Fort Collins Digital Camera Club

The goal of our Fine Art Photography SIG is to help each other to create fine art from our photography.
The Fine Art SIG is a place where artists support each other and nurture creativity in others.
Unrequested criticism can feed an artist's fear of failure and stifle their creative growth.

ATTENDEES
Tony Arnerich
Mike Barry
Heather Coe
Ken Eis
Rich Ernst
Jim Fellion
Michael Hohol
Gary Jens
Jim Limburg
Jack Lipscomb
Paul Marcoux
Ken Sandberg
Jim and Joan Sayre
Albert Wang

OUR MAIN DISCUSSION TOPIC WAS "Pictures Taken or Processed Since the Last Meeting".
Several members showed what they have been working on since the last meeting.

We also discussed the ethics of AI, whether it is art or not. There is a rumour that Meta (Instagram) is marking images as "Made with AI" if Adobe Photoshop AI tools were used to edit them, and now they have changed the label to "AI info". Has anyone actually experienced this?

SMOKE PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP
WHAT: Photographing Smoke Workshop
WHERE: Mike's garage at 2943 Redburn Drive, Fort Collins
WHEN: Saturday September 7 at 1pm to 5pm
BRING: Camera, flash (I will have some flashes to share), something to burn...
Smoke bombs are illegal in Fort Collins, so don't bring them.
I have a "fog cauldron" with "fog juice" that I have never used, that we can try out in the garage.
I also have incense sticks that work well.
Albert is going to bring Dry Ice.
Heather is going to bring some small objects that create colored fire when burned.

RESOURCES (Where you can find sources of inspiration)
Glen Hush's presentation on "Photographing Smoke" from the August club meeting

How to Photograph Smoke
https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/how-to-photograph-smoke/

Smoke Photography Tips and Ideas for Incredible Images
https://www.slrlounge.com/how-to-photograph-smoke-and-fog/

How to Photograph Smoke for Amateur Photographers
https://www.iphotography.com/blog/how-to-photograph-smoke/

How to take photos of smoke effects
https://www.cnet.com/tech/computing/how-to-take-photos-of-smoke-effects/

How to photograph smoke step by step
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j4QYil4wXY

Having Fun with Dry Ice Smoke
https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Dry-Ice-Smoke#:~:text=For%20example%2C%20you%20may%20put,piece%20of%20dry%20ice%20inside.

Add smoke to a photo to create a moody effect
https://creativecloud.adobe.com/en-x-AFRICA/learn/photoshop/web/composite-images-with-layer-blend-mode

Constructive Critiques and Personal Projects (optional)
Several members showed projects that they were working on.
The group gave Mike constructive criticism for several composites (Cosplayers and AI backgrounds).

PICK A TOPIC FOR THE NEXT MEETING
We have decided to discuss "Smoke Photography" at our September meeting. We were inspired by Glen Hush's presentation at the general club meeting. You are all invited to the Smoke Photography Workshop on 9/7.

Suggested Future Topics
Water Drop Photography
Photographing things thrown in the air
Macro and Closeup Photography

AGENDA FOR OUR NEXT FINE ART PHOTOGRAPHY SIG MEETING - Tue 9/17/2024 @6:00pm
1. The main topic will be "Smoke Photography".
2. Constructive Critiques and Other Personal Projects
3. We will pick a topic for the next meeting

Please email Mike, info@fcdcc.com, when you find mistakes, missing information or if you have suggestions for the Fine Art Photography SIG and I will try to address the issues.