All 3 of the following Weekly Google+ Theme Recognition Winners have won a complimentary large print of their winning pictures, from our sponsor, Vivyx Printing.

Also, as weekly winners, they are each in the running for the monthly Grand Prize of a $100 print credit with Vivyx Printing. Last month’s Grand Prize winner was Joe DiFlorio. The next monthly Grand Prize winner will be announced at our June 13, 2013 PAC meeting – our featured speaker will be Melissa Jill!

::Google+ Weekly Photography Theme Recognition – “All in the Family”::

From last week’s Google+ PAC Photography Community weekly “All in the Family” photography theme challenge, the judges have chosen to highlight Jenny McCarthy’s photo of a Pronghorn Antelope family! Congratulations, Jenny!

Why the judges love this picture:
“I love that the theme of family was extrapolated beyond human families. I also like the use of the rule of thirds here.”
“This photo is neat because of the repetition and different sizes of all the animals….and the implied family. Pretty cool.”
“I like outside the box thinking and a family could be any number of things. This is what the challenges are about pushing your art past the obvious. Oh and a great capture needless to say.”

When asked about the story behind this picture, Jenny told us:
“This photo of a Mother Pronghorn and her twins was taken outside of Jackson Hole Wy. They were hilarious and very wary of our presence but were not spooked. They gave us a great show for about 45 minutes before my attention was redirected to a baby hawk trying to fly.”
Jenny, a professional photographer who lives in Scottsdale, AZ, made this picture using her Canon 40D.
Her settings are as follows:
ISO 100
Shutter speed 1/100s
f/10
70-200 lens with 1/4 extender at 280mm

When asked about her background in photography, Jenny said:

“I have been shooting since childhood but became fascinated by nature and wildlife photography as a young teenager when Art Wolfe came on the scene in my hometown near Seattle. I just moved to Scottsdale from Southern California and am thrilled with all the scenery here. I am looking forward to joining the group on some excursions in the very near future.”

Welcome to Arizona, Jenny – we’re looking forward to meeting you and to seeing more of your pictures in our groups! Jenny’s web presence can be found at: http://jennymacstudios.com and of course on Google+.

Congratulations Jenny McCarthy on the G+ Weekly Photography Theme Recognition! Take a moment to congratulate her and add her to your circle of photographers.

——————————————————————————

::Google+ Weekly Photography Theme Recognition – “PRO – Weddings & Receptions”::

For last week’s Google+ PAC Photography Community theme, “PRO – Weddings & Reception” our judges have chosen to highlight Anna Padilla’s captivating picture of a bride & groom! Congratulations, Anna!
Why the judges love this picture:
“This looks likes its a stolen moment between the bride and groom, and just happened to be captured by the photographer rather than a posed image. You can feel the emotion between the 2, and love that it is in black and white.”

“(There is) emotion, and you feel like you’re not supposed to be there. But at the same time makes you happy for the couple on their special day.”

“You have to appreciate the story in this image. There is a lot to draw from as well, time and place, mood and of course who they are. Great use of available light and the DOF was spot on.”

Anna, the professional photographer behind the lens at Anna Marisol Photography, who lives in Goodyear, Arizona, made this picture using her Canon 60D.

(Anna is currently out of town, and will send us her settings when she returns.)

When asked about the story behind this picture, Anna told us:
“The photo was captured at the Old Town Peoria Wedding and Event Center. http://www.oldtownweddingcenter.com/ It was an unusually cold night, even for January. Since the couple’s reception took place outdoors they took a little break from the cold and shared a romantic moment in the hallway.”

Anna received her first DSLR a little over 3 years ago. She tells us, “Since then I always keep my manual handy. I started practicing by taking photos of my kids and soon enough it became an obsession. By joining photography groups, I feel more connected with the industry and am always trying to learn more.”

Anna is a new member of the PAC and we are so glad she’s joined us and that she’s jumped right into posting! Thanks for sharing your pictures with us, Anna!
——————————————————————————

::Google+ Weekly Photography Theme Recognition – “May Flowers”::

For last week’s Google+ PAC Photography Community theme, “May Flowers,” our judges selected Nick Cardona’s striking tulip picture! Congratulations, Nick!

Why the judges love this picture:
“I like how vibrant all the colors are here, from the flowers to the green stems to the blue sky. The variety of flowers helps to portray how everything comes to life in the Spring.”

“COLORS!! and clouds. Just looks very interesting. Not the typical macro shot.”

“Hands down a fantastic capture of color and the angle draws you into the image.”

Nick is a semi-professional photographer, at  Nick Cardona Photography. who lives in Gilbert, Arizona. He made this picture with his Pentax K-5.

His settings for this picture are as follows:
ISO 100
Shutter Speed 1/2000s
Focal Length 26mm
f/5.6

When asked about the backstory for this picture, Nick wrote:

“The picture was taken in Salt Lake City in May 2011. It was a nice spring day and I wanted to get a shot of the flowers without the clutter of the buildings or anything in the background. To get that, I needed to get the low angle and shoot up at them. This shot is an HDR photo with 3 shots taken 2 stops apart. When doing HDR, I try to make it as subtle as possible to keep it realistic but extending the dynamic range to represent more closely what I was seeing with my eyes. I calibrated the polarizer on the lens before getting down low. I also believe that I was at F8 on the f-stop. At that close of a focus distance, the depth of field is still pretty small with f8 so I knew that the flowers would get softer as it went back. I then set the camera on the ground and quickly fired off 3 shots. I did not look through the viewfinder because it would not have been possible with the extreme low angle. I processed the shots through Photomatix first to merge the 3 shots into 1 and then did some minor tweaks of contrast and sharpening in lightroom.”

As far as his photography background goes, Nick tells us,”I have always been interested in art and began with drawing and sketching. That love evolved into photography as I grew older. When I was in High school I had my first darkroom experience and it was then that I really fell in love with photography. I love shooting landscapes and nature photos, but I also have begun to branch out into shooting more people through family, and senior shoots. I spent 8 years working in the photo retail industry and had the opportunity to learn from some great photographers and also to teach photography to many customers as they were starting their journey into photography.”

Nick is active in our G+ and FB groups. We appreciate your participation, Nick, and look forward to more of your photos! Congratulations, again!

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Please comment on this post to show our three PAC Weekly Photography Theme Recognition winners some love!
Also, don’t forget to take some time to check out the other awesome themed photos, on Google+ and on Facebook, and get inspired to go out and shoot!
To be considered for this PAC challenge, simply check the calendar for the weekly photo assignments.
• Photos submitted for the Google+ Community Weekly Theme must be shot during the assignment week—no archived photos.
• Hash tag #PACWeekly.
• Photos submitted for the 3-day Themes may be archived, or shot during the run of the theme.
• Post your BEST three shots each week based on the current theme.
• Any details you can add to your post, such as: camera used, settings, caption, and/or a brief story of your subject, will also be considered a plus!
The winning photographers will have their photos published here on the PAC blog for all to enjoy, and will receive a large print of their winning photos, compliments of our sponsors, Vivyx Printing!
To learn more about our Amazing Photo community check out our website here:www.PhotoAdvClub.com (Open to all States and Countries!)
~ Sarah Hales
on behalf of the PAC Community Leaders