April 22nd, 2026
Words of Wisdom
The only thing that gets in the way of a really good photograph is the camera. – Norman Parkinson
Going Back to Africa:
Our last meeting was pretty wild, wasn’t it? Tina and Darrel’s African safari presentation was nothing short of unforgettable—so good, in fact, we’d be lion if we said it didn’t leave us all a little in awe. From towering elephants to scenes that were simply unbe-leaf-able (okay, maybe that one wandered in from the wrong habitat), their images had us glued to our seats and our imaginations running free. It was an evening packed with incredible wildlife, stunning landscapes, and stories that were anything but tame—proof that great photography can take you places without ever leaving your chair. Safe to say, they really raised the “bar…k” on guest presentations… and yes, we’ll see ourselves out now.
Resources:
Thank you to Mel Stewart for recommending this site, PHLEARN is a small group of creatives who try to make creative education better and more fun. They create engaging Photoshop, and Lightroom, tutorials for photographers in all phases of their learning. Their goal is to make you laugh, while they help you master your craft.
PHLEARN
Gear:
Another twofer this week. There was a time when I stayed in so many hotels (almost a year of my life in Marriott’s alone) that I thought it would be cool to do a project on shots from my hotel window. I got tired of wrestling with different ways to reduce the glare so you could get a decent photo. Ultimate Lens Hood (ULH) has solved this, they have a large lens hood, that can also act as platform to rest your camera on, that eliminates reflections. They are out of the UK and their hoods start at £17, I asked them about availability in Canada however they didn’t respond but you can order from their website.
Ultimate Lens Hood
LensBaby will soon launch Twist 28, a manual focus 28mm lens with a fixed f/3.5 aperture built into a small, pancake-style body. The feature that makes this lens special is the centre of the photo stays fairly sharp while the outer areas fall off into a swirling blur.
For the techies, the lens uses a four-element optical design with anti-reflective coatings. The fixed aperture means you can’t adjust depth of field through the lens itself. The image is controlled through shutter speed, ISO, and distance to your subject, (this is one of my issues with Lensbaby, I find there is too much fiddle factor) the lens is not threaded for use with filters.
The Twist 28 is designed for full-frame cameras, it can also be used on APS-C bodies but the field of view will be different. It is available for a variety of mounts, and weighs 140 grams. I’m not sure about the cost as I couldn’t find it on any Canadian sites yet. The Camera Store carries Lensbaby in Canada as does Amazon. According to ChatGPT this new lens launched in the US on April 2nd.
Lensbaby
Tech Tips:
Strong photographs come from knowing what matters most in a scene and building the composition around that single intention. Filling the frame only with what you love, avoids clutter and creates images that feel purposeful and easy to understand. Just as important is removing distractions—especially along the edges—so nothing pulls attention away from the subject. Clean, intentional framing naturally strengthens the visual impact. Mark also talked about this during Edit My Raw, Mark referred to this as patrolling your edges.
Depth and structure also shape how a viewer experiences an image. Using foreground, midground, and background elements creates a sense of movement through the frame, making the scene more immersive. Compositional tools like the rule of thirds can add energy by placing key elements off‑center, but knowing when to break rules is equally important. Whether you follow or ignore it, the placement of each element should always be intentional and serve the story you want your image to tell.
Photography Apps:
Snapseed is considered one of the better, more powerful free photo editing apps available for your phone, it’s suitable for both beginners and professional photographers. Owned by Google, it offers a comprehensive suite of professional-grade tools, for RAW editing, and precise control over image adjustments without any ads, is free and available for both Android and iOS phones.
Key Reasons Why It’s Highly Rated:
Comprehensive Tools: Includes essential tools like Curves, White Balance, and Masking, plus specialized tools like Lenscraft Photography notes for “healing” (removing distractions) and “structure”.
RAW Editing: It is highly praised for its ability to edit RAW images on the go.
Non-Destructive Editing: You can undo or change any edit at any time.
User-Friendly: Its interface is intuitive for beginners, yet deep enough for experts.
There are also a ton of videos on Youtube on how to use Snapspeed.
YouTube Channels:
Justin Mott is an American photographer, based in Vietnam and he travels a lot as a commercial photographer in Asia. In this video he shares some of his tips for traveling with photo gear. He mentions that he likes the Amex Platinum as his travel card as it will replaced quickly if needed, which is true for all Amex Cards. The video is about 15 minutes long. He likes one card but it is a good idea to have 2 cards when you travel one on you, and one in the safe in your room. It is also recommended to keep a paper copy of key documents with you when you travel. A tip from a flight attendant is to put one of the shoes you are going to wear on your next flight in the room safe as it keeps you from forgetting stuff in the safe. Another tip is to leave your phone’s location tracking on when traveling in case anything happens to you, it makes it easier to find you.
The second video is travel tips from Simon D’Entremont. He recommends taking your toiletries in your carry-on but don’t sweat it as most hotels will supply them if needed. He’s also wrong about airlines not caring about the weight of your carry-on, in the EU they care about size and weight. I have had my carry-ons weighed in Europe, which also has a smaller allowable size for carry-ons. I had to reduce the weight of my backpack in Austria by 1 kilo. This video is also ~15 minutes. Simon gives you a sneaky tip in case they ask you to check your camera bag.
Featured Photographer:
Richard Robesco is a visual artist from Montreal (we have booked him for our next session) who works primarily with photography and painting to create both realistic and abstract images.
Combining classical style with modern ideas, his work blends visual elegance with deep meaning. Captured in various places around the world, his images encourage viewers to reflect on the fragile nature of human life and the environment, and to consider how the world around us and our actions within it shape our experience.
His subject matter is varied, from landscapes to street scenes, to portraits, still life and transposed images. His style has been described as contemporary and stylized, though some images are more minimalist, monochrome, peaceful, reflective. He focusses his attention on the content as well as the form. He likes to experiment. His art is expressive and, occasionally, contemplative. Robesco is inspired by contemporary artists such as the German painter Gerhard Richter and Düsseldorf school photo-based artist Andreas Gursky.
Richard Robesco
Photographer of The Month:
Darrell Nicks won second place in the black and white segment of last year’s photo contest with this great moody shot.
Place of birth: Halifax, NS
Member of the club: more than 20 years (joined in 2002)
Camera: Canon 6D Mark II and a 7D.
About:
I like to shoot just about any and everything. I am very happy share any knowledge I have about shooting birds, sports, or photography in general etc. I am very open to meetups for all types of photography.
Favourite Genre
Sports, nature and action
Skill Level
I see myself as very knowledgeable.
Open to Meet ups
Yes.
About The Image
My picture in question was taken in Jonesport, Maine, a very busy lobstering port, on 2023 July 2. It was an extremely foggy day. As a matter fact the whole trip was foggy and rainy most of the trip. Tina and I said that we would be stuck getting bad weather pictures, so we made the best of it. We started to head back to the truck, Tina said “it feels like rain” and that’s when I decided just a few more shots. I wished I had more time to be creative. We got back to the truck and as I started to drive, it started to rain cats and dogs. I guess Tina was right again, yes dear! Haha!!! We did have a good foggy and rainy trip to Maine.
In Closing:
And just like that, we’ve reached the end of another edition—hopefully with a few new ideas, a couple of “I should try that” moments, and maybe even a lens or two now sitting in your online shopping cart. Whether you’re out chasing perfect light, patrolling your edges like a pro, or just trying to remember where you left your camera bag, keep shooting, keep experimenting, and most importantly—keep having fun with it. We’ll see you at the next meeting (in person if you can—Zoom if you must), where the photos are sharp, the conversations are sharper, and someone will almost definitely say, “I wish I brought my other lens.”