Member Bios
Darlene Elwin
In 2007 I retired from teaching English as a Second Language in the San Diego Community College District, and had the time to seriously pursue my hobby in photography. I joined the Poly Photo Club for the monthly competitions, workshops and friendship. Listening to judges every month, participating in workshops and picking members' brains have helped immensely to improve my skills! In a recent PSA Councils' Challenge, my image of a magnolia in black and white took first place in the Monochrome category. Becoming a member of PSA had been something I considered for some time, but after getting this honor I thought I'd better sign up!
Anything to do with nature calls me to shoot. I especially enjoy converting images into black and white. Recently, I've been learning compositing which is fun to do but much more challenging than I thought!
Canon (20D and 7D) had been my camera of choice, but because of the weight I switched to an Olympus E-M5 II about 3 years ago.
Peter Hornbostel, MPSA
Born in 1954. Residence Greater Hanover, Lower Saxony, Germany. On road with the camera since 1983. Different interests in analogue times nature, night, architecture. Seriously started taking digital photos 2011. Cameras Canon 550 D, 7D Mark II. Actual interests UNESCO world heritage Germany (life work on going), nature (specially birds and insects), night shots, lightpainting, lost places, architecture, reflections, table top (seasonal or workshops), sport (action, movement). Future interests monochrome, street, astronomy, electricity.
I'm on the road with friends (photowalks), in workshops (our photoclub www.fotogruppe-bredenbeck.de) or simply alone with much fun whoever will accompany me. So much beauty outside, let's gonna catch 'em!
I found a new photographic field: competitions. I participate about 100 international salons per year, mostly as a photographer, but also as a judge.
Peter Shore
Bio Coming Soon . . .
You can see my work on: Flickr account (in progress) and Instagram
Group Admin
Jim Hagan, MPSA 2
I grew up in Chicago and went to nearby Northwestern University where I received an MBA degree in 1963. Most of my working career was in accounting and finance. I joined the PSA around 1965 but with the demands of my occupation and family, I soon dropped out of PSA and took few photos over the next 30 years.
I retired in 1999, moved to Toledo Ohio and joined several local camera clubs. I was amazed at the changes in photography in the last 30 years - digital imaging, automatic focusing, automatic exposure, automatic bracketing, and higher ISO's. I felt like Rip Van Winkle who slept for 20 years and awoke to a new world.
After being retired for 17 years I had accumulated many photos and after a forty-year hiatus, I rejoined the PSA in 2017. My membership in the PSA has been a wonderful experience. I enjoy entering photos in numerous exhibitions throughout the world where I can share my images as well as see images of fellow photographers from around the world. I also belong to three PSA study groups and enjoy discussing my photos as well as those of others in the groups. Study groups have been an enjoyable learning process.
I am now in my mid 80's with some physical limitations so travel and photo outings are now more limited. But, entering photos in exhibitions and belonging to study groups has been a wonderful pastime and learning experience.
Jim Bodkin, APSA, PPSA
I am a resident of the Chicago area for the past 33 years with a passion for nature photography. Prior to that we lived in Florida for 8 years after growing-up in Virginia, as various Engineering and Management jobs influenced our location.
I have been a long-time casual photographer, chronicling the kids growing years and travels with 35mm color film. With the advent of good digital cameras, in 1998 I decided to get more involved with digital photography since my background in electronics and computers supplied the new skills required. Wife Diane and I have traveled to all 50 states and 45 foreign countries and we wanted to have a hobby that could easily capture our travels and our love of nature. This has blossomed into our involvement in 2 local photo clubs, the Chicago Regional group CACCA, joining PSA, and me chairing up the PSA Chicago Chapter and the Nature Division of PSA.
We typically shoot all types of nature subjects from macro to landscapes, with our favorite being birds. We still document our travels and family events, especially of the 3 grandchildren. Additionally, we also compete in local, regional, national and international competitions.
We both shoot Canon equipment. The Canon 7D Mk II bodies are our latest with an assortment of lens. My favorite lenses are Canon 100-400mm and Canon 500mm Æ’/4 with a 2X teleconverter. Whereas I used to be able to pass equipment down to Diane when I got a newer model, I am now purchasing 2 of everything as her skills have increased.
I work exclusively on Mac computers, with archiving and 100% of the improvements performed in Lightroom and an additional 10-20% in Photoshop, Aurora, or other specialized software and plug-ins. I produce my own prints, up to 17" wide, on an Epson 3880 printer.
I am constantly looking for improvement in my work and B&W is an area where I want to improve.
Henry Heerschap
I'm a retired systems administrator living in the Seattle area.
I've been serious about photography for the last 15 years or so. I used
to joke that taking bad photographs was a genetic trait because my
parents' photos, as well as my own, were really awful. I cringe when I
look at the images I took of my kids when they were little. Fortunately,
my photos of my grandkids are considerably better.
In 2003, I bought my first digital camera, a "point and shoot" Olympus
and quickly realized that the instant feedback a rear LCD provided was a
terrific learning tool. I started getting online and finding out how to
improve my skills and found that I really enjoyed photography as a
hobby. It wasn't long before I upgraded to my first DSLR and started
investing in lenses and other gear. Soon afterward my wife expressed an
interest in photography and has become quite accomplished in her own right.
I also started seeking out other photographers to hang out with. I
joined the Puget Sound Camera Club in 2010. It wasn't long after I
joined that I got recruited to become the Print Director for the club. I
currently serve as webmaster and newsletter editor for the club. PSCC is
a member of the Northwest Council of Camera Clubs and I serve on the
board of the NWCCC as well.
I've been a member of PSA since 2010 but haven't really done much to
take advantage of the many resources it has to offer. My wife and I
attended our first PSA Conference this year in Spokane and really got
inspired to do more with our memberships.
My areas of interest include travel, landscapes, nature, flowers,
cityscapes and macro. I also enjoy infrared photography and have shot
with a number of converted cameras over the years. My main camera these
days is a Sony A7R III. I'm fairly proficient in Lightroom and Photoshop.