Ormond Beach couple shares insight into The Casements Camera Club's spring photography exhibit

The Casements Camera Club is presenting its sixth-annual spring exhibit, which showcases about 50 pictures from 27 different photographers in the club. From birds and wildlife to sunsets and scenes abroad, the exhibit can appeal visually to many tastes.

Member Linda Johnson said that unlike the club's other yearly shows where there are submission guidelines to follow, this exhibit doesn't restrict the photographer in terms of subject, medium, framing or post-production editing. This gives the photographers free range to display their creative works how they choose. Each member was allowed to submit up to two original photos.

"You have a little bit of everything," Linda Johnson said. "It's not going to be the same idea."

"There's something here for everybody," The Casements Camera Club Vice President Paul Johnson added.

To add to the uniqueness of the show, guests were encouraged to vote for their favorite by writing the photo number on a piece of paper and placing it in the voting box in the Ormond Beach Performing Arts Center where the exhibit is displayed. The "People's Choice Award" will go to the photographer who receives the greatest number of votes from the public for their photo. There will also be awards given to first, second and third place, as well as honorable mentions, in which the voting will be done by club members only. 

Club President Paul Johnson recalled that about 90 people voted in last year's exhibit. The "People's Choice Award" and the other winners' works will be displayed at the Ormond Beach Regional Library, at 30 S. Beach St., following the close of the exhibit.

The exhibit is on display at the center located at 399 U.S. 1 through June 28. The public can browse the pieces from noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Friday to coincide with the box office's hours of operation. Public voting closes the week before the show concludes.

"We have people of all levels of photography," Paul Johnson said. "We have people that use their phone, and then we have people that have Nikon D5s — you know, $6,000 cameras."

Paul and Linda Johnson have been members of the club for four years, but they've been photographers for decades — even before they married 29 years ago. Paul said he enjoys photographing nature and wildlife, while Linda said she mostly favors architecture and landscape photography.

"We've been developing together for a while," Linda Johnson said. "The skills have grown a lot since we joined the club. ... You learn something every time."

The pair especially enjoys visiting Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge to photograph birds.

"It's a lot of fun; we play with it," Paul Johnson said. "We take pictures wherever we go; we take pictures of all different kinds of things."