Captivating images of sunsets, landscapes and more fill the lobby of the Schauerman Library as the South Bay “Photo Savvy” group exhibits a collection of its photographic masterpieces through Oct. 31.

The exhibit, entitled “Eye Music 5,” consists of a collection of photos taken by 18 South Bay artists who want to express their passion for the beauty they see around them, capturing it one photograph at a time.

“Exhibiting our work is a way to represent the love we have of photography to the world,” Constantine Lackides, curator and photographer, said.

“Photo Savvy” is a group of individuals who are not professional photographers, but share a common interest in photography.

“This is just a hobby for me,” Arlene Yakush said.

“I became interested in photography when I retired early from the corporate world and decided I needed a hobby to bring out my creative side,” she said.

The exhibition is a cross section of different types of photos such as landscapes, flowers, portraits, images, surreal images and animals. Each artist has his own inspiration.

“I am most inspired by people, I want to capture and document the face, especially the eyes, because they tell such a major part of a story,” Anand Khoka, one of the photographers, said.

Different perspectives

Kathy Grogan, another photographer from the group, said that she would eventually like to get paid to travel the world, taking pictures of beautiful images. For now, photography is more of a hobby and learning experience, but some day she hopes to be discovered.

“I love photographing all things. I’m always looking around and thinking ‘How would that look as a photo?’ or ‘How would I pose that person to make them look their best?’ I see the world differently than I did before I was a photographer,” Grogan said.

New resouces innovate

Photography isn’t just a point and click process anymore. There is a lot of new technology available to help put a creative flair into pictures.

“I use Photoshop CS enhancements to apply my creative side to my photography, such as I did in my “Getty Reflection” photo. I used a filter to get the fresco effect. I am still learning Photoshop and enjoy playing with all the filters available to get different effects,” Yakush said.

These artists have a strong belief that images have a big impact on society, more than words themselves.

“Visuals help us see through prints what we cannot see in person. Like the war (in Iraq). With visuals, we can see and almost feel what they are going through,” Myrna Nakamura, photographer, said. “I sometimes wonder if they see what I saw when I took the shot. To see people look at my photos is very rewarding.”

“A picture is worth a thousand words; it’s true. From one picture, we can quickly learn something about the other cultures, places, people and events without leaving the comfort of our home, school or office. Through them, our story can be passed from generation to generation,” Julie McDougall, a group member, said.

Art completes life

Photography is a part-time hobby for most of these individuals.

As they juggle their careers and families, they always find time to stop and take a picture to capture something that they find beautiful.

They are each enthralled with this art form for their own reasons.

“For me, the photographs I take fill a compelling need for creativity in my life. I don’t play music, paint, or write poetry, but I will deem myself a very successful photographer if my photos move others and myself,” Khoka said.

“A lot of things inspire me. The ability of a scene to tell a story or convey emotions, seeing someone’s inner beauty through their eyes, all the beauty around us is inspiring,” Grogan said.

“The way light plays on certain things inspires me, it almost brings tears to my eyes,” Lackides said.

Doing something that you are truly passionate about reaps many rewards. For these photographers, there is seldom anything as satisfying as creating something so artistic and so rewarding at the same time.

Recognizing works

“When photographing high school football, it brings me joy to see the players gathered around getting their prints and thanking me for catching them in action. Also, it’s great to see the moms with pictures I took of their sons proudly plastered on the front of their T-shirts,” Grogan said.

Teri Miller, a “Photo Savvy” group member, said that one of the most gratifying experiences of photography is “seeing the look on poeple’s faces when they see our photos.”

For some of the group members, photography is a form of escape.

“You see things differently when you look through a camera lens. I get so caught up in capturing what I’m seeing, that I forget about life’s pressures and stress,” McDougall said.

Many students frequently stop to take a look at the library wall adorned with the artistic photography of the “Photo Savvy” group, as it is accessible to everyone who walks by.

Hirokazn Kameda, 21, film major, and Fukiko Aoyama, 27, photography major, stopped to take a look as they walked through the library.

Kameda is particularly interested in a piece titled “Yellow Street Car” by Frank Garoszko.

“I like how the contrast of bright colors makes the picture stand out,” Kameda said.

Aoyama is captured by the piece “Image of Angels and Lighting” by Teri Ellis.

“It’s so beautiful and clean,” Aoyama said.

Mailien Bui, 18, business major, makes a one-word synopsis on the piece “Combabtants.”

“Incredible,” Bui said.

The “Photo Savvy” group has worked hard for the past year and a half to get to EC.

Meanwhile, they have been showcased at such places like the South End Racquet and Health Club in Torrance.

This is their last presentation in the South Bay that is in a nongallery setting.

Preparing future works

“We hope to go on to other venues such as other colleges or maybe even museums, the next level of the art world,” Lackides said.

The group meets on the third Tuesday of every month at a restaurant where they discuss ideas about photography and do a little “show and tell” with photos that they have taken.

“Capturing emotions on faces, light reflecting off of a flower, that’s what turns me on,” Lackides said.

“It was time to get the ego out of the way and let the world see our work,” he said.