Tuesday 23rd June : Competition Image of the year Judge David Steel

 On Tuesday evening we had the final competition of the season: Image Of The Year consisting of both print and digital. We had 19 digital and 17 print entries.

David commented on the high standard of all the images, both print and digital. He spent quite some time  commenting on each image; focusing first on the positives and then giving a few tips on how the photographer could improve the image if they wish to do so.

He held back 14 images in total.  6 digital and 8 prints.

Here are the top scoring prints.

1st Cromer Pier In Winter by Carol Martin

2nd In Need Of Repair by Sue Baldwin

3rd Misty Morning Reflection by Sandie Jardine

Highly Commended:

Displaying Gannets by Di Daniels

                                                 Red Kite Ever Watchful by Jack Mitchell

                                                      Stand Proud by Vanessa Roberts

Commended:

                                                Shanghai On A Miserable Day by Jan Murphy

Happy Food by Andrew Stringer

Here are the top scoring digital images:

                                  1st European Hover Fly On Queen Anne's Lace by Jack Mitchell

                                               2nd Look Mum No Seatbelt by Andrew Stringer

3rd Brown Hare On The Move by Carol Martin

Highly commended:

Little Owl by Sandie Jardine

Sparrow Hawk With Prey by Di Daniels

Commended:

Hippo by Robin Orrow

Tuesday 6th June Presentation Free Mines Coal Face by Nick Hodgson.

This evening we welcomed Nick Hodgson to gives us a talk about his project/research on Free Mines Coal Face Mining in the Forest of Dean. 

The first half of the evening was all about the history of free mining.  The work and the struggles of the miners from the 14th century onwards. Nick has a strong connection through his grandfather to the mining community of the Forest of Dean. During his research he was introduce to a distant relative who was able to present him with the original map that his grandfather made of his mine.

The second half was all about the images and his relationship with the community.  Nick describes himself as a landscape photographer. The images were all in black and white but were originally all taken in colour. Every image told a story about the people and the condition of the mines. Some mines were very small and cramped, and images show how the miners had to positioned themselves to get into the mines.  The comradeship between the community was obvious, whether this was sharing a cup of tea or helping each other.  The end result of the project was the publication of a book, which has won Nick a number of awards.

Tuesday 1st June - Presentation chasing The Light by Giles Thurston

 This evening we welcomed Giles to give a talk about chasing the light. Giles is a semi professional photographer.  He describe himself as a human landscape photographer focusing on both the urban and rural environment.  Giles has been taking photos from childhood.  One of the first images that he showed was of his sister on a family holiday that he took as a young boy.

Giles is also a long distance endurance runner and he combines this along with his photography. When he is out and about Giles will stop and take photos of things that caught his eye; it could be a road sign  an abandoned building or a rusty farm engine. These might seem mundane but its all about the texture, shadows, strong lines, shape and the way the light falls on the image.

There is more than one type of light for Giles. It's also when photography helps release stress, makes you slowdown and think about the things that are important in life.  It is about taking photos for yourself, about the things that interest you and not to worrying about what others think.

As a camera club we sometimes forget why we like photography and sometimes focus on what might please the judge. Giles talk remind us that it's important to do the things that brings us satisfaction, peace of mind and joy.

Tuesday 25th May - Presentation My Top 30 by Kevin Pigney

 On Tuesday evening we welcomed Kevin to talked about his top 30 images. Kevin is renowned for his wildlife photography, but the evening was all about stepping out of your comfort zone and trying something new.

On display was a variety of amazing images to backup the slide show.  The genres ranged from seascapes, pet portrait, still life, wildlife and many more. With each image Kevin explained the settings and the techniques that he used.  Kevin explained that he gets inspiration from other photographers work.

Kevin has been trying out new skills such portraits both animals and people, and also still life following a visits to the National Portrait Gallery using the style of th old masters.

Kevin talked about the importance of trying new things and not getting stuck in a rut. Techniques from one genre can be transferred to another, thus improving the photographer skills.

The evening presented members with many ideas about developing new skills.

Tuesday 12th May – presentation by Tesni Ward: British Wildlife

 Tesnie has been a professional wildlife photographer for over 10 years. Her presentation showed some amazing and wonderful images. What was so special was that she did not just show her fantastic images but gave aback story, included how she had captured some of them.  No need to jet set as all of her images were taken within the UK.

Also what was much appreciated by all members was that the presentation was very interactive, with us trying to guess which animals had left various telltale signs etc.

All in all a great evening.

Please check out Tesni's web site: to see some of her images. https://www.tesniward.co.uk/

Sunday 10th May – Outing to Snetterton

Sunday the10th May and we were all set for a club outing to Snetterton for a day of racing.

Andrew, Emma and Rachael were the only takers and we all met up at 9am in the car park.

The day was dry but slightly chilly, but it didn't stop us having a great day, watching some good racing and even a few spectacular crashes, which luckily didn't result in any injuries.

Emma came in her campervan which we made full use of, breaking for tea, and cake kindly baked by Emma and Rachael.

We practised our panning technique and had all improved by the end of the day, 

all in all an enjoyable day out.

Andrew Stringer

Andrew Stringer

Andrew Stringer

Andrew Stringer

Rachael Trivett

Rachael Trivett

Rachael Trivett

Rachael Trivett

Rachael Trivett

Rachael Trivett

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Emma Moore

Tuesday 5th May 2026 Digital Competition: Theme "Street"

 We welcomed David Jordan to judge our penultimate competition of the season. The theme was Street,

Entires were somewhat less than normal but David still had a hard job in awarding marks. His comments were helpful and much appreciated. The top scoring images from both Members and Members Advanced are shown below.

Cigarette Break by Carol Martin  19

Dancing in the street by Diana Graham 19

Lost in the melody by Sue Baldwin 19

Photos by Ian Speller 20

Ready for the revellers by Pat Weir 18

Smokers by Diana Graham 20

Stepping through the shadows by Sue Baldwin 18

Young lady enjoying her snack by Jan Murphy 20

Tuesday 28 April In House Demonstration

 On Tuesday evening we has a practical session on contact sheets for the summer challenge and how to do a triptych using a variety of software. All demonstrations were carried out by club members.

Jack focused on Lightroom, Jan on Photoshop, Rachael on On1 and Pat on Affinity.

For some members this was a refresher and for others it was the first time. Members watched the demonstrations which were repeated several times. They were also able to asked questions, make suggestions and tryout the task for themselves.

At the end of the evening some members said that if they only took one thing away with them, then the session was a success. 

Tuesday 14 April Landscape , Photographs and Focal Length. Speaker Claire Carter

 On Tuesday evening we welcomed Clair Cater to give a talk on focal length for landscapes.  Claire showed us some amazing images all chosen to show the different focal lengths and their creative potential. She explained how zooming in and out changes the composition and also that the best lens depends on the photographs goal and the environment.

Using zoom lenses allows you to choose different focal lengths

A 16m lens gives a 96 field degree view emphasising the depth of the background and big skies.

24-105m lens makes the subject important and the background more prominent. The image is all about the middle distant with less depth of field

With a100-300m lens the foreground and background will appear closer together. This is to create more intimacy between the subject and the background and to distort the perspective.  Objects closer in the foreground looks smaller as oppose to those further away looking larger. The more you zoom in the more you can play about with the depth of field.

Using zoom lens abstract details from the landscape and helps to add drama. The photographer can get several different views of the same image by using different focal lengths.

I am sure that many of the members will try out some of her very useful suggestions.

Tuesday 7th April. Print Competition Nature and Wildlife. Judge Penny Reeves

 On Tuesday evening we welcomed Penny Reeves to judge our final print competition of the season.

The category was nature and wildlife giving members plenty of scope.

Penny complemented the club on the high standard of the images that were entered. She explained that she was judging the prints in front of her and not the digital image projected on the screen as there are sometimes differences between the two.

Her comments were fair and helpful such as using a slightly gloss paper to enhance reflections.  She also pointed out that she would be very picky when judging the advance group because of the very high standard.

She held back two images in the members group and ten in the advance.

Here are the top scoring images in the members group:

Hellebore And Ladybug by Emma Moore 18

Portrait Of A Greylag Goose by Georgie McCall 20

Skeleton Trees - Dead Vlei Namibia by Ian spellar 19

Teal with Reflection by Georgie McCall 18

Here are the top scoring images from the advance group:

Turtle Dove by Jan Murphy 18

A Pair Of Herring Gulls Chick by Jack Mitchell 18

Brown Hare In The Morning Dew by Lyn Ibbilson-Elks 18

Catch Of The Day by Martyn Page 18

                                                           Goshawk by Diana Graham 18

Misty Morning Reflection by Sandie Jardine 19

                                                   Roe Buck In Velvet by Sandie Jardine 19 

Wreathed Hornbill by Jan Murphy 20

Brown Hare On The Move by Carol Martin 20

Red Kite Ever Watchful by Jack Mitchell 20