Huntington Camera Club Founding Members: 1966 - Present

I first started taking photos with a brownie camera probably at age 8, 10 or 11. Something magical happened when I held that camera up to my eye. I saw something inside the viewfinder that I didn’t see when not looking through the view finder. How was it that life was transformed inside the little rectangle of the view finder? That mystery and magic still confounds me today after 60 years doing it. Whether its people, landscapes, city scenes, holiday shots, travel photos or family shots; it all still excites me to get the shot I want.

I took a darkroom class in 1971 and that really grabbed me. The absolute magic of seeing an image appear in the developer! I had my first 35 mm camera at age 19 or so … a Mamiya Sekor fixed lens camera. Couldn’t do much with it, but it had screw on wide angle and mid telephoto so I experimented and took anything that I could see.

I mostly use Nikon Full Frame cameras now, but have Fuji mirrorless and many Canon Point and Shoot cameras. I have many cameras and way too little time to use them. I have to admit that my iPhone is always with me and takes great photos too. I have been fortunate enough to travel a bit and really don’t know which came first; my love of photography or my love of travel.

In my many years immersing myself in this amazing hobby I have taught classes to children, assisted in teaching photography with kids with cancer, have taught adult Ed photo, taught photo classes to Veterans, led many workshops at the club and have created many teaching PowerPoint presentations at the club. I have only taken one photo workshop but have traveled with good friends to great locations to take photos and share stories and a laugh or two.

I have done wedding photography, model photography (had a studio for a time), music concerts of all kinds, stage performances, sports photography, shot album covers for musicians, and miscellaneous event photography.

When asked what positions I have held at the club I felt a little embarrassed to honestly answer because the enormity of my involvement is overwhelming to even me. I will answer that question humbly but honestly.

In my early years I became Treasurer within a year or two of joining (I worked in banking then so it was thought I’d make a good treasurer), soon after my terms as treasurer ended I became secretary. I was Vice President 3 or 4 times and President probably 5 (maybe 6) different times. I have been Delegate at Large, Refreshments Committee Chair, PFLI Delegate, PSA Delegate, Field Trip Chair, Chair of program Committee for many years (including the last 6 or 7 years) , Chair of Special Club Projects, Chair of our Community Outreach Committee, I have been a mentor, Chairman of the Competition Rules Update Committee, and Chairmen of the Bylaws and Club Constitution rewrite Committee.

Some of the many projects I have either initiated or led over my years at the club include: Photos of Historic Houses of Huntington (one of these efforts led to a book by the Huntington Historical Society, another a CD or all the Historic Streets and homes in Huntington), led effort to take Photos of Summer performances for the Huntington Arts Council, slide show creation with my images for a collaboration with the Huntington Choral Society, Slide show ‘week in the life of Huntington’.

But the most significant of all my efforts at the club is my idea to start the High School Annual Photo Contest which has been in existence 30 years. The beginnings and evolution of this project would take pages on its own but suffice it to say that this is my most significant heartfelt contribution to this club. Hundreds of prizes and awards have been handed out to over 500 students over the years. Special thanks to many of the early year’s contributors, but in the most recent years (maybe 15 or 20 – maybe 30) special recognition goes to Kevin Armstrong for his brilliant managing of this effort and his energy to make it greater and greater each year.

Other efforts that I have been involved in include Photography Fights Cancer led with passion and brilliance by Harry Schuessler, Meet the Artist Programs, The Women of the HCC Program, The Men of the HCC Program, My Favorite Photo, My Favorite Photo Destination, Model Nights, Before and After Photo Night, and Misc slide shows and programs.

I have enjoyed my many years with the club, cherish the friendships made here, proud of the contributions I have made to make the club great, and mostly happy that our organization has flourished and maintains a large membership when many local clubs have not had such luck.

To all my dear old friends and new … please continue to keep this ball rolling … please help make the HCC grow and prosper and change with the ever changing trends and challenges in the world of photography. I will do same for as long as I am able.

I'm pretty sure I joined the club in 1968 but it was a long time ago so I'm not positive.  I do remember the first year meeting at Huntington High School.

I was chairman of the committee to rewrite the competition rules and Jim Conlon was the competition chairman at the time.  I don't remember the year.

I'm involved with photography because it is a wonderful avenue of self expression and communicating what one is interested in through visual means.  All types of photography has a story to tell and the viewer needs to try to find the story that the photographer is attempting to communicate.  Usually the better the picture the clearer the story.  Landscape photography, nature photography, etc. all have their own and sometimes hidden tales.  It is up to viewer to discover the sometimes inner meaning of a photo.  Viewing, appreciating, interpreting and simply enjoying a good photo makes the individual a richer person.

What I love most about photography is the challenge of attempting to create a great image no matter what the subject is.  Sometimes that may be easy if the subject is in itself a wonderful subject but if the subject is somewhat different and perhaps even abstract it is up to the photographer to apply his skills to make the image as presentable and viewable as possible to attract the interest of the viewer.

There really is no favorite for me...I enjoy street photography, architectural photography, nature photography, etc. and the photography I enjoy most is that which I am shooting at the time.

Leon has now been photographing for over 74 years. Most emphasis has been on Fine Art Photography with Street Imaging and Photojournalism thrown in for good measure. Over the years, he has been president of 5 different camera clubs, judged a variety of clubs for over 20 years, lectured, curated and led many new photographers into the strange and mystic passages of camera and darkroom works which ultimately resulted in the achievement goals of declaring themselves “photographers”.

He has keened his eye by independently studying fine art in all mediums and as such, has a broad base from which to kindly review the image presentations at competitions and offer suggestions that can aid in making a better image. (And that doesn't always occur as some images can defy changes/improvements).

Lastly, though now in his late 80's, he takes great pleasure in offering comments about the images he is shown. Constructively commenting about the maker's work is a reward for a lifetime of being in the photographic arts field.

Leon has now been photographing for over 74 years. Most emphasis has been on Fine Art Photography with Street Imaging and Photojournalism thrown in for good measure. Over the years, he has been president of 5 different camera clubs, judged a variety of clubs for over 20 years, lectured, curated and led many new photographers into the strange and mystic passages of camera and darkroom works which ultimately resulted in the achievement goals of declaring themselves “photographers”.

He has keened his eye by independently studying fine art in all mediums and as such, has a broad base from which to kindly review the image presentations at competitions and offer suggestions that can aid in making a better image. (And that doesn't always occur as some images can defy changes/improvements).

Lastly, though now in his late 80's, he takes great pleasure in offering comments about the images he is shown. Constructively commenting about the maker's work is a reward for a lifetime of being in the photographic arts field.

I first joined the club right after starting work at Stony Brook University back in 1978 but remember stopping by and observing meetings as a high school student back in the early seventies after seeing a print left behind in my health classroom by a member whom I can’t remember. From that point forward I was an on and off member as time permitted until I became a more permanent member some 15 or so years ago.

During my time in the club I have served on the competition, competition rules, and website committees and currently chair the technology committee. Fourteen years ago, from an idea spawned by Marty Kesselman who provided a leadership role, the technology committee was formed and we decided to take on the task of moving us into the digital age, away from film slides. During that time, I created our now 13 year old web based online membership and competition submission system. I am proud to say it has served us well for so many years.

I have remained involved in the club for nearly 40 years because of the many friends I have made during this time and because of all the wonderful creative, inspirational, and enriching experiences our program committee continues to provide our members with each year. It is amazing how many talented photographers we have in our midst that provide wisdom on such a vast array of interesting subjects, not to mention being lucky enough to see their work first hand at our competitions.

I love photography because it allows me to visually share with others my passion of the outdoors and fulfill my hunger for learning new, challenging, yet useful post processing techniques to improve my workflow. I really don’t believe I have a specific style or photographic genre that I fall into but I do find myself capturing landscapes, waterfall, nature and wildlife scenes most often because of my love for the outdoors and hiking. During the winter, I rely more on my macro and still life photography to get me through those months.

I joined HCC in September 1988. I have held many positions in the club. Greeter – A membership attempt to make new people attending meetings feel welcome. Membership Committee member – The only one. Continued this and then took-on other jobs. Competition Committee member - Started by helping out during the sign-in of images. Competition Chairman - I took-over as chairman and held this position, off-and-on, for a total of about 8 years. I reviewed and modified competition rules twice.Automated the process of sign-in for competition. Automated the membership database. Requested funds and Purchased a digital projector and Laptop computer for the club. Arranged for our own website and named it “Huntington Camera Club” (HCCNY.ORG). Started Sunday Shooters – Charles (Chuck) Hollander, now deceased, suggested we start a group to take pictures together. He asked me if I would help him and commit to Sunday breakfasts. The two of us had breakfast together went someplace to shoot and sometimes there was only one of us. Slowly we got people to join us. Leon Hertzson and Frank Sposato and Gordon Goldsmith were the core of the group initially. Mike Kelly (past president) later started to come and the group has slowly grown to as many as 18. Membership Committee – Interspersed with competition efforts I worked with Leon Hertzson acting as ambassadors for the club publicizing the HCC during Sunday Shooters. Membership Committee Chairman - I recently took-over for Leon.

Being a member of the club is all about the people in the club. Everyone was very friendly and helpful. The club was very social in the early days. We had a break in the middle of the meetings to have coffee and conversation and then resumed the meeting. We had people in charge of refreshments and rotated the task so no-one was burdened with it. The club was very active with trips to Vermont, lots of talks on photography and “how-to” meetings. We had a small club about 60 - 80 or so, but the board meetings had 25 to 30 people show-up. Everyone was involved in it.

It took me a long time to realize what a photograph was. I enjoy trying to make an image. The process is a challenge to me because I can’t take a wonderful image in the camera (I am trying though). I also enjoy the sharing of experience with others. Trying to help others through writing tutorials, explaining how I manage to do things to images to improve them, what I am looking for in an image, what makes an image more appealing and less appealing. The sharing process has moved me toward OLLI at Stony Brook University, where I lead a workshop and take workshops during my retirement years.

My favorite type of photography is Flower Photography – The flowers tend to stand still. They do get blown by the wind and you have to be aware of this. However, they pose nicely are all different shapes and colors and they patiently await your click of the shutter. You can find them everywhere.

I joined the Huntington Camera Club in 1991 from an ad in Newsday.

Since joining I have held the following positions: Delegate at Large, Member By Laws Committee, Member Competition Rules Committee, Mentor for members, new and existing, Club Treasurer for the last 15 years, Member of the Executive Board of Directors for the last 15 years.

I have been involved in the club because of my love of photography, the learning experiences the club has provided for me and for the friendships that I have made from belonging to the club.

Since my teens, I have had a passion for photography since working with my father in his darkroom. I love the memories of family and friends that I have been able to preserve and share from seeing photos, old and new. Maybe because of this, I love people photography. I have traveled extensively with other members of the club and love to bring back pictures of the people and cultures that we have met and seen on our travels.

Tom Mangan was our second President and one of the founders of Huntington Camera Club along with Mike Macchiarella. (Nat Scherer was our first President and Mike Azzato our third.) Mike got married at West Point and Nat was one of the photographers who documented the event.

Tom has been photographing for 70 years. He first became interested in photography when assigned an eighth grade science project. He immediately attacked it with his Baby Brownie Special and photographed some of the Springtime swamps on the edge of New York. Over the years he became interested in underwater photography and had special housings for his Brownie and his Hasselblad and Olympus cameras. In fact, he taught underwater photography to scuba divers who were interested in developing that skill. He now owns a Sony system.

Tom prefers black and white photography....particularly portraiture and street photography. He used to go to New York City for street photography explorations with Joe Constantino, Leon Hertzson, Mike Azzato, Bob Guido, Mike Macchiarella, and Mike Gaines. He developed and printed his work in his basement darkroom. He also has enjoyed photographing motorcycle racing, airplanes when his brother was an instructor, skiing, scuba, and travel. Over the years Tom was very involved with PSA and did some exhibiting through them. Presently, he photographs at the Huntington Senior Center focusing on the entertainment and the groups of people who gather there.

Wow 1980! I joined the Huntington Camera Club. Can’t believe it. Always enjoyed taking photos graduating from my Brownie Box camera to my new Lumix DMC-zs100, which probably weighs the same. My SLR & lenses grew heavier with time.Over the years I first would take photos of friends and special evens and then my interest's broadened. I especially enjoy “capturing the moment” with children around the world.

Belonging to the HCC Camera Club gave me new purpose to expand my skills. There were so many good photographers there to answer questions and help me learn. At Competitions the judges comments (didn’t always agree!!) gave additional clues for improvement.

Traveling with cameras in hand added another dimension and “Witkover Travel Adventures” was born! Love sharing our photos and creating programs sharing our love or photography and travel. We have been presenting them over 200 times.

I was a “Delegate at Large” many times and  “Secretary” at the club. Most important position  ”Refreshment Chairperson” We would take a break in between slides and prints and socialize sharing ideas staying until 11 PM. Here's to many more years as a member of our great club as we enjoy photography with friends

I am a retired physicist having worked at Brookhaven National laboratory for almost 40 years. There I got to play with the most amazing “toys”, working on their high energy particle accelerators (atom smashers). Computers played a big part in my work starting in the late 1960’s.

My first 35mm camera (1956) was a Voightlander Vitessa, which I still own. My first SLR was a Canon TLb bought in 1976. I stayed with Canon through the 6D, switching to Lumix. I set up a darkroom in 1978, and started by making color prints from slides using the Cibachrome process. I later began black and white and color negative printing. A few years later I began processing my color slide and color and black and white negative film. In 1993 I had images from my slides put onto a Kodak PhotoCD and started using Photoshop 3 (not CS3) in 1994. In 2002 I closed up my darkroom with a tear in my eye.

For me half of the creative process has always been in the “wet” darkroom or now the digital darkroom using Photoshop. Photoshop is so rich in features and so complex that even after 30 years I am still learning how to use it.

We joined the Huntington Camera Club in 1980 after seeing it mentioned in a Photography Column in Newsday. Over the years I served as Program Chairman, Vice President and in 1991-93. served as President. I wrote the Club Newsletter for some years and set up the first HCC website. I have been on many committees over the years. Competing in BW, Color Prints and Slides and Digital, I won over 30 club trophies including having my name on the cup for the Image of the Year twice. I have won a number of awards in juried competitions including Best in Show at Gurwin and Best in several categories over the years. I won Best in the Landmarks Category in the Overseas Adventure Photo Contest in 2008. In PFLI competition I scored several “27’s”, won 4 Leonard Victor trophies and made their All Star list many times. Together with my wife Carole, we have had exhibits in a number of libraries on Long Island and facilities in Florida.

While I enjoy all types of images, many of my favorites come from our travels from 1989 through 2015. More recently they have been mostly bird and flower photography. I am no longer able to carry one or more heavy cameras and lenses but a good quality “almost” compact camera and an iPhone suit me fine.

For a number of years I did judging at 4 or 5 other PFLI clubs, which I enjoyed very much but stopped with the COVID period and decided not to resume.

Since 2004 I have concentrated on creating and presenting multi-media travel programs with my wife Carole. Over the years we have presented our 10 different programs more than 200 times at libraries and facilities around Long Island and in Florida.

Mary Ruppert joined HCC in 1992.  At my very first competition, I got my ears pinned back but it excited me and made me come back for more.  I had worked in my father's darkroom with him from the time I was a little girl and was mesmerized by the fact that I could be sitting on a stool posing for him one minute and a few minutes later I was floating in pans of magic solution and finally hung up to dry overhead.

I have enjoyed the camaraderie at HCC very much but I also think my membership has been a wonderful educational experience.  Not only are the programs creative, interesting and enriching but we have so many talented photographers from whom it is easy to learn.

I have served as 2nd Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Delegate, Judge Selection Chair, Field Trip Chair, Mentor Chair, and Projected Category Setup Chair.  I have been a committee member for Constitution Revision, By-laws Revision, Programming, Competition Rules and 50th Anniversary.

I like all photographic genres but find myself shooting mostly landscapes, floral, children, wildlife, and travel.  But what I like most of all is re-interpreting my images in Photoshop.   It is amazing for photographers in the digital age to take reality and add their creativity and imagination to give a new spirit to their work.  I have now moved from photo-realism to impressionistic photography in some of my images to add to and create beyond the click of the shutter. As with a painting... one can see not only the reality then but the dream behind it.

I joined the club in 1994. My neighbor, Joe Constantino who was a master photographer in the club, told me how wonderful it was and I was hooked at the first meeting. The people in the club were so warm and welcoming! I have gone from a rank beginner to a master photographer. I have learned so much!

After retiring from teaching in 1997, I decided it was time to give back to the club. I first served on the Judge Selection Committee for several years. It was fascinating to learn about the judges and their backgrounds. Then I was one of three people who co-chaired the Competition Committee. After one year, I became the Competition Chairman. I did that for 4 years. After that I served as 1st Vice President for 2 years and then as President for 2 years. I then became Historian for 1 year. I am currently in 2020 serving as President again.

My favorite type of photography is travel photography. I love capturing people and places. My husband and I have traveled to 102 countries. I always make a daily photo journal of each trip and then after editing all of the photos, I make a digital movie of each trip. Sometimes I do photo books. It’s great to look back and remember each trip!

I was a Canon shooter for a very long time, but now I shoot Fuji mirrorless. It is much easier than toting all of the heavy cameras and lens. Also, I find that people are not as intimidated by the smaller camera and lens. It’s much easier to get candid shots.

My primary interest in photography is travel photography. I enjoy taking photos of where we have been.

I joined the club in 1994 after my neighbor Joe Constantino suggested that we join the Huntington Camera Club.

I have really enjoyed the meetings, competitions and the friendship that I have made in the club.

Being a part of Huntington Camera Club for the past 25 years has enabled me to grow as a photographer and to see the world around me in a new light. It has broadened my sphere of friendships as well as knowledge of photography because people in our club are generous in sharing their knowledge.

The programs which are planned for our meetings are both informative and entertaining. It is heartwarming to see how our club has reached out to our communities on Long Island and have helped in so many ways. It's exciting to see the artistic works of so many high school students participating each year in our High School Competition. So many have gone on to further their careers in photography. There are so many gifted photographers in our club whose images are an inspiration for all to learn from and enjoy.

My family and friends look forward each month to my sharing of competition images with them in emails. It also gives me an opportunity to stay in touch with them.

Because of the great contributions on the part of so many of our members both past and present, in volunteering their time and efforts; our club has been so successful and I wish to thank them all.

I will wear the 25 year Huntington Camera Club membership pin with much pride and gratitude.

Photographically yours,