This article was first published in The Town Courier.

Majestic photographic renderings of herons, egrets and bald eagles have temporarily nested at the Culture Center of TECRO (Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office) in Gaithersburg. Created by eight members of the Taiwanese American Photo Club (TAPC) over several years, the collection of 33 photographs will be on view through Feb. 24.

TAPC’s founder, Stephen Hung, led a tour of the exhibit, noting that bird photography has been one of the most fascinating subjects for the club members. Over the past several years, member photographers have captured excellent images of great blue herons, great egrets, bald eagles, snow geese and hummingbirds.

Due to limited display space, the three different birds presented in this exhibit were selected because they represent more photographic challenges, especially in dynamic moving conditions. The images evoke aloneness and serenity with nature, the visual impact of flight and the beauty of seasons. Those capturing interaction between creatures have a strong, realistic impact.

Tzong-Lih Hong’s photographs, printed on canvas, lend a painterly quality to the images with varying texture and dimension. He credits Costco for the vivid reproductions.

Sung-Peng Hsu commented on the varied talents of the members and leader Stephen Hung who organizes all the club’s outings. He also described the areas where he took his two exhibit photos and explained the intricacies of language and dialects spoken in Taiwan, as well as the characters used to write the photographers’ names on each descriptive placard.

Hung said that Great Falls has been a favorite spot for the club due to its abundance of bird varieties. He noted the sensitive timing photographers exercise when capturing avians. It is essential to be intimately familiar with the nuances of complex photo equipment as the camera settings are quite different from those used for shooting landscapes or flowers. A split second can be the difference between a good and great capture.

TAPC is a group of Taiwanese Americans living in the Washington, D.C./Baltimore area who have a keen interest in enjoying and photographing the nature around us. They meet periodically to discuss photographic skills and photo editing techniques and for photographic outings. The club frequently makes extended trips to national parks, most recently to Glacier, Death Valley, Bryce Canyon, Yellowstone and Grand Teton.

TAPC’s exhibit is on view through Feb. 24 at TECRO, an extension of the Overseas Community Affairs Council, Republic of China (Taiwan), tucked behind AstraZeneca at 901 Wind River Lane, Gaithersburg. For information on the exhibit or TAPC, contact Stephen Hung at shung2008@gmail.com.