SUCCESS + EXHIBITIONS + PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENTS + OUTINGS News Camera club
Axholme CC Almost a year into the pandemic, every camera club and photographic society has had to find newways to keep members enthused, inspired and actively shooting. Here’s how Axholme CC, a small rural club, has handled the past unprecedented year. Our thanks go to Bob Fish, Axholme CC’s publicity officer and treasurer, for the story
We want your contributions If your camera club has news you want to share with PN readers, please send it in. We welcome all stories; you might want to share details of an exhibition, contest success or a member’s achievement, such as gaining a distinction. Of course, clubs are meeting and exhibitions are taking place virtually, but there’s plenty of newsworthy moments we want to share. Please read the following guidelines before sending in your submission: Write your story in 250 words or fewer in a Word or Pages document. Please include the club’s website, meeting times, what the event is all about, opening times or entrance fees – any relevant detail is helpful. Every story should have at least one image. JPEGs should be at least 1500 pixels on the longest dimension (bigger is fine), use any colour space and, ideally, have the photographer’s name in the file name. We do not use posters. Send your contribution to clubnews@photography-news. co.uk with the text document and image attached. Deadlines for the upcoming issues of Photography News ISSUE 86, out from 9 March, deadline for contributions: 26 February ISSUE 87, out from 13 April, deadline for contributions: 2 April ISSUE 88, out from 11 May, deadline for contributions: 30 April
LAUNCHED AS A sociable camera club in the fifties, Axholme Camera Club, in North Lincolnshire, provided an opportunity for residents of the Isle of Axholme to meet and discuss their shared love of photography. As the club entered the new millennium, membership declined to single figures, and the club was close to folding. However, digital cameras came along and, with a successful National Lottery grant, it experienced an overwhelming revival in fortune. Membership rocketed to more than 60 people, resulting in the club joining the Lincolnshire Photographic Association in 2003 and, two years later, it joined the North East &Midland Photographic Federation. The past year has brought many challenges that club members have had to work hard to overcome. From the outset, the committee realised the importance of retaining members’ interest and enthusiasm, as well as
the need to provide an innovative programme of events that would help allay the confines of Covid-19. Holding true to its commitment to inspire, challenge and support, the club has utilised Zoom to maintain a full schedule. This has allowed members to hear presentations from photographers across the UK, France and Australia, which is a real boon to a small club with limited resources. It’s fair to say that members, speakers and judges initially had little, if any, experience of Zoom, but those with the time and dedication took it upon themselves to find a way forward. Of course, there were some minor technical hiccups along the way, but now everything runs smoothly. The club has also committed to supporting the mental wellbeing of those in the community by providing opportunities to progress their photography skills, raise self-esteem and offer avenues for positive social
interaction. Consequently, Axholme CC has reached the shortlisting stage of Lincolnshire Co-op’s Community Champion for spring 2021. One other significant development that has arisen from the pandemic is the creation of a new website. Two months of hard work by a dedicated team of four has seen an instructive and developing website built that celebrates the club’s achievements, promotes members’ work and is informative to the general public. The club’s present chairperson, George Fiddler, expressed his and the committee’s gratitude and congratulations to the team for a job well done. e-voice.org.uk/axholmecameraclub
From architecture to vegetables, Thanet tackles it all
Thanet members enjoyed two fascinating talks throughout January. The first, on architecture and street photography, illustrated how using different angles can achieve some very interesting shots. The talk clearly inspired one club member, Eddie Bradley. His experimental photograph, The Turner Contemporary Re-imagined (bottom left), displayed a new side to the Turner Contemporary, an art gallery in Margate, and achieved top marks in the year’s first open competition. The runner-up was Paul Norris for his photograph, Winter Light (above left). For its members’ evening, chairman Laura Drury chose the topic, iconic images. These differed from famous photographs, with Laura selecting categories, such as
the world’s most viewed and the top ten most expensive photographs. She also discussed unusual images that had become highly valued, almost as works of art. These included vegetables, and Laura encouraged members to use these as subjects during lockdown, because they are readily available and pose an interesting challenge for photographers of all abilities. The club also took part in its first ‘battle’ of the year against Herne Bay Camera Club. Judge David Kissman, from Nottinghamshire, provided an excellent critique of the 40 images submitted by the clubs. Thanet won with the highest score. We are grateful to Herne Bay CC for hosting the online event. isleofthanetphotographicsociety.co.uk
Issue 85 | Photography News 11
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