We went through the photo submissions that were sent in by some of the class this month. It was interesting to see the progress they have made and observe the way they were thinking through the processes involved. We then watched three Youtube videos - 'Better Photos from any Camera', 'Take Amazing Photos' and 'Take Better Photos with your Smartphone' and discussed some of the apects presented in each of them. I stressed again the importance of 'thinking' about their photography rather than just taking a photo.
We also talked about the Photography pages on the U3A website - Home / Session Resources / Photo Submissions - where they can review each of the sessions held so far this year and jog their memories about the things we discussed. I also reiterated what we had seen so far, as well as advised the class that I would still go through the basics again when I get back in September. Our next session will be on Thursday 28th September from 10 to 12 in Classroom 1. Rene Martens |
PhotographyAre you interested in taking more interesting photographs? Do you have a device - mobile phone, tablet - or a reasonably simple camera, SLR which you would like to learn to apply new skills on? This course will also develop confidence in using your camera - whether phone or other - to take creatively composed photographs. This course will suit new members and deepen the understanding and skills of those continuing from last year. Convenor
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Photographs - U3A members; Benalla Art Gallery website; Weebly 'Free' images;Travel Victoria and State Library of Victoria
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