Eyeworld

EW IN OTHER NEWS 90 December 2016 opportunities to showcase and share their talents," Dr. Espiritu said. One way to share is the pho- to competition at the APACRS meetings, he said. "But instead of just mirroring this, we thought of bringing it several notches higher by forming a group that would have fun not only in competing among each other for prizes, but also in joining organized photo tours and teaching each other the finer points of photography through special sessions during meetings." The idea for a club came about while Dr. Espiritu was visiting David Karcher, ASCRS executive director, and his wife, Anne, at their home in Arizona. While taking pictures of the wildlife in the area, Dr. Espiritu and Mr. Karcher began to talk about photography and the other oph- thalmologists who are interested in photography and make it a point to go off on wildlife expeditions every so often. "David was immediately taken by the idea of having wildlife photography as an added dimension and interest of ASCRS members," Dr. Espiritu said. While the club will be mainly focused on wildlife photography at first, Dr. Espiritu said there is the possibility of expanding to oth- er genres, depending on member feedback. Dr. Espiritu said the project is an additional way to enjoy the annual meetings with friends and colleagues who have the same pas- sion through an added dimension that is non-ophthalmic. "It would be best to start small with a core group, then go from there," he said. "Of course, we hope that interest and participation will grow over the years." EW Editors' note: Drs. Espiritu and Yeoh have no financial interests related to their comments. Contact information Espiritu: espiritueyemd@me.com Yeoh: ry@ers.clinic love of photography with bird watching. "It has to be said, though, that bird watching and bird photography are competing hobbies," he said. "You can be so obsessed with getting the perfect picture and fiddle with your camera settings to the point where you miss the shot and miss seeing the bird properly." To remedy this, Dr. Yeoh usually takes a few quick shots and then views a bird with his binoculars. Taking a photo- graph in the bird park doesn't count, he added. "There's nothing quite like sighting wildlife in its natural habitat." Forming the Wildlife Ophthalmic Photographers Ophthalmologists appreciate optics and are obsessed with image quality, Dr. Yeoh said. "We are rightly fo- cused on these issues as part of our professional careers," he said. "But surely ophthalmology is more than that; it is also about the final prod- uct, about seeing, documenting, and appreciating the world around us." Dr. Yeoh said he wanted to broaden the horizons of attend- ees at the annual meeting of the Asia-Pacific Association of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (APACRS) and showcase the photographic talents of the delegates. "I did this by organizing a 'non-ophthalmic' photography competition at the 26th APACRS meeting in Singapore in 2013," he said. "With a very encouraging response from the dele- gates and sponsors at this inaugural competition, we organized a second competition this year at the APACRS meeting in Bali." In Bali, there were more than 200 photographs submit- ted for competition in five catego- ries: People, Places, Nature, the Eye, and Monochrome. The winning pictures were then displayed, and there were many positive comments about the event, he said. "I know that there are a number of avid photographers in the oph- thalmic community pursuing their passion individually with only a few New continued from page 89 If you are interested in getting involved with the Wildlife Ophthalmic Photographers (WOP), email Ellen Stodola at ellen@eyeworld.org. Following the 2016 APACRS meeting in Bali, Dr. Yeoh spent time in Ubud, where he caught a glimpse of this Javan Kingfisher. Source: Ronald Yeoh, MD Palawan peacock pheasant that is only found on an island in the Philippines Source: Cesar Espiritu, MD "He introduced us to a world we had never explored, much less appreciat- ed, before." Discovering the beauty of these creatures instantly hooked Dr. Espiritu's interest. Dr. Yeoh said he has three favor- ite subjects to photograph: people, places, and wildlife/nature. In many ways, people are what photography should be about, he said. It helps to capture the moods of the human persona of friends, family, and even strangers, he added. When photographing places, Dr. Yeoh said it's often a challenge to capture a unique photograph rather than a standard tourist shot. This might include waking up before daybreak, staying out later to get a picture, or "walking that extra mile." He added that as an ophthalmolo- gist, he has a unique opportunity to travel around the world and visit many places. "My first love has always been bird photography, but I love all creatures big and small, so have also been shooting insects, spiders, snakes, fish, and mammals," Dr. Yeoh said. "It's a beautiful world we live in with endless varieties of flora and fauna." Dr. Yeoh said he first started as a bird watcher, watching them through binoculars on nature treks. Before long, he had combined his

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