Casper Photography Association
Wildlife, racecars, landscapes and scenes from Casper to across the world. These are just a few of the images you can explore in the seventh annual Casper Photography Association exhibition at the Nicolaysen Art Museum.
The exhibition runs Jan. 17 through April 19. The public was welcome to a free reception on Friday, Jan. 28th, where the museum celebrated this show and two other new exhibitions. Casper Photography Association members had the chance to meet to meet and chat about their art and experiences in the club.
“I like the photo club for opportunity: the opportunity to take photos, the opportunity to interact with friends, the opportunity to discuss photography,” said Sam Sherman, a past president of the association.
The Casper Photography Association began more than four decades ago, treasurer Nancy Patrick said. More information about the association open to beginners through professional photographers is available at casperphotographers.com.
Museum visitors will find a variety of photographs members captured close to home, like a cowboy wrangling horses or berries ripening on Casper Mountain. Travelers photographed deserts to seascapes, and there’s even a photo of elephants in Thailand.
Some of the images were taken during the group’s monthly field trips, which range from daytrips into Wyoming’s outdoors to an upcoming tour of a local brewery.
One thing that members learn from one another’s photography is how everyone sees the world differently. Even if people photograph the same location or object, they’ll take the image in different ways, as Nancy and another club member recently discussed.
“She said it was very interesting to see another person’s perspective of their capture,” Nancy said.
The exhibition offers an opportunity for museum visitors to learn about photography. Each image’s label lists the camera, lens and exposure settings the photographer used. This helps people see how they might create different effects — like blurring the background with a smaller F-stop number, for example, Nancy said.
“So, it becomes an educational tool for people who have in interest in photography,” she said.
Members find the association helps inspire and better their craft.
“I’m exposed to what I don’t know, which is a lot,” club secretary Al Metz said.
He’s experienced the development of digital photography as possibilities have grown to digitally alter, or even create images — though he jokes that he thinks that’s cheating.
The opportunity to display work at the Nicolaysen Art Museum brings awareness about the association and motivates members to create their best work, Nancy said. Participants were asked to submit their 10 “best of the best” images, from which the Nicolaysen Art Museum curator chose two.
“I think I have seen the quality of the images come up because people really want their images presented here,” Nancy said.
An individual photographer may not have a large enough portfolio to fill a gallery on their own, though members can present the exhibition as a group, she said.
“The Nic has always been the ultimate in the Natrona County area for art, I always thought,” as Al put it. “To have my picture in the Nic — wow, it’s great.”
