2013 - 2014
Hailsham Photographic Society Annual Print Exhibition 2014
Chairman Ray Beckwith welcomed everyone to the Charles Hunt Centre in Hailsham on Saturday with a glass of wine and nibbles, then handed over to Clive Tanner FRPS for the official opening. Clive said the standard of work was exceptional and that the current print leaders, Liz and Roger Scott, together with other members of the committee, showed a gentle touch in hanging the prints so beautifully.
Members of the club were invited to offer their prints for the exhibition and all pictures were accepted and framed.
The Mayor of Hailsham , Cllr Jo Bentley, always a great supporter of the Society, thanked the club for both her, and her husbands invitations, and said how difficult it would be to pick her favourite print out of all the pictures on display.
It was a sociable evening, a prelude to the week ahead, with doors open to the public from 10.00 to 16.00, from Monday 16th until Saturday 21st June with free parking and refreshments available.
1st May 2014
Thursday was the last meeting of the season, and the club held its Annual General Meeting and awards presentation.
Chairman Ray Beckwith opened the proceedings with a warm welcome to all members and began with his report of the years activities which was then followed by a report from each member of the committee.
Next on the agenda was the re-election of officers and members of the committee for those who had not completed their three year term after nomination, and nominations and election of officers to fill vacancies.
After the tea break, there was the presentation of trophies by the clubs President Colin Tourle LRPS, to the winners in each category of the competitions, with photographs taken for the clubs website by Bob Sherrard LRPS.
The annual dinner is planned to take place next Thursday at the Boship (Lions) Farm Hotel for members and their guests and there are several social activities arranged during the summer to help people stay in touch until the new season begins in September.
24th April 2014
The competition season has now ended and this weeks guest speakers were two of the Society’s own members, David Mills ARPS and John Deller LRPS. They gave a new print and AV presentation titled “Snowdonia Via The Knockin Shop”. David’s photography was mainly darkroom in black and white, but with some digital, and the colour digital prints belonged to John, with many of both being displayed in the hall for members to enjoy during the tea break.
David and John have visited Snowdonia many times and the “Knockin Shop” transpired to be a post office and convenience store.
There were several AV’s shown interspersed with prints showing pictures of mountains catching the last rays of sunlight, clouds and mist, (ever present in Snowdonia) descending the hills, lichen on the forest floor, a beautiful oak leaf spattered with raindrops against a background of patterned rocks, and many rain soaked images.
There was a final short film of people on a classic walk from Pen-y-pass across Crib Goch, which is described as a "knife-edged" arête in the Snowdonia National Park which was truly amazing.
The evening was absolutely brilliant with plenty of humour and the club felt they were very lucky to have David and John show such ability, talent and great work.
17th April 2014
This week saw the final of the PDI Competition and the club was very lucky to book judge David Eastley ARPS at the last minute as unfortunately Trevor Gellard FRPS was suddenly unable to attend.
Results as follows:
Beginners - third and second place went to Brian Gell for “Male Hooded Merganser” and “St Michael’s Mount“, and the winner was Martin Rumary with “The Wedding Photographer”, a picture filled with beams of light, people dancing and drinking, and a silhouetted person in the foreground taking a photograph of the proceedings.
Intermediate - third and second place went to Janet Monk ARPS for “Court In Transit” and “Bob, The Window Cleaner”, and the winner was Gill Terry for “The Droplet”, a beautiful picture in shades of green of a small branch bearing a single drop of water at the tip.
Advanced - third place went to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for “Surviving (India)”, second was Colin Chrismas LRPS for “The Race Leader” and the winner was Roy Broad for “Wing-drying Anhinga” a super black and white shot of the bird with wings outstretched.
David said the quality of images was very high and he did an absolutely excellent job of judging.
10th April 2014
This weeks guest speaker was Richard Walton FRPS, with his latest talk called “Seeing” for those who want to “see” rather than just look. His first love is, and always will be, black and white photography. Richard showed a collection of colour prints and compared them with the same in monochrome as sometimes that suits the image better. Some prints also had wording with great juxtaposition to the subject giving so much more meaning to the image, resulting in humorous pictures, and taking time to capture people behaving naturally, he sets up his camera and waits for something to happen.
Richard likes to break the rules by photographing things as he sees them and takes his camera everywhere.
It was an absolutely superb evening with a very amusing delivery which made an extremely entertaining night. Richard is both highly rated as a judge and speaker.
3rd April 2014
This week was the culmination of several months work in the print final with judge Keith Evans FRPS from Tonbridge, who had not been to the club for a few years. Results as follows.
For beginners, in third place was “Into The Light” by Pam Maclay, second was “Amaryllis” by Martin Rumary and the winner was Graham Wilkinson with “Loch Awe From Portsonachen” a seascape of mist, clouds and trees.
For intermediates, in third place was “Fiendish Friend” by Gill Terry, second was “Sunset Square” by Keith Deverson and the winner was Wendy Chrismas with “Fruit Of The Vine” a still life of a bottle and a glass of wine and grapes.
For advanced, in third place was “Solitary Tree Tuscany” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, second was “Potter” by Roy Morris ARPS, and the winner was Phil Smith with “Lisanthus“, a stunning white flower with a green stem against a lilac border.
Keith said it was a real treat to see images of such good quality and took his time to make relevant comments.
27th March 2014
It was the PDI Photographer of the year competition this week for the Southern Cross Trophy, where each entrant shows a portfolio of six projected digital images that demonstrate the photographers versatility. Martin Faiers, who at has been to the club before, travelled from the Croydon area for judging.
There were sixteen panels altogether for Martin to evaluate each containing six images which made it a most difficult, but valid competition to judge because it is so different from any other.
After long deliberation, third place was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for her lovely images, “Poppy“ “A Drop Of Water“ Eastbourne Pier At Night“ “Old Sad Eyes“ “Polar Bear And Cub In The Artic“ and “Sunrise over Rannoch Moor“.
Second place went to Roy Morris ARPS for his beautiful PDI’s named “Jeweller Havana“ “No Money, Peru“ “Keralan Schoolgirl“ “Western Ghats“ “Indian Dancer“ and “Archway Havana”.
The winner was Janet Monk ARPS for a set of stunning pictures titled “Into The Light“, a lovely woodland walk through the trees, “Bob the Window Cleaner“, a clever picture taken from the other side of an opaque window, “Breaking Wave“, a motion picture of the surf, “Abutilon“, three pretty red flowers against a leafy background, “Court In Transit“, a close up of hands shuffling cards called the spring card trick, and “Impressions of Woodchester“, a photograph resembling a superimposed pictures of a church with reflections. All images completely different from each other showing remarkable skills.
Martin was pushed for time due to the great number of pictures he had to see, but did a very good job and was able to make well thought out comments on all the images.
20th March 2014
This Thursdays competition was for the Strong Trophy, where thirteen members each entered a set of six prints to be judged as a coherent panel. The judge was Richard Walton FRPS who has been to the club on many previous occasions, and said it was always refreshing to visit. He simply loves judging panels and always finds it great fun. He was looking for an obvious style with the photographers input to make conventional pictures more personal.
Jan Cunningham ARPS was awarded highly commended for “Graffiti”, with several colourful images on each print. Richard said it was a clever idea, and had a personal touch which made them a little bit different.
Also highly commended was “Nagaur Horse Fair” by Alison Morris ARPS, a set of monochrome prints on matt paper of portraits of people at the fair which stood out so well from the slightly blurred background. An attractive set of images very well presented.
In third place was “After The Rain” by Gill Terry, a lovely set of close up pictures of garden flowers, an ivy leaf and ladybird with wonderful colours and beautifully sharp water droplets.
Second place was awarded to Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, for her entry called “Standing Stones Of Cornwall”, stunning scenery with super cloudscapes, and beautifully printed. Richard said they worked very well as a panel, but also as individual images.
The winner was Roy Morris ARPS with his panel called “Cuban Workers”, a stunning collection of prints of people doing their every day tasks working at their jobs, including a barbershop, shoe shine, and a pottery maker. Richard said was as good a panel as he’s ever seen.
At the end of the evening Richard presented certificates to all the successful contenders, and was considered an exceptional judge who enjoyed himself by sometimes changing the layout of the panel to see if it would work better in a different arrangement.
13th March 2014
It was a pleasure for the Society to welcome Keith Gibson last Thursday, to present his lecture, which was about some of the photographs taken whilst out walking, accompanied by projected digital images. Keith has been to the club before to judge competitions, but it was his first time to give this talk. Apart from photography, Keith’s passions are walking and cycling. However, when walking with a group, Keith has to grab photographs practically on the move because serious walkers don‘t stop. He is always ready, therefore, with his camera attached to a monopod, over his shoulder so he can quickly take his shot and then catch up with the rest of the group.
Many of the PDI’s were of the wonderful countryside local to Keith, particularly during a walk from Kingston to Eastbourne. Starting in the South Downs National Park, he passed Lewes, Firle Beacon, Breaky Bottom vineyard near Rodmell, then on to Alfriston following the Cuckmere Valley Walk to the Haven, then climbing up the first of the seven sisters. Keith showed a portrait shot taken at high tide, with white cliffs, a clear green sea, and blue sky.
Keith has also walked nearly the full length of the Thames Path and showed many lovely pictures of the river, with a green barge reflected in the water and trees in autumn colours along the riverbank.
Another sequence was of a two day walking trip on the picturesque Isle of Wight from Shanklin to Yarmouth. Many images were taken along the Tennyson Trail, the colourful sands at Alum Bay, and the famous Needles.
Further afield the club saw photographs from a weeks walking holiday in Spain. Morella, an ancient walled city about an hour and a half drive inland from Valencia. Most of the buildings seen during the trip were abandoned due to the lack of water, the reservoir being nearly three quarters empty. The scenery was stunning with turquoise river, green mountains and lots of trees. Keith said he really enjoyed it there and is looking forward to his next visit.
Another super evening was enjoyed by the members and it was a real joy to see such wonderful scenic photographs of many local places which can be reached on foot.
6th March 2014
This week saw the last round of the print competition, and the society welcomed a new judge, Malcolm Ball who is a member of Steyning Camera Club, and has only been judging for a couple of years.
Three prints went through to the final from the beginners section. “Straw Bales” and “Flight Of The Bumblebee” both by Carole Parish, and “Fly Agaric” by Graham Wilkinson.
For the intermediates, three also went through. “Dashing From The Rain” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS, “Listening To The Band” and “Breaking Wave” by Janet Monk ARPS.
There were more entries from the Advanced members and the following prints went through. “Wave Line Seilebost” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, “Jeweller, Havana” by Roy Morris ARPS, “Tuscan Fields” by Janice Payne LRPS, “Morning Light - Folkington” and “The Observatory” both by Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, and “Dealer” by Roger Scott.
It was a very interesting evening with good observations on all the pictures and the club looks forward to the print competition final next month.
27th February 2014
The society welcomed back this weeks guest speaker, Ray Hale, a wildlife lecturer, author, photographer and naturalist. Ray belongs to a large number of organisations including the British Arachnological Society and the British Tarantula Society. He is passionate about reconnecting people with nature and the conservation of the Worlds endangered species all of which infuse his wildlife lectures.
The talk, which included projected digital images, was about a recent trip he took with Voyages to Antiquity as guest lecturer on their mid-sized cruise liner “The Aegean Odyssey” which specialises in cultural trips.
The cruise started in Singapore and Ray spoke about its history and of Raffles who founded the city. Ray wanted to show just how much wildlife there was locally with photographs of a tiny green frog sitting on a lily pad in a pond, a thorn spider in its web.
Next was Sarawak Malaysia and Sir James Brooke, a British adventurer who was made Governor of Sarawak in 1841, after crushing the uprising against the Sultan, and became the first White Rajah. He ruled over 30,000 headhunting Dyaks, some of whom became his most loyal followers.
Then onto Brunei and the steamy 40 degree rainforest, with pictures of a stilt village in water with its own school and shop, snakes in drains, many cats, a Bornean flying frog and a tree shrew.
It took two days to cross the South China Sea to Vietnam, a communist country, usually remembered for it war movies. There’s the Vietnam War Museum in Ho Chi Minh City showing the war crimes atrocities, but the reality is that today the people love Americans. There were many shots of a street market in black and white, a road thronged with cyclists and cars, a beautiful yellow butterfly on a red flower, and while tourists were taking pictures of a Temple, Ray was busy taking a moth which was resting on the side of the building.
The last place visited was Cambodia, Ray said it was his most favourite country. There was history of the Killing Fields and Pol Pot the leader of the Khmer Rouge. Also many photographs of Angkor Wat “The Lost Temples” built in the 9th century with extensive carvings, and cattle, which are sacred, and allowed to wander the streets. The final picture was of a small boy holding his sisters hand walking away from the camera, going home.
Ray certainly knows how to give a good lecture and presents it very well, with a wonderful mix of local history and wildlife photography.
20th February 2014
This Thursdays meeting was the annual “Members Lecturettes” which gives members an opportunity to take the stand and give a 15 minute lecture of their choice either with prints or Projected Digital Images.
First up was Alan Clark, who started taking pictures on a school trip when someone thrust a box camera in his hand at the age of 14. It was the start of a love of black and white photography. Alan made his own mount cutter and darkroom and showed many lovely prints including Greek fishermen pulling in nets, boats on the water at sunrise, and harvest pictures of hay bales in the field.
Janet Monk ARPS, a former art teacher, was next. Janet used to have slides, but embraced digital photography six years ago. She joined HPS, discovered panels and qualifications, and started to go in for competitions with her new DSLR. Janet went on a training day for her LRPS distinction, succeeded, and then showed how she obtained her ARPS by putting together a panel of 15 stunning prints of reflections.
Gerald Hartley, the PDI leader, gave an interesting talk about a trip to the Dolomites, an alpine wall running east to west with major valleys. There was a map to show the route and many images of beautiful mountains, cows with huge bells, and forests. On the Italian side were pictures inside churches, and old houses. There were also many pretty plants and flowers which grow on the mountainside.
Ant Sherwin, a semi retired architect, was next and his talk was about the Gun Room at Alfriston. Once a store for a huge gun in the Napoleonic war, it has now become the retail centre for the Rathfinny Wine Estate for sparkling wines produced on a 400-500 acre vineyard situated on the Downs. The building was completely renovated and lots of interesting pictures were shown of the rebuilding from start to finish and it is now open to the public.
The final speaker was Chris Coates APRS DPAGB who likes to take photographs of animals and candid shots of people. Chris’s talk was about a guided safari trip to Namibia . There were a lot of lovely images of people in their natural environment, a woman carrying a child on her back, children standing beside a tree, a small boy in shorts. There was also a village with adults making a roof for dwellings out of reeds, fishing nets and fish drying in the sun, and the village shop selling basic food.
It was an extremely interesting evening and the speakers were praised for not only their work, but also for being brave enough to give a presentation in front of members.
13th February 2014
Tonight’s guest speaker was Dave Brooker DPAGB ARPS from Tonbridge Camera Club in Kent. Dave has always been passionate about landscape photography and makes Audio Visual presentations with graphics and maps to music but without commentary.
The first AV shown tonight was of Ashdown Forest, one of Dave’s favourite places for photography, where he frequently walks with his dog. There were many scenic views including sunsets, snow scenes, benches, waterfalls and ponds, cattle and sheep, flowers moss and fungi, and the ice cream van which is there every day. There were also pictures of AA Milne's famous Pooh sticks bridge, and the site at Kings Standing WW11 broadcasting station, later a nuclear fallout station, now a grade 11 listed building with three floors of underground operational areas. There was also the Airman’s Grave, a memorial to all six of the crew who died when their Wellington bomber crashed there on its return from a raid on Cologne in 1941.
After the tea break, a trip to Bruges to the Xmas market with photographs through shop windows of lace goods toys and chocolates, People taking horse and carriage rides, canals with boat trips, the market square and the famously historic belfry.
The final AV was of Dubai, with ariel views of the city at night from the worlds tallest building, The Burj Khalifa. It opened in Jan 2010 and took four years to build. The viewing deck is 160 floors up, which gave stunning sights of the cities skyscrapers, with still 36 floors to the top.
A very interesting evening was brought to a close and Dave was thanked for bringing some prints for members to enjoy after the AV’s.
6th February 2014
The society held its last PDI competition of the season with nearly 80 images for judge Graham Smith ARPS to critique. He has been to the camera club before and always gives first class reviews.
In the Swallow Cup for beginners, the following are through to the final. “Stone Me” and “Thick Red Line” both by Pam Maclay, “Aspin Lights” by Brian Gell, “Wells” by Martin Rumary and “Crane With Mackerel” by Linda Busby, a lovely picture of a huge crane taken against a cloudy sky at sunset.
In the Sussex Shield for intermediates, these are through. “Impressions Of Woodchester” and “Court In Transit” both by Janet Monk ARPS, “Who Is Watching Who” and “Silverdale Sunset” both by Steve Nixon, “In The Flow” by Terry Maskell, and “Pouncing Puma” by Gill Terry, a lovely action shot of a beautiful Puma leaping in the air.
In the Albert Hillman Cup for advanced members, 7 were picked for the final. “Wild Robin” a stunning shot of the bird perched on the stem of a rose bush by Keith Deverson, “Caught Red Handed” and “Until Victory, Always” both by Roy Morris ARPS, “It’s A Steep Climb” by Alison Morris ARPS, “Thermal Pool, Yellowstone”, by Gay Biddlecombe LRPS, “The Last Hosta Leaf Of The Season” by Janice Payne LRPS, and “Common Soldier Beetle” by Roy Broad.
The evening was greatly enjoyed by all the members and Graham was thanked for his remarks and wished a better journey going home due to the awful weather when he arrived.
30th January 2014
This week there was a three way print battle between Hailsham, Seaford and Mid Sussex Photographic Societies. The event was hosted by Hailsham and a very warm welcome was extended to all the members from the visiting camera clubs. The judge was Clive Tanner FRPS, a member of Maidstone camera club, who has been to Hailsham before for lectures.
There were 60 prints in total for Clive to evaluate with 30 on display for judging in the first half of the evening. His critique was extremely valued with lots of good comments, but he also gave a humorous point of view which added greatly to everyone’s enjoyment of the evening. After the tea break, which gave everyone a chance to study the second set of prints, the competition continued. Then Clive scored all the entries and earmarked 7 prints which received top scores.
At the end of the evening the marks were added up and the results were given. Mid Sussex won the competition (deservedly so, as Clive commented) with Hailsham second and Seaford third. He also said that the images were the crème de la crème of all 3 clubs and were absolutely stunning.
23rd January 2014
It was the third round of the print competition this evening and the judge, who had been to the club many times before, was Steve Lawenson ARPS. Steve started with the beginners group and a dozen prints, and had to chose three to go through to the final. These were “Mandarin Duck” by Brian Gell, “Into The Light” by Pam Maclay and “Different Points Of View” by Carole Parish, an image of two statues sitting on a bench taken at Canary Wharf.
The intermediates were judged next also with three going through, and they were, “Sunset Square” by Keith Deverson, “Who’s Watching Who” by Steve Nixon and “Seaweed And Oil” by Rob Shepherd, an almost abstract photo of vegetation with many colours of oil on water.
And finally the advanced group was judged, and as there were many more images entered, seven were picked for the final. “Farm In Mist” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, “Wood Grain Pattern” by Tim Creed, “Sweet Josie” by Jan Cunningham ARPS, ”Barber Shop, Cuba” by Alison Morris ARPS, “Giant Redwood Detail” and “Glasshouse, Bicton” both by Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, and “Cat Nap” by “Phil Smith”, a lovely image of the head and shoulders of a man with a cat curled around his neck asleep. Steve said that there were many good images for him to judge and it made his job incredibly difficult but also very enjoyable.
16th January 2014
It was a very busy week at the club as there were two competitions for judge David Eastley ARPS to assess. David has been to the society many times before and was welcomed back as it always proves to be an enjoyable evening for the members. First to be judged was the special competition with both prints and PDI entries, and this years theme was “Motion”. In the print section, highly commended was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for “Poetry In Motion”, Wendy Chrismas LRPS for “Dashing From The Rain” and Marion Creed for “Dancing In The Water”. Third place went to Janet Monk ARPS for “In Flight Entertainment”. second place to Bob Sherrard LRPS for “The Conductor” and the winner was Gill Terry for “The Hairy Biker” a stunning shot of a motorcyclist riding along a motorway with the hedgerows behind him completely blurred.
In the PDI section, highly commended was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for “Fast Motion” and Ray Beckwith for “Motion Impossible”. Third place went to Wendy Chrismas LRPS for “Fireworks”, second place to Ray Beckwith for “The 6.08 To London” and the winner was Wendy Chrismas LRPS with “Bottoms Up”, a wonderful picture of a drink in a glass with ice and lemon and liquid splashing up over the rim.
The next competition was titled “The Village Competition” which is a new idea to the club, and the chosen village was Lindfield, where members visit on one day only and present a set of six PDI images which best showed the essence of the village. It was a difficult choice for David to make as there were so many good pictures of this pretty village which has lovely old houses, pubs, signs, nameplates, shops and also the church and pond. Third place was awarded to Roy Morris ARPS, second to Fiona Flower and the winner was Gill Terry with one of her images being the front window of an estate agents shop showing all the properties for sale. David was a very enthusiastic judge with constructive comments and amusing anecdotes, and members look forward to a return visit.
9th January 2014
Dr. Colin Tourle’s Presidents Evening was a great success with the help of members Janice Payne, LRPS and Roy Broad.
Janice showed her prints, with the theme of travel, starting with her first photographic holiday workshop in France, sporting a brand new DSLR camera she hoped to learn to use! Well, we can vouch for the fact she did, showing us some lovely prints from Tuscany, Provence and Scotland with varying subjects from misty morning landscapes to colourful, detailed rock formations, insects and much, much more.
Next, Roy Broad showed us his digital projected images, also on the theme of travel, many photographs having been taken during his 36 years as a pilot when travelling the world. There were images from San Francisco, New York, Hong Kong and South Africa to name just a few. His passion for wildlife was evident and as often as he could, when on duty away from home, rather than stay in a city for his overnight stop, would head out to the countryside. He finished with an image of a street sign taken in Seattle showing Roy Street in one direction and Broad Street in another!
In the second half, Dr. Colin Tourle gave a digital presentation showing images from Ethiopia and Haiti where Colin visits and helps at the eye clinics with cataract operations etc. There were emotional images of people having their sight restored and sadly others who were not able to be helped. Most of these people have travelled huge distances often by foot to attend these clinics.
Colin told us how his charity Iasis Medical had been able to send a portable anaesthetic machine to Syria. Finally he showed some scanned old photographs which he had obtained from friends and colleagues. Amongst others we saw Mussolini’s car and George Bernard Shaw in hospital. A very informative and amusing narration by his friend Roger told us about the Royal Navy and the rum allocation rounded off an extremely enjoyable evening.
12th December 2013
This week there was a slight deviation from the scheduled routine as, due to unforeseen circumstances, the speaker was unable to be present and the Society had to run an alternative programme. Some projecting images from the “RPS International Images for Screen Exhibition 2013” were shown and members were encouraged to comment on the images themselves lending a very informal feeling to the evening. The “In Camera” section, with little manipulation, showed “Material Girl” a model covered in fabric, “Walking On Water” two couples walking away from each other on a bridge low on the water and “Breakfast At 8”, a cereal bowl made to look like a clock with the spoon placed on the twelve and cereal placed on the eight.
For the second half of the evening members were entertained with a Joe Cornish DVD entitled “With Landscape in Mind - A photographic road trip” taking in the UK from Teesside in the East to the Yorkshire Dales in the West. Joe’s film showed him creating the shots, explaining the settings and displaying the finished pictures. At South Gare, also known as Paddy’s Hole, there were images of boats in the water against a hard core industrial backdrop across the River Tees. Other photographs were of Malham Cove, in the Yorkshire Dales, a deep gorge cut by a waterfall. It has a magnificent limestone pavement on the surface of the Cove which is deeply fissured and fretted by a pattern of channels. Joe waited for a rain shower to pass then took some photos of the pavement which was so wet it came alive when the sun came out again. Joe maintains “outdoors is where life happens” and his landscape photography is simply stunning.
Next week the Society will have its Christmas Party, then a break for Christmas and New Year until the meetings begin again on the 9th January 2014.
5th December 2013
It was competition time again this week at the Society, the second round of the Projected Digital Images competition, which was judged by three of the club members, Jan Cunningham ARPS, John Deller LRPS and Roger Scott. They each took a turn to comment on an image, then all three awarded marks out of 20. The images with the highest scores in each class went through to the final, not an easy job to do as there were about 80 varied entries altogether. In thebeginners class, “Always Look Up” by Pam Maclay, “Lichen” and “Out For A Sail” both by Brian Gell, “I Love You” by Graham Wilkinson, and “Flying High In St Ives” by Martin Rumery are all in the final. For the intermediates, “Entombed” by Gill Terry, “Bob, The Window Cleaner” by Janet Monk ARPS, and “Patrolling The Station” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS all went through. The advanced section had the most entries with eight images chosen for the final. “The Pitons” and “The Pitons (1)” both by Peggy McKenzie, “Through The Roof” by Ray Beckwith, “Wing-Drying Anhinga” by Roy Broad, “Goshawk Head Study” by Colin Chrismas LRPS, “Autumn In The Woods” by Janice Payne LRPS, “Snarling Serval” by Louise Pemberton, and “Brighton West Pier” by Terry McGhie ARPS were through.
It is always very interesting to hear remarks and viewpoints from other members of the club when they act as Judge, and Jan, John and Roger did an excellent job. This is an annual event with new judges every year which is looked forward to and enjoyed by the members.
28th November 2013
This week the society welcomed Micki Aston LRPS CPAGB, her first visit to the club, to give a slide lecture titled “Africa, Namibia, Botswana and South Africa“. Micki is a prominent figure in the world of photography, widely published in books and photographic journals, a judge, an exhibitor, who lectures extensively on her travel photography. The first series of images were taken in Cape Town South Africa and whilst showing members many varied images, Micki illustrated the value of shooting in the early morning or late afternoon for the best light. In Kruger National Park there were photographs of buffalo, the most feared animal by Africans due to their unpredictability, the rear view of a giraffe chewing food giving him an unusual shaped mouth, beautiful oxpecker birds feeding on insects as they perched on animals, and black backed jackals who predate everywhere. Also wild dogs hunting intelligently in packs and hooded vultures taking part in a feeding frenzy. The big cats of the Kruger included lion, cheetah and a leopard leaping up to climb the trunk of a tree. The guide with Micki advised her to prepare for the shot as he recognised the cats behaviour and knew what he was about to do. After the tea break the presentation continued with Namibia where you can hire a car and drive yourself. Lots of landscape images in lovely colours, pale wheat grasses, orange ground, brown and tan rocks, grey mountains, and blue sky. Etosha National Park in the north is a salt pan and very flat, but still very picturesque with many dead trees. The images of zebra were stunning as no two have the same pattern and portraits were found in the stripes as they stood together. Birds included a bee eater, cattle egrets and a pied kingfisher carrying a fish. Kolmanskop is a deserted old diamond town which is gradually being reclaimed by the desert with sand filling the old houses giving remarkable indoor photographs. It was an extremely interesting evening with many slides giving a real flavour of a wonderful trip and it was a great pleasure to receive such a talented photographer to the club.
21st November 2013
This week the society had great pleasure in welcoming back Colin Page to judge their Landscape Competition which was presented in two parts, the first being prints and after the tea break, Projected Images. Colin, who had been to the club on previous occasions to lecture and also judge, commented that there were some fantastic examples of work on show which would make his job very difficult as there were over 80 images to consider.
In the Print Competition, third place was awarded to David Mills, ARPS for 'Hooker River and Mount Cook', second place went to Roger Scott for 'Evening Light' and the winner was Pat Broad, ARPS AFIAP with her print 'Dead Pines - Yellowstone', a beautifully atmospheric photograph of trees in black and white.
In the Projected Digital Images Competition, third place was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for 'Volcanic Eruption, Iceland, second place went to Janice Payne LRPS for 'Tuscan Fields' and the winner was Janet Monk ARPS with 'Into The Light' a superb image of woodland trees in lovely soft greens and yellows.
Colin gave a pleasant touch to all his constructive remarks and was very pleased to present to members their winning certificates at the end of the evening.
14th November 2013.
This week at the club saw Round 2 of the Print Competition which was judged by Jack Taylor, a member of the Eastbourne Photographic Society, who has been to the club before to lecture but not to judge. There were over 70 prints entered in the competition by all three categories so Jack, who said the images were absolutely lovely and really good work, had a really busy evening.
The following prints in the beginners group went through to the final.
“Hidden Face” by Graham Wilkinson, “Hanging Around” by Brian Gell, and “House Proud” by Val King.
In the intermediate group “Fruit Of The Vine” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS, “Two Bee Or Not Two Bee” by Nicola Stone, “Reflections Of Africa” by Gill Terry and “Snowy, Sussex Horse Rescue” by Steve Nixon all went through.
For the advanced photographers, “Tidal Patterns” and “Sound Mirrors Denge Marsh” both by Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, ”Me And My Dogs” by Chris Coates ARPS DPAGB, ”Matchstick Men And Dogs” by Jan Cunningham ARPS “Velvet Monkey Suckling, Ceropithecus Pygerythrus” by Terry McGhie ARPS and “Dead Pines - Yellowstone” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP are all in the final later in the year.
Members enjoyed a good evening and appreciated Jack's considered views and critique of their prints.
7th November 2013.
On Thursday the society held the first of its open competitions, which are set subjects open to all members of the club irrespective of whether they are beginners intermediate or advanced. This week it was Natural History for both prints and projected digital images. The judge was Keith Gibson, a biologist who is passionate about natural history and also enjoys judging. Keith has been to the club several times before and said he was looking for a little more than just a portrait, the images should include habitat, behaviour and also be pictorially strong.
For the print results, “The Stand Off, Coyote and Bison-Yellowstone (Canis Latrans, Bison Bison)” by Gay Biddlecombe LRPS came third, “Elephant In The Dust (Lenodonta African)” by Mike Sales LRPS came second and first place was awarded to Ted Sturgeon LRPS for his print “Fishers Lovebirds, Tarangire” showing several of these pretty colourful birds in flight.
For the PDI results, “Namaqua Chameleon” by Chris Coates ARPS DPAGB came third, “Wasps Nest (Vespula Vulgaris)” by Janice Payne LRPS came second, and first place was awarded to Roy Broad for his image “Royal Terns” showing one tern about to land on a perch which another tern was just vacating.
There was an incredible array of photographs and images for Keith to judge and many were highly commended. He did an exceptional job and imparted a lot of inside information with his remarks. The club thanked him for his visit and looks forward to the next one.
31st October 2013
This weeks guest speaker was Paul Keene FRPS, a member of Royal Photographic Society for many years, an international exhibitor and PAGB listed Judge with many distinctions. It was Paul’s first visit to East Sussex and as he was also lecturing at Seaford Photographic Society, members from both clubs were invited to each others meetings to enjoy a double helping of creativity. Paul showed a collection of Audio Visuals, works with both sound and visual components, called 'From Here To Eternity' showing local images to start off with. The first AV, titled “Art Or Junk” was a series of virtually abstract images in blue, grey, gold, orange, amber and cream, with the words “Do you know what it is yet?” halfway through the sequence, then casually panning out to reveal a burnt out car. The message here was that you can take lots of different photographs from just one subject. Another AV, called “Belen” was of a beautiful Spanish lady with long blonde hair posing in a riding habit with a handsome white horse who had a impressive grey mane. An AV named “The Life Of Swans” showed scenes of all aspects of this lovely bird including taking off into the wind, raising young, bathing, a number flying in a skein and simply stunning close up shots of their plumage. The evening came to a close with AV’s moving further afield to places like Australia, called “Wish You Were Here” with wildlife and beaches in Queensland, music by Pink Floyd, and then onto Tibet, with fascinating pictures of colourful characters and smiling children at school who seemed to be eager to learn their lessons. A huge thanks was given to Paul, an extremely talented photographer, for an very entertaining evening.
24th October 2013
At this weeks meeting Round 1 of the Projected Digital Images Competition was judged by Bob Webzell ARPS who has been to the club many times before not only as a Judge but to lecture as well. Members were able to enter up to three images in this round and a number were selected by Bob for the final.
For the Swallow Cup (Beginners), “Turbo Ride” and “The Wedding Photographer” both by Martin Rumary, “Scene From The Subway-New York Graffiti” by Pam Maclay, “Male Hooded Merganser” by Brian Gell, and “Braving The Elements” by Carole Parish all went through.
For the Sussex Shield (Intermediate), “After The Rain” by Janet Monk ARPS, and “The Droplet” by Gill Terry both went through.
For the Arthur Hillman Cup (Advanced), “Hot And Cold, Yellowstone”, “Solitude” and “Surviving (India)”, all by Gay Biddlecombe LRPS, “Fairfield Church” by Roy Morris,ARPS, “Tulip” by John Deller LRPS, “We Should Get Back” by John Kirby, “Flying Impala (Aepyceros Melampus)” by Terence McGhie ARPS and “Bordercountry” by Jan Cunningham were all successful in going through to the final later in the season.
Members appreciated Bob’s valuable comments on all the images and look forward to his next visit to the club.
17 October 2013.
This Thursday members were invited to bring their cameras with them for a very different evening called “Owls Out And About” with Pam Brewer. Pam had brought with her 10 owls of different species who were all friendly, incubator hatched and hand reared. Already sitting on their perches at the start of the meeting, members had the opportunity to get up close and take photographs. Flash photography was not a problem as the birds were quite used to all the attention. Pam gave a very interesting talk about hunting, feeding and behaviour, introduced the owls by name, and together with other owners Helen and John, answered questions presented to them. After the tea break, anyone who was interested was able to hold an owl on a special gauntlet and also stroke the beautiful soft feathers. There were two British Barn Owls, Long Eared Owl, Little Owl, Southern White Faced Owl, South African Mottled Owl, Bengal Eagle Owl, African Spotted Eagle Owl and A Canadian Great Grey whose behaviour, at two years of age, was likened to that of a stroppy teenager and she sat behind her post for most of the evening until her owner picked her up. An excellent evening was enjoyed by all and special thanks given to Pamela, Helen and John for showing their beautiful owls. Please click here for some pictures of the evening.
10th October 2013.
This weeks meeting saw round 1 of the print competition which was judged by Paul Dunmall CPAGB, chairman of the Sussex Photographic Federation and Bexhill Photographic Club. It was his first time as a judge at the club. Members who wanted to enter the competition were encouraged to present up to two prints each, and Paul chose the images which would go through to the finals later on in the year.
In the beginners group, for the Pavilion Cup, “Lock Awe From Portsonachen, Argyll” by Graham Wilkinson, “Sea At Night” also by Graham Wilkinson and “The Lost Boot - Wellingtonia Yellow” by Pam Maclay all went through.
In the intermediate group, for the Keith Donald Shield, “Fiendish Friend” by Gill Terry, “Water And Light“, also by Gill Terry, “Money Makes The World Go Round” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS and “Abutilon, Wadhurst Castle” by Janet Monk ARPS all went onto the final round.
In the advanced group, for the Founders Cup, seven prints were picked.
“We’re Nearly There” by Jan Cunningham ARPS, “The Wind Blows Cold” by John Deller, “In Fields Of Barley” by Colin Chrismas LRPS, Light Refreshment” also by Colin Chrismas LRPS, “Potter” by Roy Morris ARPS, “Solitary Tree, Tuscany” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, and “Waiting For The Train” by Chris Coates ARPS DPAGB.
Paul commented on the very good range of work he had seen, and said as a judge, you are never quite sure what you are going to get. He gave sound, constructive observations in a very light-hearted vein.
3rd October 2013.
Members were looking forward to an evening with Bill Wisden MBE Hon. FRPS and Trevor Gellard FRPS who both belong to Brighton and Hove Camera Club . Unfortunately, Bill was unable to visit due to feeling unwell so it was Trevor who presented both sets of photographs. Many of Bills images, some dating from the 1960’s, were darkroom prints in black and
white. An image of pylons in France was called “Boss cat and his gang“ as their shapes looked like cats, and a photograph of acorns was titled “Two London coppers” as they resembled policemen’s helmets. There
was also an image of a large model T-Rex alongside a number of couples staring out to sea. Trevor pointed out the space between each couple and added that this space whilst showing how people did not like to be too close to one another was an important element of the picture. There was an image of West Pier Brighton going up in flames as Bill was passing on a
bus when he saw it and alighted to take pictures. A lot of Trevor’s images were taken locally and included street photography and people. A miserable man sitting on the pier, children diving into the sea from a
wall, the flea market in Hastings, ladies in red hats in the rain, and a tennis
match in Eastbourne. Wonderful photography and a very entertaining and humorous evening was enjoyed by all members who send best wishes to Bill for a speedy recovery.
26th September 2013
Thursday evening, Ray Bridges, LRPS GPAGB from Maidstone Camera Club gave a projected digital image lecture titled “Thinking in Digital Terms”. Ray has been taking photographs for nearly 50 years and has entered many competitions and exhibitions and gained numerous awards, winning several gold medals. Members saw many images of landscapes, his favourite subject, taken in the early morning in winter in the Lake District, as you have good light, colour and great texture. There was a great variety of photographs from Scotland, Northumberland and the Cotswolds, under the headings of Transport, Aircraft, and People. There was also a selection of digital creations from his own imagination, and a very good evening concluded with an Audio Visual presentation in Infra red called “A lonely chair“.
19th September 2013
The society welcomed a new speaker this week, Mervyn Taylor DPAGB EFIAP from Tonbridge who gave a print lecture titled “Glimpses - Monochrome and Colour“. The images were all dark room prints. He began with Cuba and said it was so colourful he takes photographs in black and white. Members were shown many photographs of families in Trinidad either at home or in the streets, who were poverty stricken but mostly seemed quite happy. In the back streets of Havana, three men were seen lounging on a wall, and against the Buena Vista wall three boys were practising baseball with a cane as bat and a bottle top for a ball. There were also photographs of “Big Mama” with her family group. Many infra red images were shown which make very atmospheric pictures. Tracks, sky and buildings in Dungeness, tide, rocks and skies in the Holy Island of Lindisfarne in Northumberland. Then there were a few colour photos of the Dingle Peninsular Ireland, ridges in the sand, green fields in the mist and razor shells on the beach, A thoroughly entertaining and humorous evening was enjoyed by all the members and it is hoped that Mervyn Taylor will be returning to the club in the future, with more of his wonderful images.
12th September 2013
This weeks guest speaker was Patricia Jones FRPS who gave a print lecture entitled “Light! What Light!!” She is very popular with the Society and her talks always ensures a first rate evening. We were taken on a trip around the UK with her images showing a range of beautiful landscapes and stunning seascapes. We visited Wales with it’s reflective lakes after rainfall. Ireland, with an evening sunburst on the beach, the light reflected in the sea. Yorkshire, with many snow scenes taken in February with leafless trees, fences, cottages and sheep, both in colour and black and white. Lake District, dawn shot of lakes and trees in pastels. Evening shot of distant mountains in different hues of blue. Northumberland, empty beaches with horse riders galloping in the waves, enveloped in a sea mist. Scotland, many images including mountains, beaches and the sea, in rain, mist and sunshine, against dark clouds and rainbows. Simply beautiful scenery in Great Britain.
5th September 2013
A new photographic season has begun with a warm welcome back from chairman Ray Beckwith to all members including several new recruits. A social evening with wine and nibbles preceded a very interesting talk given by Ken Scott ARPS, a frequent visitor to the club. A selection of projected images was shown to illustrate how not to let restraints control your photography, be free thinking and open minded about it. Record exactly what stopped you in your tracks, shapes, textures, and colours. You don’t need expensive equipment or to be able to travel afar to find good subjects, wander around observing your surroundings to catch little moments. An inspirational evening was rounded off with an Audio Visual presentation titled “The sonnet walks in London”.
Hailsham Photographic Society Annual Print Exhibition 2014
Chairman Ray Beckwith welcomed everyone to the Charles Hunt Centre in Hailsham on Saturday with a glass of wine and nibbles, then handed over to Clive Tanner FRPS for the official opening. Clive said the standard of work was exceptional and that the current print leaders, Liz and Roger Scott, together with other members of the committee, showed a gentle touch in hanging the prints so beautifully.
Members of the club were invited to offer their prints for the exhibition and all pictures were accepted and framed.
The Mayor of Hailsham , Cllr Jo Bentley, always a great supporter of the Society, thanked the club for both her, and her husbands invitations, and said how difficult it would be to pick her favourite print out of all the pictures on display.
It was a sociable evening, a prelude to the week ahead, with doors open to the public from 10.00 to 16.00, from Monday 16th until Saturday 21st June with free parking and refreshments available.
1st May 2014
Thursday was the last meeting of the season, and the club held its Annual General Meeting and awards presentation.
Chairman Ray Beckwith opened the proceedings with a warm welcome to all members and began with his report of the years activities which was then followed by a report from each member of the committee.
Next on the agenda was the re-election of officers and members of the committee for those who had not completed their three year term after nomination, and nominations and election of officers to fill vacancies.
After the tea break, there was the presentation of trophies by the clubs President Colin Tourle LRPS, to the winners in each category of the competitions, with photographs taken for the clubs website by Bob Sherrard LRPS.
The annual dinner is planned to take place next Thursday at the Boship (Lions) Farm Hotel for members and their guests and there are several social activities arranged during the summer to help people stay in touch until the new season begins in September.
24th April 2014
The competition season has now ended and this weeks guest speakers were two of the Society’s own members, David Mills ARPS and John Deller LRPS. They gave a new print and AV presentation titled “Snowdonia Via The Knockin Shop”. David’s photography was mainly darkroom in black and white, but with some digital, and the colour digital prints belonged to John, with many of both being displayed in the hall for members to enjoy during the tea break.
David and John have visited Snowdonia many times and the “Knockin Shop” transpired to be a post office and convenience store.
There were several AV’s shown interspersed with prints showing pictures of mountains catching the last rays of sunlight, clouds and mist, (ever present in Snowdonia) descending the hills, lichen on the forest floor, a beautiful oak leaf spattered with raindrops against a background of patterned rocks, and many rain soaked images.
There was a final short film of people on a classic walk from Pen-y-pass across Crib Goch, which is described as a "knife-edged" arête in the Snowdonia National Park which was truly amazing.
The evening was absolutely brilliant with plenty of humour and the club felt they were very lucky to have David and John show such ability, talent and great work.
17th April 2014
This week saw the final of the PDI Competition and the club was very lucky to book judge David Eastley ARPS at the last minute as unfortunately Trevor Gellard FRPS was suddenly unable to attend.
Results as follows:
Beginners - third and second place went to Brian Gell for “Male Hooded Merganser” and “St Michael’s Mount“, and the winner was Martin Rumary with “The Wedding Photographer”, a picture filled with beams of light, people dancing and drinking, and a silhouetted person in the foreground taking a photograph of the proceedings.
Intermediate - third and second place went to Janet Monk ARPS for “Court In Transit” and “Bob, The Window Cleaner”, and the winner was Gill Terry for “The Droplet”, a beautiful picture in shades of green of a small branch bearing a single drop of water at the tip.
Advanced - third place went to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for “Surviving (India)”, second was Colin Chrismas LRPS for “The Race Leader” and the winner was Roy Broad for “Wing-drying Anhinga” a super black and white shot of the bird with wings outstretched.
David said the quality of images was very high and he did an absolutely excellent job of judging.
10th April 2014
This weeks guest speaker was Richard Walton FRPS, with his latest talk called “Seeing” for those who want to “see” rather than just look. His first love is, and always will be, black and white photography. Richard showed a collection of colour prints and compared them with the same in monochrome as sometimes that suits the image better. Some prints also had wording with great juxtaposition to the subject giving so much more meaning to the image, resulting in humorous pictures, and taking time to capture people behaving naturally, he sets up his camera and waits for something to happen.
Richard likes to break the rules by photographing things as he sees them and takes his camera everywhere.
It was an absolutely superb evening with a very amusing delivery which made an extremely entertaining night. Richard is both highly rated as a judge and speaker.
3rd April 2014
This week was the culmination of several months work in the print final with judge Keith Evans FRPS from Tonbridge, who had not been to the club for a few years. Results as follows.
For beginners, in third place was “Into The Light” by Pam Maclay, second was “Amaryllis” by Martin Rumary and the winner was Graham Wilkinson with “Loch Awe From Portsonachen” a seascape of mist, clouds and trees.
For intermediates, in third place was “Fiendish Friend” by Gill Terry, second was “Sunset Square” by Keith Deverson and the winner was Wendy Chrismas with “Fruit Of The Vine” a still life of a bottle and a glass of wine and grapes.
For advanced, in third place was “Solitary Tree Tuscany” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, second was “Potter” by Roy Morris ARPS, and the winner was Phil Smith with “Lisanthus“, a stunning white flower with a green stem against a lilac border.
Keith said it was a real treat to see images of such good quality and took his time to make relevant comments.
27th March 2014
It was the PDI Photographer of the year competition this week for the Southern Cross Trophy, where each entrant shows a portfolio of six projected digital images that demonstrate the photographers versatility. Martin Faiers, who at has been to the club before, travelled from the Croydon area for judging.
There were sixteen panels altogether for Martin to evaluate each containing six images which made it a most difficult, but valid competition to judge because it is so different from any other.
After long deliberation, third place was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for her lovely images, “Poppy“ “A Drop Of Water“ Eastbourne Pier At Night“ “Old Sad Eyes“ “Polar Bear And Cub In The Artic“ and “Sunrise over Rannoch Moor“.
Second place went to Roy Morris ARPS for his beautiful PDI’s named “Jeweller Havana“ “No Money, Peru“ “Keralan Schoolgirl“ “Western Ghats“ “Indian Dancer“ and “Archway Havana”.
The winner was Janet Monk ARPS for a set of stunning pictures titled “Into The Light“, a lovely woodland walk through the trees, “Bob the Window Cleaner“, a clever picture taken from the other side of an opaque window, “Breaking Wave“, a motion picture of the surf, “Abutilon“, three pretty red flowers against a leafy background, “Court In Transit“, a close up of hands shuffling cards called the spring card trick, and “Impressions of Woodchester“, a photograph resembling a superimposed pictures of a church with reflections. All images completely different from each other showing remarkable skills.
Martin was pushed for time due to the great number of pictures he had to see, but did a very good job and was able to make well thought out comments on all the images.
20th March 2014
This Thursdays competition was for the Strong Trophy, where thirteen members each entered a set of six prints to be judged as a coherent panel. The judge was Richard Walton FRPS who has been to the club on many previous occasions, and said it was always refreshing to visit. He simply loves judging panels and always finds it great fun. He was looking for an obvious style with the photographers input to make conventional pictures more personal.
Jan Cunningham ARPS was awarded highly commended for “Graffiti”, with several colourful images on each print. Richard said it was a clever idea, and had a personal touch which made them a little bit different.
Also highly commended was “Nagaur Horse Fair” by Alison Morris ARPS, a set of monochrome prints on matt paper of portraits of people at the fair which stood out so well from the slightly blurred background. An attractive set of images very well presented.
In third place was “After The Rain” by Gill Terry, a lovely set of close up pictures of garden flowers, an ivy leaf and ladybird with wonderful colours and beautifully sharp water droplets.
Second place was awarded to Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, for her entry called “Standing Stones Of Cornwall”, stunning scenery with super cloudscapes, and beautifully printed. Richard said they worked very well as a panel, but also as individual images.
The winner was Roy Morris ARPS with his panel called “Cuban Workers”, a stunning collection of prints of people doing their every day tasks working at their jobs, including a barbershop, shoe shine, and a pottery maker. Richard said was as good a panel as he’s ever seen.
At the end of the evening Richard presented certificates to all the successful contenders, and was considered an exceptional judge who enjoyed himself by sometimes changing the layout of the panel to see if it would work better in a different arrangement.
13th March 2014
It was a pleasure for the Society to welcome Keith Gibson last Thursday, to present his lecture, which was about some of the photographs taken whilst out walking, accompanied by projected digital images. Keith has been to the club before to judge competitions, but it was his first time to give this talk. Apart from photography, Keith’s passions are walking and cycling. However, when walking with a group, Keith has to grab photographs practically on the move because serious walkers don‘t stop. He is always ready, therefore, with his camera attached to a monopod, over his shoulder so he can quickly take his shot and then catch up with the rest of the group.
Many of the PDI’s were of the wonderful countryside local to Keith, particularly during a walk from Kingston to Eastbourne. Starting in the South Downs National Park, he passed Lewes, Firle Beacon, Breaky Bottom vineyard near Rodmell, then on to Alfriston following the Cuckmere Valley Walk to the Haven, then climbing up the first of the seven sisters. Keith showed a portrait shot taken at high tide, with white cliffs, a clear green sea, and blue sky.
Keith has also walked nearly the full length of the Thames Path and showed many lovely pictures of the river, with a green barge reflected in the water and trees in autumn colours along the riverbank.
Another sequence was of a two day walking trip on the picturesque Isle of Wight from Shanklin to Yarmouth. Many images were taken along the Tennyson Trail, the colourful sands at Alum Bay, and the famous Needles.
Further afield the club saw photographs from a weeks walking holiday in Spain. Morella, an ancient walled city about an hour and a half drive inland from Valencia. Most of the buildings seen during the trip were abandoned due to the lack of water, the reservoir being nearly three quarters empty. The scenery was stunning with turquoise river, green mountains and lots of trees. Keith said he really enjoyed it there and is looking forward to his next visit.
Another super evening was enjoyed by the members and it was a real joy to see such wonderful scenic photographs of many local places which can be reached on foot.
6th March 2014
This week saw the last round of the print competition, and the society welcomed a new judge, Malcolm Ball who is a member of Steyning Camera Club, and has only been judging for a couple of years.
Three prints went through to the final from the beginners section. “Straw Bales” and “Flight Of The Bumblebee” both by Carole Parish, and “Fly Agaric” by Graham Wilkinson.
For the intermediates, three also went through. “Dashing From The Rain” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS, “Listening To The Band” and “Breaking Wave” by Janet Monk ARPS.
There were more entries from the Advanced members and the following prints went through. “Wave Line Seilebost” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, “Jeweller, Havana” by Roy Morris ARPS, “Tuscan Fields” by Janice Payne LRPS, “Morning Light - Folkington” and “The Observatory” both by Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, and “Dealer” by Roger Scott.
It was a very interesting evening with good observations on all the pictures and the club looks forward to the print competition final next month.
27th February 2014
The society welcomed back this weeks guest speaker, Ray Hale, a wildlife lecturer, author, photographer and naturalist. Ray belongs to a large number of organisations including the British Arachnological Society and the British Tarantula Society. He is passionate about reconnecting people with nature and the conservation of the Worlds endangered species all of which infuse his wildlife lectures.
The talk, which included projected digital images, was about a recent trip he took with Voyages to Antiquity as guest lecturer on their mid-sized cruise liner “The Aegean Odyssey” which specialises in cultural trips.
The cruise started in Singapore and Ray spoke about its history and of Raffles who founded the city. Ray wanted to show just how much wildlife there was locally with photographs of a tiny green frog sitting on a lily pad in a pond, a thorn spider in its web.
Next was Sarawak Malaysia and Sir James Brooke, a British adventurer who was made Governor of Sarawak in 1841, after crushing the uprising against the Sultan, and became the first White Rajah. He ruled over 30,000 headhunting Dyaks, some of whom became his most loyal followers.
Then onto Brunei and the steamy 40 degree rainforest, with pictures of a stilt village in water with its own school and shop, snakes in drains, many cats, a Bornean flying frog and a tree shrew.
It took two days to cross the South China Sea to Vietnam, a communist country, usually remembered for it war movies. There’s the Vietnam War Museum in Ho Chi Minh City showing the war crimes atrocities, but the reality is that today the people love Americans. There were many shots of a street market in black and white, a road thronged with cyclists and cars, a beautiful yellow butterfly on a red flower, and while tourists were taking pictures of a Temple, Ray was busy taking a moth which was resting on the side of the building.
The last place visited was Cambodia, Ray said it was his most favourite country. There was history of the Killing Fields and Pol Pot the leader of the Khmer Rouge. Also many photographs of Angkor Wat “The Lost Temples” built in the 9th century with extensive carvings, and cattle, which are sacred, and allowed to wander the streets. The final picture was of a small boy holding his sisters hand walking away from the camera, going home.
Ray certainly knows how to give a good lecture and presents it very well, with a wonderful mix of local history and wildlife photography.
20th February 2014
This Thursdays meeting was the annual “Members Lecturettes” which gives members an opportunity to take the stand and give a 15 minute lecture of their choice either with prints or Projected Digital Images.
First up was Alan Clark, who started taking pictures on a school trip when someone thrust a box camera in his hand at the age of 14. It was the start of a love of black and white photography. Alan made his own mount cutter and darkroom and showed many lovely prints including Greek fishermen pulling in nets, boats on the water at sunrise, and harvest pictures of hay bales in the field.
Janet Monk ARPS, a former art teacher, was next. Janet used to have slides, but embraced digital photography six years ago. She joined HPS, discovered panels and qualifications, and started to go in for competitions with her new DSLR. Janet went on a training day for her LRPS distinction, succeeded, and then showed how she obtained her ARPS by putting together a panel of 15 stunning prints of reflections.
Gerald Hartley, the PDI leader, gave an interesting talk about a trip to the Dolomites, an alpine wall running east to west with major valleys. There was a map to show the route and many images of beautiful mountains, cows with huge bells, and forests. On the Italian side were pictures inside churches, and old houses. There were also many pretty plants and flowers which grow on the mountainside.
Ant Sherwin, a semi retired architect, was next and his talk was about the Gun Room at Alfriston. Once a store for a huge gun in the Napoleonic war, it has now become the retail centre for the Rathfinny Wine Estate for sparkling wines produced on a 400-500 acre vineyard situated on the Downs. The building was completely renovated and lots of interesting pictures were shown of the rebuilding from start to finish and it is now open to the public.
The final speaker was Chris Coates APRS DPAGB who likes to take photographs of animals and candid shots of people. Chris’s talk was about a guided safari trip to Namibia . There were a lot of lovely images of people in their natural environment, a woman carrying a child on her back, children standing beside a tree, a small boy in shorts. There was also a village with adults making a roof for dwellings out of reeds, fishing nets and fish drying in the sun, and the village shop selling basic food.
It was an extremely interesting evening and the speakers were praised for not only their work, but also for being brave enough to give a presentation in front of members.
13th February 2014
Tonight’s guest speaker was Dave Brooker DPAGB ARPS from Tonbridge Camera Club in Kent. Dave has always been passionate about landscape photography and makes Audio Visual presentations with graphics and maps to music but without commentary.
The first AV shown tonight was of Ashdown Forest, one of Dave’s favourite places for photography, where he frequently walks with his dog. There were many scenic views including sunsets, snow scenes, benches, waterfalls and ponds, cattle and sheep, flowers moss and fungi, and the ice cream van which is there every day. There were also pictures of AA Milne's famous Pooh sticks bridge, and the site at Kings Standing WW11 broadcasting station, later a nuclear fallout station, now a grade 11 listed building with three floors of underground operational areas. There was also the Airman’s Grave, a memorial to all six of the crew who died when their Wellington bomber crashed there on its return from a raid on Cologne in 1941.
After the tea break, a trip to Bruges to the Xmas market with photographs through shop windows of lace goods toys and chocolates, People taking horse and carriage rides, canals with boat trips, the market square and the famously historic belfry.
The final AV was of Dubai, with ariel views of the city at night from the worlds tallest building, The Burj Khalifa. It opened in Jan 2010 and took four years to build. The viewing deck is 160 floors up, which gave stunning sights of the cities skyscrapers, with still 36 floors to the top.
A very interesting evening was brought to a close and Dave was thanked for bringing some prints for members to enjoy after the AV’s.
6th February 2014
The society held its last PDI competition of the season with nearly 80 images for judge Graham Smith ARPS to critique. He has been to the camera club before and always gives first class reviews.
In the Swallow Cup for beginners, the following are through to the final. “Stone Me” and “Thick Red Line” both by Pam Maclay, “Aspin Lights” by Brian Gell, “Wells” by Martin Rumary and “Crane With Mackerel” by Linda Busby, a lovely picture of a huge crane taken against a cloudy sky at sunset.
In the Sussex Shield for intermediates, these are through. “Impressions Of Woodchester” and “Court In Transit” both by Janet Monk ARPS, “Who Is Watching Who” and “Silverdale Sunset” both by Steve Nixon, “In The Flow” by Terry Maskell, and “Pouncing Puma” by Gill Terry, a lovely action shot of a beautiful Puma leaping in the air.
In the Albert Hillman Cup for advanced members, 7 were picked for the final. “Wild Robin” a stunning shot of the bird perched on the stem of a rose bush by Keith Deverson, “Caught Red Handed” and “Until Victory, Always” both by Roy Morris ARPS, “It’s A Steep Climb” by Alison Morris ARPS, “Thermal Pool, Yellowstone”, by Gay Biddlecombe LRPS, “The Last Hosta Leaf Of The Season” by Janice Payne LRPS, and “Common Soldier Beetle” by Roy Broad.
The evening was greatly enjoyed by all the members and Graham was thanked for his remarks and wished a better journey going home due to the awful weather when he arrived.
30th January 2014
This week there was a three way print battle between Hailsham, Seaford and Mid Sussex Photographic Societies. The event was hosted by Hailsham and a very warm welcome was extended to all the members from the visiting camera clubs. The judge was Clive Tanner FRPS, a member of Maidstone camera club, who has been to Hailsham before for lectures.
There were 60 prints in total for Clive to evaluate with 30 on display for judging in the first half of the evening. His critique was extremely valued with lots of good comments, but he also gave a humorous point of view which added greatly to everyone’s enjoyment of the evening. After the tea break, which gave everyone a chance to study the second set of prints, the competition continued. Then Clive scored all the entries and earmarked 7 prints which received top scores.
At the end of the evening the marks were added up and the results were given. Mid Sussex won the competition (deservedly so, as Clive commented) with Hailsham second and Seaford third. He also said that the images were the crème de la crème of all 3 clubs and were absolutely stunning.
23rd January 2014
It was the third round of the print competition this evening and the judge, who had been to the club many times before, was Steve Lawenson ARPS. Steve started with the beginners group and a dozen prints, and had to chose three to go through to the final. These were “Mandarin Duck” by Brian Gell, “Into The Light” by Pam Maclay and “Different Points Of View” by Carole Parish, an image of two statues sitting on a bench taken at Canary Wharf.
The intermediates were judged next also with three going through, and they were, “Sunset Square” by Keith Deverson, “Who’s Watching Who” by Steve Nixon and “Seaweed And Oil” by Rob Shepherd, an almost abstract photo of vegetation with many colours of oil on water.
And finally the advanced group was judged, and as there were many more images entered, seven were picked for the final. “Farm In Mist” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, “Wood Grain Pattern” by Tim Creed, “Sweet Josie” by Jan Cunningham ARPS, ”Barber Shop, Cuba” by Alison Morris ARPS, “Giant Redwood Detail” and “Glasshouse, Bicton” both by Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, and “Cat Nap” by “Phil Smith”, a lovely image of the head and shoulders of a man with a cat curled around his neck asleep. Steve said that there were many good images for him to judge and it made his job incredibly difficult but also very enjoyable.
16th January 2014
It was a very busy week at the club as there were two competitions for judge David Eastley ARPS to assess. David has been to the society many times before and was welcomed back as it always proves to be an enjoyable evening for the members. First to be judged was the special competition with both prints and PDI entries, and this years theme was “Motion”. In the print section, highly commended was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for “Poetry In Motion”, Wendy Chrismas LRPS for “Dashing From The Rain” and Marion Creed for “Dancing In The Water”. Third place went to Janet Monk ARPS for “In Flight Entertainment”. second place to Bob Sherrard LRPS for “The Conductor” and the winner was Gill Terry for “The Hairy Biker” a stunning shot of a motorcyclist riding along a motorway with the hedgerows behind him completely blurred.
In the PDI section, highly commended was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for “Fast Motion” and Ray Beckwith for “Motion Impossible”. Third place went to Wendy Chrismas LRPS for “Fireworks”, second place to Ray Beckwith for “The 6.08 To London” and the winner was Wendy Chrismas LRPS with “Bottoms Up”, a wonderful picture of a drink in a glass with ice and lemon and liquid splashing up over the rim.
The next competition was titled “The Village Competition” which is a new idea to the club, and the chosen village was Lindfield, where members visit on one day only and present a set of six PDI images which best showed the essence of the village. It was a difficult choice for David to make as there were so many good pictures of this pretty village which has lovely old houses, pubs, signs, nameplates, shops and also the church and pond. Third place was awarded to Roy Morris ARPS, second to Fiona Flower and the winner was Gill Terry with one of her images being the front window of an estate agents shop showing all the properties for sale. David was a very enthusiastic judge with constructive comments and amusing anecdotes, and members look forward to a return visit.
9th January 2014
Dr. Colin Tourle’s Presidents Evening was a great success with the help of members Janice Payne, LRPS and Roy Broad.
Janice showed her prints, with the theme of travel, starting with her first photographic holiday workshop in France, sporting a brand new DSLR camera she hoped to learn to use! Well, we can vouch for the fact she did, showing us some lovely prints from Tuscany, Provence and Scotland with varying subjects from misty morning landscapes to colourful, detailed rock formations, insects and much, much more.
Next, Roy Broad showed us his digital projected images, also on the theme of travel, many photographs having been taken during his 36 years as a pilot when travelling the world. There were images from San Francisco, New York, Hong Kong and South Africa to name just a few. His passion for wildlife was evident and as often as he could, when on duty away from home, rather than stay in a city for his overnight stop, would head out to the countryside. He finished with an image of a street sign taken in Seattle showing Roy Street in one direction and Broad Street in another!
In the second half, Dr. Colin Tourle gave a digital presentation showing images from Ethiopia and Haiti where Colin visits and helps at the eye clinics with cataract operations etc. There were emotional images of people having their sight restored and sadly others who were not able to be helped. Most of these people have travelled huge distances often by foot to attend these clinics.
Colin told us how his charity Iasis Medical had been able to send a portable anaesthetic machine to Syria. Finally he showed some scanned old photographs which he had obtained from friends and colleagues. Amongst others we saw Mussolini’s car and George Bernard Shaw in hospital. A very informative and amusing narration by his friend Roger told us about the Royal Navy and the rum allocation rounded off an extremely enjoyable evening.
12th December 2013
This week there was a slight deviation from the scheduled routine as, due to unforeseen circumstances, the speaker was unable to be present and the Society had to run an alternative programme. Some projecting images from the “RPS International Images for Screen Exhibition 2013” were shown and members were encouraged to comment on the images themselves lending a very informal feeling to the evening. The “In Camera” section, with little manipulation, showed “Material Girl” a model covered in fabric, “Walking On Water” two couples walking away from each other on a bridge low on the water and “Breakfast At 8”, a cereal bowl made to look like a clock with the spoon placed on the twelve and cereal placed on the eight.
For the second half of the evening members were entertained with a Joe Cornish DVD entitled “With Landscape in Mind - A photographic road trip” taking in the UK from Teesside in the East to the Yorkshire Dales in the West. Joe’s film showed him creating the shots, explaining the settings and displaying the finished pictures. At South Gare, also known as Paddy’s Hole, there were images of boats in the water against a hard core industrial backdrop across the River Tees. Other photographs were of Malham Cove, in the Yorkshire Dales, a deep gorge cut by a waterfall. It has a magnificent limestone pavement on the surface of the Cove which is deeply fissured and fretted by a pattern of channels. Joe waited for a rain shower to pass then took some photos of the pavement which was so wet it came alive when the sun came out again. Joe maintains “outdoors is where life happens” and his landscape photography is simply stunning.
Next week the Society will have its Christmas Party, then a break for Christmas and New Year until the meetings begin again on the 9th January 2014.
5th December 2013
It was competition time again this week at the Society, the second round of the Projected Digital Images competition, which was judged by three of the club members, Jan Cunningham ARPS, John Deller LRPS and Roger Scott. They each took a turn to comment on an image, then all three awarded marks out of 20. The images with the highest scores in each class went through to the final, not an easy job to do as there were about 80 varied entries altogether. In thebeginners class, “Always Look Up” by Pam Maclay, “Lichen” and “Out For A Sail” both by Brian Gell, “I Love You” by Graham Wilkinson, and “Flying High In St Ives” by Martin Rumery are all in the final. For the intermediates, “Entombed” by Gill Terry, “Bob, The Window Cleaner” by Janet Monk ARPS, and “Patrolling The Station” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS all went through. The advanced section had the most entries with eight images chosen for the final. “The Pitons” and “The Pitons (1)” both by Peggy McKenzie, “Through The Roof” by Ray Beckwith, “Wing-Drying Anhinga” by Roy Broad, “Goshawk Head Study” by Colin Chrismas LRPS, “Autumn In The Woods” by Janice Payne LRPS, “Snarling Serval” by Louise Pemberton, and “Brighton West Pier” by Terry McGhie ARPS were through.
It is always very interesting to hear remarks and viewpoints from other members of the club when they act as Judge, and Jan, John and Roger did an excellent job. This is an annual event with new judges every year which is looked forward to and enjoyed by the members.
28th November 2013
This week the society welcomed Micki Aston LRPS CPAGB, her first visit to the club, to give a slide lecture titled “Africa, Namibia, Botswana and South Africa“. Micki is a prominent figure in the world of photography, widely published in books and photographic journals, a judge, an exhibitor, who lectures extensively on her travel photography. The first series of images were taken in Cape Town South Africa and whilst showing members many varied images, Micki illustrated the value of shooting in the early morning or late afternoon for the best light. In Kruger National Park there were photographs of buffalo, the most feared animal by Africans due to their unpredictability, the rear view of a giraffe chewing food giving him an unusual shaped mouth, beautiful oxpecker birds feeding on insects as they perched on animals, and black backed jackals who predate everywhere. Also wild dogs hunting intelligently in packs and hooded vultures taking part in a feeding frenzy. The big cats of the Kruger included lion, cheetah and a leopard leaping up to climb the trunk of a tree. The guide with Micki advised her to prepare for the shot as he recognised the cats behaviour and knew what he was about to do. After the tea break the presentation continued with Namibia where you can hire a car and drive yourself. Lots of landscape images in lovely colours, pale wheat grasses, orange ground, brown and tan rocks, grey mountains, and blue sky. Etosha National Park in the north is a salt pan and very flat, but still very picturesque with many dead trees. The images of zebra were stunning as no two have the same pattern and portraits were found in the stripes as they stood together. Birds included a bee eater, cattle egrets and a pied kingfisher carrying a fish. Kolmanskop is a deserted old diamond town which is gradually being reclaimed by the desert with sand filling the old houses giving remarkable indoor photographs. It was an extremely interesting evening with many slides giving a real flavour of a wonderful trip and it was a great pleasure to receive such a talented photographer to the club.
21st November 2013
This week the society had great pleasure in welcoming back Colin Page to judge their Landscape Competition which was presented in two parts, the first being prints and after the tea break, Projected Images. Colin, who had been to the club on previous occasions to lecture and also judge, commented that there were some fantastic examples of work on show which would make his job very difficult as there were over 80 images to consider.
In the Print Competition, third place was awarded to David Mills, ARPS for 'Hooker River and Mount Cook', second place went to Roger Scott for 'Evening Light' and the winner was Pat Broad, ARPS AFIAP with her print 'Dead Pines - Yellowstone', a beautifully atmospheric photograph of trees in black and white.
In the Projected Digital Images Competition, third place was awarded to Gay Biddlecombe LRPS for 'Volcanic Eruption, Iceland, second place went to Janice Payne LRPS for 'Tuscan Fields' and the winner was Janet Monk ARPS with 'Into The Light' a superb image of woodland trees in lovely soft greens and yellows.
Colin gave a pleasant touch to all his constructive remarks and was very pleased to present to members their winning certificates at the end of the evening.
14th November 2013.
This week at the club saw Round 2 of the Print Competition which was judged by Jack Taylor, a member of the Eastbourne Photographic Society, who has been to the club before to lecture but not to judge. There were over 70 prints entered in the competition by all three categories so Jack, who said the images were absolutely lovely and really good work, had a really busy evening.
The following prints in the beginners group went through to the final.
“Hidden Face” by Graham Wilkinson, “Hanging Around” by Brian Gell, and “House Proud” by Val King.
In the intermediate group “Fruit Of The Vine” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS, “Two Bee Or Not Two Bee” by Nicola Stone, “Reflections Of Africa” by Gill Terry and “Snowy, Sussex Horse Rescue” by Steve Nixon all went through.
For the advanced photographers, “Tidal Patterns” and “Sound Mirrors Denge Marsh” both by Liz Scott ARPS AFIAP, ”Me And My Dogs” by Chris Coates ARPS DPAGB, ”Matchstick Men And Dogs” by Jan Cunningham ARPS “Velvet Monkey Suckling, Ceropithecus Pygerythrus” by Terry McGhie ARPS and “Dead Pines - Yellowstone” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP are all in the final later in the year.
Members enjoyed a good evening and appreciated Jack's considered views and critique of their prints.
7th November 2013.
On Thursday the society held the first of its open competitions, which are set subjects open to all members of the club irrespective of whether they are beginners intermediate or advanced. This week it was Natural History for both prints and projected digital images. The judge was Keith Gibson, a biologist who is passionate about natural history and also enjoys judging. Keith has been to the club several times before and said he was looking for a little more than just a portrait, the images should include habitat, behaviour and also be pictorially strong.
For the print results, “The Stand Off, Coyote and Bison-Yellowstone (Canis Latrans, Bison Bison)” by Gay Biddlecombe LRPS came third, “Elephant In The Dust (Lenodonta African)” by Mike Sales LRPS came second and first place was awarded to Ted Sturgeon LRPS for his print “Fishers Lovebirds, Tarangire” showing several of these pretty colourful birds in flight.
For the PDI results, “Namaqua Chameleon” by Chris Coates ARPS DPAGB came third, “Wasps Nest (Vespula Vulgaris)” by Janice Payne LRPS came second, and first place was awarded to Roy Broad for his image “Royal Terns” showing one tern about to land on a perch which another tern was just vacating.
There was an incredible array of photographs and images for Keith to judge and many were highly commended. He did an exceptional job and imparted a lot of inside information with his remarks. The club thanked him for his visit and looks forward to the next one.
31st October 2013
This weeks guest speaker was Paul Keene FRPS, a member of Royal Photographic Society for many years, an international exhibitor and PAGB listed Judge with many distinctions. It was Paul’s first visit to East Sussex and as he was also lecturing at Seaford Photographic Society, members from both clubs were invited to each others meetings to enjoy a double helping of creativity. Paul showed a collection of Audio Visuals, works with both sound and visual components, called 'From Here To Eternity' showing local images to start off with. The first AV, titled “Art Or Junk” was a series of virtually abstract images in blue, grey, gold, orange, amber and cream, with the words “Do you know what it is yet?” halfway through the sequence, then casually panning out to reveal a burnt out car. The message here was that you can take lots of different photographs from just one subject. Another AV, called “Belen” was of a beautiful Spanish lady with long blonde hair posing in a riding habit with a handsome white horse who had a impressive grey mane. An AV named “The Life Of Swans” showed scenes of all aspects of this lovely bird including taking off into the wind, raising young, bathing, a number flying in a skein and simply stunning close up shots of their plumage. The evening came to a close with AV’s moving further afield to places like Australia, called “Wish You Were Here” with wildlife and beaches in Queensland, music by Pink Floyd, and then onto Tibet, with fascinating pictures of colourful characters and smiling children at school who seemed to be eager to learn their lessons. A huge thanks was given to Paul, an extremely talented photographer, for an very entertaining evening.
24th October 2013
At this weeks meeting Round 1 of the Projected Digital Images Competition was judged by Bob Webzell ARPS who has been to the club many times before not only as a Judge but to lecture as well. Members were able to enter up to three images in this round and a number were selected by Bob for the final.
For the Swallow Cup (Beginners), “Turbo Ride” and “The Wedding Photographer” both by Martin Rumary, “Scene From The Subway-New York Graffiti” by Pam Maclay, “Male Hooded Merganser” by Brian Gell, and “Braving The Elements” by Carole Parish all went through.
For the Sussex Shield (Intermediate), “After The Rain” by Janet Monk ARPS, and “The Droplet” by Gill Terry both went through.
For the Arthur Hillman Cup (Advanced), “Hot And Cold, Yellowstone”, “Solitude” and “Surviving (India)”, all by Gay Biddlecombe LRPS, “Fairfield Church” by Roy Morris,ARPS, “Tulip” by John Deller LRPS, “We Should Get Back” by John Kirby, “Flying Impala (Aepyceros Melampus)” by Terence McGhie ARPS and “Bordercountry” by Jan Cunningham were all successful in going through to the final later in the season.
Members appreciated Bob’s valuable comments on all the images and look forward to his next visit to the club.
17 October 2013.
This Thursday members were invited to bring their cameras with them for a very different evening called “Owls Out And About” with Pam Brewer. Pam had brought with her 10 owls of different species who were all friendly, incubator hatched and hand reared. Already sitting on their perches at the start of the meeting, members had the opportunity to get up close and take photographs. Flash photography was not a problem as the birds were quite used to all the attention. Pam gave a very interesting talk about hunting, feeding and behaviour, introduced the owls by name, and together with other owners Helen and John, answered questions presented to them. After the tea break, anyone who was interested was able to hold an owl on a special gauntlet and also stroke the beautiful soft feathers. There were two British Barn Owls, Long Eared Owl, Little Owl, Southern White Faced Owl, South African Mottled Owl, Bengal Eagle Owl, African Spotted Eagle Owl and A Canadian Great Grey whose behaviour, at two years of age, was likened to that of a stroppy teenager and she sat behind her post for most of the evening until her owner picked her up. An excellent evening was enjoyed by all and special thanks given to Pamela, Helen and John for showing their beautiful owls. Please click here for some pictures of the evening.
10th October 2013.
This weeks meeting saw round 1 of the print competition which was judged by Paul Dunmall CPAGB, chairman of the Sussex Photographic Federation and Bexhill Photographic Club. It was his first time as a judge at the club. Members who wanted to enter the competition were encouraged to present up to two prints each, and Paul chose the images which would go through to the finals later on in the year.
In the beginners group, for the Pavilion Cup, “Lock Awe From Portsonachen, Argyll” by Graham Wilkinson, “Sea At Night” also by Graham Wilkinson and “The Lost Boot - Wellingtonia Yellow” by Pam Maclay all went through.
In the intermediate group, for the Keith Donald Shield, “Fiendish Friend” by Gill Terry, “Water And Light“, also by Gill Terry, “Money Makes The World Go Round” by Wendy Chrismas LRPS and “Abutilon, Wadhurst Castle” by Janet Monk ARPS all went onto the final round.
In the advanced group, for the Founders Cup, seven prints were picked.
“We’re Nearly There” by Jan Cunningham ARPS, “The Wind Blows Cold” by John Deller, “In Fields Of Barley” by Colin Chrismas LRPS, Light Refreshment” also by Colin Chrismas LRPS, “Potter” by Roy Morris ARPS, “Solitary Tree, Tuscany” by Pat Broad ARPS AFIAP, and “Waiting For The Train” by Chris Coates ARPS DPAGB.
Paul commented on the very good range of work he had seen, and said as a judge, you are never quite sure what you are going to get. He gave sound, constructive observations in a very light-hearted vein.
3rd October 2013.
Members were looking forward to an evening with Bill Wisden MBE Hon. FRPS and Trevor Gellard FRPS who both belong to Brighton and Hove Camera Club . Unfortunately, Bill was unable to visit due to feeling unwell so it was Trevor who presented both sets of photographs. Many of Bills images, some dating from the 1960’s, were darkroom prints in black and
white. An image of pylons in France was called “Boss cat and his gang“ as their shapes looked like cats, and a photograph of acorns was titled “Two London coppers” as they resembled policemen’s helmets. There
was also an image of a large model T-Rex alongside a number of couples staring out to sea. Trevor pointed out the space between each couple and added that this space whilst showing how people did not like to be too close to one another was an important element of the picture. There was an image of West Pier Brighton going up in flames as Bill was passing on a
bus when he saw it and alighted to take pictures. A lot of Trevor’s images were taken locally and included street photography and people. A miserable man sitting on the pier, children diving into the sea from a
wall, the flea market in Hastings, ladies in red hats in the rain, and a tennis
match in Eastbourne. Wonderful photography and a very entertaining and humorous evening was enjoyed by all members who send best wishes to Bill for a speedy recovery.
26th September 2013
Thursday evening, Ray Bridges, LRPS GPAGB from Maidstone Camera Club gave a projected digital image lecture titled “Thinking in Digital Terms”. Ray has been taking photographs for nearly 50 years and has entered many competitions and exhibitions and gained numerous awards, winning several gold medals. Members saw many images of landscapes, his favourite subject, taken in the early morning in winter in the Lake District, as you have good light, colour and great texture. There was a great variety of photographs from Scotland, Northumberland and the Cotswolds, under the headings of Transport, Aircraft, and People. There was also a selection of digital creations from his own imagination, and a very good evening concluded with an Audio Visual presentation in Infra red called “A lonely chair“.
19th September 2013
The society welcomed a new speaker this week, Mervyn Taylor DPAGB EFIAP from Tonbridge who gave a print lecture titled “Glimpses - Monochrome and Colour“. The images were all dark room prints. He began with Cuba and said it was so colourful he takes photographs in black and white. Members were shown many photographs of families in Trinidad either at home or in the streets, who were poverty stricken but mostly seemed quite happy. In the back streets of Havana, three men were seen lounging on a wall, and against the Buena Vista wall three boys were practising baseball with a cane as bat and a bottle top for a ball. There were also photographs of “Big Mama” with her family group. Many infra red images were shown which make very atmospheric pictures. Tracks, sky and buildings in Dungeness, tide, rocks and skies in the Holy Island of Lindisfarne in Northumberland. Then there were a few colour photos of the Dingle Peninsular Ireland, ridges in the sand, green fields in the mist and razor shells on the beach, A thoroughly entertaining and humorous evening was enjoyed by all the members and it is hoped that Mervyn Taylor will be returning to the club in the future, with more of his wonderful images.
12th September 2013
This weeks guest speaker was Patricia Jones FRPS who gave a print lecture entitled “Light! What Light!!” She is very popular with the Society and her talks always ensures a first rate evening. We were taken on a trip around the UK with her images showing a range of beautiful landscapes and stunning seascapes. We visited Wales with it’s reflective lakes after rainfall. Ireland, with an evening sunburst on the beach, the light reflected in the sea. Yorkshire, with many snow scenes taken in February with leafless trees, fences, cottages and sheep, both in colour and black and white. Lake District, dawn shot of lakes and trees in pastels. Evening shot of distant mountains in different hues of blue. Northumberland, empty beaches with horse riders galloping in the waves, enveloped in a sea mist. Scotland, many images including mountains, beaches and the sea, in rain, mist and sunshine, against dark clouds and rainbows. Simply beautiful scenery in Great Britain.
5th September 2013
A new photographic season has begun with a warm welcome back from chairman Ray Beckwith to all members including several new recruits. A social evening with wine and nibbles preceded a very interesting talk given by Ken Scott ARPS, a frequent visitor to the club. A selection of projected images was shown to illustrate how not to let restraints control your photography, be free thinking and open minded about it. Record exactly what stopped you in your tracks, shapes, textures, and colours. You don’t need expensive equipment or to be able to travel afar to find good subjects, wander around observing your surroundings to catch little moments. An inspirational evening was rounded off with an Audio Visual presentation titled “The sonnet walks in London”.