Welcome to Seattle Photographic Society!
Founded in 1933, Seattle Photographic Society is a friendly group of supportive amateur and professional photographers. We strive to build both our skillsets and our community through image critiques, discussions, lecture, demonstrations, field trips, friendly competition and intra-club activities.
The club’s interests are primarily in the classical definition of photography, which has to do with the capturing of the original image(s) and post processing. Images generated by artificial intelligence are not eligible for entry.
Every month we hold several different types of meetings. Check out our Meeting Schedule to see what events are coming up.
Announcements
Member Spotlight
Annette Stiers Jones presented Fall Photography in Washington on September 26th at Quiddity Winery in Woodinville. It was a well attended event of about 20 folks including many SPS club members. Annette presented on where to travel to see the Washington fall colors (trails, highways and more), the technical aspects such as lighting, time of day, camera gear and post processing. And, she presented many of her beautiful landscape photos both projected as part of the presentation and also had numerous prints on display.
End of Year image entries and winning images
Congratulations to all who submitted images and to those who rated 1st, 2nd, 3rd and Honorable Mentions. Note: It may take a few seconds for the galleries to load so give it 10 seconds or so.
Projected monthly category entries and winners.
Prints monthly category entries and winners.
Projected special category.
Prints special category.
Calls for Entry
WTA Northwest Exposure Photo Contest
Northwest Exposure is WTA's annual photo contest that celebrates outdoor photography and the community of hikers that explore Washington's trails. The contest is open until October 12th. More information can be found here.
Northwest Council of Camera Clubs Annual Conference and Salon
The NW Council of Camera Clubs (NWCCC) is holding its annual conference and its Open Digital Salon, Open Print Salon, and Digital Slideshow competitions. More information on the conference is later in this newsletter. If you just want to submit to the salon, rules and the entry form can be found here. This year it is $60 to attend the conference and submit or $30 if you only want to submit to the salon.
Print and Projected Nights
Projected night is the first Tuesday of every month. Print night is the second Tuesday. The next dates are:
- Projected Image Night. Tuesday, October 6, 7pm. Theme = Wabi-Sabi. Commentators scheduled are Gary Marcos and Chip Dodd. Please submit your images by 2 pm Monday the day before the meeting. To keep to our two hour timeframe, we kindly ask that all participants keep their commentary and responses short.
- Print Night, August, October 13, 7pm. Print Night is held in person at Luther Memorial Lutheran Church, 13047 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 9813.
For details on image Category rules, check the
SPS website under Competitions - Competition Categories. Reminder that Theme images follow the guidelines of Open Category.
Themes in the upcoming months at Projected Images Night:
- October — Wabi-Sabi. Find beauty in imperfection and the passage of time. Seek out simplicity, asymmetry, and the marks of age—weathered wood, repaired objects, patina, cracks, moss, and gentle decay. Embrace subdued tones, thoughtful negative space, and images that convey quiet reflection.
- November — Lens Effects. Use the camera’s “imperfections” creatively: flare, starbursts, bokeh, diffraction, shooting through glass, raindrops on the lens, or intentional soft focus. Experiment—this theme rewards play and risk.
- December — Artificial Glow. Photograph light that doesn’t come from the sun—holiday lights, neon, lamps, storefronts, screens, car trails, and warm interior windows. Aim for mood: cozy, electric, cinematic, or quietly surreal.
- January — Rainy Day. Seattle’s specialty. Puddles, umbrellas, wet sidewalks, mist, dripping branches, condensation, and moody skies all count. Let rain shape the atmosphere—soft contrast, reflections, and quiet storytelling.
The full list for the 2026-2027 competition year can be found at any time on the website. The first theme of the 2027-2008 competition year is In Bloom.
Member and Educational Activities
Educational Night, October 27 at 7pm
October will be a small group night we are calling In Progress Review.
Have an image you’re still working through? Bring it to Small Group Night for a more informal, peer-to-peer discussion focused on helping you move the work forward.
You might be choosing between two images, wondering about an edit or crop, trying to decide whether something is ready for competition, or simply wanting to know how other people respond to a photograph you care about. Unlike Projected Image Night, there are no judges or designated commentator—just a chance to slow down, look closely, and have a deeper conversation about the work.
Bring 1–3 images and let the group know what kind of feedback would be most useful. Maybe you have a specific question, or maybe you simply want to hear how others respond to the image.
Northwest Council of Camera Clubs, 2026 Conference and Print Salon, November 21
This year's conference will take place at the Renton Technical College. 3000 NE 4th St, Renton, WA 98056. Rooms C101/C107.
Lisa Merrill will present Photography for Joy and Connection.
An inspiring look at the “whys” behind photography - creativity, connection, mindfulness, play and using images for greater meaning.
Daniel J Gregory will present The Language of Color and Building and Sequencing a Photography Portfolio.
More information on the event can be found here. Want to join the competition, rules here.
$60 for the conference and to enter the competition. $30 if you just want to enter the competition.
SPS Book Club
Book Club will be taking a little break to digest everything we have learned in the last three books and starting up next year. Our next book will be Gay Tal's
More Than a Rock,
SecondEdition. Look for the one with the tree. If you are interested in joining us for this book, please contact Jenny Stuart and she will add you to the mailing list.
Macro Photography Group
SPS Member Bill Wheeler has a Macro Photography Group. If interested, contact him by going to the SPS website, then "Send Email to Members" under "Our Club" and search for his name under "Select from Member List."
Share your ideas at
sps-news-box@seattlephotographic.com
Local Events and More
Seattle Light Room, Marcia Glover Retrospective, throughout October
Seattle Light Room will present a retrospect of Marcia Glover’s work titled I Had to Leave to Find Myself. The show includes collections of photography, collage and oil paintings.
Opening Reception: Oct 1st, 6 - 8 pm
Artist Talk: Oct 10th, 1 pm
Columbia City Gallery, Shifting Horizons, Oct 7 - Nov 15
Columbia City Gallery is having a member exhibition entitled Shifting Horizons.
Light of the Dark, Leica Bellevue, October 24
Join Leica Bellevue for Light of the Dark, an exhibition of Steven Collins' nighttime photography exploring Seattle and Tokyo through light, shadow, color, architecture and the moments that emerge after dark. Go here for more information and to buy tickets.
Kenmore Camera Digital Expo, Nov 6 - 8
Save the data for the digital expo at Kenmore Camera in November. Until then, as usual, lots of classes and events. See a complete list of all events
here.
Glazers: The Art & Science of Color -- A Photographer's Guide, Nove 14 & 21
Two-part Mark Fitzgerald class covering color perception, harmony, complementary/analogous schemes, color spaces, correction versus grading, and Lightroom/Photoshop application. Register
here for this class. Also has other ongoing
events.
Vote for the Traveling Salon
In October we will be voting for the Puget Sound Camera Club. Starting on the first of the month, you can view the images here and then vote for your top five here. SPS and the NW Council of Camera Clubs thanks you.
The Creative Spark
From the Editor's Desk
Following up on Daniel Gregory's August presentation, I thought I would share one of the exercises from his Meaningful Image Workshop, titled Finding Meaning in Images.
For this exercise you will pick 50 images that you personally find meaningful. These are not necessarily the best of the best, the ones that you would submit to SPS, a portfolio review, or a contest. These are 50 images that mean something to you. The ones you return to, the ones you linger over, the ones that you can't seem to forget.
Spend 3-5 minutes with each image, for each write everything that comes up in the following three buckets:
- Technical Aspects: What bothers you or makes the image work for you from a technical perspective (shutter speed, depth of field, focal length, focus, exposure, etc.). For example, the shallow depth of field provides an intimacy to this image or I love this image, but I totally missed the shutter speed here. This is about the effect of the technical choices, rather than simply listing what they are.
- Visual Aspects: What compositionally works or doesn't work for you (lines, shapes, colors, textures, gesture, negative space, etc.)?
- Emotional Response: What feelings or emotions does this image evoke. N/A is an acceptable answer.
Once you have written about all 50 images, first congratulate yourself. That was a lot of work. I know, I did it. So, take a break. Then look over your notes... Are there words, emotions, themes, or other common threads that appear over and over again? Don’t try to force a conclusion. Just notice what keeps showing up.
One thing that emerged for me was how often I kept talking about “the unexpected” or precious little surprises—a guy steering a boat with his feet, kids waving madly from a tuk tuk, or ordinary things made unexpectedly beautiful—for example, by a snowfall or god rays through a misty tree while on a hike. I began to realize that I am repeatedly drawn to moments when something ordinary is disrupted by light, weather, behavior, or circumstance and suddenly becomes something I want to linger over.
Have something you want discussed in
The Creative Spark. Email
sps-news-box@seattlephotographic.com. I can't promise I'll have an answer, but I do promise to listen.
Bill Ray's Classes
Fall is prime time for red rock country photography. Let Bill Ray’s Utah trip inspire your high desert travels! October is also your last chance to shoot the Milky Way core this year. Capturing it requires precise planning for moonlight, smoke and a stunning foreground. Check out Bill's Landscape Planning Tools class.
Short-eared Owl and Trumper Swan migrations are underway for WA arrivals in October-November. Bill's bird photography classes are full of tips -- like how to get birds in the frame and in focus, no matter what your camera is.
Learn more about Bill's online video-on-demand classes and photo galleries at www.billrayimages.com.
Be Spam Aware
We’ve been made aware of scam emails that may appear to come from SPS or club officers. Please be cautious — SPS will never ask you for money or gift cards via email. If you receive a suspicious message, do not reply or click on any links. Instead, report it to SPS so we can follow up. Stay safe and keep your inbox scam-free!
info@seattlephotographic.com
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