Cathy was unable to attend November’s Zoom meeting but she did contribute photos. We browse through her beautiful Antelope Canyon collection from her recent photo trip. The walls of Antelope Canyon are so beautifully sculpted, the photos in either color or b&w are amazing. Her inclusion of people in one shot shows the scale of the slot canyon walls.
Cathy also added two images from our recent UCSD Fallen Star moonrise meetup Nov 5th. She was able to composite two exposures to make a HDR blend, showcasing the moon rising over the house. A second exposure, tighter shot, shows the moonrise SOOC (straight-out-of-camera).
We typically try photographing moonrise the day of full moon when the sunset and moonrise match. But when it takes 45mins for the moon to rise over the foreground element. The exposure dynamic range is too drastic for a single exposure even with in-camera HDR. Fallen Star moonrise required a 7-stop exposure blend to create the combined exposure. Next moonrise, we will try one day earlier so the moonrise will happen ~40min before sunset. The exposure contrast between a foreground and moon will be less dramatic.

Cathy shared some beautiful still life images, especially different variations of a sunflower composition. Her ‘loving books’ still life was a lesson in composition with particular notice given the angle of the book and its lighting. Her three sunflowers photos got a bunch of feedback with pretty much everyone in the group preferring the tighter black & white composition.
Getting feedback from the group is one of the best things about sharing images with other photographers. Participants sometimes provide a different interpretation, notice details, and can reaffirm your intent.

Cathy was inspired to shoot the San Diego Fair during its run, like Gary and myself. She particularly focus on isolated moments amongst the chaos. She was also the one to propose “Sports” for this month’s theme but had trouble finding an interesting vantage point without obstructions.

Cathy shared silhouetted and backlit photos this month. She included ‘select color’ apple blossom and Sensorio images. Her approach to photographing the Sensorio hillside light installations is wonderful. Photographing them early in the evening before the lights came on.