Member Bios
Lori Townzen
I am a photographer/videographer who is based out of Peoria,Illinois.
I have a great partner and have been lucky enough to raise 4 children to adulthood.
I share my house with 2 dogs and a cat who have stolen my heart.
I enjoy all types of photography,I love putting my Nikon to use as often as I can.
I first got into photography what seems like ages ago in high school.
I am also an avid knitter and all things crafty.
However, photography will always be my first love.
I love the idea of freezing time and capturing moments to be able to share with others.
Robert Cordivari
I was inspired to pursue photography from my friend, Peter, who was a very
accomplished amateur photographer. He encouraged me to pursue it seriously by
giving me honest and critical feedback. My first camera was a 110 point and
shoot, given to me by my parents. On a camping trip to Cape Code, Peter and
I took pictures of the sand dunes and I captured a wonderful photo of a boy
running down a sand dune. I was hooked the moment I got the print back from
development.
My first real camera was a Canon AE-1, in 1980. I still have it, though
I have not used it in decades.
My main interests are landscapes, nature, street scenes, architecture and
abstracts. I use a Panasonic Lumix 25-400 camera as this gives me the most
flexibility, especially when traveling.
I also do night scape Milky Way photography using a Sony full frame A7 but I
am not using this membership to work on that genre.
My friend, Peter, passed away 20+ years ago at the age of 46; I dedicate
my photos to him.
Ed Ford, APSA
I have been interested in Photography since I saw my father’s interest at family functions, and later for his High School Reunions.
While on my third deployment to the Western Pacific for Viet Nam I purchased my first 35mm camera, a Yashica Range Finder. It didn’t’ take me long to discover that I needed an SLR – too many of my pictures were of the inside of the lens cap. So I saved what I could and bought a Miranda Sensorex with a 50mm f1.4 lens. I took a number of pictures with that but did not really carry through with any kind of serious photography.
I got out of the Navy in 1970 and forgot all about photography due to college and a lack of funds. Over the years I have had several cameras including a Canon AE-1 I inherited from my mother. But the cost of developing the film was still high and I had neither the space nor the interest in building a dark room. So photographer sat on the back burner.
Finally, in 2004 I had a job in which people I worked with were interested in photography. Talking with them reignited my interest in the field. One thing led to another and my daughter agreed to contribute one half to a digital camera so that someone would take family pictures. So after some research I bought a Fuji Finepix S7000. I shot a lot of pictures with that camera and kept getting very favorable comments from family members.
Then in 2007 at a flea market located on the North Carolina State Fair Grounds a young man was selling a Minolta Maxumm 400si, with a lens and no battery for $2. Having little to lose I bought the camera and bought a battery – viola! So I had my second SLR. Soon however it became apparent that I wanted a DLSR, mainly because I had joined the Capital City Camera Club In Raleigh, NC and it didn’t take long to see the advantages of a Digital SLR.
After much thought and research I finally chose a Nikon D300. I have never looked back. When we were going to move to Wilmington I looked up Delaware camera clubs and found the website for the Delaware Photographic Society. After we arrived in Delaware we stayed with my Son for a short time. He told me that a gentleman living across the street was really interested in photography – Bob Hunt. The rest as they say is history. I am now a member of PSA, and am becoming more involved with both DPS and PSA on the service level.
It is my plan to continue my photographic education at Osher Lifelong Learning institute, and perhaps through the Art Department as U Del. While I have no photographic honors yet I intend to keep trying and am anticipating a good future in photography.
Jeff Manser
I've been interested in photography as long as I can remember and have tried to get more serious about learning how to make better images the last three or four years. I started with landscapes and birds but about a year ago I tried street photography and have really had a lot of fun with that. Our downtown area isn't very big so I've needed to venture out a bit. Most recently, I've traveled to rural areas in my corner of the world and have enjoyed finding and shooting images out in the country. The common thread has been black and white.
My near-term goals include:
- Working on trying to get more of the image I want at the time I take it instead of processing my way to the image that I wanted. I enjoy processing but too many times I have to crop my shot to the image I thought I was taking.
- Learn more of Photoshop to try to supplement my use of Lightroom
- Learn the language of photography so I can better describe what I like or what I think could be improved in an image.
Kirsti Näntö-Salonen
I am from South-West Finland, a pediatrician by profession, just recently retired. I have been married to an enthusiastic photographer for the last 40 years, and have shared his hobby from field trips through darkrooms to photo clubs and exhibitions, taking an occasional picture (on default settings) every now and then, never bio that I would develop a passion for photography myself. Two years ago, we participated in a creative photography workshop together. It was like being revealed a new language that I deeply enjoyed and felt able to learn. Since then, I have been busy trying to master the basics of the camera and photo editing, still on the steeply rising portion of the learning curves.
I am a member in a local photo club, and have participated several courses and workshops. I started with the wonderfully beginner-friendly Nikon Coolpix P900, and am now getting quite comfortable with a Fuji XT2. With my husband we share a number of Fujinor lenses (zooms 10-24, 18-55, 55-230 and 100-400 and primes 14, 23, 35 and 55 mm). For editing, I have been using Capture One 20 and Luminar 4.
As subjects, I am interested of people as well as nature and landscapes with the aim of capturing feelings, moods and atmosphere, telling a story.
Group Admin
Albert Zabin
I am a trial lawyer, currently retired from my job (thanks to COVID-19) as a volunteer at a legal services agency. My, wife, Judy, and I have three adult children and 9 grandchildren. Our two daughters-in-law and oldest grandson are very fine photographers. I have been photographing since I was about 11 and have done my own developing and printing from the very beginning.
I have been in the DD program for well over five years and have taught photography at our local Arts and Crafts Association (Lexington Arts and Crafts Society)
Barbara Gore
I have been interested in photography for as long as I can remember but was always at the snapshot level. Growing up I had film camera and I photographed what was pleasing to my eye but never really learned the craft or took the time to understand the elements of light, composition, or color, etc.
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<br />When I retired in 2012, I started on a self-taught photo journey using a Canon DSLR. My passion has always been the outdoors so it's no surprise I chose landscapes/nature to be my starting point. I took various workshops and photographed as much as I could. Today my passion is still the outdoors, but now I bring my camera, tripod, and filters.
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<br />Aside from landscape/nature I also have dabbled in various genres such as product, still life, family portraits, night, and street photography all with the intention of learning new skills and having fun along with some freelance work. So which niche is right for me? I love them all. I focus on what captivates me in the moment. Every new skill I acquire is a new beginning for me. I look forward to sharing and discussing images as I see this as a way to improve technically and artistically. I currently shoot with a Canon R5 and 5D Mark IV and post process in Lightroom, Photoshop, Nik, On1, and Topaz.
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