photography Archives - Page 2 of 8 - Bergen County Camera Blog

Focus Session: Analog Photographers in a Digital World

November 2, 2023February 20, 2024John Tworsky

The Who, What, Why and How of “slow” photography

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.

Watch Jim’s PBS interview here

November/December Customer Spotlight – Robert Helder

October 27, 2023March 1, 2024Matt Malwitz

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!

The Art & Craft of Photography: An Online Conference

September 6, 2023March 1, 2024Matt Malwitz

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.

Click here to register

July/August Customer Spotlight – Michael Dinger

July 19, 2023July 20, 2023Carly Rahl

Welcome to our thirty-fourth 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.

Michael Dinger is our customer spotlight for the month of July-August. 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 few words from Michael and a gallery containing some of Michael’s images.

Spring Songbird Workshops

April 19, 2023March 1, 2024Matt Malwitz

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.

Spaces are limited, so choose your date soon.

For more information on songbird photography, why not check out our webinar here.

All the best,

Matt

Winter Self-Assignment

March 18, 2023March 1, 2024John Tworsky

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.

February-March Customer Spotlight – Paige Dana

February 18, 2023February 18, 2023Carly Rahl

Welcome to our thirty-third 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.

Paige Dana is our customer spotlight for the month of February/March. 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 few words from Paige and a gallery containing some of Paige’s images.

November Customer Spotlight – John Gidney

November 10, 2022November 10, 2022Carly Rahl

Welcome to our thirty-second 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.

John Gidney is our customer spotlight for the month of November. 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 John’s images.

August Customer Spotlight – John Kingston

August 3, 2022August 3, 2022Carly Rahl

Welcome to our thirty-first 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.

John Kingston is our customer spotlight for the month of August. 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 word from John, followed by some of his images in the gallery below.

New Photo Assignment: Water

June 10, 2022March 1, 2024John Tworsky

Photo Assignment: Water Details of the assignment and discussion during our online webinar. We hope you join the fun.

Experience Level: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced.

Due Date: Images emailed to focus@bergencountycamera.com by July 15th. Be sure to include you name and brief description of image

Follow the instructions, get your shot and submit to our email. We’ll have a online Focus Session on July 23rd to review and discuss all the submissions. Sign up for the July 23 review webinar – 9:30 am

Watch the Assignment Webinar and learn about the assignment

Assignment instructions handout

As always we are here to help with any questions you have about your photography.

Special thanks to Matt Malwitz for sharing the “water” images below.