Author: Kathleen Muhle

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November Assignment – Before and After Photos

I have often heard that our Share and Learn could be more educational if we explained what processes we used to achieve the final photo. So this month will be a challenge, we want to see the “Before” photo and the “After” photo.

I was inspired by Chris Summers’s posts from France and his picture of the Senanque Abbey, which Mike and I visited in 2015, to relook at those photos. As you can see from the thumbnails, I took 7 photos in portrait, 1/180 sec; f/13; ISO 100 on a tripod. I photo merged them in Lightroom, then cropped the panorama, applied an HDR preset, sharpened in Topaz and this year took the photo to Luminar Neo to replace the sky (which I could not do in 2015).

I arranged these in PowerPoint and then copied them here so I could show you the progression. Your after photo could be as simple as a preset you like, using an app like Topaz or Lumniar Neo or any of your favorite post-processing techniques that you’d like to share. It can be as simple or as complicated as you like. Limit your photos to two sets of Before and After. Not certain if this will be a total bust, but I’m hoping some of you will share your experiences with enhancing photos.

I will not be at the next meeting, I’m double booked that night with the KPTA annual meeting so Tim Sullivan will be the meeting host. He will probably run the Share and Learn from Dropbox so you’ll have a couple of extra hours to get them uploaded.

The meeting is on Tuesday, November 14, at 6:30 p.m. at the Kingwood First Baptist Church and via Zoom. Mark your calendars and let’s see your “Before and After” photos!

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Annular Solar Eclipse Viewing in Hondo TX Sat Oct 14th

The Annular Solar Eclipse is looking good for both Hondo Tx to view the Ring of Fire and from Kingwood where you will see a partial eclipse. Check out the Chapter 2 download to get additional specifics. If you want to join me send an email to president@kwphotoclub.com.

I’ll be sending out updates on Friday and also Saturday. The sunny forecasts have not changed for several days. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it will hold!

Clear Skies everyone!

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Annular Solar Eclipse – Chapter 2

The Great American Eclipse, SC 201708

Finished Chapter 2 of my Annular Solar Eclipse PowerPoint!

This chapter talks about what you need to do and think about prior to and day of the event. I’m not certain if Hondo TX is going to be clear enough for the eclipse and will start posting updated weather alerts 10 days prior to Oct 14th.

I did go out with Kathy Doyle to help her with the mechanics of shooting the sun. It was good as I’ve added a few extra slides talking about how to find the sun. The filters turn the LCD completely black and only show the sun when you can find it in your viewfinder or Live view. It can be a challenge and you will appreciate having equipment that is up to the task.

There are several links to references, including several videos. I’ve also included the reference from Chapter 1. I would encourage you to look at the references as they go into more detail than I had room for. There will be one more chapter on Post Processing. We’ll see if I have any photos to post process :).

Hope the information is helpful. E-mail me if you have any questions, I’ve included my contact info in the Powerpoint.

Good Luck and I wish you all Clear Skies!

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October 17th Share and Learn “Members Choice”

Kathy Muhle – Lunar Eclipse – ISO 6400 600mm, f/6.3, 0.3 sec 202211

I’m giving everyone the opportunity to share their favorite photos for next month. If you share a photo from a club activity that would be even better.

This sounds like an easy assignment but picking just 3 photos that are your favorite can be difficult. Spoken from personal experience. Take your time, review your catalogs, and tell a story with your submissions.

The meeting will be on October 17, 6:30 PM at the First Baptist Church in Kingwood, 3500 Woodlands Hill Drive, and via Zoom. Your old Zoom links should work. Chuck ended up getting several requests just prior to the meeting for the Zoom link so please check your links when you get them in e-mail.

Have fun reviewing your photos for our next meeting. See you there!

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September Gallery and Agenda now Uploaded

Jim Evrard Share and Learn – Christmas photo from The Woodlands

Shutter speed priority photos gave us lots of water photos mixed with birds, planes, sports, landscapes, and the sky. Nora Konieczny uploaded her first share and learn and did a fantastic job with recording her sprinkler for “rain” in front of roses.

Above are all those who contributed in September. I’ve also posted a graph with the number of Share and Learn Photos for each month back to Jan 2022. The one month that peaks above all is Jan 2023 the topic was “Phone Captures”. Next month would be an opportunity to send in your phone captures – the October assignment is “Members Choice”.

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I’ve also refreshed the header with September’s Share and Learn. All members who participated have a photo in the header.

Finally, I have added the September Agenda for your review. This is a summary of activities of our club, a review of where you can get information between meetings, and a heads up for future meetings with speakers and the Share and Learn assignments. Good information for all our members but also watch for our weekly e-blast on Mondays. As things evolve this is where you will see additional activities posted and articles for the upcoming speakers. The web is always the best place to go for current information.

December 12th is our Christmas Social – mark your calendars now. More information coming out in the next month

Slide 18 in the agenda is titled “Change of Batter”. We currently have an excellent team of members and we would like to know from our members those who are willing to help in small or large ways. Please review this slide and slide 19 and consider your skill sets that can help the club in the future.

Enjoy the gallery and download the agenda for all the information that we reviewed on Tuesday. Be safe everyone, enjoy the cooler weather, and bring your camera along for fun. See you at the next meeting on October 17th!

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Photographing the Annular Solar Eclipse – Chapter 1

I am getting ready for the Annular Solar Eclipse on October 14th. I could not do the Library Series so I’m sending out Chapters on how to photograph the coming eclipse. You probably think you’ve seen more of the sun than you’d like the 100+ days are not for the faint at heart but I’d like one more on October 14th!

The attached PDF has the first chapter that discusses filters and locations that you need to consider now. The filters still seem to be in good supply and San Antonio should have enough hotel choices for you. I’ve also included resource links for more in-depth information. I’ve found that YouTube has increased the number of videos on photographing this eclipse. A month ago there were very few. Any of them should help you with planning and photographing. The next chapter will come out next week and will discuss setting up, camera settings, using a star tracker to track the sun, and anything else that I think will help. The star tracker is a new piece of equipment for me so I’m still in a learning stage. Mike is the expert. I’ll also discuss our experience with the total eclipse in 2017.

As I said, I have been getting out to practice – thus the photo of the sun from my driveway taken yesterday between clouds. After the second chapter is published I’ll set a time and date for checking my equipment at Lake Houston along Scenic Shores and let it be open for any who wish to watch and if you bring your equipment we can check it out.

Another current astral event – an astroid is visible now during the early AM. I’ll look for an article with more specifics and see if it is visible in Kingwood.

Chuck has set up a new sub-category on our website. When you click Resources you will see the new category >Astrophotograpy where I’ll be putting these and other articles on astrophotograpy. Thanks, Chuck for making this available to the club. If anyone has an article they would like posted, let me know and we’ll post it. Till next week.

Clear Skies everyone!

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September 19th Share and Learn “Shutter Speed Priority – Blur or Freeze

Back to basics for this assignment, what is shutter speed and why is it an important tool for us? I’ve attached an article that gives you all the essentials regarding this camera function. The attached photo was a 15.0s exposure to capture the lightning over the Gulf of Mexico at daybreak. Lucky for me the beach house had an upstairs porch that overlooked the ocean.

For some of us, this article is a review but it may still be helpful for any issues you have with your photographs. Check it out for some excellent advice and photo examples. Let us know next month if you found this article helpful.

September 19th in-person meeting at the Kingwood First Baptist Church 3500 Woodland Hills Drive and on Zoom. Use the upload button that you can find on the weekly e-mail blast. We are all learning and hope you’ll share any tips with your photos. Upload them by 2 PM for inclusion in the monthly agenda. Looking forward to seeing your shutter priority photos.

Shutter Speed in Photography: The Essential Guide (+ Cheat Sheet)

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August Share and Learn Gallery, Agenda and Header Updates

This is a one-stop post for everything August. First off, thanks to all the members who participated in the August Share and Learn. I also want to recognize Heidi Crockett for her first-ever share! It was a wonderful assortment of trip memories near and far.

The ever-changing header features a photo from each member that will give you an overview of what you’ll see in the gallery. Lots of overseas travels and a few closer to home. Check out the gallery and be an armchair tourist.

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I’ve also uploaded the August Agenda. Chuck has posted the August Video so this is an additional resource for information given at the last meeting. The Website has the most up-to-date information as things are ever-evolving. Current additional changes include a new Library Workshop: The Art of Photography on Sept 16th taught by Chuck Dugand.

Next month Share and Learn: Shutter Speed Priority – Blur or Freeze Action! We should see a variety of photos from wildlife to man-made transportation to Mother Nature to people. It should be interesting for everyone.

Triple-digit heat continues in our area so be mindful of that and try avoiding outside activities during the hottest part of the day. Due to the restless heat, there are no planned activities until September.

Stay safe everyone and we’ll see you next month!

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August 15th Share and Learn “Trips – Here and There”

Two weeks to go before our next meeting and while chilling in your homes why not review your catalogs for your favorite travel photos? With heat advisories, this would be a win-win for you and the club.

The photo insert is from our 2019 trip to Russia. This is the famous Church of the Transfiguration which dates back to 1764. There is a legend that the church was built by Master Nestor using only his ax and wood. The 22 wooden cupolas that adorn this multi-story church, were all constructed by hand. And, the entire church was built using only wooden pegs to hold it together. It was a wonder to see. Weather events on our trip caused a delay in our arrival to late afternoon which gave us the best light to photograph this architectural gem. A bonus for me :). A travel photo with a story what stories do your photos tell?

Photos need to be uploaded by 2 pm on August 15th. I will be adding the photos to the Powerpoint agenda. Upload to our Dropbox using the Share and Learn button found to the right on our club e-mails.

Please resize your photos for uploading to our Gallery and header. As the number of Share and Learns has decreased I’ve decided to upload a photo from each member to the website header. I hope you have enjoyed seeing your photos there.

The in-person meeting is at our normal location, the Kingwood First Baptist Church; 3500 Woodland Hills Drive, Kingwood. Zoom links will be sent via e-mail before the meeting.

The meeting will start at 6:30 pm with the speaker’s presentation at the beginning. Connie Emerson has arranged another great speaker and topic.

August 15th, 6:30 pm, in-person or via Zoom, hope to see you there and come join us at an after-the-meeting social gathering at Big City Wings! Cheers 🙂

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June Share and Learn Gallery and Header have been updated

Summer is almost over and we are back home! Feels good to be home, even with the heat! Late but I’ve just uploaded the Share and Learn photos from June and the June Gallery. “Foods We Love” feature many of our favorite foods and some ethnic and unusual foods. Many of these photos will bring on your hunger pangs.

The photo to the right is an iced coffee in Germany. Not what I expected, more like a coffee float with ice cream, whipped cream, caramel, and a cookie! More an ice cream sundae than a drink! It was delicious and I ordered it several more times. In the background is our granddaughter Ariana who accompanied us to Europe. That was a fun trip with awesome sights and fantastic food.

Next month we’ll be picking up with the Share and Learn “Trips Here and There”. The meeting will be held at our usual location at the Church and via Zoom. Look for an e-mail from Chuck with a Zoom link if you cannot attend in person.

Thanks to everyone who sent in photos. I hope to be an armchair tourist at our next meeting with the trip photos you all send in. Keep cool in the heat and check out the latest e-mail from Chuch with some lunch ideas and a night of bowling for the club!

Cheers! Kathy

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