Three local nature photographers Lorraine Sepulveda, Anita Jo Lago, and Donna Crinnian will be speaking at September’s Third Friday event, September 15 from 6:00 – 8:00 PM at the Reboli Center for Art and History in Stony Brook. All three photographers have work on exhibit in the rear galleries of the Reboli Center. At the event, they will share their photographs of wildlife taken in the local area and offer tips and strategies on how to become a better nature photographer. The Three Village area offers fabulous photographic opportunities to produce photographs of amazing quality.

The theme for the current exhibits at the Reboli Center is Connection. The connections in the rear galleries are of special interest and importance. On display in these galleries are photographs, drawings, and sculpture, all depicting wildlife in the area. A majority of the photographs on exhibit were taken less than 100 feet from the Reboli Center and show how amazing the local environment is!

The abundance of wildlife has much to do with the work of a group of Brookhaven individuals who brought a class action lawsuit against Suffolk County in the 1960’s to stop the use of DDT in local marshes and who helped shape legislation to prohibit the use of DDT in Suffolk County. The Setauket house where some of the meetings of this group, known at that time as the Brookhaven Town Natural Resources Committee (BTNRC), took place, is now the residence of Lois Reboli. Members of the BTNRC then founded the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) which now is one of the leading environmental lobbying groups in the United States.

A final connection is with one of the Reboli Center’s most enthusiastic supporters, Assemblyman Steve Englebright. One of the key founders of the EDF was Dennis Puleston. Steve states that it was Mr. Puleston who was his inspiration for his environmental passion. Assemblyman Englebright’s environmental legislative work has resulted in his receiving many awards including the Dennis Puleston Award from the Open Space Society.