CameraTalk June/July 2020 by Photographic Society of New Zealand

NZ CameraTalk To p r o m o t e t h e w i d e r e n j o y m e n t o f p h o t o g r a p h y

T H E O F F I C I A L M A G A Z I N E O F T H E P H OT O G R A P H I C S O C I E T Y O F N E W Z E A L A N D I N C

June /July 2020

In this issue PRESIDENT Moira Blincoe LPSNZ t. 09 379 7021 e: president@photography.org.nz

VICE-PRESIDENT

Karen Lawton t. 021 143 7764 e. vicepresident@photography.org.nz

TREASURER David Knightley PO Box 99470, Newmarket, Auckland 1149 e. treasurer@photography.org.nz

SECRETARY Patrice Nilsen 8 Raroa Terrace, Tawa, Wellington 5028 t. 04 232 1565 e. secretary@photography.org.nz

WELCOME TO THE third edition of CameraTalk for 2020. This issue is somewhat shorter than what is normally presented, due to the ongoing effects of the Covid-19 lockdown. In addition to a number of regular articles Lindsay Stockbridge LPSNZ has written a thought-provoking piece on how we view images. We have also continued to display a small selection of the images that were entered in the PSNZ Isolation Challenge. Also, throughout the issue look out for notices on the various salons that are currently open.

Paul Whitham LPSNZ Editor

The Isolation Challenge Key Dates for the Diary

4 5

Editorial

An Unintentional Masterpiece

Lindsay Stockbridge LPSNZ 14 Poynter Place, Whanganui 4501 t. 06 348 7141 or m. 027 653 0341 e. dilinz@actrix.co.nz

Print Circles

Obituary: William Wright FPSNZ

Obituary: Dicky Dickens LPSNZ

CAMERATALK DEADLINE

AV News

The next CameraTalk deadline is

Canon Online Results

EDITOR, ADVERTISING & LAYOUT Paul Whitham LPSNZ PSNZ Councillor t. 04 973 3015 or m. 021 644 418 e. paul@pwfotos.com

SUBEDITOR

1August 2020 Email your contributions to the SubEditor at his email address. Editorial should be sent as Word or .txt files. JPEG images generally should be saved at 300 dpi, compressed to high to medium quality. Include return postage if you wish material to be returned. The opinions expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily those of the Editor or of the Council of PSNZ.

On the cover Lines by Lyn Alves submitted as part of the Isolation Challenge.

WELCOME TO WINTER 2020. Let us hope that the next four to five months will bring us more good fortune than the first quarter of this year has. Now in Level 2 we can at least get out and about more freely and it is good to see that some of you have been out exploring and contributing to the domestic economy. Chris and I intend to do just that as well and, by the time you are reading this, we will be exploring Tongariro National Park, hoping for some good weather and equally good photography. It has been heartening to see that most of the clubs have continued to hold meetings, through the popular ‘Zoom’ medium. This way, at least monthly competitions have been maintained and guest speakers/presenters have also participated. I know everyone is hankering to get back to ‘normal’ meeting mode and I am hopeful these can happen for you in July. In the last two months, under the coordination of Councillor James Gibson APSNZ EFIAP, submissions for NZ Camera were reopened and the entire publication has now been completed. Perhaps some good things have come out of COVID-19, as lockdown forced us to consider alternative methods of producing the book. Congratulations to all members who were successful in having an image accepted into what is the Society’s flagship publication. Thank you to the editorial team who worked remotely and through Zoom meetings to select, discuss and curate the publication through to final layout. Former editorial team member Stuart Clook worked with Toya Heatley APSNZ, Annette Johnson APSNZ and

A Note from the President Daniel Wong APSNZ AFIAP, who willingly accepted the invitation to join Stuart in producing the book for 2020. The good news is that the final file is now in Hong Kong and due to hit the printing press any day, and we should receive the published book on our shores by late August. This is earlier than the pre-Covid-19 schedule but of course it will be gladly received by all. Despite being in lockdown, Council members have continued to work on Society activities. The Annual General Meeting will be held via the Zoom platform on Sunday, 14 June at 4.00pm. As per all emails that have been distributed, please register your attendance, if not already done, with our Secretary Patrice Nilsen at psnzsecretary@outlook.co.nz and I do hope that many of you will join the meeting.

(continued overleaf)

At the AGM we will say farewell to three members of Council, all of whom have given many years of service to the Society, and I thank them sincerely for their commitment, service and support. Retiring are:

As previously mentioned, Thames member Judith Bishop LPSNZ has assumed the role of Treasurer and will work closely with Mark Lawson of Lawson Accounting in Timaru on the financial portfolio.

• Ann Bastion FPSNZ MFIAP, Councillor for International Salons and FIAP Liaison Officer. However Ann will retain the role of FIAP Liaison Officer so all members participating in international salons and FIAP activities should continue to liaise with Ann.

With the colder temperatures soon to be the ‘norm’ I encourage you all to embrace the winter months to break out and release those creative juices that we know are good for our soul, body and mental stimulation.

• Vivianne Baldwin APSNZ, Councillor for Events for the past four years. I know Vivianne is looking forward to pursuing her own photography again and picking up her paint brushes.

Kind regards, Moira Blincoe LPSNZ President

• David Knightley, after completing seven years as Treasurer and financial keeper for the Society. He too is looking forward to a slightly less hectic pace and to get out and about with his camera and hopefully some travel.

The Isolation Challenge As a result of the lockdown, a lot of PSNZ photographers were stuck at home. To give people something to occupy themselves PSNZ Councillor for Membership James Gibson APSNZ EFIAP came up with the Isolation Alphabet Challenge. The concept was simple. Each day members were to shoot something starting with the letter of the day, and post the image to the PSNZ members group. Over the 26 days it ran some 1840 images were submitted by over 100 photographers. In the Apil issue of CameraTalk we presented a very small selection of the 451 images submitted between letters A and I. In this issue we present an even smaller selection of the images submitted between J and Z. If you want to see all of the images submitted James has loaded up a video on Vimeo which can be found at https://vimeo.com/412196336.

Key dates for the diary June 10 June 14 June 19 June 25 July 6 July 31 August 1 August 25 August 31

Entries for Tauranga AV competition close PSNZ AGM Entries for Trenna Packer Salver close Canon Online Round 3 closes Entries for Creative Focus close Entries for National Photojournalism Competition close Entries for Nelson National Triptych Salon open Canon Online Round 4 closes Entries for Nelson National Triptych Salon close

Jetty by Les Ladbrook LPSNZ

Jack Russells by Anne Lambe

Cup of Joe by Julia Home APSNZ EFIAP AAPS GPSA PPSA

Kiwifruit Rejects by Molly Powell

Juggling by James Gibson APSNZ EFIAP

Kill by Sandra McCoy APSNZ

Koda by Kathy Richards LPSNZ

Kayaker by Sue Wetering APSNZ

Editorial : The future of prints By Paul Whitham LPSNZ

AS I WRITE this on the last day of May, a sense of normality is slowly returning. My wife is currently attending church, for the first time since the end of March, in the building it is normally held at. For the last six weeks she has been attending church via a mixture of Zoom and YouTube Live. The increase in gathering size to a maximum of 100 people has opened the way for camera clubs to start meeting again, although initially they may be slightly less social than in the past. In fact, Whanganui Camera Club takes first place in getting together again, as they held a meeting on Friday 30 May. It will be interesting to see what the post-Covid world will look like. In all likelihood landscape and nature photographers are going to have to stick to New Zealand, and hopefully shortly Australia, as I can’t see widespread travel to the rest of world happening this year. While Covid has affected many facets of photography, I hope that it has not done permanent damage to the future of prints. I say this because, while the sharing of digital images took place over the last two months, the movement of prints stopped completely. We were unable to display the PSNZ Sony National Exhibition prints and the interclub prints. In addition, there will be no regional print competitions this year. The NZIPP also took the very drastic step to make the 2020 Iris Awards all digital. This is a huge departure from the past as these have been ‘print only’ events. Having attended their judging, and seen the differences between the digital and print versions of the same image, I hope that this is a one-time occurrence. Closer to home, the North Shore Salon opened by accepting digital images in both the print and digital categories. As I understand it, this decision meant that the salon could run fully while providing them the flexibility to still have the actual exhibition should events be allowed at the time. It also meant that they did not need to bring their selectors together in one place. In the event that the exhibition could occur then those photographers with accepted images in the print category would then submit their prints. It did raise a few comments in the Facebook group, especially as it essentially removed the element of printing (such as paper choice) which is part and parcel of print judging. It also meant that the photographers could not ensure that the selectors saw the images as they intended. This raised the question “ Why bother with a print in the first place?” It will be interesting to see if other salons do something similar in the future.

Also, with regard to the North Shore Salon, I want to commend their organisers for trying to get new material in front of the public. In 2019 they asked for images that had received honours in other salons, not be entered. This did generate a bit of debate. Now in 2020 they took it one stage further by creating a category â&#x20AC;&#x153;never seen beforeâ&#x20AC;? for brand new images. This is a bold initiative, designed to get people shooting new material rather than relying on past entries.

Line Dancing Flies by Karen Moffatt-McLeod LPSNZ

Lord Muck aka Bentley by Kathy Pantling LPSNZ

Lead Pencils by Pauline Smith LPSNZ

Under Lockdown by Derek Teague

Late Lily Triptych by Dawn Kirk LPSNZ AFIAP

Lion Safari, 2020 Edition by Alison Little

Mohawk Monday in Monochrome by Karl Tretheway LPSNZ

Macro of My Mouth by Mary Livingston LPSNZ

The Mancave by Meg Lipscombe FPSNZ

Moss Flower by Karen Lawton

Nightmare by Grant Grieve

An Unintentional Masterpiece? By Lindsay Stockbridge LPSNZ

THERE’S A FRAMED photograph on my wall. It’s not one of mine. There’s a story behind it, a story about a photograph that was nearly deleted. Why is it so important to me? Some years ago I travelled to Bannockburn, Central Otago, where eight or nine of us would take part in a five day creative workshop organised by Sally Mason FPSNZ. People arrived in dribs and drabs and settled in. We sat down for the first session in which we introduced ourselves and shared our reasons for coming to the course. One lady, whose name I forget, and I hope she’ll forgive me for sharing her work, said she had taken a horrible photograph on the way down from Christchurch, a photograph of the church at Tekapo. She said she intended to delete the image, but would appreciate our help in telling her where she had gone wrong. The image she showed us is shown here as Tekapo 1. At first it was embarrassing, because it appeared that EVERYTHING was wrong with it! And then someone, perhaps it was me, added some contrast and darkened the image. Tekapo 2 is what we now saw. If Tekapo 2 was entered in a club competition, what might a ‘not so great’ assessment of it sound like? Let’s listen in... “Much of the image is just white. It’s overexposed. It gives me no impression of the weather that day. Was there a blue sky? Were there clouds? Shouldn’t we see something other than white? “The range of colour tones is just so limited. I can just make out the bell, but there is nothing sharp in the image.

“After a long inspection I believe this to be the Church of the Good Shepherd at Tekapo. You should revisit the area and photograph the church again; then you would have a good record shot. “This image, although perhaps well seen, is not even one for your album. Not accepted.” Well, what’s the story behind the photograph? The lady had travelled to Bannockburn from Christchurch. She and her husband, like thousands of others, had had their lives shattered by the huge earthquake that devastated the city. Their property was relatively undamaged, there had been no loss of life in their family, but both had lost their employment, their zest, their reason for being. They decided that she would benefit from attending the Sally Mason course at Bannockburn. He drove her all the way from Christchurch to Bannockburn, a distance of 430km, returned home – and did the return journey to pick up his wife five days later. He drove a total of 1720km. Nobody was prepared to say what had gone “wrong” with the photograph, but then I made a request. I asked that she not delete the image but put it on a memory stick and give it to me, because I regarded it as a very special image and I would like to frame it. And that is the photograph you see, Tekapo 2. I believe that behind every photograph there is a photographer, an experience, and a willingness to share something of that experience with the viewer. In doing so, the photographer offers something of him or herself.

Tekapo 1

Tekapo 2

Let’s go back to the fake critique at the top of this article. It was totally destructive – of the photograph, but more so the photographer. Camera clubs are, or should be, about growing photographers. If you want to grow a photographer, choose a fertile spot (such as a supportive camera club), use lots of fertiliser – and no weed killer! And, if you’re assessing, critiquing or judging a photograph, please don’t use the words ‘but’, ‘good record shot’ or ‘well seen’. ‘ ‘But’ precedes a negative comment (and that involves weed killer), while ‘good record shot’ and ‘well seen’ imply that you’ve nothing better to say that will help the photographer grow. Please, fertiliser! We should accept that there is a story and a person behind every photograph. Using ‘but’, ‘good record shot’ or ‘well seen’ is negative, and potentially harmful. In this article I’ve suggested, demanded even, that this image has ongoing importance. It now has even greater relevance, because at a recent impressionist photography workshop, Eva Polak listed seven characteristics of abstract photography. Do these characteristics have any relevance when we look at Tekapo 2?

1. emphasis on light 2. hazy and luminous 3. implies the unfinished 4. the fleeting moment 5. sensation rather than perception 6. to evoke a mood 7. to suggest rather than depict.

Wow! No wonder I wanted to frame and cherish this photograph. I’m so glad the image wasn’t deleted! Have a close look at it, but don’t just look - see! I believe this image meets all, or nearly all, the requirements of an impressionist photograph. I often ask myself why I regard this photograph as something special, something ‘out of the box’. There’s a fascination there; my eyes go to the bell, to the four or five people, to the blues and greens and reds, to the unusual composition (I’ve cropped it a little). But more than that, it’s the story behind the image. A couple, fleeing from devastation for a few days, looking for something else, trying to rebuild confidence, hoping to pick up the camera that’s been untouched for weeks, months... The car slows at Tekapo and they pass the church. He does a u-turn and heads back. They haven’t got time to stop (it’s a long way still to Bannockburn), but she grabs the camera and fires a shot through the window, vaguely in the direction of the church. They turn again and head south. She’s photographed the church. That night she discovers an image of disastrous proportions, and nearly deletes it. She’s amazed and perplexed when someone wants to store it, print it and frame it. And I have a very special image, perhaps an unintentional masterpiece...

29th National Photojournalism Competition With a return to (almost) normal we are pleased to announce the National PJ salon is being held again this year. Entry is open to ALL New Zealand photographers and PSNZ members who reside outside of New Zealand. Spread the word among friends and family. All those lockdown photos everyone has been taking could be award winners. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t delay! Head to the New Brighton Photographic Club for details. www.newbrightonphotoclub.org.nz Entries open now, and close on 31 July 2020.

Playing with a Pile of Paradise Duck Feathers by Nadine Campbell

Looking in my Pantry and found Pasta by Janice Brockett

Purple Petals by Bonnie Steetskamp

Q for the Toilet Paper by Alicia Hebden

Quill by Lyn Clayton Hon PSNZ APSNZ EFIAP ESFIAP

Quinoa by Joan Caulfield

Quarter to.... by Ana Stevens

Quince and Quail -A Blockout by Cheryl Muirson APSNZ

Nelson National Triptych Salon 2020 Entries open on 1st August and close on 31st August Why use three photos when you can tell a story in one photo? You can tell a bigger story if you have two extra spaces to fill in your presentation. Your presentations can be rectangular, square, round, oval, horizontal, vertical or a combination of all - but your three images must not touch or overlap. There must be a clear separation between the pictures. There must not be a fourth image in the background and there must not be any text on the background. Text within the pictures is allowed. There are not many photo competitions that will allow you to enter three images for the price of one! Special awards this year are for: Best Monochrome, Best Weather and Best “Around the Corner” triptychs. Entries will be Digital Image only, but we may ask you for a large file size so we can make a display print for the Presentation Evening. Save your master file and then make a smaller-sized copy as your entry image. If you are new to photography and do not have photo processing software, try FastStone Image Viewer and Editor. It’s a free download and great for creating triptychs. Visit this link for the “How To” instructions, the full rules and other details: https://www.nelsoncameraclub.co.nz/salon-information.html We look forward to seeing what you can create. Peter Wise FPSNZ Nelson National Triptych Salon 2020

Nav Rada Beacons by Syd Moore

Want to Join a Print Circle? ONE WAY TO improve your photography is to critique other people’s photographs and to have others assess yours. You can do this by joining a print circle. Up to ten photographers circulate their work by mail to other members who have a few days to make constructive comments on the work received, add a new print for others to view, and post the bag to the next person on the list. Each circle is monitored by a Secretary who sends out a roster of each round and ensures the circle is running smoothly. Members can expect the bag to arrive three or four times a year. People are encouraged to keep in touch by adding a short letter to each round, helping them to get to know other photographers and gain useful feedback on their work. Sometimes members catch up when travelling in New Zealand, and they enjoy meeting at PSNZ conventions. One or two circles currently have vacancies. If you’d like to join, please contact Lindsay Stockbridge LPSNZ at dilinz@actrix.co.nz and we’ll happily settle you into a print circle!

Nest by Moira Fergus

Quiet by Michael Parker

Quackers Queueing Quietly while Questing for Quiche to Quench hunger by Russ Finnerty

Screwscape by Ita Rutten-Daniels

Stallions by Peter Arnold FPSNZ

Resurrected by Ella Broekhuizen

Screen Series Spoof ~ seriously silly (and somewhat senile) Self-portrait by Bron McKenzie

The Terribly Troublesome Triplet by Paul Bryne FPSNZ

Obituary: William Wright FPSNZ By Anne Tate APSNZ

EVERYONE LOVED WILLIAM. He was the kind of person that people gravitate to with his quiet smile, thoughtfulness and gentle ways. I first met William when he joined the Hutt Camera Club in 2003. He was the quiet one and I’m the rowdy one, but we bonded firmly in our shared love of photography. William was a fabulous photographer, a true artist. He was a sensitive soul and I think that is reflected in a lot of his images. He would photograph most things but he loved landscapes and had a particular affinity for architectural work and abstracts. He was awarded his Associateship in 2007 and followed it by attaining his Fellowship in 2016 with a magnificent body of work titled Urban Forest. His images were double exposures of trees and buildings, beautifully blended together into works of art. William joined the PSNZ Council in 2010 and in 2019 was recognised with a Service Award, along with Neil Gordon, for their outstanding contribution in developing, implementing and administering the database. William and I always travelled to conventions together. On one occasion we were driving through the Taranaki region when I spotted a car wrecker’s yard. I backed up but unfortunately the fences were something like seven feet high. Not willing to be deterred I walked down a side alley where the fence miraculously dropped to a rickety 3-wire job. I hopped over and had reached some of the cars when I suddenly realised that William had not followed me. I turned and waited. After a pause he jumped over and we spent a happy hour or so, trespassing all over this wrecker’s yard. It wasn’t until a long, long time later that he ‘fessed up the reason for his

hesitation. He was waiting to see if there was a guard dog. This incident gave rise to William’s quote in the 2012 edition of NZ Camera. “It’s not a proper photo trip if you haven’t had to climb at least one fence to get the shot you want.” And so, jumping fences became a ‘thing’. William and I went to Central Otago, five years running, to attend Tony Bridge’s winter workshops. By the third year we knew all of Tony’s lecture material but so enjoyed the opportunity to commune with like-minded souls for a week and photograph the stunning Otago light, that we kept going back. We would all eat in the Wedderburn Tavern which was across the road from the cottages that we stayed in. Central Otago pub meals are massive and very quickly we decided that we needed to shake the meal down before going back to do our photo homework. We walked down the road a bit and came across the Otago Rail Trail. On a complete whim we decided to walk up the

trail (yes, in mid-winter, in pitch darkness) to where it intersected with where we were staying. It was probably only a kilometre or so, and we had torches, so off we trotted. All the locals thought we were absolutely bonkers but we enjoyed it so much that it too became a ‘thing’. Other people joined us and sometimes there would be as many as six torches bobbing up the track. There was only one night in five years that we missed our after-dinner walk, and that was because the snow was deep and had turned icy. In 2011 William and I joined a group of friends travelling to South Africa. This was William’s first foray outside New Zealand and the travel bug bit firmly. Following that trip William and I returned to Africa to complete unfinished business. In hindsight, I am so thankful that William was able to enjoy so many memorable moments on that last trip. Being in the only vehicle witnessing a large herd of elephants, extremely close-up; lions from two metres away; and seeing a black rhino. We spent several days at Deadvlei and also had a

two-hour helicopter ride, sans doors, to photograph the dunes, right out to the sea. In Mpumalunga, South Africa, we were really excited to see 800-year-old rock art in situ and to learn how the San people painted their stories. If you haven’t seen William’s stunning images of the Namibian sand dunes and the buried town of Kolmanskop, check out his website, wrightlight.photography William and I shared a very similar eye when it came to photography and we have many photos that are almost identical. Experienced photographers always reckon this is not possible, but I can assure you we managed it, and without collusion. If we were out and about together with cameras and came across something exciting we would grin at each other and then, from all the possibilities, we’d both zero in on exactly the same thing. William and I competed with each other photographically and always shared our competition entries, commiserating or celebrating as the case may be. He achieved some notable successes, particularly over the last three years.

PSNZ NZIS Gold Medal-The Last Tree-New Zealand

2019 Nelson National Triptych Best Abstract Image - Below Average

In 2017 he won Champion Projected Image at the Nelson Triptych Salon and Bronze at the North Shore Salon. In 2018 he achieved Honours and two Highly Commended at North Shore. 2019 was a top year. He won a Gold Medal and two ribbons at the New Zealand International Salon; Honours at the Dunedin Festival; four Judge’s Commendations at the Whanganui Humanity and Earth Salon, along with a large number of Acceptances. William was also stoked to learn, just in time, that he had an image selected for the 2020 edition of NZ Camera.

William lost his battle with complications from a rare immune disorder on 11 May. He had fought hard and, like all of us, was shocked and stunned to be told that the proposed liver transplant was off the table and he’d be lucky to last a month. Devastatingly, it turned out to be less than a week. Quite coincidentally I read this in a book on the day he told me he had run out of options. “It’s not the goodbye that hurts the most. It’s the hole you are left with.” William leaves a crater.

Tiny Ternâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Terrible Tantrum by Marie Bilodeau LPSNZ

Vaccinator Vascillating by Barbara Lee APSNZ

Tewibbly Tewibbly Tottering by John Pirtle

Very Old Violin by Wendy Pemberton

Virus by Carolyn Elcock ANPSNZ EFIAP QPSA FAPS

Unlikely Now by Kathy Richards

Various Veins by Waverley Keon Ovink

Obituary: Elizabeth Suzanne (Dicky) Dickens QSM LPSNZ By Albert Aanense - Life Member, Taupo Camera Club

DICKY, A LIFE Member of the Taupo Camera Club, passed away on 19 February 2020, aged 92 years. She became a TCC member in 1980, joined the committee that year and, in the following 30 years, held most club positions. When her presidencies were over, she undertook many other roles. She served on the PSNZ Council in 1986 and 1987 and was involved in the organisation of three National Conventions held in Taupo. She was a strong and influential member of the 1988 Convention Organising Committee, an inexperienced group which at very short notice hosted one of the Societyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most successful conventions. She also worked to organise regional conventions and seminars. She achieved her PSNZ Licentiate in 1998. Her tenure as Club President resulted in increased membership and much goodwill throughout the community. Her leadership and time spent helping members often affected her own photographic aspirations. She was a good communicator and inclusive in everything she did. We all knew that a phone call and discussion with her would have any problems, or perceived ones, sorted quickly and with little fuss. She was clear in her views on how things should be done to reach the right result, while having the patience to listen to alternative views. 28

In her early life in the UK, before coming to New Zealand in 1956, Dicky was an accomplished horsewoman and equestrian coach/instructor. Her working life was associated with New Zealand Equestrian activities and dog obedience training. She used her photographic skills to illustrate the books and manuals she co-authored for the New Zealand Pony Clubs Association, spending many hours in her darkroom. She knew the poses that were acceptable to portray horses and dogs to their best advantage. Dicky was a member of LPG (Light Photography Group) formed after the 1981 PSNZ National Convention. That group, with Dicky as Secretary, had a big impact on New Zealand photography over the following 20 years, bringing in overseas photographers for seminars in Taupo. When individuals like Dicky pass on, club members often know little of the considerable contributions they had made, and many are unaware that they are the beneficiaries of those efforts. Dicky gave us so much. In 1990 Dicky was awarded a Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Service Medal (QSM) for service to her sport and community. She lived a full life, was a multitalented, gracious and unpretentious lady who still found time for photography. Photography has lost a friend. May her soul now be free to saddle up and ride into the sunset, creating great photographs along the trail.

Night Reflection by Robert Peper

Opulence by Sarah Caldwell APSNZ

Nigella Damascena by Annette Johnston APSNZ

Ollie in the Oven by Judy Alley

Vacant Look by Yuan Yao

Water Apologies to Walter!! by Vivianne Baldwin APSNZ

Vignette by Stuart Clook

Windblown Woman Wearing her Wedding dress While Walking her Wheelie-bin out to Wait for Waste Management Pick-up by Moira Blincoe LPSNZ

Waste by Lynn Hedges LPSNZ

Wonder Man by Rob Vanderpoel LPSNZ

Waxeye by Jayne Francis

X-ray Viewed with Xanthopsia by Brian Barrett

Fingers Crossed by Sue Morton

Xenon Flash Tube by Alan Moore

Audio-Visual News: by Trish McAuslan AV-AAPS FAPS APSNZ EFIAP Coordinator of Audio-Visuals for PSNZ

Tauranga AV Salon Entries close on 10 June, so there is not a lot of time left to enter an AV. Because of the Covid-19 situation we have decided that judging will be done remotely, with the judges using video conferencing to make their final decisions. Information for this year’s Tauranga Salon is on their website: https:// taurangaphoto.nz/. Look under the heading Audio-Visual Salon.

321 AV Competition This is a ‘fun’ international competition for short audio-visuals which are less that 3 minutes 21 seconds long. This year there were 82 entries, including four from New Zealand. Other entries came from AV workers in Italy, Germany, United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Ireland, Australia, France, Colombia, Austria and South Africa. Judging for this competition is unusual, with interested groups requesting the opportunity to judge the AVs. This year there were nine judging teams from Germany, Ireland, Italy, UK, Australia and New Zealand. We had planned to meet in April to judge but the Covid-19 lockdown meant a change to remote judging, which is what the other judging teams also had to do. The organisers sorted the AVs into 12 packets, each under 2GB for downloading by individuals. In the end 17 members of our group watched and judged all or some of the AVs.

We came up with some problems. Not everyone had access to a Windows computer, so three of our members were only able to judge half of the entries; they had been entered as mp4s. Depending on how an AV was saved, and the security settings on some computers, some AVs could not be opened by an individual judge. We overcame these problems by averaging the scores from all the judges. Because so many people were judging, this process of averaging at the end worked well. We have sent our results to the organisers who are in Germany; they will collate the results from the other teams to make the overall placings. We enjoyed the experience and learnt or confirmed a few things along the way. Of most importance was being able to get your AV’s story across to the viewers. The narrations for some AVs were in a foreign language, and although we had a brief description of what the AV was about, sometimes that wasn’t enough for us to really understand the story. Some authors provided a translation of the script which was written on the slides. By reading the text we understood the story, but we didn’t have time to watch the images so the AV felt incomplete. Another interesting observation came from the judging results. The judges were asked to score 10 for the AVs that they thought were the best. Twenty-five AVs scored at least one

10, indicating that at least one person thought that AV was good enough to be the winner. What this suggests is that if you like your AV, have confidence to enter it into different competitions - because different judges may judge it differently.

Proshow Gold and ProShow Producer The makers of these two products, Photodex, closed down at the end of January. If you use either of these applications, you can continue to use them as long as they are supported by your computer software. One alternative is to change to a new company and application called Photopia (https://Photopia.nl) which has been developed by some of the people who formerly worked at Photodex. One advantage is that if you only make occasional AVs you can subscribe for a month or two; otherwise you can pay a yearly subscription to use it.

Another option is to change to another AV creation programme called PicturestoExe (PTE) which is used by many AV workers. You can download a free trial at https://www. wnsoft.com. You buy a licence to use PTE by making a one-off payment. A third option is to use a video editing programme like Premiere Elements, another programme you can purchase. DaVinci Resolve (https://www. blackmagicdesign.com/products/ davinciresolve/) is very well recommended by video editors and can be used to make audiovisuals as we know them. It requires a lot of processing power, and some people who have tried it have found that their computer couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t cope, so check it out first.

Pacific Squid by Kahy Pantling LPSNZ

Lots of xxxxxxâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s by Nel Davison

Zany Zebra Pattern by Marian Macklin

Yesterday by Yvaan Adams

X Factor by Annemarie Clinton

Yummy by Snehal Chauhan Yester-Years by Christopher Duggan

PSNZ Canon Online Results from Round 2, 2020 We topped our record again this round, with 160 images and a completely new set of top ten authors! There were so many beautiful images, so to be in the Top Ten is a great achievement. The winner of this round is Kurien Koshy Yohannan, a wildlife and bird photographer living in Rotorua. He has been pursuing his craft for ten years and says “The main thing that motivates me to do what I do is my passion for capturing wildlife in its natural habitat and through my work I hope to promote conservation. “Seen in this image is a New Zealand Fantail (Piwakawaka) photographed mid-flight. I had gone out with the intention of photographing fantails in flight and I noticed them taking off and landing on a stem of flax. I waited for the right opportunity to capture this image. It was taken against an overcast sky, hence enabling me to create a high-key image.” The judge for this round was John Jones-Parry LPSNZ, an accredited PSNZ judge from the Hibiscus Coast Camera Club. John writes: “I have been making photographs all my life, at least since purloining my mother’s small Ilford box camera when I was six years old. Latterly I have been fortunate to have had two years as President of North Shore Photographic Society and also two years as Chair of the North Shore Salon. “Thank you for asking me to judge this important competition. It is a great honour and a great challenge!”

Paul Willyams LPSNZ Canon Online Coordinator

Comments from the Judge:

John Jones-Parry LPSNZ

1st New Zealand Fantail by Kurien Koshy Yohannan Beautifully captured and presented with its minimalist yet contextualised treatment, this image makes me want to duck and laugh at the same time.

2nd Poisson du Jour by Kathy Pantling LPSNZ Alive or dead? The menace in this glorious colour palette and composition is palpable. I approach this meal with caution!

PSNZ Canon Online:

3rd Lone Tree by Marie Bilodeau LPSNZ This image captures the stillness and beauty of the environment, and allows one to marvel without distraction.

4th Sad Sack by Graeme Skinner LPSNZ I felt immediately engaged with the faces. The differences among them are highlighted by the common background and tonal range. Thank you for a subtle thought-provoking image to which I can add my own story.

5th Poukiore Valley in the Morning by Sally Still APSNZ I want to run into the depths of this quintessential image of rural Aotearoa. An acknowledgement of the beauty and story of this lucky country.

6th The Morning Assemble by Kirsteen Redshaw APSNZ Composition and colour combine with a great rendering of the animals to produce a feeling of tension and being one of the herd.

PSNZ Canon Online:

7th Hot Waterfall by Karl Tretheway LPSNZ Post-treatment skilfully highlights important details in this image. I feel as if I have just walked to the pond edge and have found this lovely idyll. It invites me to swim and enjoy. 8th Fantasy Flight by Gail Stent FPSNZ Beautifully constructed and coloured, for me this image uses the stability of a circle to allow freedom to the mind. It enables the viewerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s creativity as much as the artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s.

9th Caught at Last by Janice Brockett Devoid of unnecessary detail and providing high drama, this image is immediately arresting. 10th Caged by Covid by Julia De Cleene LPSNZ Thoughtful, both in composition and in the colour palette, this image combines a statement with beauty and tension.

Entries for Round 3 close on 25 June 41

PSNZ Membership Benefits Helping photographers grow As a PSNZ member you can enjoy a range of benefits, including: • Expert advice to help improve your photography. • The opportunity to achieve a higher Society distinction (APSNZ, FPSNZ). • A complimentary copy of New Zealand Camera, and the ability to submit your images for selection in this annual publication. • Access to member only resources, including a member only PSNZ Facebook page for social chat and updates with other members. • The opportunity to enter the Canon Online Competition, with trophies for each round and for the overall winner each year. • Discounts for Society activities, such as the annual PSNZ national convention, special workshops, international competitions and much more. • The opportunity to participate in regional club meetings and events, including the PSNZ Workshop Series • A copy of our bimonthly magazine – CameraTalk, with news, reviews, events and some of the best photography around. • The opportunity to exhibit your work in exhibitions such as the PSNZ Canon National Exhibition, Regional Salons and other member only online competitions. • Access to judge training workshops which are free for PSNZ members. • Ability to promote your website on our website. • Receive our regular blog posts to stay up to date with the latest news on events, activities and special offers. • Product discounts and savings when they are offered from our corporate partners and associated companies. • Discounts for major NZIPP events as a PSNZ member.

ZZZZ by Bob Scott LPSNZ

Zig Zag by Thierry Huet

Final Thoughts by Paul Whitham LPSNZ

CameraTalk is your publication and we love to hear about what members and clubs are up to. With this issue we asked clubs to tell us how they operated in lockdown. Not a single reply was received. This was despite the fact that we knew that clubs had been using Zoom and other means to keep active. So please, donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be afraid to let us know what you are up to. The deadline for the next issue is on 1st August and you can send your material direct to Lindsay Stockbridge LPSNZ at dilinz@ actrix.co.nz

The Last Image

Zonked by Rachael Hume LPSNZ