Club members exhibit photographs at library

More than 50 photographs created by members of the Four Seasons Metedeconk Lakes Photography Club, Jackson, are being exhibited at the Monmouth County Library Headquarters, 125 Symmes Drive, Manalapan. The exhibit will run through Feb. 26.

More than 50 photographs created by members of the Four Seasons Metedeconk Lakes Photography Club, Jackson, are being exhibited at the Monmouth County Library Headquarters, 125 Symmes Drive, Manalapan. “We have included landscapes, seascapes, flora, fauna, portraits and still life photos, as well as architectural and historic location photos and much more,” said Marty Newborn, the club’s exhibit coordinator.

Other exhibiting photographers are Al Bonaccorso, J.J. Cohen, Rich Despins, Joel Eisenberg, Doug Eisman, Al Lambariello, Bill Langweil, Norty Milecofsky, Luke Stango, Norman Schwinger, Jerry Steiner and Ken Thompson

Bonaccorso said, “I have always had an interest in photography but was not able to pursue it in the way I wanted. Now that I am retired, I have joined two photography clubs where I have learned a great deal about digital photography and find that there is so much more to learn.”

Lambariello said his interest in photography stems from a pop-bottle lens camera he bought with his own money when he was age 10.

“I learned the basics and photographed almost anything and anyone,” he said. “Now at age 72, I look back and remember all of the cameras and pictures I have taken. I learned early on that if I only please my worst critic, my wife, then the picture is worth keeping.”

Eisman, a retired arts educator/administrator from the alternative high school system of the New York City Board of Education, moved to Jackson two years ago.

“I have been an exhibiting visual artist for the past 35 years,” Eisman said, adding that his work has appeared on television and in films. “My first foray into photography has been with this fine photo club in our community. It is an honor to exhibit with these gentlemen.”

Steiner said his interest in photography dates back more than 50 years to when as a teenager he received a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye camera as a gift. He said he subsequently was given a stereo camera and became fascinated by the ability to take three-dimensional pictures.

In the early 1960s he bought his first 35mm camera.

“The use of that 35mm camera required a great deal of thought because it was not an automatic camera,” said Steiner. “The photographer had to figure shutter and aperture settings.”

Cohen is a retired thoracic surgeon who practiced in Monmouth and Ocean counties beginning in 1973. Since retiring in 2003, he has had the time and the opportunity to become involved in photography. He said he enjoys all types of photography, particularly nature photography, which he pursues at his vacation home in the Catskill Mountains.

Despins said he had a longtime interest in photography, strictly as an amateur photographer. He has shown his work at various local venues. Today, Despins has found Photoshop to be his electronic darkroom.

Eisenberg, a retired New York City teacher, said his interest in photography dates back to his teenage years when he worked mainly with color slides, Kodachromes, and focused on travel and landscapes. He recorded family events using color negative film. During the past year, Eisenberg took a leap forward and became involved in digital imaging.

Midwesterner Ken Thompson has recorded Indiana farm country, open fields, grazing cattle, mushroom-filled woods, plentiful wildlife and great bass fishing.

Above, Marty Newborn (l) and Norty Milecofsky, and right, Ken Thompson (l) and Joel Eisenberg are exhibiting their photographs at the Monmouth County Library Headquarters. “I have traveled throughout Wisconsin and other states, as well as several parts of Europe, and my camera has become a constant companion,” Thompson said. “But it was last year with our move to New Jersey that my world virtually exploded with new and rich visual experiences. My hope is that my pictures will someday provide my viewers, both young and old, a heightened understanding of line, color, texture, design and Mother Nature’s unique take on these characteristics.”

Langweil became interested in photography when he worked in California and explored the countryside in Death Valley and Yosemite National Park, and at Hearst Castle. He still has a large collection of color slides from that period. He eventually progressed into the digital era and has taken many photographs during his travels throughout the United States and around the world.

PHOTOS BY DAVE BENJAMIN Stango, who enjoys taking nature, landscapes, travel and candid photos of people, said he became interested in photography in the mid-1960s, but his interest became dormant for a period of time. He said that when he retired at the end of 2007, he decided to join the digital age.

He said that since he was not born with a computer mouse in his hand, there was a steep learning curve ahead, and today he says that he has not even scratched the sur- face. He joined the Four Seasons Metedeconk Lakes Photography Club in February 2008 and said photography has enhanced his retirement and created a new learning experience.

About 10 years ago, Schwinger purchased his first digital camera, a Canon G- 2, and really became hooked. He then bought a Canon Rebel SLR and has since progressed to the Canon 40D. Having worked in New York City for 20 years, Schwinger spends much time pounding the city streets while using his camera to take unusual photos of people and architecture.

Schwinger, who has eight grandchildren, often hears the refrain, “Here’s Grandpa with his camera again.” But they love to see the results, he said.

Milecofsky, the club’s founder, who has been a photo enthusiast for 40 years, said he has no preferences and will photograph anything and everything.

“It took a while to get into digital,” Milecofsky said. “They dragged, kicked and screamed at me, but now I see the possibilities are endless.”

The Four Seasons Metedeconk Lakes Photography Club has an Internet website, metlakesphotoclub.photoclubservices.com

The club’s exhibit at the Monmouth County Library Headquarters in Manalapan can be viewed during regular library hours. For more information, call the library at 732-431-7220.