Hail To The Chief

I was elected to serve as President of the Hill Country Photography Club at the last club meeting. Also elected were Tom Delaney and Carol Serur as co-Vice Presidents. Tom Bender will continue as Secretary and Winifred Simon will continue as Treasurer.

I'm looking forward to serving and helping the Club operate. I've been a member for 3 years and have learned a lot about photography from the members. I first heard about the Club when I saw an advertisement for its annual Naturescapes photography contest and exhibition. I had just purchased my DSLR camera, a Canon Digital Rebel XTi, and decided to enter the contest. As luck would have it, one of my entries, entitled "Freeman Ranch" won First Place in the Hays County Division.

Freeman Ranch

I was hooked and joined the Club at the next meeting. I had first taken up photography in the early 1980s with a Canon AE-1 film camera, which I have to admit I bought because Cheryl Tiegs was promoting them. I took a class at a community college in San Antonio, learned the basics and even learned how to develop and print in a darkroom, but for some reason, my interest died out.

I was enrolled in the Hays County Master Naturalist Class in 2007 when I became interested in photography again. There were plenty of opportunities during the class field trips and when doing volunteer work in the field for nature photography and my camera became a constant companion. In fact, I took "Freeman Ranch" during a butterfly class at the Freeman Ranch, which is operated by Texas State University. The photo show two large agave (Agave americana) plants with massive, about 30 feet tall, flower stalks.

As President, I'll work with the Vice-Presidents and plan and coordinate our club meetings, field trips, and other events. We usually have a guest speaker at the meetings and they're always a great source of knowledge and inspiration. Sometimes we'll have a lesson or demonstration about photography software or equipment. We also have a critique session in which members submit photographs for critique by the other members. These are a great way to learn.

The Club meets monthly, usually on the third Thursday of the month, in the Horizon Bay dining room. Be sure to check out the Club's blog for the latest information about meetings or events.