Fine art nature photographer Robert Chaplin will be presenting how to photograph dramatic stormy skies and lightning (and how to stay safe). Florida is the number one state for lightning strikes. Being one of the most unpredictable forces of nature, lightning storms present a unique challenge for most photographers.  During this presentation Robert will talk about these topics:

-What creates lightning
-Dangers of lightning
-The basics of looking at and understanding radar
-Camera set up
-Shooting with and without a lightning trigger
-Processing images

I sure hope you can join us for this fun and informative meeting. This is especially important for members who have never photographed this type of photography before and plan on attending one of our field trips this month. 

This IS a hybrid meeting, meaning we’ll be meeting in person as well as doing a live broadcast via Zoom (which will also be recorded). After the meeting, the recording will be uploaded to our website. Link to the Zoom meeting is below. The invite will be sent out before the meeting.

In March’s Zoom presentation, I went through the Basic Panel in Lightroom’s develop module, in April I went through all the other panels in the develop module, and last month I introduced you to the masking tools to make local adjustments.

So this month, I’m going to process a couple of my own images from start to finish explaining each slider move, each mask, so you can understand the “why” I do something as well as the “how”. Hope to see you all there!

Zoom invites will go out the morning of the meeting.

Tonight’s theme is “Your Yard”. This should be an easy one for everybody. Show us your yard and lets get creative!

As always, submit your images to fit the theme before 5pm on the meeting date. When you export them, be sure they are resized to 2500 pixels on the long edge. 

Click the button below to email us your images.

Link to the Zoom meeting is below, and an invite will be sent shortly before the meeting.

Click the button below to attend the Zoom Meeting

Hope to see you all there!

Some info about our “FrameIt” sessions. We’ve decided to add some light critiques and post-processing recommendations, along with praising the submitted images.

Critiquing doesn’t mean condemning or scolding or being mean, its a way for folks to point out some things that they may perceive as could be improved upon so that the photographer may consider it and maybe tweak their processes. Maybe there’s a distraction you missed, maybe a color cast is making it look “off”. Many of the things could be fixed with a bit of additional post processing work - or at the least, something to think about next time you’re shooting in a similar situation. As with all critiques, you can take the statements and learn from them, or if what they pointed out was intentional, you can choose to ignore them.

A little something I learned from getting my own images critiqued by professionals, EVEN THEY make mistakes. Everyone does, and anyone can miss something. It comes down to this, would you rather people see a big piece of spinach stuck in your teeth and say nothing? Or would you like for them to say something so you can fix it? Yeah, sometimes its a bit of a hit to our egos, but in the long run, you’ll learn something and hopefully improve.

Today’s field trip / photo walk is a first for me, and a long time coming for the club. I’ve seen club photos from here from previous photo walks, but that was about 10 years ago. There’s lots to read up on here, so I HIGHLY recommend you read the rest so you’re fully prepared.

WHAT:                                   Gator Hook Trail Photo Walk
WHERE:                                Loop Road - Big Cypress National Preserve
WHEN:                                  7am at the trail head. Likely done by mid-morning
CAMERA GEAR:                We will be walking in and you will need to carry all of your gear with you. I suggest you condense your pack and carry only what you think is necessary. Camera, a wide-range zoom lens, tripod, filters.
WHAT ELSE TO BRING:   Water - Sunscreen - Bug Spray - Bug Jacket - Snacks/Bars - Maybe a hat and/or cooling towel. A change of shoes/clothes for the ride home. A cooler with more cold refreshments for the ride home.

Join me and the rest of the crew as we check out the Gator Hook trail. As I write this, we are 15 days from the event and it is bone dry. I don’t suspect we’ll have much, if any, water in the cypress dome on the day we visit, but it’s possible. Either or, if there is an onslaught of rain between now and then, and we do have water in the dome, you don’t have to go in. There will be plenty to see on the outside of the dome as well as inside if you so choose.

THE TRAIL

I highly recommend you do your research on this trail. Check out the reviews on ALLTRAILS HERE. This is NOT a nicely paved trail, its more of an obstacle course. Lots and lots of potholes in the limestone which we will be walking on. We’ll go slow, and take our time so we don’t get hurt, but for those who cannot walk far or have balance issues, maybe this trail isn’t for you. You certainly can come along and photograph from the trailhead. There’s a nice area there with bathrooms and picnic tables. For those of us who will walk the trail, it’s long (the full out and back trail is about 4.5 miles - 7.4kms), but we won’t be going all the way in. Most likely we’ll only go in about a half mile, and then turn back. Or, keep going, if the group is in agreement. You absolutely can go off on your own if you so choose.

THE WEATHER

It will be hot, and there will be bugs. Sorry, that’s the nature of the Everglades & Big Cypress, heck all of south Florida in May. Be prepared for the worst. I like to carry a cooling towel (a small water-soaked dish towel will also work), or even a hat that can be dipped in the water will surely cool off the hottest heads. And make sure you have plenty of water for the hike in, and some for when you’re done. We don’t want anyone dehydrating out there.

THE GEAR

Personally, I’ll probably be renting the 28-400 zoom lens like I did for the swamp walk back in November. That will give me all the range I desire with very little weight. Last thing I want to do is carry all three of my heavy lenses with me. However, you don’t need to do that. A 24-70 would be nice lens to carry, and if you like the long zooms a 70-200 would also be nice. You know yourself and what you’re capable of. Don’t over pack, and choose your lenses wisely. A tripod might also be necessary. That also is up to you. If you are comfortable shooting hand-held, by all means, leave the tripod in the car. I have a smaller travel tripod that I’ll put in my pack. Other than that, make sure you have plenty of charged batteries and memory cards. 

WHERE?

The trailhead is approximately 2 1/4 miles south of Tamiami Trail on Loop Road. Keep in mind, Collier County maintains this road and it’s mostly washboard, so plan to go slow. The entrance of Loop Road is near the old Monroe Station, approximately 4 miles past the Oasis Visitor’s Center on Tamiami Trail. I don’t recommend you catch Loop Road near the 40-Mile bend. You’ll be travelling on 21 miles of Loop Road, most likely in the dark. Best to leave that for the ride home.

Other than that, it should be nice. Sunrise is around 6:30am this time of year. If you wish you can get up super-duper early and go out for a sunrise before meeting for the walk. That is totally up to you. Lots of nice spots between Miami and the trails.

Please, RSVP so we know to expect you. You can click the button below. Hope to see you all there!!

In tonight’s meeting, we have a special presentation. Our very own member Tomas Abreu will be presenting a photo essay from his trip to Greenland last year. All the photos and all the stories!

Be sure to attend this one. If you can’t be here in person (which is highly recommended), at least attend through Zoom.

I have added my program below (PDF Document) that you can open and print if you like, or just open and follow along at your leisure while practicing on Lightroom with your own images.

In March’s Zoom presentation, I went through the Basic Panel in Lightroom, and last month I went through all the other panels. So this month we’ll dive into local adjustments using the masking tools. Hope to see you all there!

Click the button below to attend the Zoom. Invites will go out the morning of the meeting.

Since not getting enough ‘smoke & mirror’ photos for March’s FrameIt, we’ve moved it to April. So again, tonight’s theme is “smoke & mirrors”. Interpret that any way you like, literally or figuratively. Get creative!

As always, submit your images to fit the theme before 5pm on Mar. 19th. When you export them, be sure they are resized to 2500 pixels on the long edge. 

Link to the Zoom meeting is below, and an invite will be sent shortly before the meeting.

Click here to go to Zoom Meeting

Hope to see you all there!

Some info about our “FrameIt” sessions. We’ve decided to add some light critiques and post-processing recommendations, along with praising the submitted images.

Critiquing doesn’t mean condemning or scolding or being mean, its a way for folks to point out some things that they may perceive as could be improved upon so that the photographer may consider it and maybe tweak their processes. Maybe there’s a distraction you missed, maybe a color cast is making it look “off”. Many of the things could be fixed with a bit of additional post processing work - or at the least, something to think about next time you’re shooting in a similar situation. As with all critiques, you can take the statements and learn from them, or if what they pointed out was intentional, you can choose to ignore them.

A little something I learned from getting my own images critiqued by professionals, EVEN THEY make mistakes. Everyone does, and anyone can miss something. It comes down to this, would you rather people see a big piece of spinach stuck in your teeth and say nothing? Or would you like for them to say something so you can fix it? Yeah, sometimes its a bit of a hit to our egos, but in the long run, you’ll learn something and hopefully improve.

Join us as Mary takes us a walk through a magical farmland area of South Dade.

Just 30 miles from Miami is the second largest agricultural area in Florida. Come walk and choose your shots of some groves, fields, and vineyards (sorry not grapes, but peppers). No picking, cause that’s stealing. Bring dog whistles (they’re usually behind fences, but you never know), good shoes (very few even surfaces) and insect repellent cause, we’ll be out in the Redland.

Here’s a couple of shots of what we might see.

Meet at Mary’s house at 1562 NW 8th Terrace in Homestead. Call her if you need help finding the place at 305-458-2736.

Hope to see you there!

Don’t forget to RSVP by clicking the button below.

Tonight, we have a special guest speaker, long time member Mary Ostlund, who will be discussing the disappearing farmland of South Dade.

Just 30 miles from Miami is the second largest agricultural area in Florida. It doesn’t look like what Americans think of as farmland - few barns, cattle or horses, just acres of vineyard, fields and groves. It's a major agricultural area that is crucial in feeding the south and the northeast during the winter. It’s now the only tropical agricultural area in the continental USA. We’re losing the farmland to housing. Take a look at what’s happening. 

This IS a hybrid meeting, meaning we’ll be meeting in person as well as doing a live broadcast via Zoom (which will also be recorded). After the meeting, the recording will be uploaded to our website. Link to the Zoom meeting is HERE and the invite will be sent out before the meeting.

What a treat we have for you! Roger Hammer, for those who don’t know, is an award-winning professional naturalist, author, botanist and photographer. He offers entertaining and informative programs to orchid societies, garden clubs, butterfly organizations, Audubon societies, environmental groups, and botanical gardens in addition to civic groups. And today, he’s offering his services to the SFNPCC to take us all on a wildflower walk in the Everglades, hopefully we’ll see the grass-pink orchid!

He’ll take us down an approximate 1 1/2 (one and a half) mile trail in the Everglades prairie. Be sure you’re physically able to walk that far with all of your gear before signing up.

After the walk, Roger will have his many books for sale. If you wish to buy, be sure to bring cash or checks (books are $25 to $30 each). He doesn’t do credit cards or payment apps. Totally old-school here. If you’re interested in seeing which books he’s written, here’s the list on his website. Below is a sample of the many guides he’s written.

Space is extremely limited. We’re aiming for 10 participants, and will possibly accept 15.  

Cost to attend:
Members $10
Non-members $20

So secure your spot today by clicking the box below. Once you’ve made the purchase, I’ll email you with the instructions on where to meet.

Be sure you also have a National Parks Pass or Everglades Park Pass. You can purchase those online HERE or you can buy them ahead of time at the visitor’s center (not the day of, they don’t open until 9am). Single use is $35 and good for a week, an Everglades Yearly pass is $70, and an American the Beautiful pass (for all National Parks) is $80 per year. You can also buy them at the gate with a credit card when you enter the park.

In last month’s Zoom presentation, I went through the Basic Panel in Lightroom, as that’s generally the most used panel that can have the most impact to images. So in tonight's meeting, I want to go through all the other panels so you know what they do and how they can affect your images.

All this will lead to next month’s Zoom presentation where I’ll dive into local adjustments with the masking tools.

Zoom invites will go out the morning of the meeting.

A bit of a change to our “FrameIt” sessions. We’ve decided to add some light critiques and post-processing recommendations, along with praising the submitted images.

Critiquing doesn’t mean condemning or scolding or being mean, its a way for folks to point out some things that they may perceive as could be improved upon so that the photographer may consider it and maybe tweak their processes. Maybe there’s a distraction you missed, maybe a color cast is making it look “off”. Many of the things could be fixed with a bit of additional post processing work - or at the least, something to think about next time you’re shooting in a similar situation. As with all critiques, you can take the statements and learn from them, or if what they pointed out was intentional, you can choose to ignore them.

A little something I learned from getting my own images critiqued by professionals, EVEN THEY make mistakes. Everyone does, and anyone can miss something. It comes down to this, would you rather people see a big piece of spinach stuck in your teeth and say nothing? Or would you like for them to say something so you can fix it? Yeah, sometimes its a bit of a hit to our egos, but in the long run, you’ll learn something and hopefully improve.

That being said…

Tonight’s theme is “smoke & mirrors”. Interpret that any way you like, literally or figuratively. Get creative!

As always, submit your images to fit the theme before 5pm on Mar. 19th. When you export them, be sure they are resized to 2500 pixels on the long edge. 

Link to the Zoom meeting is below, and an invite will be sent shortly before the meeting.

Hope to see you all there!

We’ll meet up at 6:15am the Ernest Coe Visitor’s Center parking lot and at 6:30am sharp, caravan over to our shooting location.

Fingers crossed for perfect skies to photograph both the sunrise at 7:30am and the moonset at 8:08am. As soon as that sun pops up over the horizon it will color the moon a pretty shade of peachy-pink, hopefully. So we should have a good 30 minutes of a colorful setting moon. As long as everything goes to plan. 

Be sure to RSVP to let me know you’re coming!

Tonight, Hugh will explain how to best photograph motorsports ahead of this month’s NASCAR races in Homestead. The topics he discusses here will also apply to any fast moving events, like airshows, horse races, and even birds in flight. So don’t miss it!

Meeting begins at 6pm with the “coming attractions” from the fine library folks. Our presentation will start shortly after. Hope to see you all there!

This IS a hybrid meeting, meaning we’ll be meeting in person as well as doing a live broadcast via zoom (which will also be recorded). After the meeting, the recording will be uploaded to our website. And invite to the Zoom meeting will be sent out before the meeting.

Meet Jason at the Wako wetlands parking lot at 5:30am. Yep, you heard correctly, 5:30am! This is a prime and popular spot for birding this time of year. This is 30min before the park opens, but the closer it gets to opening time, the faster the parking fills up. If you arrive at 6am you could be waiting in a long line for a place to park.

Wakodahatchee Wetlands is 50 acres of what used to be a wastewater utility. It was created for the public and features nearly a mile of boardwalk which crosses open water ponds and islands. There are shrubs and snags which foster nesting and roosting. It is part of the Great Florida Birding Trail and for good reason. It offers opportunities to see and photograph birds in their natural habitat and over 178 different species have been identified. You might also get a glimpse of various amphibians, reptiles, and mammals as well.

March is the prime nesting time for many of the bird species which can provide many opportunities for photographers to capture the interaction between parent and young.  If the young have not hatched yet then you can bet there will be activity as they build their nests.

Join us and see what Wakodahatchee has to show us!

Click HERE some info from the Palm Beach County website.

For a brochure, click the image below.

In tonight's meeting we’ll go over editing techniques in the Basic panel. We’ll go over all the sliders to make global edits, perhaps touch on some of the masking features to get you started.

Zoom invites will be emailed the morning of the meeting or click the button below.

Join Oscar and the SFNPCC as we visit the Florida Renaissance Festival at Quiet Waters Park!

Click here to learn all about it on their website.

Click here to download SFNPCC’s WAIVER and release form. For all SFNPCC in the field events we require a signed waiver. Please download, sign, and email back with your RSVP, or print and bring with you to the event.

And please be sure to RSVP by clicking the button below to let us know you’re attending.

Hope to see you all there!

Tonight’s theme is “Shadows”. As always, submit your images to fit the theme before 5pm on Feb. 19th. Export them sizing them to 2500 pixels on the long edge.

Link to the Zoom meeting is below, and an invite will be sent shortly before the meeting.

Hope to see you there!

Meet us at Ernest Coe Visitor’s Center parking lot by 6:15am. We’ll caravan out at 6:30am sharp and drive the 25 miles down to Paurotis Pond where we’ll look for and photograph birds. I have a plan B in mind in case there are others there doing the same thing we are.

Be sure to RSVP so I know you’re coming.

Hi folks, change in plans. Robert can’t be here tonight, so Barb will give a talk about demystifying the print. This isn’t a talk about printing as an artform, but rather how to go about transforming your digital images to a physical print to share, sell, hang at a gallery or shop, or give to friends or family. 

From experience Barb has made many of the mistakes that a lot of us make when going to make a print. She’ll talk about preparing the digital file, how to choose the correct size, mats, frames, and alternative methods of printing.

Meeting begins at 6pm with the “coming attractions” from the library, our presentation will start shortly after. Hope to see you all there!

This IS a hybrid meeting, meaning we’ll be meeting in person as well as doing a live broadcast via zoom (which will also be recorded). After the meeting, the recording will be uploaded to our website.

Zoom meeting invites will be sent the morning of the meeting.

Everyone is welcome to join the SFNPCC in celebrating some of our fellow members with their work hanging in the Wirtz Gallery within the United Community Bank (Formerly First National Bank of South Miami). The event begins at 5:30 and ends at 7:30. We hope to see you all there, and bring your friends! 

To preset or not to preset, that is the question?

Strange thing to say, right? I remember a time when I bought a few presets from “influencers”. Never did use them, or if I did, they weren’t quite what I was looking for and ended up just doing what I wanted anyway.

So in tonight’s presentation, I’ll talk about presets, whether you should or shouldn’t buy any, and how you can make your own! Oh yes, you don’t need to pay for them, not unless you really want to spend your money.

And presets aren’t just for processing, they can be used in multiple ways in Lightroom. Should be fun and open your eyes to new possibilities.

Zoom meeting invites will go out the morning of the meeting.

In tonight's meeting, seeing its the first month of the year, I thought I'd go “back-to-basics” of Lightroom. Lightroom is not JUST a RAW processing software, but it's also a cataloging powerhouse! I'll show you my steps for importing, adding metadata and keywords, culling, and then a quick processing tip to help with your "vision".

I’ll also introduce you to other YouTube channels that can help organize your Lr monstrosity (if you do, in fact, have a huge mess) and how to maximize the potential that Lightroom provides. It truly is a wonder that most people don’t utilize or realize way late in their progression.

Zoom invites will go out the morning of the meeting.

FYI - THERE ARE TWO AREAS IN GRASSY WATERS PRESERVE. BE SURE YOU GO TO THE CORRECT ONE! THE ADDRESS LISTED ON THE PBC WEBSITE IS FOR A DIFFERENT SECTION THAN THE ON WE’RE VISITING.

Hey folks, I thought I’d plan a last minute field trip to coincide with some weekend dog-sitting duties. So I’ve decided to visit the Grassy Waters Preserve off of Northlake Boulevard (Hog Hammock Trail). (Map location is included to the left as well as at the bottom of this memo.)

Seeing as we don’t get this far north very often, I’d like to make an afternoon of it and explore, then settle in for what I hope will be a beautiful sunset.

If you’re interested in exploring a new trail, meet me at 3pm at the Hog Hammock Trail, a 2.1 mile loop. If you’re not interested in walking that far, you can go as far as you’d like, or just stick to the parking area, where we will reconvene at the Eagle Trail (which loops around the lake) around 5pm and set up for sunset. Sunset is just before 6pm.

Please RSVP if you plan to attend. Click the button above.

Perhaps afterward we can stop for a bite somewhere. Its up to you.

Hope you can join me!

Click HERE for a link to the Google Maps

Tonight’s theme is “Best of 2024!”. Show us your best, your favorites, your trips, your “it” images from 2024.

As always, submit your images to fit the theme by 5pm on Jan. 15th. Export them using 2500 pixels on the long edge.

Link to the Zoom meeting is below, and an invite will be sent shortly before the meeting.

Hope to see you there!

New rules for 2025, prior to any in the field event, SFNPCC requires all participants to sign the waiver included above. You can sign and email it back to me, or print and sign and bring along with you. However you wish to do it, as long as I receive it prior. Thanks all!

Castellow Hammock is a 112-acre park and preserve that contains a mature tropical hardwood forest with a half-mile self-guided nature trail.  The park was named in honor of James S. Castellow, a citrus farmer who homesteaded the property in the early 1900s. 

In 1974, the park became one of the first environmental education centers in Miami-Dade County and is popular with birders, butterfly watchers, and botanists.  The park serves as a wonderful place for city dwellers to get close to nature and rejuvenate the spirit.

Today we’ll visit the Castellow Hammock and either wait for the hummingbird show to begin, or go off into the hardwood hammock and explore the wonder of this beautiful forest.

Gates open at 9am, so lets meet at the entrance at quarter till (8:45am). 

We’re bringing back our good friend Robert Chaplin for two back-to-back talks to kick off 2025 in style! In this first talk, Robert will discuss the importance of post processing.

Image Processing – The Importance of the Final Touch

Whether it is done in-camera or an image editing program, image processing is necessary. During this talk, Robert demonstrates and explains the need for this finishing process. This talk is not software-specific.

Meeting begins at 6pm with the “coming attractions” from the library. Our presentation will start shortly after. Hope to see you all there!

This IS a hybrid meeting, meaning we’ll be meeting in person as well as doing a live broadcast via zoom (which will also be recorded). After the meeting, the recording will be uploaded to our website. And invite to the Zoom meeting will be sent out before the meeting.