Hill Country Photography Club

10/11/2026

Please join us for our next meeting this Thursday, October 15. Come early and visit with fellow photographers.

Program – The Fauna Project with Valerie Bugh

Gardens are more than collections of plants; they are dynamic ecosystems. Through a program of weekly surveys initiated in early 2010, a group of nature-loving volunteers has been consistently recording data on the animals found within the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, TX. From inception to the vast number of identifications and observations accumulated, this program tells the story of the Fauna Project. Photography is an important tool in this study, so there is no dearth of colorful images to highlight the insects, spiders, birds, reptiles, etc. and their behaviors. Take a close look at the biome, glimpse some of the diverse residents in an organically cultivated native plant habitat and see why variety is the spice of life.

Valerie Bugh is a local naturalist specializing in the arthropods of the Austin area, with interests in taxonomy and photography. She runs the Fauna Project at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, leads insect/wildflower discovery walks, teaches entomology and botany classes, provides insect/spider identifications, gives talks to local organizations, and is the author of pocket guides to "Butterflies of Central Texas," "Spiders of Texas" and "Unusual Insects of Texas." Website: http://www.austinbug.com/index.html

The Photo Share Theme for October is ”Old Texas”

While it is never easy to capture a myth, Texas is full of possibilities. What photos do you have that tell a story of the past of this place?

Send up to three images to Jerry Sargent at [email protected]

Meeting Agenda

6:30 Set up and social time.

7:00 Welcome and Member News

7:10 Quote of the Month

7:15 Announcements

7:30 Program – The Fauna Project with Valerie Bugh

8:15 Member Photo Share

Meetings are on the 3rd Thursday of each month at The First Lutheran Church, 130 Holland Street, San Marcos, Texas 78666

Yearly Dues Annual dues are set at $12 and may be paid using PayPal, check, or cash (correct change please).

Image below of wolf spider with young ©Val Bugh

10/07/2026

The 22nd Naturescapes Reception and Awards Presentation was held on Saturday, Sept. 26. We had a great turnout, and enjoyed visiting and admiring the outstanding images juried into this year's competition. 60 images were selected from almost 300 images submitted. Please stop by the San Marcos Activity Center to see the beautiful show, as well as "Geometry" themed images by the Hill Country Photography Club. All art will remain hanging through October 23. Don't miss it!!
Congratulations to ALL!!!
(Photos by Clare Dyer)

09/25/2026

Please join us Saturday, Sept. 26 for our Naturescapes Photo Contest reception and Awards presentation. If you have seen the amazing images already, come see if your favorites receive a ribbon and cash award. 5:00 - 6:00 View art, visit with the photographers, and enjoy light refreshments. The short awards presentation begins at 6:00. San Marcos Activity Center, 501 E. Hopkins, San Marcos

09/09/2026

Our ninth meeting of 2026 will be Thursday, September 17th at 7PM. Come early to visit and share with your fellow photographers.

Program: “How Do We Judge Our Own Work?” Presented by Club Members

Let’s be honest. We all like the nodding approval of others when our photographs are viewed. We get that instant feedback from Instagram or other social media platforms. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What if someone gives a lack luster response to an image that we love? Does that take the wind out of your sails, or are you able to still appreciate what you have captured?

September’s program will give some clues as to how we can view, critique, and appreciate our own work as we develop a personal style. We will try to answer the following questions:

1. Why did I take the picture? What caught my eye or initiated a plan of action?

2. How did I take it? Did I consider shutter speed, aperture, and ISO before pressing the shutter? What did I leave in and what did I take out of the frame?

3. What makes the image important to me. How is this image expressive of who I am as a photographer? Why do I keep coming back to it?

There is nothing wrong with being a lucky photographer. We all need those serendipitous moments. But planning and executing have their place too. The “why and how” of taking a picture or “making” a photograph help us realize what we are attempting to accomplish.

The Photoshare Theme for September is “Serenity”

Lord knows we could use some serenity about now. Create or find in your files two or three images that bring a sense of serenity, quiet, peace, calm, or relaxation to you. Your subject might be found in nature, in art, in the setting of the subject, or perhaps in the simplicity of the scene. This is your chance to give a gift, in your art, to your fellow photographers.

Members are invited to send up to three images to Jerry Sargent at [email protected]

Meeting Agenda

6:30 Set up and social time.

7:00 Welcome and Member News

7:10 Quote of the Month

7:15 Announcements

7:30 Program – “How Do We Judge Our Own Work?”

8:15 Member Photo Share

Image © Carol Serur

08/19/2026

Don't forget our meeting tomorrow when Mike Davis will share his story and images of wildlife in his neighborhood. Here's one of his exceptional images.
© Mike Davis

08/07/2026

Our eighth meeting of 2026 will be Thursday, August the 20th at 7PM. Come early to visit and share with your fellow photographers. Our program will feature one of our members, Mike Davis. Learn more about him below:

Program: Let's Take a Walk with Mike Davis

Mike is perhaps the most disciplined photographer in our club. His daily routine takes him around the lakes at Plum Creek in Kyle, Texas. He will share with us some of the wonders he sees as he makes his rounds. Photographing the world of his neighborhood has become essential to Mike since he retired 10 years ago. His practice reminds us that showing up is important. "f/8 and be there" is an expression popularly used by photographers to indicate the importance of taking the opportunity for a picture rather than being too concerned about using the best technique. Mike “is there” every day. He says, “I enjoy photographing a diverse group of subjects that catch my eye as I walk about.” Welcome to Mike’s world. While he has educational and professional achievements, his favorite title is "PAW-PAW."

Meeting Agenda

6:30 Set up and social time.

7:00 Welcome and Member News

7:10 Quote of the Month

7:15 Announcements

7:30 Program – “Let’s Take a Walk”

8:15 Member Photo Share (Theme: People)

Meetings are on the 3rd Thursday of each month at The First Lutheran Church, 130 Holland Street, San Marcos, Texas 78666

Yearly Dues Annual dues are set at $12 and may be paid using PayPal, check, or cash (correct change please).

Jim Philpott Hill Country Photography Club

07/07/2026

Please join us for our July meeting next Thursday, July 16. The meeting begins at 7:00, but come at 6:30 to visit while we get set up.

Our program will feature guest photographer Camille Wheeler discussing her project, “The Souls of Sixth Street.” Here's more about the project and Camille:

"The Souls of Sixth Street is a documentary project examining the wildly divergent intersections that create a one-of-a-kind community on Austin’s most storied thoroughfare. More than a decade ago, in February 2016, I began photographing the unhoused population of Sixth Street and downtown Austin. As I formed closer connections with people living on the street, I came to understand that I was documenting layers of community, poverty, estrangement, and addiction in relation to the everyday workings of East Sixth, a National Register historic district.

The street features the mundane and the intoxicating: The trucks making deliveries to businesses. The musicians lugging their gear into bars. The door guys enticing customers to come inside for live music and drinks. The party and comedy club crowds packing the sidewalks.

On this unpredictable landscape, I continue to shape my view of Sixth through the relationships I have built with those experiencing chronic homelessness. I have lost friends to heat stroke, cancer, gunshot wounds, and drug overdoses. On the street, I carry ci******es, cash, and Narcan. Off the street, I spend time in hospitals and at nursing homes with folks I know, sometimes serving as an emergency contact for individuals who have lost touch with their families.

Over the past few years, I have made it my mission to photograph the before and after on Sixth, a place facing certain and drastic change because of major redevelopment that is well under way.

My project is deeply personal. I routinely meet new people. And I regularly return to individuals I know, photographing them time and again and documenting the changes of life and the markers of stress and aging that I know my friends must also surely see in me.

Camille Wheeler is a veteran journalist with a diverse background in newspaper and magazine writing, reporting, and editing. Her career includes a lengthy stay at the Austin American-Statesman and a subsequent tenure at Texas Co-op Power magazine as staff writer and associate editor.

Wheeler began a serious pursuit of photojournalism in 2014. Two years later, she launched her current project: the documentation of the unhoused community in downtown Austin and on historic East Sixth Street. There, Wheeler has become an advocate for those experiencing homelessness as she documents the juxtaposition of community and poverty. Her work may be found on Instagram, , and on her website at www.camillejwheeler.com."

Meeting Agenda

6:30 Set up and social time.

7:00 Welcome and Member News

7:10 Quote of the Month

7:15 Announcements

7:30 Program – “The Souls of Sixth Street”

8:15 Member Photo Share: Plants

Meetings are on the 3rd Thursday of each month at The First Lutheran Church, 130 Holland Street, San Marcos, Texas 78666

Yearly Dues Annual dues are set at $12 and may be paid using PayPal, check, or cash (correct change please).
Link to PayPal on Membership page: https://hcphotoclub.org/membership/

Jim Philpott, President

07/04/2026

Wishing everyone a safe and Happy 4th of July!

06/28/2026

Have you ever had to resize your work for a BIG print? I had one resized to 4' x 8', but I didn't have to do the upsizing. This article takes you through the steps to get a good final oversized image. I found it interesting.

Chris Burkard prints landscape work at sizes that can reach up to 4'x8'. Large format print preparation at that scale carries more weight than camera choice, because pixel data has to expand far beyond its original resolution without breaking down into softness or visible noise. A print that size be...

06/22/2026

TODAY IS THE FINAL DAY TO ENTER THE NATURESCAPES PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST - MIDNIGHT!!

The unique beauty of the natural areas within San Marcos inspired the first Naturescapes Photography Contest. The contest includes photographs taken in greenspaces and natural areas throughout Hays, Blanco, Comal, Guadalupe, Caldwell, and Travis Counties.