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These reports appear in the Northumberland Gazette.
Paul Larkin, Editor of the Northumberland Gazette was welcomed back to Alnwick and District Camera Club once more to present the trophies at its annual awards evening. The awards were as follows:
Finally, Paul announced the result of the new Northumberland Gazette Trophy competition which was voted for on-line by Gazette readers. The winner and recipient of the trophy was Tracy Rolley with a fine picture entitled Terrier Racing at Alwinton. Paul said that this had been a most successful venture and that the subject for next year's competition will be 'people'.
The evening was completed with two excellent AVs, one of members competition entries compiled by Jane Coltman and one of images from last summer's 'Wednesday Wanders' by Richard Stent, followed by a splendid spread of refreshments prepared by Pat Wood.
Report by David Carter
Me and AV was the title of Ron Henry's presentation when he visited Alnwick and District Camera Club. After a brief and humorous introduction, Ron let his audio visuals do the talking for him.
His first presentation mapped his own involvement with the development of audio visuals, from the pioneering days of large format transparencies and home-made projection equipment, through a professional career developing promotional videos to his retirement and present day love of producing digital AVs at home.
Ron then related his struggles towards gaining Royal Photographic Society approval for his work and showed a series of AVs made on the road to success. This demonstrated that, even for someone with extensive commercial expertise, gaining a professional qualification from the RPS is not an easy matter.
Finally Ron demonstrated his own very personal approaches to producing photographic records of holidays abroad. There was plenty of fine photography here and much for members to learn about presenting their own AVs.
The evening was completed by three fine galleries of prints by club members. Geoffrey Bradford's beautiful monochrome prints were inspired by the work of the artist Giorgio Morandi, while Louise Clazey's dynamic pictures of her children had made good use of the club's lighting equipment and Michael Mundy's high quality prints included some dramatic monochrome landscapes.
Report by David Carter
Anne Swearman of Whitley Bay Photographic Society was the judge for Alnwick and District Camera Club's monochrome and colour print competitions. There were strong entries in both categories with a total of almost a hundred prints to be judged but Anne rose to the challenge in her usual professional and good humoured fashion. As these were open competitions there was a wide range of subject matter with architecture, landscape, natural history and still life all well represented. Despite the number of pictures involved, Anne still managed to comment constructively on each one, having praised the overall high standard of the entries.
In the monochrome competition, Kitchen Utensils, Cuba by Geoffrey Bradford, Winter by John Thompson and Causeway by Keith Saint were commended, while Bridge Jigsaw by John Thompson, Young Deer by Gordon Charlton and Still Life in Black by Geoffrey Bradford were all highly commended. Fourth place went to Jane Coltman for In the Corner, a striking, gritty image from the boxing ring, and third place was awarded to Geoffrey Bradford for Coffee Grinder, a well-seen and finely printed still life. Second place was taken by John Thompson's delicate, tranquil landscape entitled Reed Cutter's Mooring but first place went to Keith Saint for Bygone Days of Steam, a superb low key image of a steam engine.
Commended in the colour competition were Snowstorm Approaching by John Thompson, Remember by Jane Coltman and Boathouse Reflection by Keith Saint, while Grey Heron by Kevin Murray, Tree Line by Malcolm Kus and First Light at Bamburgh by James McQuillen were highly commended. Gerry Simpson's well-lit and atmospheric image of The Workshop took fourth place and Ian Atkinson's creative composite, Windmills of Spain was placed third.
Second place was awarded to Malcolm Kus for a splendid sports action shot entitled Hurdlers and first place went to Keith Saint for Remembrance, a finely conceived and executed Remembrance Day portrait.
Report by David Carter
Members created their own art gallery at Alnwick and District Camera Club when they were challenged to re-create a painting as a photograph. This was a new venture that attracted a remarkably strong response with a wide range of entries, all of a very good standard.
The paintings that were chosen for this treatment ranged from still life studies and landscapes to abstracts and cartoons and the artists from Van Gogh and Monet to Mondrian and Hoffnung.
The photographers had tackled their subjects in quite different ways with some attempting as close a reproduction of the original as possible while others produced their own individual interpretations.
A discussion was led by Geoffrey Bradford who had originally conceived this project. He added greatly to the event by talking about the artists and commenting in an elightening and constructive way on members efforts.
Finding objects for pictures such as still life groups had initially presented some difficulties. However, greater problems arose once the process of creating the pictures was under way, and issues such as view points and perspective presented themselves. Most paintings are impossible to reconstruct as straight photographs because artists are not constrained by reality but are free to create whatever image inspires them.
This exercise had not only challenged the photographers skills but had also led to a greater appreciation of works of art. Those who had taken part had expended a great deal of time and effort but had thoroughly enjoyed the experience and felt that the exercise was well worth while. We look forward to the next challenge.
Report by David Carter
'Northumberland' was the title of a presentation given by three members of Alnwick and District Camera Club at its latest meeting.
Jane Coltman talked about her experiences in the county as a press photographer for the Northumberland Gazette and showed photographs to demonstrate the various aspects of her work, including sport, special events, human interest and the most challenging and feared subjects of all - children and animals! This was a fascinating display of people pictures of the highest quality.
Next came an audio visual presentation by Doug Ross with images of the Northumberland coast from dawn to dusk accompanied by the music of Vaughan Williams. The subtlety of the colour pictures and the atmospheric quality of the monochrome images blended superbly to give a poetic portrait of this most beautiful part of our county.
The third presenter was John Thompson who showed sets of prints demonstrating his approach to photographing various aspects of the Northumberland scene. Each set featured a particular topic, ranging from rocks and sand patterns to snowy landscapes. His final pictures related to a project to record local scenes as they would have appeared in earlier times. By skilful digital manipulation and careful printing he had produced some impressive results with the delicacy of pencil drawings and line engravings.
Finally, Jane showed an audio visual entitled 'Remember', based on Remembrance Day services in Alnwick, Amble and Morpeth. This was a touching and yet uplifting treatment of a sensitive subject and provided a fitting end to a memorable evening.
Report by David Carter
Dave Phillips from Hartlepool Photographic and Digital Group once again proved to be an excellent judge when Alnwick and District Camera Club held its second open projected image competition of the season. There was a strong entry of 57 pictures covering a wide range of subjects from landscapes to sport, nature and still life. Dave provided illuminating analytical comment and useful advice on the entries, praising the overall high quality of the pictures.
Whoosh! By John Thompson, Echo by Michael Mundy and Polecat by Kevin Murray were commended while Keeping Control by Doug Ross, Bird Bath by Susan Baker and Dales Barn by Jane Coltman were all highly commended.
Tracy Rolley's striking and cleverly conceived picture of a notebook, Blue Notes, was awarded fourth place and John Thompson's dynamic sporting image of rugby players, entitled The Dash, was placed third. Second place went to Blowing His Own Trumpet, Jane Coltman's vibrantly coloured image of a musician in action, but first place was taken by Kevin Murray with The Apprentice, an extremely well composed and appealing image of a young sporting dog at work.
To complete the evening, Ken Shawcross provided an impressive gallery of colour prints, including landscapes, portraits, street scenes and much more.
Report by David Carter
Members of Alnwick and District Camera Club were treated to a feast of fine photography.
when the Northern Counties Photographic Federation Awards and Alliance Portfolio was presented as a slide and digital image show. The Federation includes fifty clubs and societies across the North of England and holds annual photographic competitions. This portfolio showcased the best of the pictures from last years competitions.
The range of pictures was immense but was strongest in landscapes, portraits and natural history pictures. Landscapes ranged from moody monochrome images to gently coloured pastoral scenes and beautiful seascapes. There were some striking and original portraits and splendid, well-seen people pictures. Birds figured strongly amongst the natural history photographs with some excellent close-ups and action shots, but there were some equally fine images of large mammals from various parts of the world. The one thing that all of these pictures had in common was their outstanding quality, demonstrating the high standard of club photography in the region. It was pleasing to see Alnwick represented by pictures by club members Tracey Rolley, Jane Coltman, Bill Hudson and John Thompson.
The evening was completed by a superb gallery of Natural History prints by club member Kevin Murray who has captured Northumberland wildlife in its many forms.
Report by David Carter
There was a packed audience at Alnwick and District Camera Club when it hosted the Northern Area Interclub Projected Image Competition. Six local clubs were involved: Alnwick, Amble, Ashington, Blyth, Morpeth and Wooler.
David Richardson from Ryton and District Camera Club once again proved to be a fine judge whose analytical comments, spiced with warm good humour, were greatly appreciated. Each entry was awarded marks out of 30.
Pictures were submitted in six different categories: human figure, still life, interior, landscape, flora & fauna, and fantasy. The overall standard of photography was good with strong entries in each category and there was a great range of images both in colour and monochrome. David commented on the particularly high quality of the flora and fauna pictures but perhaps the most challenging category was fantasy which produced a fascinating range of ingenious pictures.
At the end of the evening, the points were added up and it was not until then that the identity of the winning club was revealed. Totals were as follows: Ashington was awarded 228 points, Amble 239 points, in joint third position were Alnwick and Blyth with 243 points, second was Wooler with 247 points but Morpeth were convincing winners with a fine total of 280 points.
Members from all six clubs attended this event which provided a great opportunity to socialise and meet old friends.
Report by David Carter
Alnwick and District Camera Club welcomed Jane Black from Tynemouth Photographic Society to judge the entries for the Northumberland Plate competition for projected images. This is a competititon for photographs taken in Northumberland and this year's subject was natural history. There were more than fifty entries covering a wide range of natural history subjects, including birds, mammals, insects, plants and fungi. Jane commented on the fact that a number of entrants had also included landscape, cloud formations and geology in this category, and this was something that she welcomed. Her comments and suggestions were greatly appreciated.
Commended were Spreading one's Wings by Tracey Rolley, Painted Lady by Gerry Simpson and Meadow Cranesbill by Raymond Beston, while highly commended were Swan taking off by Dave Dixon, Beak to Beak by Ian Atkinson and Bladder Wrack by James McQuillen. Fourth place went to Doug Ross for Rosebay Seed Heads, an unusual take on a familiar subject, while second and third place were both awarded to Kevin Murray for Waiting for Mum (Grey Seal Pup), and Adder and Green Bottle respectively. These were two excellent natural history photographs that showed a good understanding of their subject matter. However Gerry Simpson took first place and the Northumberland Plate for Curlew at Budle Bay, a fine shot of this distinctive wading bird in its natural muddy shoreline habitat.
Report by David Carter
Two very different competitions took place at Alnwick and District Camera Club's latest meeting.
The Alastair Cochrane Progress Award is open to all those members who have not yet won a place in a club competititon. Seven entrants each presented three images for judging by a panel of three club members who independantly awarded marks for each picture. The judges did a fine job, making interesting and constructive comments about all of the entries. In a close-fought contest, Pat Wood was the winner with three excellent prints entitled Solitude, The Bridge at Wallington and Geometrics. In second place was Keith Saint with Evening Architecture, Lakeland Scene and Marsden while Harry Wilkinson took third place with Beneath Berwick Road Bridge, Sunset on Warkworth Castle and Honey Bee.
The Reportage Competition is for a series of pictures that tell a story and this attracted six very different entries covering subjects from surfing to an accident rescue . These were in the form of a book, a printed report, a set of three slides and two audio visual presentations. The award was ably judged by Dave Dixon who was last year's winner. Dave praised the high standard of the entries in a competition that is attracting more entries each year and chose Tracy Rolley's superb audio visual, entitled St Kilda: Britain's lost World, as a worthy winner.
Report by David Carter
Alnwick and District Camera Club's latest meeting featured the 97th Annual exhibition of the London Salon of Photography. This prestigious exhibition concentrates on pictures with an artistic feeling and attracts entries from all over the world. The audio visual presentation included a helpful analytical commentary by Salon committee member Leigh Preston.
The eighty pictures shown covered a wide range of styles and subject matter with striking and original use of colour, form, texture and composition. Monochrome photographs were well represented with some very powerful images, particularly among the portraits.
A high proportion of pictures were about people, succesfully capturing mood, movement and emotion. While a number of these images, particularly those of children, were quite poignant, others showed a gentle sense of humour. There were relatively few landscapes and still life pictures, but their quality and originality was outstanding.
Once again, the London Salon had produced a series of challenging and stimulating images. It was inevitable that not all pictures would appeal to everyone but overall they provided some memorable images that were both thought-provoking and beautiful.
The evening was completed by a splendid gallery of colour prints by club member Peter Carter. These were largely architectural with some particularly fine church interiors.
Report by David Carter
One Step Beyond was the intriguing title of Rikki O'Neill's talk when he visited Alnwick and District Camera Club. Rikki is an artist, illustrator and photographer renowned for his 'painterly' photographs and his mastery of digital manipulation. His talk was profusely illustrated with superb prints, many in square format, an unusual choice for most photographers.
This was an exceptionally interesting and often challenging presentation which asked many questions, among them, what is a photograph? Whilst many of Rikki's pictures were evidently photographic, there were some in which digital painting and manipulation predominated to an extent that the photographic element had almost disappeared. This was not to say that the images were not attractive and satisfying but to call them one step beyond was possibly an understatement.
However, Rikki's skills and originality as a photographer were never in doubt. His earlier pictures mostly originated from 35mm photographs but these had been cleverly stretched to fit his square format. Great importance was given to backgrounds, colour and the use of space with plenty of practical advice about their use.
Still life images are one of Rikki's specialities and here again, imaginative use of digital techniques had produced some beautiful results. A series of striking and colourful photographs from Cuba also demonstrated how he is never satisfied with the conventional but is always ready to add his own very personal stamp to his images.
This was a stimulating and rewarding evening that provided the audience with much food for thought. A great number of ideas had been presented with wit and enthusiasm and by the end of the evening we were left with the feeling that, in the digital world, nothing is impossible.
Report by David Carter
Alnwick and District Camera Club welcomed Linda Campbell from Durham to judge two set subject print competitions. The subject for monochrome prints was pattern while that for colour prints was close-up. There were strong entries in both categories with a wide range of subject matter and Linda commented on each print with well considered analysis and helpful suggestions. She demonstrated in several cases how stronger impact could be achieved by closer cropping of the images.
In the monochrome section Jane Coltman's Cloister and two pictures by Susan Baker, Pattern from Petals and Pier pattern, were commended. Tyre Tread, and Seats, both by Dave Dixon, were highly commended. Fourth place went to Geoffrey Bradford for Defensive Pattern, a strong graphic image of sea defences, and third place to John Thompson for a well-seen architectural shot entitled Parliamentary View Points. Geoffrey also took second place with Pattern of Waste, an intriguing, almost abstract image, but first place went to Jane Coltman for Flower Centre, a well-printed flower close-up which had a wonderfully luminous quality.
In the colour section, Bladder Wrack by James McQuillen and Dahlia by John Thompson were highly commended. Fourth place was awarded to Ian Atkinson for Clematis Seed Head, a flowing, detailed composition, and Ian Cartwright took third place for Clown Fish with Anemone, a fine marine natural history shot with vibrant colours. Second place went to Geoffrey Bradford for Close Reflection, a beautiful, enigmatic image of reflections on water while James McQuillen was awarded first place for The Chain, an extremely well composed image with great depth of focus and a fine range of subtle colours.
Report by David Carter
Audience participation was the name of the game when Alnwick and District Camera Club held a projected image knockout competition. Pictures were shown two at a time and votes were cast to put one of the pictures through to the next round. Sixty four pictures in all were entered into the contest with club member Keith Saint acting as a lively and good humoured MC. Keith introduced the pictures and counted the votes, making helpful comments and urging the audience to consider their votes carefully.
The range of pictures was immense with portraits pitted against landscapes; still lifes against wildlife shots and subtle monochrome images against vibrant colour pictures. As each round progressed, decisions about choosing the best images became more difficult, but in the end four worthy winning pictures were selected, with honours shared by two members.
Fourth place went to Doug Ross for Lighthouse, a most beautiful and tranquil seascape, and Doug also took second place with Blue Lamp, an extremely well seen and composed image of the Sage. However, Jane Coltman not only took third place with Winter Road, a chilly winter landscape, but also won the overall competition with an even finer, luminous landscape entitled Winter Moor.
To complete the evening, chairman Ian Atkinson presented an interesting gallery of prints. His pictures of ancient towns in Spain had been enhanced by the judicious use of digital filters to produce an antique effect.
Report by David Carter
Members of Alnwick and District Camera Club faced a new challenge when they were asked to each produce an alternative self portrait in the form of a photograph, the idea being to produce a picture that summed up the person without including their actual image. Eighteen members rose to the challenge, producing some fascinating and original results.
Geoffrey Bradford, who first proposed the idea, acted as compere for the evening. The audience was first invited to try and identify the subject of each 'portrait' and this was followed by a discussion with its author.
The resulting pictures were extremely different and it was most interesting to see how each person had tackled the task. Generally speaking the images illustrated family backgrounds, history, personal beliefs, traits, loves and interests but these were conveyed in very different ways. The treatments varied from the detailed to the minimalist, with one brave individual even portraying himself as a rather moth-eaten cabbage.
The discussion involved not only the content of the pictures but also their composition. It was obvious that a great deal of thought had gone into their production and it was generally agreed that it had been a very rewarding exercise.
Members evenings such as this are always extremely relaxed, friendly occasions and this was no exception with much animated and good humoured discussion. We certainly now know a lot more about each other.
Report by David Carter
Alnwick and District Camera Club made a light-hearted start to the New Year when the subject for the projected image competition was the first line of a song, poem or hymn. Members had risen to the challenge with a wide range of different and sometime ingenious pictures which were judged with expertise and good humour by Colin Hall from Gateshead Camera Club. Colin pointed out how difficult it is to select winners from such a diverse range of pictures but nevertheless managed to comment on each entry regarding both its photographic qualities and the interpretation of its title. Although once again the quality of entries was high, this was a competiton that emphasised the fun in photography with much friendly banter between the judge and the audience.
Raindrops keep Falling on my Head by Tracy Rolley, Goodnight Sweetheart by Keith Saint and When Autumn Comes by Malcolm Kuss were all commended while highly commended were The Long and Winding Road by Gerry Simpson, Paris by Keith Saint and The Party's Over by Peter Downs. Fourth Place went to Stop Oh Yes, Wait a Minute Mr Postman by Dave Dixon and third place to Jane Coltman for Macavity's a Mystery Cat. Jane also took second place with Riders on the Storm but first place was awarded to Gordon Charlton for Who Let the Dogs Out.
Two members presented print galleries. Dave Dixon reverted to using a film camera when he visited Lincoln Cathedral, resulting in some splendid interior shots of that fine building. Sue Baker's prints recorded her visit to Egypt with an excellent series of images that captured both places and people in a very individual way.
Report by David Carter
This was the title of the talk given to club members by internationally renowned Keith Suddaby from Morpeth.
Using all the visual aids available to digital photographers, Keith encouraged us to use our artistic vision and see with the mind's eye. He took us back to cave paintings working his way through the ages as a way of illustrating man's desire to record what he sees around him. He showed us how techniques had developed in both the art world and the photographic world. Both forms had to have heart, hand and eye to express the emotion of the scene before us.
He shared his own progression in photography and used his prints to demonstrate what could be achieved with suggestions for artistic improvement. His message was, be creative. He explained his thoughts and ideas when he gained his ARPS and FRPS and we were privileged to see some of the prints he put forward.
One of the best evenings for some time, were the comments from some members.
Report by Ian Atkinson ARPS
We welcomed David Hall from Gosforth as the judge for this competition when members submitted three prints in monochrome and three prints in colour. As a set of three, each print had hang together to reflect the title.
David is an enthusiastic black and white ( B/W) darkroom worker and his comments on the B/W prints were almost visceral. Ten members entered this section and seventeen the colour section.
David gave each entry an ebullient judgement with an almost thespian performance.
In the B/W section commended were Alan Ainsworth's Cornwall Rocks. Highly commended; Gerry Simpson with Wood knot patterns. 4th. place to Jane Coltman with Station Staff. 3rd place with an almost gothic set of prints of Lincoln Cathedral to Susan Baker. 2nd place to David Dixon with a well capture set of a water drop in action in Water Studies. But 1st place and The Tony Evans Trophy was awarded to John Thompson with images of a hard fought rugby match in Rugby Faces.
In the colour section, commended were Raymond Beston with The Age of Technology; Tracy Rolley with Postscript and Pat Wood with Derwent Reservoir.
Highly commended to David Carter with Moeraki Boulders; Malcolm Kus with Elephants and Gordon Charlton with Swarland Fungi.
4th place was taken by John Thompson with a richly coloured set of prints; A fisherman's lot. 3rd place to Kevin Murray's set of a day's shoot with Working Labradors. 2nd. Place to Jane Coltman with an exquisite set of horsey prints, Appleby Detail and 1st place and the H.J. Davidson Tankard went to Alan Ainsworth with a set of Jazz musicians, Improvising.
Report by Ian Atkinson ARPS
Alnwick and District Camera Club held a 'Down Under' night when members showed their pictures from Australia and New Zealand. Although there were some fine pictures of Australia to be seen, it seems that club members have a predilection for New Zealand, maybe because it offers such a wealth of different landscapes and experiences in a relatively small country.
Peter Downs showed a series of photographs accompanied by an account of his experiences travelling by camper van. His pictures demonstrated just how much detail can be captured using a low resolution compact digital camera.
David Carter then talked about his New Zealand visits and showed an AV of images from South Island. Roger Black followed with an AV of his impressions of Australia followed by a further AV from New Zealand including some striking Maori images.
Finally Vanessa Hornsby showed two AVs, a short presentation from Australia followed by a longer and very personal view of New Zealand where she had lived and worked for some time.
It was interesting to see how different people viewed the same places in quite different ways and certainly interpreted them differently in their photography. It also demonstrated how the camera can record impressions that cannot be conveyed adequately by words alone.
New Zealand was also the subject of a varied gallery of colour prints by David Carter and a panel of prints by Geoffrey Bradford.
Report by David Carter
There was a large and enthusiastic audience for Alnwick and District Camera Club's annual event at the Playhouse, this year featuring Duncan McEwan's superb landscape photography. Duncan is a freelance photographer based in Renfrewshire so it was not suprising that the first half of his presentation concentrated on the many and varied beauties of Scotland. His interpretation of landscapes ranged from the conventional to the abstract with many beautiful and often quite surprising images. Quality of light is of overriding importance to Duncan, regardless of the subject or weather conditions. This often resulted in pictures of an almost luminous quality, sometimes with warm gentle colours and sometimes with dramatic lighting. His seascapes and skyscapes were particularly captivating as were his detailed close up images of rock and sand that formed exquisite landscapes in miniature.
It is only quite recently that Duncan has ventured beyond these shores but he has certainly made up for lost time as he amply demonstrated in the second half of his lecture. Entitled Southern Light, this presentation took the audience to locations in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Namibia and the Seychelles. Once again, we were shown a spectacular range of stunning images, some with dramatic theatrical lighting and others with a delicate painterly quality. These were not the conventional travel pictures that we come to expect but something much more interesting and rewarding.
This superb display of the photographers art was enhanced by a commentary that was rich in wit and wisdom. Many photographers may be reluctant to reveal the secrets of their success but Duncan's enlightening words of advice on composition lighting and photographic interpretation were an inspiration to everyone. This was a most enjoyable and memorable evening.
Report by David Carter
Vince Rooker from Morpeth Camera Club was the judge for Alnwick and District Camera Club's competition for the Nellie Bache Award. This competition is for sets of three projected images, either slide or digital.
Entries covered a wide range of subjects including landscapes, buildings, graffiti, flowers, people and fairgrounds, which presented quite a challenge when it came to choosing the winners. However, Vince lived up to his reputation as an experienced and perceptive judge with plenty of interesting analysis and encouraging comment. Although there were many fine images among the entries, the important thing was how each group of three worked together as a set.
Commended entries were National Trial, Long Framlington by Raymond Beston, Toy Fighters by Joe Thompson and A Place for Everything by John Thompson, while Still Waiting by Peter Downs and Castles by Harry Wilkinson were both highly commended.
Fourth place went to a colourful action set entitled Canoeists by Jane Coltman and third place to Christine Sindall for The Way of the Pilgrim, an atmospheric group of pictures of the Lindisfarne Causeway.
Second place was awarded to Dave Dixon for Town Criers in Alnwick, a fine set of colourful portraits but first place, and the Nellie Bache Award, went to Tracy Rolley for Starlings and Shakespeare, an imaginative and amusingly titled set of pictures.
The evening was completed by an absorbing print gallery of more than forty people pictures taken by Jane Coltman at this year's Pickering War Weekend.
Report by David Carter
John Smith of Gateshead Camera Club was once again welcomed to Alnwick and District Camera Club to present a slide show of pictures from the 29th Northern Counties International Salon of Photography. This exhibition, organized by the Northern Counties Photographic Federation, attracts entries of the highest calibre from all over the world and this season's pictures maintained the same high standards as in previous years.
Pictures were shown in three categories: nature, photo-travel and general.
The nature section included a wide range of subjects but with the emphasis on birds and mammals. Although there were a number of superb wildlife portraits, the action shots were the more impressive, particularly those of birds in flight.
The photo-travel section concentrated on people and landscapes around the world with South East Asia being the most greatly favoured region. The pictures this year featured many that were notable for their warm colours and for a sympathetic treatment of subject matter suggesting that the photographers were at one with their surroundings.
The general section naturally included the widest range of pictures, although here again the emphasis was on landscapes, many with a gentle pastoral appeal. There were some fine portraits and a strong entry of sports action pictures. Still life pictures were very few but the standard was extremely high.
It was pleasing to see among the salon acceptances some excellent pictures by Alnwick club members Malcolm Kuss and John Thompson.
The evening concluded with a fine gallery of prints by club members Peter Downs and Pat Wood; Peter with pictures of cats, people and places and Pat with flowers, gardens and landscapes.
Report by David Carter
Members of Alnwick and District Camera Club were privileged to welcome one of Ireland's premier club photographers when Des Clinton gave his presentation appropriately entitled The Best of Irish. Des, who comes from Drogheda, and is a leading member of the local camera club there, has an enviable reputation as a documentary photographer. It soon became clear that his photographic talents range much wider than this suggests as he presented a stunning array of prints and projected images both in colour and monochrome.
Drogheda is close to the border between North and South and so Des has been in a good position to document the tensions of recent times, which he has achieved in a sympathetic and non-judgemental manner. Seemingly fearless of the dangers involved, he has engaged with the people and told their stories in photographs of rare quality.
It is a common saying that every picture tells a story and that can never be more true than with his images. Nevertheless, Des enriched his presentation with a captivating commentary that was full of interest, good humour and valuable advice.
His pictures included sequences taken in a monastery, at a religious pilgrimage, at a horse fair, and in urban regions of Belfast and Dublin. One thing that all of these photographs had in common was a feeling for people. Des described them as environmental portraits and emphasised the importance of backgrounds that add information.
Derelict cottages are a feature of the Irish countryside that have long attracted photographers to practise their art. Des explained the various reasons for the abandonment of these buildings and his beautifully lit photographs captured a poignant atmosphere that is often lacking in other such pictures.
This was one of those evenings that we will remember not only for its fine pictures but also for its fine words - the Best of Irish indeed.
Report by David Carter
David Richardson from Ryton and District Camera Club faced a mammoth task when he judged the first open print competititon of the season at Alnwick and District Camera Club. There were a total of 105 prints in the colour and monochrome categories but David nevertheless managed to comment on every one with plenty of encouragement and relevant advice.
In the monochrome category, 5th Avenue by Tracey Rolley, Golden Loom by Susan Baker and The Ties that Bind by Dave Dixon were commended while Springtime at St Andrews by Alastair Cochrane, Peaceful by John Smith and St Cuthbert's Cross by Jane Coltman were all highly commended. Fourth place went to a gentle and atmospheric image of St Mary's Island by Dave Dixon and third place to East Coast, an imaginative picture of ropes by Geoffrey Bradford. Dave Dixon also took second place with Stairs and Chair, a well lit and composed interior shot, but first place went to Gordon Charlton for Warkworth Castle, an unusual but attractive treatment of a familiar subject.
In the colour section, Porcelain Fungus by John Thompson, Late Evening after a Dull Day by Ian Atkinson and Lindisfarne Clouds by Jane Coltman were all commended, and Melody Maker by Alastair Cochrane, Running Gentoo Penguin by Malcolm Kus and The Leaf, also by Alastair Cochrane were highly commended. Fourth place was awarded to John Thompson for Water Devil, a striking image of water breaking over the pier, and third place also went to John for Casting in the Mist, a deceivingly simple but effective and well composed picture of boats in the sea. Kevin Murray's most attractive portrait of a working dog entitled Patience took second place while first place was deservedly taken by Ian Atkinson for Evening Serenade, a colourful and well observed Cuban street scene.
Report by David Carter
Alnwick and District Camera Club's latest meeting provided education, entertainment and food for thought when four members presented talks, demonstrations and audio visuals.
Geoffrey Bradford started off the evening with a stimulating talk about two current projects for club members. The first subject was the photographic re-creation of a painting of the author's choice. Geoffrey's skills as an art teacher were evident in his presentation using pictures, photographs and cardboard models. This created considerable interest amongst the audience and a light hearted but productive discussion ensued. The second project, the construction of a photographic self-portrait using objects and images that represent a person's life presented a different challenge. Again Geoffrey engaged his audience with his ideas and suggestions, emphasising that these projects provide new opportunities to have fun with photography.
Keith Saint then gave a useful and approachable introduction to HDR (high dynamic range) photography. This technique involves making multiple exposures which are then amalgamated to produce a single image. Keith's demonstration using Photomatix Pro software showed the wide range of effects achievable. Examples of his own work using this method were of an impressive quality and will doubtless tempt many members to try out this technique.
Doug Ross then entertained the audience with two fine audio visuals, the first an amusing sequence entitled The Shape of Things, followed by an evocative presentation capturing colour and movement at the Alnwick Music Festival.
The evening concluded with an excellent audio visual sequence by Richard Stent using pictures taken by a group of members who visited the Appleby Horse Fair earlier this year.
Once again, members have used their skills to provide a memorable evening that should encourage everyone to try something new.
Report by David Carter
Members were invited to take part in the first ever print knockout competition and 21 members took up the challenge providing two prints each.
Prints were shown two at a time and votes were cast to put one of the prints through to the next round. The MC for the evening was Doug Ross assisted by Jane Coltman and James McQuillen. Doug conducted the evening with sagacity, humour and occasionally cajoling the audience as to their reasons for choosing a particular print.
The prints presented were a mixture of mono and colour with the usual mix of formats. We viewed prints as diverse as fish and faces; cobwebs to contemplation; eyes to eye catching and canines to castles. The first round winners were mostly resounding but as the evening went on, choices became more difficult. However, four winners eventually emerged and first place was voted to Keith Saint with a stunning black and white print of The Temple Bar in Dublin picked out from its surrounds in its' full glorious red. Second place went to Gordon Charlton for a well-composed colour print of conkers against an unusual background. James McQuillen won third with a richly colourful vertical landscape of Bamburgh Castle at dawn and Keith Saint was fourth with a patiently captured scene of a side street building in Rome.
Report by Ian Atkinson
The first open projected image competition of the season at Alnwick and District Camera Club attracted a strong entry of 64 digital images and 13 colour transparencies. Edward Wilding from Sunderland was the judge on this occasion. Edward is no stranger to the club and once again it was evident that he had given a great deal of time to considering the entries. Each picture was given a careful analysis with much positive feed back and helpful comment.
Commended pictures were Up the Pole by Barry Robertson, Reflections of Alnwick by James McQuillen and Sunset on the Humber by Susan Baker. Highly commended were Life on the Edge by James McQuillen, Hold On by Jane Coltman and Rust Amongst the Pebbles by Gerry Simpson. Fourth place went to Doreen Smith for Secluded Corner, a lovely colour transparency of a crumbling stairway, while the remaining places all went to digital images.
Third place was awarded to Jane Coltman for Evening Light, a striking evening shot with the sun shining through clouds. Ian Atkinson's Evening After was another picture taken at the end of the day with beautiful soft lighting illuminating Dunstanburgh Castle. Continuing a theme of peaceful tranquility, Gerry Simpson's Light on the Beach was a fine composition of sky, sea and sand and well deserved first place.
The evening concluded with a gallery of prints by three members. Richard Stent showed some excellent monochrome prints produced in the dark room, alongside his first efforts with a digital camera. In contrast, Gordon Charlton's vibrant images of Las Vegas featured strong colours, while Louise Clazey's intriguing monochome prints were of everyday domestic subjects viewed from the point of view of her young children.
Once again this evening had demonstrated the impressive range of members' talents.
Report by David Carter
Home-grown talent was to the fore when Alnwick and District Camera Club spent An Evening With Ian Cartwright. Ian has been an active and well respected member of the club for some years and so expectations for the evening were high.
Ian started with a visit to Arizona where we were treated to many impressive images of deserts, salt pans, amazing rock formations and petrified tree trunks. He then moved on to Indonesia with beautiful pictures of fishing villages, idyllic beaches and fascinating wildlife including the notorious Komodo dragons. By contrast, the next location was Iceland where hot pools, geysers and spectacular waterfalls were his photographic subjects. The final visit was to Cape Cod to see some wonderful pictures of humpback whales.
As if this feast of fine pictures was not enough, Ian then moved on to his great love of photography beneath the sea. Back in Indonesia, we were taken to the underwater world of the Komodo National Park with a staggering array of beautiful and sometimes grotesque wildlife pictures. Colourful images of corals, starfish, seaslugs, clams, shrimps, crabs and fish all featured in this comprehensive survey of marine biodiversity. As Ian pointed out, this is a world that is severely threatened both by climate change and by human activity and we can only hope that it will survive for future generations to marvel at.
Ian completed his evening with a gallery of superb colour prints of some of the subjects that he had shown as projected images. There is no doubt that our high expectations for the evening had been exceeded.
Report by David Carter
Members nights are always a popular feature of Alnwick and District Camera Club's programme as they give everyone the chance to participate. On this evening, nineteen members were each given the opportunity to show four pictures that they had taken over the summer. This resulted in a wonderful array of prints and projected images and even an audio visual presentation appropriately entitled Looking for the Summer.
The pictures covered a wide range of subjects including landscapes, seascapes, architecture, portraits, close-ups and many others. One thing that they all had in common was that the photographers had enjoyed taking the pictures and were pleased with the results. Some spoke at length about their pictures while others were just happy to answer questions about them and much friendy discussion and good humoured banter ensued.
Among the more unusual offerings were a series of monochrome prints from negatives that had remained undeveloped in an old camera for some 28 years - a tribute to the longevity of some film stocks. Two thought-provoking colour prints of children taken at slow exposures to allow the images to blur had produced almost abstract results which nevertheless captured a feeling of youthful exuberance. Experiments in image manipulation with photoshop were also shown as a way of having fun with photography while also producing some attractive pictures. There was much to be learned from the evening including tips on creating panoramic landscapes.
Although this was not a competition evening and there were no prizes, on this occasion everyone was a winner.
Report by David Carter
Alnwick and District Camera Club welcomed John Williamson, one of the North East's most highly regarded professional photographers, to give a presentation entitled Reflections of a Travel Photographer. Following a career as a civil servant, John decided to become a full time photographer, a move that he has made with considerable success. However he was quick to point out that commercial travel photography is not the romantic dream that many imagine. John's cautionary anecdotes of stolen luggage, unreliable weather and even more unreliable food were a timely warning to those planning to follow in his footsteps.
Starting in the South of France, we were shown some superb pictures of picturesque villages and beautiful landscapes. His pictures of the famous lavender fields of southern France were outstanding with strong use of vibrant colour - these were pictures you could almost smell.
The wetlands of the Camargue are unique and here we were treated to some beautiful images of its white horses and other wildlife.
Cuba is a country much loved by photographers and in this respect John is no exception. His pictures of city life in Havana were very atmospheric with images that reflected its faded decadence. However the overriding appeal of Cuba is its people and John's fine portraits succesfully captured their humour and humanity.
John's final destination was the USA and here he took us to a number of spectacular locations including Death Valley, Antelope Canyon and the Grand Canyon. His landscapes were quite breathtaking and extremely interesting from a photographic point of view as many were taken of the same locality under different lighting conditions.
This was an entertaining and enlightening evening brought to a close with a fine display of John's prints that members were able to peruse at their leisure.
Report by David Carter
Chairman Ian Atkinson made a fine start to Alnwick and District Camera Club's new season of indoor meetings with a lively travelogue of Cuba. Ian started by briefly outlining the geography and history of the island before immersing the audience in photographs capturing the colourful atmosphere of its cities and people. Cuba is famed for its vintage American cars, fondly known as 'yank tanks' and greatly loved as subjects for the photographer. After presenting a kaleidoscope of images of these vehicles, Ian showed the downside with a video clip to demonstrate the noise and pollution that they produce.
We were then shown a wonderful series of images of the old city of Havana with its narrow streets and crumbling facades. Even more fascinating were pictures of the people going about their daily business, enlivened by street musicians and displays of exuberant local art.
Ian then took his audience on a guided tour around the rest of the island showing many aspects of both town and country and not forgetting references to production of its two most famed exports, rum and cigars.
Despite an extremely poor standard of living, Cubans remain strongly nationalistic and images of Fidel Castro still abound, One of the most amazing demonstrations of this nationalism figured in a video clip of a most bizarre, goose-stepping, 'changing of the guard' that takes place hourly in Santiago de Cuba at the tomb of JoseŽ Marti, leader of the Cuban Independence movement.
Ian's talk was further illustrated by an extensive gallery of excellent colour prints. No doubt many members will now be considering Cuba as a future holiday destination.
Report by David Carter
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