Favorite Images of 2025
Welcome
Who : The Focus Group is a diverse, curious and enthusiastic collection of amateur and professional photographers. The group was founded by Abdi Roble and Bill Nieberding in 1998. While based in Central Ohio, the club welcomes members regardless of where they reside.
Members are diverse in background, heritage, culture and share a common interest in and love of photography. Members are intent on achieving photographic excellence while enjoying good fellowship and are dedicated to the personal artistic growth of fellow members. The group offers a comfortable and informal environment for the free exchange of information and ideas to assist with the personal growth of fellow members.
What : Most meetings contain programs put on by external speakers. It’s not always just about the image but many times it’s about the creation of the image. What tools are used for preparation? What thought process goes on during realtime creation? What tools are used during post processing and presentation? What are a few “secrets” that might help members become better photographers? Some presenters specialize in one subject area while others use their creativity with many and varied subjects.
Besides the Image Competition, most meetings have time allocated for members to present recent works either digitally or in print form. This “image sharing” provides members an opportunity to share their creative talents and for others to ask questions about the images. It’s always fun to see what members have been creating and how it was accomplished.
Occasionally videos produced by professional photographers are viewed. These sessions usually stimulate lively discussions of tools and techniques being presented. Sometimes members and guests bring cameras and create images in real time during the meeting as part of a program called “Shoot and Tell”. It’s interesting to hear the question “how’d you see that?” and then of course the answer is always interesting and sometimes eye opening. Once a year, usually as a substitute for the May meeting, members meet and engage in what has come to be known as “Drink, Dine, and Shoot”. For this event, members meet at a location for some drinks and dinner and then wander around the area for some impromptu image creating. Locations have included Inniswoods Metro Gardens, the Short North area, the Arena District, the Scioto Mile, and COSI. It’s always a lot of fun gathering and shooting and sharing ideas.
Periodically the group participates in public exhibits. Locations have included Ursus a former gallery in Upper Arlington, The Concourse Gallery at the Upper Arlington Municipal Building, Motorists Mutual Insurance Gallery, Grandview Heights Library, Upper Arlington Library, Northwood ArtSpace, among others. These exhibits present opportunities to members to share their art with the community and occasionally make a sale.
On rare occasions, phones will ring or emails will fly about trying to stimulate interest in an impromptu photography meet-up. Sometimes they are planned well ahead of time many times not. The group has traveled to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan for several days of fall shooting on two occasions. In 2017 members met in early spring at Clear Creek Metro Park for some spring wildflower shooting.
Meetings:
Usually, club meetings are held every second Friday of the month at 7pm at the Upper Arlington Municipal Building. Check below for details. Occasionally the location, time or date might change. Members will get emails. Others need to check here or on Facebook ( https://www.facebook.com/TheFocusGroupColumbus ) for information.
Upper Arlington Municipal Building
3600 Tremont Rd.
Upper Arlington, Ohio
Social time begins at 7pm and the formal meeting at 7:15pm. Meetings are occasionally held offsite — be sure to check our website for details.
Next Meeting (and known future meetings)
Friday, August 14, 2026 time 7:00 PM
Upper Arlington Municipal Building – 3600 Tremont Rd.
Program: David N. VanMeter will lead a group discussion on the ups and downs of buying used camera gear, both film and digital. Bring your tips, good experiences and bad, or any good sources for used equipment you may have discovered.
Image Sharing: “the fair in motion” – share your fresh images from the Ohio State Fair or any other fair you attended.
Friday, September 11, 2026 time 7:00 PM
Upper Arlington Municipal Building – 3600 Tremont Rd.
Program: Tonight, Aaron Hobgood will show and talk about his photographic journey with film and digital technologies. A native of Rochester, New York, Aaron moved to Columbus 13 years ago. As an accomplished skateboarder, artist, and photographer, this self-taught creator uses a fierce combination of motivation and patience to learn and understand. Aaron uses the formula of fail, learn, progress, on a daily, sometimes hourly basis.
Image Sharing: Bring your ten best images from the previous month and tell us why you think they are your best in the last 30 days. Is there a good story? Does it remind you of a fond memory? Group will discuss your images.
Friday, October 9, 2026 time 7:00 PM
Upper Arlington Municipal Building – 3600 Tremont Rd.
Program: Member Cameron Maynard will provide an overview of his astrophotography workflow from start to finish. He will cover the equipment he uses, how he sets up and prepares for an imaging session, the process of calibrating and stacking images in Siril, and the post-processing techniques he uses to bring out detail and color in the final image. The goal is to demonstrate a practical, repeatable workflow that anyone interested in astrophotography can follow and build upon.
Image Sharing: TBD
Friday, November 13, 2026 time 7:00 PM
Upper Arlington Municipal Building – 3600 Tremont Rd.
Program: Member Jim Lieb will present a brief overview of smartphone video capabilities and mirrorless cameras, followed by examples from his commercial work. We’ll connect the technical elements to the final result so you understand how the whole video process fits together.
Image Sharing: TBD
Friday, December 11, 2026 time 7:00 PM
Upper Arlington Municipal Building – 3600 Tremont Rd.
Program: Members bring 3 favorite images of 2026; one image of people, abstract, and landscape. Explain why it was your favorite of the year and how it was created.
Image Sharing: Any other images that did not make your “favorite” list.
Previous Meetings
July 2026 – New member, Persephone Mitchell, presented a class and discussion on critiquing photos.
June 2026 – Member McKenna Thompson shared with us her passion of wildlife photography. She presented some of her “secrets” along with images she’s made.
May 2026 – A small collection of members wandered around downtown Westerville enjoying a pleasant spring evening making many images of the photogenic downtown area. The evening ended with dinner at Los Altos for good food and conversation.
April 2026 – New member Bruce Johnson presented information about night photography including light painting. He’s shared many of his outstanding images leaving attendees wanting to try more night photography. It was an impressive presentation.
March 2026 – This was a “hands on” program. It was all about table top photography. Members brought items of interest to photograph. Some members brought interesting lighting technology from spots to light boxes. Members got to play in real time and learn from each other.
February 2026 – Member Susan Scharenberg shared information on B&W Architectural photography. We learned how to start with images made in full daylight and use the tools of photoshop or lightroom to convert them into impressive B&W images.
January 2026 – Member Jon Harvey presented images from his recently completed multi-week trip to New England and the Canadian coastal provinces.
December 2025 – It was our year end image sharing of each members favorite images of the year. Images were of people, abstracts, and landscape. See image splash at the top of the webpage.
November 2025 – Member Jon Harvey talked about his experiences doing model photography. He shared a number of images and talked about the challenges of lighting and posing the models.
October 2025 – Members participated in a discussion of what’s done with our images after the photo shoot. We talked about the tools we use and what processes are in play to keep us sane. It’s clear, there is more than one way to make it happen.
September 2025 – Members spent about 20 minutes with their camera(s) making images in and around the building. Then we shared (with no edits) some of the images and discussed the challenges and outcomes of the process. It was a fun lively meeting. The image sharing session was about “fast start”.
August 2025 – We had a great discussion about “what’s in your bag” (AKA, gear petting zoo). The image sharing topic of “things inside things” exposed some interesting ideas.
July 2025 – Members shared current problems and discussed issues and solutions with each other. Image sharing was “windows and doors”.
June 2025 – Fellow photographer and former member, Dick Burry, shared his story of Photography at the Ohio Judicial Center. He reminded us it is open to the public and photography is allowed in this beautiful building. Image sharing was Columbus architecture.
May 2025 – It was the annual Drink Dine and Shoot. This year held in Hilliard with 9 members showing for all or part of the evening shooting around downtown Hilliard.
April 2025 – Jon Harvey shared images he made on a recent trip to Costa Rica.
March 2025 – Chuck shared some of his experience learning to use his iPhone and Lightroom Mobile to create and share images directly from his iPhone (13 mini).
February 2025 – David VanMeter led an interesting presentation about antique and vintage cameras. And Mark Fohl brought images from Fotoklub Exakta in Dresden, Germany for judging by attendees. Results will be shared at the March meeting.
January 2025 – Sadly, the meeting was cancelled due to incoming bad weather.
December 2024 – Always a fun program – members shared their favorite shots of the year! This time members shared up to 3 images one from each category: Abstract, Landscape, People.
November 2024 – Jon Harvey presented images of covered bridges and other related topics created on his recent photography trip to Washington County, PA.
October 2024 – Kim Chisley opened a discussion on long exposure photography. Members shared a number of creative ideas on this topic.
Septermber 2024 – Jon Harvey led a discussion on intentional camera movement (ICM). Members shared a number of creative ideas on ICM.
August 2024 – Kim, Jon, and Chuck led a discussion on how they do photography at some of the special events they cover as part of their volunteer work.
July 2024 – It was all about how you photograph fireworks.
June 2024 – Scott Galloway shared a number of images made on his iphone and he shared how he does it with a few add-on lenses
May 2024 – 8 members showed up on a beautiful evening at Bridge Park in Dublin for the annual Drink, Dine, and Shoot. It was a great evening with some interesting light to be making images!
April 2024 – Members David VanMeter and Dalton Bosley shared their enthusiasm and expertise about large format photography. It was both a demonstration and a hands on opportunity to learn.Scott Galloway who does a lot of good phone photography to Scott Galloway who does a lot of good phone photography to
Marcch 2024 – Jeff Sagar shared his passion for solar and eclipse photography. It was a just in time presentation for the April 8 eclipse.
February 2024 – Photographers Audrey and Frank Begun shared their passion for underwater photography. They presented techniques, and equipment used when making their images.
January 2024 – Member David VanMeter presented some of his photography and specifically shared his process for creating cyanotype prints. In a member participation hands-on presentation, we made one print in realtime.
December 2023 –Always a fun program – members shared their favorite shots of the year! This time members shared up to 3 images one from each category: Abstract, Landscape, People. You get to choose and explain why each is your favorite for 2023. Members also voted to recognize their favorite image from each set. Find the images displayed at the top of the website.
November 2023 – Member Jim Snyders shared his passion for making portraits of both friends and strangers.
October 2023 – Jon Harvey lead the group in a discussion of questions from our members about photography. Then on Sunday October 22 some members of the group traveled to The Dawes Arboretum for some fall colors.
September 2023 – Member Chuck Zelms had recently returned from a two week trip to Iceland (via Amsterdam, the Shetland and Faroe Islands). He shared a lot of images while taking the audience along with him to experiencne how he sees.
August 2023 – Member Chuck Zelms had recently returned from a two week trip to Iceland (via Amsterdam, the Shetland and Faroe Islands). He shared a lot of images while taking the audience along with him to experiencne how he sees.
July 2023 – Member Lance Gilbert presented a marvelous program on using flash when shooting models in outdoor settings.
June 2023 – Jon Harvey lead a discussion with Jim Snyders and Dalton Bosley on the best techniques and practices for informal portrait photography — taking pictures of friends, family or anyone. Other members chimed in and helped understand this practice.
May 2023 – It was Drink Dine and Shoot. Members gathered at Inniswood Metro Garden and ended at Old Bag of Nails for a nice dinner and conversation.
April 2023 – Roberta Kayne presented an overview of Lensbaby photography and lenses. She showed examples of the magical photos you can create with soft, glowy effects from the Lensbaby products.
March 2023 – Rob Shields presented his awesome Yellowstone in winter photos. Mark Fohl from the Westbridge CC shared images from the Dresden photo group and members voted on their favorites. The meeting concluded with members sharing some of their recent images and portraits.
February 2023 – Mike Johnson shared photos of a recent South American cruise that took him from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Santiago, Chile.
January 2023 – Members shared images that showed motion. Members also shared their favorite websites or other sources they go to when it comes to photographic technique, subjects, or equipment.
December 2022 – Members shared their best image from 2022. And we did some studio shooting in real time. Images sharing was about “mystery” subjects. See the favorite images from 2022 here.
November 2022 – Member, Jon Harvey shared images from his fall recent trip to New England. Several members shared images.
October 2022 – Member, Mike Johnson lead a discussion about “what’s in your bag”. A fun time was had by all. This was followed by image sharing.
September 2022 – Member, Will Brenner shared some of his techniques for shooting and sharing ballet dancers.
August 2022 – Member, Gary Walker shared with us his macro photography techniques and some of his favorite images. He also worked with members who wanted to see more of his photography setup in real time.
July 2022 – Member, Chuck Zelms shared some of his techniques for making a “movie” out of a selection of images using photoshop and iMovie. This was followed by image sharing. We saw some of the awesome images from the Park of Roses shoot.
June 2022 – The group gathered at the Park of Roses for a sack dinner and an evening shoot in the flowers. Turned out to be a beautiful night!
May 2022 – Member, Dalton Bosley shared his passion for making black and white images. The image sharing topic was “motion” or “black and white”.
April 2022 – “People” was the topic of the night. Members shared light painted images made at the prior meeting or on their own.
March 2022 – The program was about light painting. Chuck showed a couple examples that he had worked on in prior years and then members setup and shot several subjects in the meeting. We did image sharing at the end. Members were asked to bring one or two images from the session to the next meeting to share.
February 2022 – Chuck lead a presentation on making prints. Members brought in books, prints of many sizes and on several surfaces and we looked at some examples of prints on the screen as well. Members have used several suppliers to make prints from in-home printers, to local stores, to mail-order. The pros and cons of each were discussed. Several members brought images to share.
January 2022 – While there was no program, we had a great time chatting an sharing images made over the past month or so. There were a couple of images in the critique session.
December 2021 – While there was no program, the group presented their “best/favorite image” of 2021. We also continued the critique session followed by a very fun image sharing session.
November 2021 –Ed Zirkle, Photo Journalist, did an awesome presentation about his photographic journey (both literal and figuratively). We had a lively introduction to a new feature of the meetings. We practiced critiquing an image from Mike. Then we did the usual image sharing.
October 2021 – Members reviewed a video. We shared our select images of “texture” and voted one to be the best. Congrats to Jim Snyders for his submission. We did our usual image sharing. Always fun to see what others are doing.
September 2021 – September was the first month meeting in person with safety top and center. Time was spent catching up and sharing images.
August 2021 – Field trip to the Marysville Balloon Festival. Weather did not cooperate.
July 2021 – Another zoom meeting catching up with each other and sharing images. Some had gone to The Park of Roses and shared some awesome shots.
June 2021 – Another Zoom meeting where members shared images made throughout the spring and the Drink Dine and Shoot event. Always interesting to see what members have been up to.
May 2021 – Several members met for an alternative “drink, dine, and shoot” event at Centennial Park. It was fun seeing faces in person. Then we wandered around the river and made some awesome images.
April 2021 – New member, Bill Weyandt, shared his “photographic journey” with the group while presenting a number of images from his world travels. A number of members also shared images during the image sharing session.
March 2021 – Members were encouraged to get out and about making images even if just in their neighborhood. The group met once again via Zoom. It was fun seeing everyone’s faces and hearing what they’ve been up to. The meeting concluded with image sharing.
February 2021 –Members were asked to talk about “Your Favorite Photographer”. Many members shared images form a number of their favorite photographers and talked about why they were their favorite photographer. We also had an impressive image sharing session.
January 2021 – The group had an awesome image sharing session.
December 2020 – Members of the group met via Zoom for a fun image sharing meeting and Kathy Cubert talked about the Appalachian Ohio Alliance and her passion for conservation photography.
Members also shared their favorite images of 2020.
November 2020 – Members of the group met via Zoom for a fun image sharing meeting. Most of the images were from the previous two shootouts. But as is usually the case members also shared images from other places as they were able to get out and about during the virus.
October 2020 – Several members of the group met up at Schiller Park on Oct. 9 for a “safe” evening of shooting. It was a beautiful night to make images in and around the park. Then on Oct. 16, another subset of members met at Slate Run Historical Farm for a BONUS shootout. We were blessed with yet another blue sky day with designer clouds this time.
August & September 2020 – Thus far everyone seems to be surviving the virus. Please stay safe – wear your mask, wash your hands, keep your distance. Several members were able to meet up and do some shooting in Worthington in August. Others went on their own time. In September we shared the outcome of that shootout. What a fun meeting. It’s good to see everyone on Zoom. Hope you can make a future meeting.
July 2020 – The Corona virus continues to impact the club. But alas, on July 10 we figured out how to use ZOOM! We had a fun on-line meeting with about a dozen members present and shared stories and a few of our favorite images we’ve been making during lockup.
June 2020 – The Covid virus has affected our operation for a few months. But alas, on June 12 a few of our members met at Inniswood Metro Gardens in Westerville for a quick sack dinner (of course keeping the distance to minimize the spread of the virus) followed by each of us wandering about the gardens making some late day images. It was awesome seeing members in person.
March 2020 – 7 Members met at OtherWorld and enjoyed 2.5 hours or so of interesting shooting. Plan was to share them at the April meeting but that has been cancelled. Some images can be found on Facebook. When OtherWorld opens up after the Virus closure stop by and check it out. Very interesting place to make images.
February 2020 – Members had fun sharing their images from the visit to the US Air Force Museum in January.
January 2020 – A very fun day was had making images at and touring the United States Air Force Museum.
December 2019 – Kirsten Packer, new member, shared awesome images and thoughts on her personal photographic journey. And members shared their favorite images from 2019.
November 2019 – Lauren Pond is a documentary photographer who specializes in coverage of faith and religion.
July 2019 – A vert hot shootout at Chadwick Arboretum.
October 2019 – Member review and discussion of the images created during the September table top shootout plus image sharing.
September 2019 – We met at our usual meeting location and created several “studio” setups with fruits, vegetables, and other items. Many images were made for sharing and discussion at the October meeting. It was an exciting and fun exercise.
August 2019 – Review of the Arboretum shootout images. And competition and image sharing.
July 2019 – A vert hot shootout at Chadwick Arboretum.
June 2019 – Member review and discussion of the images created during the Drink, Dine, and Shoot event from May. The business part of the meeting included election of officers and a brief discussion of an exhibit opportunity at the Janis Center on the Ohio State Fair Grounds.
May 2019 – It’s the annual Drink, Dine and shoot event. Members of the group went to Columbus Architectural Salvage where we spent a couple hours making images and having some fun. Dinner followed at Lavash on High St. Always fun to be out shooting with fellow members. http://columbusarchitecturalsalvage.com/index.php
April 2019 –A good story satisfies a deep need of the human condition, and every one of us has many stories to tell — whether orally or visually. With a Ph.D. in English, Connie Post will share how she taught herself to apply conventional narrative elements, such as context, plot and point of view, to her photography. Dr. Post is a retired journalist and has taught workshops in visual storytelling as well as iPhone photo and video editing apps.
March 2019 – Travel Photography: what do you take on your trips? Members Michael Johnson and Chuck Zelms will share what equipment they take on their photography trips. Chuck will also share a few images of his recent Cuba trip. (you know he does not know how to count)
February 2019 – Thanks to Ua Chamberlain for inviting the group to his studio workspace. He spoke with the group on the topic of how to renew your photography. https://uacreativestudios.com
January 2019 – Once again, the meeting is all about member participation. Since the group had its 20th anniversary last spring, let’s discuss how the group morphs and adapts to the ever changing world of photography and our busy schedules. Be prepared to share your ideas on what the group will be doing over the next year as preparation for the next 20 years. What do you want out of the group? How does the group grow? What can you give to the group? Everything is on the table.
Mark Fohl from the Westbridge Camera Club, is curating an image sharing program with the photography group in Dresden, German. He brought a couple dozen images and we rated them as part of their exchange judging program.
December 2018 – The program was all about “your best image of 2018”. Members presented what they defined as their best image of the year along with what motivated them to make the image and subsequently declare it their best. These awesome 10 images follow in a slide show.
November 2018 – Susan Scharenberg talked about the Adobe Spark tool she’s been using to share her photography on-line.
October 2018 – Fred Ripley – Fred shared his passion for railroad photography and how both his photography and the railroad has changed over the past 30 years.
September 2018 – Member Doug Titchenal – Doug shared how cameras influenced his life, and gave an insider’s tour of his photography, designs and art.
August 2018 – Member Joe Wagenhals – information on layers in Photoshop.
Here are some of the images from past competitions. Once upon a time the group had monthly competitions. When interest in having competitions rises, they can resume.
Membership
The membership year runs July 1 through June 30 of the following year. Membership is open to all who are of adult age (currently 18). Individual membership is $30 per year and (2 person) family membership at the same address is $50 per year. Students are discounted by 50%.
WOW!!! In recent years the membership fee has been reduced by 50%. The membership year July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022 is FREE. That does not happen often. Check out the membership form and if you have questions send us a note or see us at a meeting:
Click here to open a membership form:
Contact Us
Email us at: info@focuscolumbus.com
Check us out on Facebook: The Focus Group – Columbus
Friends of The Focus Group
Under Construction