Member Bios
Canan Karatekin
Hello everyone,
I’m looking forward to receiving and providing feedback on images of all sorts. I started my photography journey with a point-and-shoot camera in 2018 and fell completely and utterly in love with photography. For the first 5 years, I read some books on photography and took tons of pictures of everything in sight and just posted on Instagram. I eventually got a mirrorless camera (Fuji X-T5) in July 2023, and I’ve been getting deeper and deeper into photography since then. I got a bunch of gear, attended various workshops at the local camera store, watched various webinars online, joined not one but three local camera clubs and an online photography group that meets 2-3 times a month, attended/watched multiple national-level online conferences/meetings on photography, and joined the PSA about a week ago (in January, 2026). My most important learning experience so far has been 52Frames, a really supportive and creative online group of about 2500-3000 mostly amateur photographers from all over the world. We have weekly photography challenges (some based on technique, some on content), and I’ve done these every week since the beginning of 2024. These challenges get me out of my comfort zone and force me to try to be more creative and learn and get used to new techniques and compositional skills, etc. It’s also really interesting to see how different people respond so differently to the same broad set instructions. That has really helped me become more aware of other possibilities, and different ways of thinking and looking at the world. I love all of photography, but the kinds of photography I typically practice now include nature, macro, infrared, and street photography. When I’m stuck at home, especially in the winters, I also do tabletop photography. In my day job, I work as a faculty member at the University of Minnesota.
Chan Garrett
I am a retired Baptist pastor, now living in DeLand, Florida.
My passion for photography took a great step forward in the early 1980's when I decided to enroll in an adult education course in photography at the Atlanta Center for the Arts. A following course in B&W Darkroom convinced me to build a darkroom in my home, and I was off and running.
I studied Ansel Adams with a passion and spent hours in my darkroom trying to make my prints look like AA. (I have never come close to matching him.)
As I saw retirement approaching, I determined not to retire to a rocking chair on the front porch. I decided to begin my own photography business. Thus, began Chan Garrett Photography. But what type of photography?
I noticed a job listing on a bulletin board as I left a class one evening. A well-established wedding photographer needed an assistant. I applied and worked with him for over a year. Next, I convinced my wife to join me in going out on our own in the Wedding Photography business. We worked together for the next ten years in a modestly successful business, photographing between 25 and 30 weddings a year. We both joined and became active in, The Georgia Professional Photographers Association (GPPA) and The Professional Photographers of America (PPA).
As we aged, and weddings began to take their toll on us, we retired (again) and moved to Florida to be near our children and grandchildren.
My camera collection consists of a Canon T3i (converted to IR with 830 filter), Canon M50, Canon RP, and Canon R7.
Group Admin
Steven Jungerwirth
Greetings - I look forward to participating in this group and benefiting from diverse feedback that always contributes to better results.
My interest in photography started as an adolescent; watching my uncle process B&W images in his basement darkroom. During high school I took pictures for a local realtor (getting paid!) and was the Photo Editor of our school newspaper. Strictly B&W and I processed all my own images on my bathroom floor.
Then for a couple of decades my serious interest waned (perhaps life got in the way). I kept taking pictures; really snapshots. Around 2010 I re-engaged; buying a Canon Rebel T6s and taking a photography class at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Since then I have taken several classes at other schools and invested in a full frame digital camera. I have broad interests; including landscapes/flowers, infrared, macro, cityscapes, tabletop, water/sunsets, reflections, and water droplet collisions. Recently I have been taking more pictures with my iPhone; amazed at the capability of that tiny camera. It's liberating not to carry my "big boy" camera!
I have a science background and studied medicine. I did Clinical Research in the Pharmaceutical Industry until I retired in 2020.
Steve
Dale Yates
I live in the small town of Belleville, Michigan, which is near Ann Arbor and considered a suburb of Detroit. My wife and I have 2 grown children and 5 grandchildren. I retired a few years ago after a 36 year career at a major freight railroad. My interest in photography began in 2008 (approximately) when my wife bought me my first camera for Christmas. Since then I have enjoyed countless hours taking photos wherever I could and of whatever I could. In order to further my photography interest and skills, I have taken a few photography courses, including Photography Instruction and Image Analysis, both through PSA (both highly recommended). My areas of interest in photography include landscape, nature, black & white, architecture, and macro...in general, anything interesting. Photography to me is relaxing and is both enjoyable and educational.
Will Korn
In my daytime job as a physician I am an Interventional Radiologist. I've been taking photos since my college days on black and white film. Digital photography became a reality just after I bought my first enlarger, which I never used! My favorite subjects now are macro, night, and travel photography, but I'll try anything.
Cindy Smith
My husband and I live in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and we have been married 48 years in June. We have 3 grown sons, 3 wonderful DILs, and 6 beautiful GRANDgifts (only 1 boy in the group!) My father was an amateur photographer, which probably sparked my interest, but I really began when my sons were playing sports. I have recently gone to a Canon EOS R. I mainly like nature photography and taking pictures of my GRANDgifts. We are planning a road trip out west, and I'm hoping for tips on photographing there. We have traveled, and I love documenting our travels. I have taken some classes through the camera shop in Little Rock. I joined the local photography club to learn better how to capture the beauty around me.
Jennifer Marano
I have always loved to travel, and for many years my main interest in photography was to document my trips. I carried small cameras because I was often hiking or rafting or other activities that weren't friendly to bigger cameras. Then, a few years back, I broke my leg and had a difficult recovery. Frustrated and at loose ends, I decided to get more serious about photography and bought a "real" camera, a Sony a 6000 camera body and two lenses, in the summer of 2017.
After a rocky start (trying to photograph tree swallows, not the best starter subject) I realized that I needed some help and began taking classes at the local community college. I also joined a camera club and started going on field trips and workshops. I really love wildlife, nature and landscape, and I've dabbled a little bit into macro. I discovered that I consistently avoid photographing people, so I have tried to force myself to do more of that. I've also started to experiment with monochrome.
I'm not too adept at computers, so have started a Photoshop class and have taken a few workshops in Lightroom in order to learn how to enhance the photos I take. I'm hoping that this discussion group can give me some pointers on how to best present my images. After so many years of photographing as a reminder of where I have been, I've now become interested in how others view my work and I want to learn how to convey to others the beauty (and sometimes the ugliness) that I see all around me.
Thank you,
Jennifer.