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Meetings are free and open to everyone. Arrive 30 minutes early for the social time.
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Important Deadlines
Don't miss your chance to participate!
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- Upload Due: Thursday, May 7 by 7:00 PM, Mentor Night Discussion Photos
- Upload Due: Sunday, May 24 at 9:00 PM, Monthly Competition Photos
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Flagpole Photographers Camera Club Posts
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2026 Annual Competition Results
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1. Congratulations to our winners!
2. Results
3. Video of the Judges Discussing the Photos
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Photo Opportunities for May 2026
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With May bringing warmer weather and blooming landscapes, there are countless incredible photography locations just a short drive from our area. We've compiled a list of great spots and a few shooting tips to help you make the most of this vibrant season. Formal Gardens & Estates (Connecticut) Glebe House (Woodbury): Wide-angle for architecture; macro for layered plantings against the …
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Photos from Bronx Zoo Meetup - April 28, 2026
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We had a fantastic time at the Bronx Zoo meetup with Sandy, Sue, Rhonda, Chane, David, and Colleen! A huge thank you to Sandy for suggesting the trip, which provided many, many photo opportunities for everyone. The weather was great, with mostly overcast clouds acting as a natural diffuser to help us avoid harsh lighting conditions.
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People's Choice Voting - Annual Competition
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Sign In to vote for the photo of your choice. All members are encouraged to vote even if you did not enter photos. Voting ends Friday, May 1 at 9 pm. Click a photo thumbnail to see a larger view. Votes can be cast using the thumbnail or large view vote buttons. You have 1 vote. All categories are combined …
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Photography Workshop Day Details
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The Flagpole Photographers Workshop Day on Saturday, May 2, 2026, is a great way to boost your photography skills while capturing photos of historic Newtown and Sandy Hook. Work side-by-side with award-winning club photographers for the entire session. We will start with an outdoor session in Newtown, then move to an outdoor session in Sandy Hook. After lunch, we will …
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2026 April Competition Results, All Photos & Video
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1. Congratulations to our winners!
2. Results
3. Video of the Judges Discussing the Photos
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Monthly Assigned Subjects Ideas
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Note: The meaning of our assigned subjects is always open to your personal interpretation. Let these ideas spark your imagination, rather than hinder your creativity!
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Flowers
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The Challenge: Flowers are inherently beautiful, making it easy to take a snapshot but difficult to craft a true impactful photo. The goal is to move beyond a simple record of a plant and capture its unique geometry, texture, or mood.
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Subject Ideas
- Closeup Intricacies: Get exceptionally close to isolate the stamen, pollen dust, or the microscopic, vein-like textures of a single petal.
- The Fading Bloom: Challenge the idea that flowers must be pristine. Capture the elegant decay of wilted petals, dried seed pods, and curling leaves using dramatic, moody lighting.
- Environmental Context: Instead of isolating the bloom, show its story. Frame a solitary wildflower thriving in a harsh environment, like pushing through a crack in the pavement or standing against a stormy sky.
Key Techniques
- Backlighting: Position yourself so the sun is directly behind the flower. This naturally highlights the delicate hairs on the stem and makes thin petals glow translucently.
- Subject Isolation (Wind Mitigation): Flowers rarely sit perfectly still. To maintain critical sharpness, use a faster shutter speed to freeze the motion, or physically stabilize the stem using an articulated plant clamp just outside the frame.
Tilted
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The Challenge: A tilted horizon or angled composition can easily look like a mistake if not done with clear purpose. The goal is to use a deliberate tilt to create a sense of motion, dynamic energy, or even unease.
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Subject Ideas
- Architectural Dynamics: Use the tilt to turn ordinary buildings, staircases, or city streets into energetic, intersecting geometric lines.
- Action and Motion: Emphasize speed or effort by tilting the camera with the action. This works incredibly well for subjects leaning into a curve, climbing a steep hill, or moving quickly across the frame.
- Abstracting the Ordinary: Take an everyday object, like a row of trees or stark shadows, and tilt the frame so the lines run diagonally from corner to corner, turning a realistic scene into a graphic pattern.
Key Techniques
- Exaggerate the Angle: A slight, two-degree tilt looks like a careless leveling mistake; a dramatic tilt looks like an artistic choice. Don't be afraid to rotate the camera 30 to 45 degrees to make your intention obvious.
- Corner-to-Corner Composition: When tilting the frame, pay close attention to the edges. Try to have leading lines or the edges of your subject enter or exit exactly at the corners of the frame for a precise, anchored look. Note: for a non-tilted photo, you generally do not want the leading lines in the exact corner.
- Balancing Visual Weight: Even though the horizon is off-kilter, the image still needs balance. Position a heavier, darker element on the lower side of the tilt to anchor the composition and keep the image from feeling like it's "falling out" of the frame.
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Thanks for reading. See you soon!
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The Flagpole Photographers Team
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