Focal Points Magazine November/December 2023

Focal Points The Magazine of the Sierra Club Camera Committee

Revisiting Great Sites Season by Season November/December 2023

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SCCC Leadership

Chair Programs Treasurer Membership Editor Communications Meetup Instagram Outings Outings

Joe Doherty Susan Manley Ed Ogawa Joan Schipper Joe Doherty Velda Ruddock Ed Ogawa Joan Schipper Joan Schipper Alison Boyle

joedohertyphotography@gmail.com SSNManley@yahoo.com Ed5ogawa@angeles.sierraclub.org JoanSchipper@ix.netcom.com joedohertyphotography@gmail.com vruddock.sccc@gmail.com Ed5ogawa@angeles.sierraclub.org JoanSchipper@ix.netcom.com JoanSchipper@ix.netcom.com AlisoniBoyle@icloud.com

Focal Points Magazine is a publication of the Sierra Club Camera Committee, Angeles Chapter. The Camera Committee is an activity group within the Angeles Chapter, which we support through the medium of photography. Our membership is not just from Southern California but is increasingly international.

Our goal is to show the natural beauty of our world, as well as areas of conservation concerns and social justice. We do this through sharing and promoting our photography and by helping and inspiring our members through presentations, demonstration, discussion, and outings.

We have members across the United States and overseas. For information about membership and/or to contribute to the magazine, please contact the editors or the membership chair listed above. Membership dues are $15 per year, and checks (payable to SCCC) can be mailed to: SCCC-Joan Schipper, 6100 Cashio Street, Los Angeles, CA 90035, or Venmo @CashioStreet, and be sure to include your name and contact info so Joan can reach you.

The magazine is published every other month. A call for submissions will be made one-month in advance via email, although submissions and proposals are welcome at any time. Member photographs should be resized to 3300 pixels, at a high export quality. They should also be jpg, in the sRGB color space.

Cover articles and features should be between 1000-2500 words, with 4-10 accompanying photographs.

Reviews of shows, workshops, books, etc., should be between 500-1500 words.

Copyright: All photographs and writings in this magazine are owned by the photographers and writers who created them. They hold the copyrights and control all rights of reproduction and use. If you desire to license one, or to have a print made, contact the editor at joedohertyphotography@gmail.com, who will pass on your request, or see the author’s contact information in the Contributors section at the back of this issue. https://angeles.sierraclub.org/camera_committee https://www.instagram.com/sccameracommittee/

Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

Focal Points November/December 2023

John Clement at Hanford Reach National Monument. Photo by Nancy Richter DEPARTMENTS

COVER STORY

2 From the Chair

4 Revisiting Great Sites Season by Season

3 Announcements 34 Member Photos 66 Contributors 70 Parting Shot

By John Clement

Repeated visits to the same place, in different seasons and over many years, have formed the basis for a long and interesting life in photography.

COLUMNS

14 Confluence: Ballona Creek and Wetlands

by Peter Bennett

20 Trip Report: Hokkaido in Winter

By Wiebe Gortmaker

26 Trip Report: The Many Wonders of . . . Hanksville

By John Nilsson

Cover Photo: Rays over Rattlesnake Mountain © John Clement 1

From the Chair

The first time I did layout was freshman year of high school. I was on the yearbook staff, and I assisted on a couple of pages. By senior year I was the editor-in-chief. That is when my knowledge of paste-up, press-down letters, and bleeding gutters was at its apex.

Earlier this year, when I took over the helm of this magazine, I remembered some of the principals of layout from high school, but a lot has happened since. With desktop publishing, digital imaging, and online distribution, I have nearly infinite control over every aspect of the publication. And while that might be liberating to some, it’s not in this context.

Fortunately I have friends and family with extensive experience to whom I can turn for advice. Nothing goes out before Velda looks it over, for example. One very direct comment from a professional was “obey the grid.”

Apparently, professional designers can take months to design the layout for a publication before any content is added. That’s the grid. It determines where headlines go, what typeface is used, how blocks of text are arranged, etc.

When content is added to the publication, it has to obey the grid.

These first six issues of Focal Points Magazine have been my attempt to FIND the grid, let alone obey it. Since this is a photography magazine, I looked to other photography magazines for suggestions on how to present the art and editorial content of our members to their best advantage. I’ve been very fortunate that our members are wonderful photographers, and are also very generous of their talents and energies. To the extent that I “obey the grid” it is to show off their work just as I’d like my own to be shown off. It’s a fairly minimalist approach that puts the photographs front and center.

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And that brings us to this issue. I think the grid is done, and not a moment too soon.

The theme of this issue is “places.” John Clement’s lead article is about returning to specific places over decades, in all seasons. His photographs of Was hington landscapes are made with intent, with planning, and with a sensitivity to place that only comes over many years and many visits.

Peter Bennett’s place is the Ballona Creek and Wetlands. His column is a model of conservation photojournalism, using beautiful photographs and prose to invite the reader to care about the subject. It is also an invitation to photograph the place yourself, with directions and hours of operation.

Wiebe Gortmaker’s place is Hokkaido, Japan.

Two issues ago he submitted one-half of these photographs along with text as his Member Photos. The content was so rich that I asked him if he’d like to expand it into this trip report. When you’ve finished this one, I recommend looking at his Member Photo contribution from the same trip in the May/ June 2023 issue.

John Nilsson’s surprising place is Hanksville, Utah. His trip report is both an introduction to a stark and picturesque landscape and a sometimes hilarious description of a two-gasstation town in the middle of nowhere. His photographs of the desert landscape are stellar.

Finally, we put out a call to our members to submit photographs of their favorite places, with a text explaining their choice. Nine of them answered the call.

I hope you all have a great and photogenic holiday season.

Joe Doherty

Announcement

Member Show December 14 @ 7pm

Sea Turtle © Bob Beresh, from the June Member Show

Register for the Zoom meeting (https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/ tZUvcOGprTsrHdymBl9JWwAkgnXN2tO9Cwwg)

Upload your files before 6pm on the night of the show to Dropbox (https://www.dropbox.com/request/r2yxgu7qrKwAgONxu4Mf ) Please limit your upload to 10 images, 2400 pixels on the long side.

Add a two-digit prefix to file names (01, 02, 03, . . . 10) if you want them sorted.

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Cover Story

Revisiting Great Sites Season by Season

Repeated visits to the same place, in different seasons and over many years, have formed the basis for a long and interesting life in photography.

Article and Photographs © John Clement

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November/December 2023

Spring glow, Rattlesnake Mountain

In the beginning My career in photography spanning over 50 years and my passion for capturing the beauty of God’s creation began in the early 1970s, just after I earned a degree in geology. My original career goal was to work for the government of Australia with a job as an exploratory geologist, a five-year commitment. I did not take the job, and I still have not been to Australia.

Instead, I began work as a family portrait

photographer for a company based in St. Louis (Chromolloy Photographic Industries).

During the five years I worked for them, I traveled much of the eastern United States.

My work hours were late afternoons and evenings, so my mornings were free to hone my skills at capturing the beauty of landscapes.

Rattlesnake Mountain In 1975, I resigned my job and returned to Richland, my hometown in eastern 5

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Washington. I developed a friendship with a successful local photographer, Robley Johnson. Robley gave me what turned out to be some good advice: “Get a good shot of Rattlesnake Mountain.” That original “good shot” of our local landmark took me nearly a year to capture, and “Summer Skies” became a best-selling photograph generating sales of nearly a quarter of a million dollars!

Since 1977, I have continued to capture the various moods of Rattlesnake Mountain, bringing in sales of over a million dollars.

This process of photographing the same location over different seasons became a pattern I followed. When I find a location I think has great potential, I visit it repeatedly, recording changes in light, weather, and angles on my Delorme state maps.

A large part of my success is understanding weather patterns in our region to determine when I will travel to a specific location, some times more than 150 miles from my home in Kennewick, WA. Driving up to 300 miles for one image is part of the enjoyment of what I do because there is always something new to see along the way.

Palouse Country Barn One area of particular interest to me is the Palouse, a mainly agricultural area in Eastern Washington and Idaho. Palouse Country Barn, one of my first Palouse images, is located south of Moscow, Idaho about 165 miles from my home. Its unique architectural structure can be seen in only two barns in the Palouse region.

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I never spent time exploring the Palouse until 1983, when I was doing an art show at the Palouse Empire Mall. I began what would be many adventures exploring this unique beautiful landscape of rolling velvet hills. Two years later, in 1985, Palouse Country Barn became the cover photo for my Northwest Drylands calendar. This is still an annual production which began with a realization that the eastern half of Washington was underrepresented in calendars featuring the beauty of the “Evergreen” state.

The calendar led to corporate sponsorships from agricultural business owner Alex McGregor, and to co-publishing, with writer Richard Scheuerman, a variety of books about the Palouse. We are now in the production stage of our 30th anniversary edition of Palouse Country due for release in the spring of 2024.

Boone’s Farm Boone’s Farm is another Palouse location about 150 miles from home. My first view of

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the farm was from the road and did not have the composition I wanted. Mentally orienting the location and studying my map yielded a better location northeast of the farm. In the spring, I finally found the composition I wanted by climbing a ridge.

A winter image of the farm was a greater challenge. Since this was before cellphones, my only access to regional weather was watching the weather channel on television.

Early one morning as a big Pacific winter

storm moved into the region, I headed for the Palouse. By the time I was 25 miles away from my destination, the main roads were being closed because of blizzard conditions. I was familiar with the back roads from previous explorations, so was not to be deterred by the wicked 30-40 mph winds and blinding snow. I worked my way the last 25 miles and parked near the hill I had to climb.

On my first venture out up the hill about 200 yards, the farm was not even faintly visible. I returned to my warm van to wait. Several

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All images Boone’s Farm Focal Points Magazine

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local farmers stopped to see if I needed help.

When I told them I was waiting to take a picture, they just shook their heads and moved on.

After an hour or so, the winds suddenly died down and I realized this might be my only opportunity. Scrambling up the ridge in drifting snow I could see the farm but just barely. After another five minutes, visibility improved and I quickly took four to five shots with my Mamiya RB 6x7 before the winds returned and the farm’s visibility was gone again in the blowing snow. The entire trip took about 11 hours, but I did capture the image I had hoped for.

Rocklyn Zion Church About seven years ago, I discovered what was to become another favorite location. A client requested a picture of Rocklyn Zion Church, a country church sitting on an isolated hilltop surrounded by wheat fields just west of Spokane WA, and about a 120-mile drive from home.

I had taken a reference photograph of the church in the mid-eighties, but before I returned for another photo, I googled images to refresh my memory and to learn what the church currently looked like. Next, I did a satellite search to identify the easiest way to

Spring Evening, Rocklyn Zion Church 11

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access the location and began to watch the weather patterns. I wanted to have an evening shoot with some dynamic clouds in the background.

Several weeks later, a weak weather system moved through the region, and a photographer friend, Rob, and I headed out on a warm July afternoon. When we arrived at the church several hours later, the frontal system was moving from a southwest to northeast direction, lining up beautifully with the church. As the sun set in the west, the eastern sky behind the church was nearly perfect for the image I had envisioned. A 150mm lens on my Olympus OMD gave some compression in the image.

I emailed copy of the image to my client who was thrilled with it and shared with me why she had wanted this photograph. I had taken her brother on several photo seminars in previous years and he and I had occasionally exchanged emails about photographs we had taken. I had not heard from him in several years. His sister told me he had passed away and was buried in Rocklyn’s cemetery several years before. The church was a special place they had attended together when they were growing up.

I have returned to the church during different seasons with the winter image being my favorite. For this photo I waited for temperatures to drop to single digits and a snowstorm to pass through, coating the several trees near the church with rime frost and sparking snow. The next morning when my friend Rob and I headed out the temperature was nine degrees. The winter image was a two-image panorama with the

light and sparkle I had envisioned the day before.

Today My images are the result of not only honing my technical skills but of exploring areas I want to photograph and then watching weather patterns for the right time and conditions. The current technologies such as road cams and weather apps available to photographers have greatly improved our abilities to know what’s going on in specific areas. Over the years I have chosen 30-40 locations that I have photographed in three to four seasons but not always from the same angle.

My camera today is an Olympus OMD with two bodies: one with a 12-40mm 2.8 lens and one with a 40-150 2.8 short telephoto.

Wildflower photos have become my #1 selling images for the past two years. After chasing wildflowers in various locations around the western states, four years ago I decided to grow my own, and now I have three gardens of wildflowers in my own yard.

As a local business I have been greatly blessed with a supportive family and clients across the country. This is not an easy job, because I do all the production, printing, mounting, framing and sales. It has been very rewarding.

I have many interesting, unnerving and crazy stories I could share about this career the Lord has blessed me with. Perhaps later.

Thank you for the opportunity to share a few of my adventures.

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Confluence

Ballona Creek and Wetlands Article and photographs © Peter Bennett The thing I find most fascinating about photographing wetlands is that it gives me the opportunity to perhaps see the landscape as it once was, or as close to it as I can get.

Wetlands are like windows into the past, albeit a small one. Nonetheless, in our urban landscape, glimpses of nature in its original state are rare, and the few surviving wetlands are in many ways the only places we can see what the beautiful California coastline might have resembled.

Of all the wetlands I have photographed in southern and central California, the Ballona Wetlands are by far the one I have visited the most. The reason is simple: I live close to it. I also interact with it often, mostly biking

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down the Ballona Creek bike path to the beach, but I've spent many, many hours exploring on foot as much of it as I can.

No wetlands that I am aware of are close to existing in their original state. Many have been altered or revitalized; some are even in a degraded state, such as the Los Cerritos Wetlands which shares its waterways with oil production facilities. A depressing sight.

The Ballona Wetlands have certainly been battered and bruised over the years. Many know of the long, arduous fight over the adjacent development of Playa Vista, but in 2003, a portion of the remaining wetlands, about 600 acres, was purchased by, or donated to the state, to prevent further

development. It is there you will find the freshwater marsh, home to many species of birds and other wildlife. A trail was built partly around the marsh that took you along the section of the wetlands near Lincoln and Jefferson Blvd, and you could peek through the trees and thick grasses to see the waters and birdlife there. Not great access, but enough to enjoy a pleasant walk.

However, in recent years a homeless RV camp started to grow along Jefferson Blvd. that made visiting that part of the wetlands a fairly unsafe and unsavory place to journey to.

Mountains of trash piled up as well, and I found my visits to photograph the wetlands taper off significantly.

The good news is that in 2022 a small area just north of Fiji Way was opened to the public. It soon became a popular destination to see the wildflowers, coyotes, snakes, birds,

and other fauna and wildlife. And just a couple of months ago the homeless camp was cleared, and all the trash hauled away.

When I first moved to the area in 2008, I was fascinated by Ballona Creek, the concreted flood channel that winds its way down to the wetlands through Culver City and adjoining neighborhoods. I went down one evening to photograph a pedestrian bridge I found particularly interesting. As I sat with my cameras and tripod just a few inches away from the gurgling waters, watching the setting sun, I remember that sense of calm and peace that one experiences when out in nature, and the connectedness that comes with those moments. Yes, I was aware that I was surrounded by concrete, but I was able to take a moment to imagine what this spot might have looked like a hundred years ago when the natural creek flowed along where I was sitting.

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I started to look at old photos of the Ballona Wetlands and Creek. It was as pretty and natural looking a creek as you could imagine.

Back in the 1800s, the Los Angeles River was even temporarily diverted from its original route due to flooding, and became part of Ballona Creek until it reverted back to its current route with its mouth in Long Beach.

The birdlife along the creek is abundant. On my bike rides, I will typically see great blue herons, egrets, pelicans, cormorants, seagulls, ducks, mallards, and others. I would not say I am a bird photographer per se, but I love to include them in the photos of my wetland landscapes as they add context as well as a point of focus.

The wetlands and creek became a popular destination for fishing, hunting, and boating, and the town of Playa Del Rey was built along the lagoon there, housing a hotel and even a racetrack. Oil wells lined the beaches in nearby Venice, and in the 1960s, the area was dissected in half by the dredging and construction of Marina Del Rey. Suffice to say the wetlands, creek, and lagoon have been through a lot over the decades; it is a miracle they have survived at all.

Trash is unfortunately a big part of what flows down the creek, especially after a major rainfall. After a storm, all the trash and toxins from the streets get drawn into storm drains and then into the many storm channels that feed Ballona Creek. The result can be a dramatic and disturbing amount of garbage left piled up along the creek's banks.

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I photographed an egret one day looking for food amidst scattered trash from a recent rain.

The photo was picked up and used as a cover

of Scholastic Magazine, which made me happy. But when I saw the final result I was amazed that they had photoshopped in some additional styrofoam cups and plastic bottles, as if the original image didn't portray it badly enough. You gotta laugh!

During Covid, the wetlands became a sanctuary of sanity, and I found myself taking long walks through the Ballona Wetlands and several other wetlands I found down the coast. It made me feel so grateful to have these places and to appreciate the importance of preserving them.

In recent years, more conflict has developed around the Ballona Wetlands. There is a state plan to do a restructuring of the wetlands. The proposal is essentially a major redistribution of the current wetlands; adding bike trails, walking paths, and creating levees for flood protection. Bulldozers would have to be brought in to, according to the report, move more than two million cubic yards of soil.

Although the plan is supported by some major environmental groups, there is also large opposition. I would sum it up this way: there are those who believe that humans know best what is good for nature, and those who believe that nature does a pretty good job if we just let it be for a while (I'm betting you can see where I come down on this issue).

A couple of years ago I photographed the Malibu Lagoon which had also undergone an

enhancement and restoration project. I can only report what I saw that day, but about a third of the lagoon was covered in algae, and the overall feeling of the place was pretty depressing. I mentioned it looked and felt to me like an abandoned Disney ride.

I am not an expert when it comes to these things, but my hope is they simply do some of the work on the Ballona Wetlands that is obviously needed, but perhaps the dramatic and ambitious plan the state is currently 17

trying to push forward is not in the best interest of the animals and plants that are currently living there. My two cents.

Please visit the Ballona Wetlands and get involved in the preservation of it (however you believe is best). For more information on how to get involved, go to: https://ballona. org/ Access to the recently opened Area A is though an iron gate located on Fiji Way across from the Fisherman’s Village. There is parking available at the entrance. Hours are 8am -1pm, Wed - Sat. The Ballona Bike path runs from Syd Kronenthal Park in Culver City, all the way to the beach in Playa Del Ray, or you can take a fork and head north to Venice and Santa Monica. The bike path can be accessed at most major cross streets along the way.

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Trip Report

Hokkaido In Winter Article and Photographs © Wiebe Gortmaker In a previous issue of Focal Points Magazine (May/June 2023) I submitted some images of Snow Monkeys taken during my Martin Bailey Winter Wildlife Tour of Japan last February. After three days with the monkeys near Nagano on the west side of the island of Honshu we returned to Tokyo and caught a flight to Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido.

Our first stop was at the Akan International Crane Center, a refuge for the Japanese Red Crowned (Tancho) Cranes. These birds are designated as a special natural monument of Japan and have wingspans of 7 to 8 feet and weigh from 15 to 23 pounds. Although difficult to photograph in the subdued light of winter they become more active when it snows. In the attached images the males can be seen jumping several feet in the air to impress the females.

Often found with the Cranes in this area, and at Lake Kussharo to the north, are hundreds of Whooper Swans returning during the winter to escape the harsh Siberian weather.

Although the lake surface freezes in the middle, the waters along the shore stay open because of the many thermal hot springs.

These large birds, cousins to the Trumpeter Swans of North America, can weigh up to 30 pounds and have wing spans of 7 to 9 feet.

After spending the night in sheltered areas around the lake they fly in to open water areas looking for handouts from tourists. The

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rising sun and mist on the windswept lake provide for some great photography.

Eastern Hokkaido contains three national parks. The northernmost finger of land juts into the Sea of Okhotsk and is home to the Shiretoko National Park. Here, the sea ice drifts down from Sakhalin Island and jams between the northeastern tip of Hokkaido and the Kurile Islands. We took an hour-long boat ride out to the pack ice, arriving just before sunrise.

As the sun popped up over the Kurile Islands hundreds of White Tail Eagles and Stellar Sea Eagles, with their distinctive white leading edges on their wings, woke up from their resting places on the ice and began fishing.

After photographing the dramatic eagles soaring and diving for a meal, with the snow covered mountains of Japan as a backdrop, we returned to port. Other wildlife in the area included the Ural Owl with its 4 to 5 foot wing span and the Ezo Red Fox. In addition to the incredible scenery and unique wildlife we were able to enjoy the culture and local cuisine of northern Japan.

Our host, an expat Brit and now a Japanese citizen, is fluent in Japanese. With his assistant and our private coach taking care of all the details we were able to fully enjoy photographing this special place.

For more information about this workshop, visit https://martinbaileyphotography.com/.

Red Crowned Cranes

Red Crowned Cranes and Swans 21

Swans in the Mist

Swans in Flight Focal Points Magazine

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Ural Owl

Ezo Red Fox 23

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Stellar Sea Eagles

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Trip Report

The Many Wonders of . . .

Hanksville Article and Photographs © John Nilsson

Hanksville? Where the hell is Hanksville?

Utah, isn’t it?

I have actually driven through Hanksville many times – on the way to somewhere else.

The town is little more than a couple of businesses along a quiet Utah crossroads that you go through on the way north to Goblin Valley, Green River and then east on I-70 to Arches NP … or traverse south toward God only knows where. I never paid any attention to the place short of stopping at the one gas station when necessary. Little did I know that I would spend four days in Hanksville, finding and photographing some of the most exciting desert scenery imaginable!

Another SCCC member, Mike Caley, and I met at his home in Granada Hills and shared the long drive to Hanksville to meet with SCCC member Basil Katsaros and to attend a symposium hosted by Doug Bennett and his wife Laura. Basil had attended several presentations put on by the Bennetts in the past and enthusiastically sold us on the fourday long adventure. On the way there, Mike and I stopped for the evening in a little burg outside of Bryce Canyon. As there was an epic full moon scheduled for that evening, we went to the canyon overlook at 10:00pm to take a couple of moon-lighted shots. The moon was so bright that my exposures looked

Bryce Canyon by Moonlight Focal Points Magazine

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The Overlook

like broad daylight (shadows and all) at f/4, ½ second and ISO 800! Wow. We reached Hanksville the next day just in time for the opening lecture at Duke’s Slickrock Grill and RV camp - the basecamp for the seminar. After discussing at length Doug’s concept of Dynamic Symmetry in landscape composition, we departed for an evening shoot a few miles down the road from Duke’s. The abundant rains of the weeks before made for some really outstanding flower shots.

Early the next morning, before sunrise, we departed for what was called “The Overlook”.

As the sun started to rise and the light came up, we were treated to some totally unexpected topography like none I have ever seen. It was more like the moon as the sun

peaked over the horizon and changed to what I imagine Mars to be as the sun rose in the artfully clouded sky. I realized we were less than five miles from where we shot the previous evening and yet we had a completely different subject!

And so it went for the next few days. Early morning rising and shooting, back to Duke’s Slickrock Grill for decompression and a great breakfast, a quick nap, and then back out to a new area less than 20 minutes from base camp that offered a completely different subject to shoot. I was taken by the abundant variety of landscape subjects– all offering unparalleled beauty and shapes accented by vivid and subtle colors.

One subject that seemed to attract the most attention from our little group was a 27

Factory Butte Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

Horsethief Butte

Wildflowers after a thunderstorm 29

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formation called Factory Butte which we shot many times at various times of the day from many different locations. It seemed that this subject changed and exhibited a different personality every time we shot it. All day long we were blessed by gorgeous and everchanging skies – the kind you hope for on every landscape trip.

One afternoon we decided to drive north 25 miles to one of my favorite areas – Goblin Valley. Here along with the mythicallyshaped “goblins” we were treated to an encounter with a herd of Pronghorn Antelope and spectacular views of colorful Horsethief Butte. We had just enough time to snap a few shots of the Three Sisters in a cloud filled sky before being inundated by a cloudburst/hail storm of biblical proportions – all bathed in an eerie, magical full sunlight.

At lunch one day we were told of a set of slot canyons 20 miles to the south and decided to take the high noon break to go down and explore them. We were not disappointed.

These canyons were easily accessed by a short walk up a beautiful wash filled with greenery all around. The canyons themselves were short but very dramatic and well worth the effort to get to them. Everywhere we looked we found great subjects for unique landscape shots!

Our final morning found us out again before dawn and traveling only a few miles west of town to an area “over the river and through the woods” where we found the remains of an old, failed subdivision from the ‘30s and ‘40s tucked in behind a high ridge/butte area hidden from the main road. If we had been on the moon and on Mars the last few days, 31

Elephant Rock in Valley of Fire State Park, NV

now we found ourselves on perhaps Pluto at this location - all black, barren volcanic soot and a dramatic two-mile long cliff face running off to the west.

the hard way. His $1,200 drone caught a draft and smashed into the cliff face. We spent the morning looking for it but were sadly unsuccessful!

As many of the attendees of the group had brought along their drones, this was a good time to marvel at the mechanics of drone photography. One of Basil’s friends on the trip was a drone enthusiast who had a terrific time taking his drone up along the top cliff edge of the ridge and slowly running down the length of the bluff, creating some truly dramatic videos and photos. These high bluffs create wind shear that can be pretty treacherous to drones. Our friend found out

The next morning Mike and I pushed off for home. Because of the distance involved we decided to call it a night just outside of Las Vegas at Overton, NV, thinking we’d take a quick detour through Valley of Fire State Park in the morning. This worked out beautifully as we were able to get into the park at sunrise to photograph Elephant Rock. The week before, the area experienced massive flooding which resulted in lots of deep reflective

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puddles to shoot over, exemplified by this photo of the CCC Cabins in the Park.

The Hanksville trip was an outstanding experience filled with a multitude of landscape photography opportunities. We also enjoyed meeting and listening to our award-winning hosts, Laura and Doug Bennett who have been teaching myriad details and secrets of great landscape photography for many years. Thanks to these fine folks we saw terrain that we would never have known existed. I look forward to visiting the area again in the not-too-distant future!

For more information about this workshop, visit Doug and Laura Bennett’s website https://texasschool.org/doug-bennett/.

CCC cabins in Valley of Fire State Park, NV 33

Member Photos

Steve Anderson

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November/December 2023

One of my favorite places to photograph over many years is along Highway 12 and 14 in Southern Utah. There is a wide range of subject ranging from red rock country, slot canyons, forests, to wide vistas. The display of color in the fall is particularly spectacular and as a lover of aspen trees, I'm never disappointed so long as I monitor the internet information about fall foliage.

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Steve Anderson Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

Charlie Hyman Harris Beach in Brookings, Oregon, has been our go-to destination to escape Portland's dreary weather in the winter. When it's in the 30s and raining in Portland, Brookings can be sunny and in the 50s. But that's not the only reason we love Harris Beach. The campground is perched on the cliff overlooking the sea stacks. Only a short hike away (downhill), the beaches provide breathtaking close-up views of the sea stacks and are perfect locations for enjoying spectacular sunsets and sunrises. We never get tired of going there.

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Charlie Hyman Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

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Beverly Houwing One of my favorite places to photograph is Madagascar, especially for macro photography. There are so many unique species of reptiles and insects that are very tiny or have amazing detail. I use a flash and diffuser to get close-up portraits, and especially for the nocturnal species - which are the majority of chameleons and geckos.

Panther Chameleon Focal Points Magazine

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Juvenile Female Parson’s Chameleon

Eye detail of a Giant Leaf-tailed Gecko 41

Beverly Houwing

Day Gecko

Leaf Chameleon Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

Satanic Leaf-tailed Gecko

Leaf Chameleon, with size comparison 43

John Fisanotti

Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

I have been drawn to the Ansel Adams Wilderness in the High Sierra, west of Mammoth Lakes, since I was a teenager. It was an article, on the Sierras in National Geographic, that first attracted my attention to the area. One photo in particular, captured my attention – it was Lake Ediza. Back then, it was in the Minarets Wilderness, which was later re-named for the famous photographer. In the summer of 1971, our family vacationed in Mammoth and I happily found out the lake was a mere, six-mile hike from the trailhead in nearby Red’s Meadow. After begging my parents, who then went and talked with a ranger, they consented to let me go. No one else in my family was up for a 12-mile round trip day hike. The next day, August 4, 1971, I set off alone with a small backpack filled with lunch, water, extra jacket and my Canonet QL19, a 35mm rangefinder camera, loaded with Kodachrome 25. Since that glorious day, I have returned to visit this part of the Sierras in 1972, 1984, 1993, 1999, 2007 and 2022. The pictures accompanying this article are from my most recent visit. Several are of a series I did at Thousand Island Lake, photographing the lake and Banner Peak at various times over a single 24-hour period. The others are either of, or around, Lake Ediza.

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John Fisanotti Focal Points Magazine

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Susan Manley Although I have been to many beautiful places, I return the most frequently to Yellowstone/Grand Teton National Park (GTNP). While they are two separate parks, I combine the two. I have gone in all four seasons. Summer offers many wildflowers. In Autumn the elk rut and there are moose sightings. Winter has snow and snow-coach rides. Spring has the black and grizzly bears coming out of hibernation and wolves year 'round. It is always a joy to see the red dogs (bison babies) and the bear cubs playing and learning new skills. There is a multitude of other wildlife and wonderful landscapes with majestic mountains, steamy thermal features and gorgeous waterfalls. I always come back with great memories and look forward to the next adventure.

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Susan Manley Focal Points Magazine

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Larry Miller Red Rock Canyon State Park in California’s Mojave Desert has long been one of my favorite photographic destinations. Hollywood discovered Red Rock Canyon’s scenic beauty in the 1920s and the park’s colorful, deeply-eroded cliffs and buttes have been drawing landscape photographers ever since. Yet the park is rarely crowded, especially if you venture away from the relatively few marked trails.

For wildflower enthusiasts like myself, the spring blooms that follow wet winters are a noteworthy added attraction.

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Larry Miller Focal Points Magazine

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Rebecca Wilks

Focal Points Magazine

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I pondered the question of my favorite place to shoot for quite a while. Is it the most recent adventure, or perhaps Guatemala after ten or so trips? Is it one of the places I can still find solitude, in Arizona or the Mojave Desert? Or perhaps whole regions like southern Utah? I decided on the national park and forest land north of the Grand Canyon which we call the Arizona Strip.

Mostly, I shoot in the North Kaibab National Forest. Every season (May 15 until first snow) I make the 6-hour trip once a month, and I’m still discovering flowers, fall color, and striking long views.

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Rebecca Wilks Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

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Velda Ruddock

Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

It isn’t easy for me to pick a favorite location. So much depends on where I am at the moment. Recently though, we were in Sonoma County, and from the moment we drove into the woods, opening up on farmland, providing a glimpse of river with the promise of the coast, I was in love. Again. We photographed the wild coast with the fogs and mists over the Russian river as it emptied into the bay at almost first light. We spent days in forests with that special soft light, shooting curving pathways and secret windows, and drank in the smell of cushioned forest floors. We photographed vineyards at sunset, and even starry skies as it started to get dark.

Sonoma feeds my senses and frees my imagination. It will always be a favorite place.

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Velda Ruddock Focal Points Magazine

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Joe Doherty A “favorite place” can sneak up on you. Mine is the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve. I had always been drawn to famous places like Yosemite and Big Sur, even though I didn’t make it there often. A wildlife reserve is not my usual cup of tea, either. And, as a native Angeleno, I’m not a big fan of the visual offerings of the San Fernando Valley. But one morning there was a thick layer of fog over the pond, and the Sun rose, and the Canada Geese came in for a landing, and I was hooked. Plus, it’s only thirteen freeway miles from home.

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Joe Doherty Focal Points Magazine

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Contributors

Steve Anderson Steve has explored the natural landscape of the San Gabriel range as well as the High Sierra using conventional film and digital photography for decades. He has self-published four photo books available through Blurb.com.

His interest in making personally significant contributions to the environmental movement started in college, then expanded into becoming a life-time member of the Sierra Club and an Outings Leader. He has been a member of the Mono Lake committee for over 40 years and was Chair of the Camera Committee for 5 years.

Steve's images have appeared in Sierra magazine, Images of the West, A Portrait of Bodie, the Angeles Chapter Schedule of Activities covers, and the Camera Committee's Focal Points. He has shown work in local galleries, art shows, and was the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument Artist-in-Residence in 2015. Some of his monochrome images in Mono Lake Committee's literature were significant in helping to save Mono Lake. sandersonimagery@outlook.com www.pbase.com/spanderson

Peter Bennett Born and raised in New York City, Peter picked up his first camera and took his first darkroom class at the age of twelve.

Peter spent many years working as a travel photographer, and in 2000 started his own photo agency, Ambient Images. In 2015 he formed Citizen of the Planet, LLC, devoted exclusively to the distribution of his stories and photographs that focus on a variety of environmental subjects.

Peter’s editorial work has appeared in many publications including the New York Times, Time, Newsweek, National Geographic, Sunset Magazine, Los Angeles Magazine, and New York Magazine. His prints hang in the California State Capitol, California Science Center’s permanent Ecosystem exhibit, and many other museums, private institutions, and collectors’ homes.

He has also worked with a numerous local environmental organizations over the years including FoLAR (Friends of the LA River), The Sierra Club, Greenpeace, Heal the Bay, 5 Gyres Institute, Algalita Marine Research Foundation, Communities for a Better Environment, and the LA Conservation Corps.

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Peter has been an instructor for over 15 years at the Los Angeles Center of Photography (LACP), and for years led their Los Angeles River Photo Adventure tour.

John Clement John began his career in photography in the early ‘70s 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. John’s photographs grace the walls of many businesses in the Northwest and he has been published in numerous calendars and coffee table books. John has provided photographs for Country Music Magazine and 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. www.johnclementgallery.com John Clement Photography (Face Book) Allied Arts Gallery in Richland, WA.

Joe Doherty Joe 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.

Joe switched careers when his son was born, earning a PhD in Political Science from UCLA. This led to an opportunity to run a research center at UCLA Law. After retiring from UCLA in 2016, Joe did some consulting, but now he and his wife, Velda Ruddock, spend much of their time in the field, across the West, capturing the landscape. www.joedohertyphotography.com

John Fisanotti 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. He worked briefly in a commercial photo laboratory.

In 1980, John pivoted from photography and began his 32-year career in public service. He worked for Redevelopment Agencies at four different Southern California cities.

After retiring from public service in 2012, John continued his photographic interests. He concentrates on outdoors, landscape, travel and astronomical images. Since 2018, he expanded his repertoire to include architectural and real estate photography.

John lives in La Crescenta and can be contacted at either: jfisanotti@sbcglobal.net or fisanottifotos@gmail.com http://www.johnfisanottiphotography.com http://www.architecturalphotosbyfisanotti.com

Wiebe Gortmaker Wiebe is based in Boulder, Colorado and consider himself a full-time hobbyist. After retiring from the airlines, he devoted a high percentage of his time to travel and learning photography.

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

Wiebe lived in Colorado since college and spent a lot of time flying, hiking, and climbing in the wild places in his back yard.

With his new hobby Wiebe is looking at these places in a new way, trying to preserve the image and feelings he has of the wildlife and landscape.

This process motivates him to learn and discover.

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.

Beverly Houwing Beverly loves traveling and photography, which has taken her to 80 countries and every continent.

Most often she visits Africa as she loves spending time in remote wilderness locations where there is lots of wildlife and unique landscapes.

Her images have been featured in numerous Africa Geographic articles, as well as in Smithsonian and the Annenberg Space for Photography exhibits. Her photographs have also been used for promoting conservation by many non-profit organizations, including National Wildlife Federation, National Parks Conservation Association, Crane Trust, National Audubon Society and Department of the Interior.

Beverly is an Adobe Certified Instructor, so when she’s not out on a photography adventure she conducts training on their software programs and does freelance graphic design and production work.

Charlie Hyman Charlie was born in South Africa and emigrated to the U.S. at age 14. He lives in the Portland, Oregon area, and travels frequently to destinations in Oregon, Washington, Nevada, and California with his wife, Karen, in their camper.

They have also made trips to Vietnam, Malaysia, Mongolia, Scotland, Hawaii, and the Caribbean.

Photography has been in Charlie’s DNA since age 7, when he experimented with a box camera and his dad’s twin-lens reflex. He got his first SLR, a Nikkormat, while in college, and used it extensively for the next twenty years shooting mostly transparencies and B&W. He learned darkroom skills and was the lead photographer for his college yearbook. Charlie’s photography got a boost in 2008 when he got his first DSLR. Since then he has taken several workshops from well-known landscape photographers that influenced his approach to photography.

Although his primary interest is landscapes, he enjoys urban, astro, animal, travel, and abstract photography. Charlie taught photography at the high school level for four years and has had several successful shows in the Portland area. He has sold many of his prints, the largest of which was a mural that measured 8x21 feet.

Susan Manley Susan has more than 45 years of experience as a photographer. She became motivated to pursue her hobby after winning top prizes in a photo contest at the L.A. Open golf tournament. Since then she has received recognition in local and international competition.

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Her career consisted mainly of writing and shooting a wide variety of public relations and photojournalism photos as well as publishing for a government Communications Department. She was called to Washington DC for approximately one year.

Since she retired 15 years ago, Susan switched her focus to nature photography, shooting mostly landscapes and wildlife in North America. She believes in ethical photography, putting the well being of wildlife before a photo and not baiting or calling. She is an advocate for the importance of conservation and climate change.

With her photo travels she has met and become friends with many wonderful people with similar interests.

Larry Miller Larry used his first SLR camera in 1985 to document hikes in the local mountains. In fact, his 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 him to many other scenic destinations, including the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, the Gorman Hills, and Saddleback Butte State Park.

Larry’s 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.

Photography took a backseat to Miller’s career during the 32+ years that he worked as a radar systems engineer at Hughes Aircraft/Raytheon Company. Since retiring in 2013, he has been able to devote more time to developing his photographic skills. Experiencing and sharing the beauty of nature continues to be Larry’s primary motivation. lemiller49@gmail.com

John Nilsson John has a fond memory of his father dragging him to the Denver Museum of Natural History on a winter Sunday afternoon. His father had just purchased a Bosely 35mm camera and he had decided he desperately wanted to photograph one of the dioramas of several Seal Lions in a beautiful blue half-light of the Arctic winter. The photo required a tricky long exposure and the Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023

transparency his father showed him several weeks later was spectacular and mysterious to John’s young eyes. Although the demands of Medical School made this photo one of the first and last John’s Dad shot, at five years old the son was hooked.

The arrival of the digital age brought photography back to John 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 his 40 years as a real estate broker.

Since retiring and moving to Los Angeles, John continued his hobby as a nature and landscape photographer through active membership in the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter Camera Committee, as well as his vocation as a real estate photographer through his company Oz Images LA. The camera is now a tool for adventure! www.OzImagesLA.com

Velda Ruddock Creativity has always been important to Velda.

She received her first Brownie camera for her twelfth birthday and can’t remember a time she’s been without a camera close at hand.

Velda studied social sciences and art, and later earned a Masters degree in Information and Library Science degree from San Jose State University. All of her jobs allowed her to be creative, entrepreneurial, and innovative. For the last 22 years of her research career she 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 she was considered a leader in her field.

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

By 2016 Velda and Joe had both left their “day jobs,” and started traveling and shooting nature – big and small – extensively. Their four-wheeldrive popup camper allows them to go to areas a regular car can’t go and they were – and are – always looking for their next adventure. www.veldaruddock.com VeldaRuddockPhotography@gmail.com

Rebecca Wilks Photography has always been some kind of magic for Rebecca, from the alchemy of the darkroom in her teens… to the revelation of her first digital camera (a Sony Mavica, whose maximum file size was about 70KB)… to the new possibilities that come from her “tall tripod” (drone.)

Many years later, the camera still leads Rebecca to unique viewpoints and a meditative way to interact with nature, people, color, and emotion.

The magic remains.

The natural world is Rebecca’s favorite subject, but she loves to experiment and to do cultural and portrait photography when she travels.

Rebecca volunteers with Through Each Other’s Eyes, a nonprofit which creates cultural exchanges through photography, and enjoys working with other favorite nonprofits, including her local Meals on Wheels program and Cooperative for Education, supporting literacy in Guatemala.

Rebecca’s work has been published in Arizona Highways Magazine, calendars, and books, as well as Budget Travel, Cowboys and Indians, Rotarian Magazines, and even Popular Woodworking.

She’s an MD, retired from the practice of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Medical Acupuncture. She lives in the mountains of central Arizona with my husband and Gypsy, the Wonder Dog.

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The Parting Shot Annular Solar Eclipse © John Clement

Focal Points Magazine

November/December 2023