A visit with Mel Evans, Jim Fitzgerald, Marty Frank, Phil Mc Auliffe and Rob Tucher of the Monalogue Collective and Tom Gramegna, Gallery 270 Director.
Bergen County Camera’s Focus Sessions begin Saturday mornings at 9:30 AM, doors open at 9 AM. The artists will speak in greater depth about their process and motivations for choosing to work only in B+W, only using film, and don’t employ any digital process in any aspect of their process!
Showcasing an amazing variety of vintage/traditional processes such as platinum/palladium, silver gelatin and carbon transfer prints, the artists will speak in greater depth about their process and motivations for choosing to work in “slow” photography.
The show opens tonight and the public is invited to the gala opening, we’re expecting seven of the nine artists whose work is on display in Gallery 270 to attend. It happens this Thursday 11/2/23 from 7-9PM with refreshments and snacks and the show runs through 1/31/24.
Join us for an exciting exploration of the work of some of the photographers from the Monalog Collective, a group of like-minded stalwart artists who choose to work in “slow” processes of monochrome film photography to express their vision. We’ll discuss their one of a kind works as displayed in the 2023 -2024 iteration of the show The 21st Century Handmade Print.
Welcome to our thirty-fifth Bergen County Camera Customer Spotlight. This monthly posting features a customer who’s made an impression on us. They might have grown in their understanding of photography, gained a mastery of the craft and / or have become a strong advocate of our way of doing business in the world of photography. During the next month you will see this customer’s images displayed on our digital signs in store, in our emails, blog posts and social media.
Robert Helder is our customer spotlight for the months of November-December. We hope you both enjoy and are inspired by this new addition to In Focus and look forward to your comments and suggestions. Below you will find a gallery containing some of Robert’s images.
About Robert:
Robert Helder has been a friend of the Bergen County Camera team for many years, however, his passion for photography goes back much further. Robert took up photography at a very young age. He did so after seeing his father’s interest in the art form. It remained a hobby throughout his childhood, but really became a passion when he began travelling in early adulthood. Robert spent much of his early 20’s visiting Europe, using a Nikkormat camera to capture images of his travels. This remained his primary focus until, as one does in life, he started a family. Robert’s photography shifted towards capturing precious memories of his kids. His family was his focus for many years and as time went on, photography took a back seat.
It wasn’t until years later that he was introduced to the hawk watch at State Line Lookout. The hawk watch is held annually at the park, where bird watchers and photographers flock to view migrating birds of prey. From hawks and eagles to a local pair of Peregrine Falcons, there was always something to see. A few trips to the lookout and Robert’s passion for photography was rekindled. Since then, he has broadened his horizons, choosing to photograph most of nature has to offer. Whether it be plant or animal, Robert is captivated by it all.
Robert continues to grow as a photographer and continues to visit Bergen County Camera for all his photographic needs. He consistently shoots local parks and nature centers where he finds elusive and hard to find species.
Check out just some of his gallery below to see some of the incredible images he’s captured!
Discover the art and craft of photography in Rocky Nook’s 2-day online conference featuring 10 of the worlds most inspiring photographers and educators.
Sign up before September 15th for only $199, and also receive a $50 Rocky Nook gift card!
We are happy to fulfill one of our top customer requests — stay open late on Thursday Night. A recent customer survey showed nearly 70% wanted our pre-pandemic late night reinstated. We will be rolling this our starting June 1, 2023. Our store hours are Monday – Saturday 10 am – 5 pm and Thursday evening’s until 8 pm
Each Spring, as the temperatures rise, songbirds return to their breeding ranges in North America. Many find their way to the Northeastern U.S. where birders and photographers alike flock to city parks to catch a glimpse of these colorful birds. While these locations make for easier sightings, they’re not always ideal for photography. The birds at these parks are merely stopping by to rest and forage before continuing their journey. They don’t sit still for long, and they seldom come down from the canopy. If they do, they usually visit a water source or feeder. Whatever it is they do, it’s also usually brief.
That is why you wants to find these birds in their preferred nesting habitat. Here, these birds are more consistent and active. Males lay claim to territory by singing from select perches to attract mates and thwart other males. When they hear an intruder, they investigate. When they see an intruder, they take action. They do all of this in a fairly confined area, where they’re movements and behaviors can become predictable to the observational birder. This is where I photograph them.
If you’d like to try your hand at songbird photography, why not do so with a little guidance. This Spring, join me, Matt Malwitz, for an in-the-field songbird photography workshop. This won’t be your typical “point and shoot” type of workshop either. I want to teach you a thing or two. During this outing, we’ll cover my process of find and photographing these birds. We’ll discuss how to find and identify songbirds, how to approach and move around wildlife, and different photographic techniques, all while photographing birds in the field.
Our goal will be to capture stunning images of two or three species, prioritizing quality shots over quantity of birds. We won’t get good looks at everything, and some birds are trickier than others, but that’s all part of the fun. As the saying goes, “if it were easy, everyone would do it”. So, why not give bird photography a chance.
Below you will find the images along with the photographer’s name. Below all the photos is the assignments that were chosen. Lots of great images with many pushing to learn new techniques in the process. Great assignment everyone! As always, let us know if you have any questions about anything photographic. We’ll have our new assignment ready to go in about a month — details to follow.
Newly arrived in our used equipment department. Contax T3 camera includes case , strap, and original manual in mint condition. If you are interested, please give us a call 201-664-4113 or email CustomerService@bergencountycamera.com
Jean Fruth will be visiting Bergen County Camera in Westwood, NJ on Thursday, July 28th from 6 pm – 9 pm for a talk and book signing. At the center of this event is her new book “Grassroots baseball – photographs by Jean Fruth” You can meet Jean Fruth and have your book[s] personalized at this free event. No purchase is required to attend either of these events.
6 pm – 7 pm – Jean will present a short talk on the book
7 pm – 9 pm – Book signing with Jean Fruth
We hope you can join us for Jean Fruth’s Grassroots Baseball – Route 66 edition.
About the book: Grassroots baseball – photographs by Jean Fruth
Hardcover – 256 pages – $70 Purchase is not required to attend this free event.
“I’ve learned that the game is more than just a sport – it is dreams and aspirations for so many youngsters wherever I go. The culture of baseball is so much bigger than just what happens on the field.”
Jean Fruth Bio
Sports Photographer Jean Fruth does more than take pictures. She tells stories — of vibrant personalities, local cultures, and distinctive communities. From a small darkroom to the most iconic stadiums flooded with lights, Jean’s trajectory as one of photography’s preeminent visual storytellers has taken her on a round-the-horn tour of the world’s most indelible landmarks – from the world of baseball to the world at large. Sports have always been Jean’s most compelling subject, and from her earliest days in sports photography, she covered everything from wrestling to sailing to basketball — and on any given Friday, she could be found taking full advantage of those Friday night lights, shooting northern California’s storied football rivalries.
Soon Jean was called up to the big leagues herself, as she spent nearly a decade shooting the crown jewels of Bay Area sports — the Giants, the A’s, the 49ers. Her portfolio quickly expanded when she was invited to Cooperstown and the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum, where she helped build the museum’s archive and bring to life the story of baseball. America’s most eminent historical institutions – including the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and the Smithsonian — have featured her work.
What drives Jean now is to serve communities through her storytelling – as the co-founder of Grassroots Baseball, a non-profit that promotes participation in baseball at the youngest levels, and as a traveling photographer for La Vida Baseball and La Vida Sports, digital media companies that shares the stories of Latino sports around the globe. As one of Sony’s select Artisans of Imagery, and through her popular workshops, she shares her techniques, her insights, and her love of images — both the power of pictures and the stories they tell.
Jean’s first book, Grassroots Baseball: Where Legends Begin, was released in 2019. Her latest, Grassroots Baseball: Route 66, was just released in June 2022, with proceeds benefitting the non-profit program.
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