The Plano Photography Club (PPC) aims to promote enjoyment, mastery, and further development of photography through cooperation, effort, and good fellowship. Serving Plano and the surrounding areas, we welcome photographers of all skill levels.

Review this slide presentation to learn more about the club. Then join us at our next monthly meeting and get to know the friendly folks in the Plano Photography Club.

MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION | BECOME A PPC MEMBER | RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP

NORTH POLE, December 2025 – Santa’s Workshop today announced the appointment of Plano Photography Club member Jose Artiles as “Chief Elf of Robotics and Toy Innovation,” following a global talent search that allegedly lasted “about 15 minutes and one peppermint mocha.” In his new role, Artiles is responsible for keeping both the elves and the robots pointed in roughly the same direction: toward finished toys and away from the cookie table.

Jose Artiles - Chief Elf of Robotics and Toy Innovation

Upon arrival, Artiles immediately introduced a fully modern production line featuring cheerful toy‑building robots supervised by slightly suspicious elves. Labor tensions eased once management guaranteed unlimited hot cocoa, mandatory cookie breaks, and a strict “no replacing elves with robots, except for assembling 4,000 toy cars before lunch” policy.

Under Artiles’ leadership, the workshop now produces high‑tech race cars that go faster if you shout “vroom” and plush animals pre‑programmed to listen patiently to extremely long wish lists. Quality control remains rigorous: any toy that misbehaves must endure a stern photo session where Jose documents its flaws in unflattering close‑ups until it agrees to cooperate.

Thanks to the new robo‑elf workflow, Santa projects record‑breaking on‑time deliveries this year, with a pilot program for “oops, wrong chimney” re‑delivery at no extra charge. Logistics experts predict that the combination of robots, elves, and one mildly bewildered photographer will keep the sleigh full and the reindeer union moderately satisfied.

“In a world of supply‑chain chaos, you need someone who can fix a robot, assemble a toy, and still get the exposure right,” Santa said in an official statement. Artiles has requested only one thing in return: signed model releases from all elves and robots, so the Plano Photography Club can safely share this historic glimpse into the North Pole’s first fully automated holiday season.

More than sixty members and guests of the Plano Photography Club gathered on Saturday, December 6, 2025, at West Plano Presbyterian Church for the club’s annual holiday celebration.

Thanks to everyone who helped make the evening so enjoyable.

Your generosity in bringing delicious dishes and your warmth in sharing friendship filled the room with joy and community spirit.

Together, you made this event truly special - a wonderful reflection of the camaraderie that makes our club such a great place to belong.

Slideshows

The first of the two slideshows at right includes all the holiday images submitted to us this year to accompany the Christmas music that played during dinner.

The second contains photos taken during the holiday party itself.

Links

The links below provide access to the galleries of these two sets of images, along with the Year in Photos and Member Slideshows that were part of the holiday party program.

Photos and Slideshows: Holiday Images Gallery | Holiday Party Photo Gallery | The Year in Photos 2025 Slideshow with Music | The Year in Photos 2025 Slideshow | 2025 Member Video Slideshows

Did you participate in the recent group photo outing to the Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge? If so, we would like to feature your best images in the slide gallery that appears below.

To submit photos for that gallery, here are the guidelines:

• SEND UP TO TEN (10) of your best pictures (please include a mix from both locations, if possible) to clubphotos@planophotographyclub.com.
• The maximum dimension (long edge) for submitted images is 4096 pixels.
• The maximum file size for each image is 10 MB.
• Please include YOUR NAME and the TOPIC in the file name(s) (e.g., SethSteedman_Hagerman_1.jpg).

The submission deadline is WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2025.

We look forward to seeing your photos.

Parvin Stiles

The holiday season presents an opportunity to capture the magic and spirit of the season. From the soft glow of festive displays to quiet, frosted mornings, this time of year is filled with scenes rich in mood, color, and atmosphere. Whether it’s local holiday lights or the grand displays at the Dallas Arboretum, there’s no shortage of inspiring subjects.

We invite you and a guest to join us for the annual Club Holiday Party on Saturday, December 6th, at 6:00 PM at West Plano Presbyterian Church. The party is a great chance to mingle with fellow photographers, share photo stories, and enjoy a relaxed evening together. Please register so we can plan food accordingly, and feel free to bring a side dish or dessert to share.

Our photo outing this month is scheduled for Saturday, December 13th, at Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge. We’ll meet before sunrise to take advantage of early light and the incredible wildlife activity. With over 80 species of resident and migratory birds and thousands of wintering geese, “snowbird”, there will be plenty of opportunities for both landscape and wildlife photography. After the shoot, we’ll gather at Cracker Barrel in Sherman for brunch and conversation. See our website for final details.

Hope you can make our fun events! Wishing you and your loved ones a joyful holiday season filled with inspiration and great shots!

Shari Hunt

Bio: After moving back to Texas from the Pacific Northwest, Shari discovered her love for photographing the night skies while out in West Texas in 2014. This started a passion for nightscape photography and visiting the Big Bend area.

When she isn’t chasing dark skies, Shari leads a training program at UT Southwestern Medical Center, focusing on design, user experience, and how people learn. She enjoys blending her educator’s mindset with her creative side to help others dive into nightscape photography.

This will be Shari’s second presentation to the club; she previously spoke in July 2022 about photographing the Milky Way.

Program Description:  I have been to Big Bend more times than I can count, and yet, I still feel like I am not there enough.

During this presentation, rather than give an overview of how to shoot at night, I will share some of my experiences (stories that may or may not involve UFO’s) in Big Bend; including night photography tips and tricks, what to shoot when the weather doesn’t cooperate, how to find different compositions, my favorite compositions depending on the time of year, and much more.

Examples of Shari's Photography

The Plano Photography Club's January contest is an ELECTRONIC competition with the theme OPEN.

NOTE: You must be a Plano Photography Club member to submit contest images.

Electronic entries must be uploaded to the PPC Competition Site by 11:59 PM CT on Thursday, January 15, 2026. SUBMIT CONTEST IMAGE

The award recipients of the Plano Photography Club's October photo contest were announced during the club's monthly meeting on Thursday, November 20, 2025.

Detailed results are listed below; honored photographs are visible on the right.

Congratulations to the awardees, and thank you to all competitors.

• 1st: The Swimmer - Terence Jesper
• 2nd: Dinner for Two - Julie Yu
• 3rd: Red Among Green - Bernadette Dozier

• 1st: Ruby-throated female hummingbird extracting nectar - Rachel Allen (Honorable Mention Overall)
• 2nd: Lightning Dancing on the Mexican Plain - Gary Allen
• 3rd: Classic Chianti Wine Wagon - Gregory Bullen
• HM: Lounge Lizard - Lisa Wilkins
• HM: Clownfish on bleached anemone, Indonesia - Lily Mak

• 1st: Mother Goose and Gaggle - Daniel Dailey (2nd Place Overall)
• 2nd: Silence Remains - Jin Li (3rd Place Overall)
• 3rd: Art Underfoot - Scattered check marks - Mark Bernthal
• HM: Blue Corset - Earl Snoga
• HM: lights above, lights within - Parvin Stiles

• 1st: The Dance - Alan Daniel (Best of Show)
• 2nd: Sabbaday Falls - Danette Volkmer
• 3rd: Grace in Crimson - Eddie Yu
• HM: Reflection Pool at Fair Park - Janice Goetz
• HM: Nothin' Lasts Forever But The Earth And Sky - David Swinney

Full-Screen Slideshow | Gallery | Judge's Commentary

Standings: All Levels | Entry Level | Intermediate Level | Advanced Level | Master Level