Blog archive - May 2009
27 May, by Bill Chadband. (Meeting and event reports)
AGM May 20th 2009
President Roger Dye welcomed 36 members to the meeting. The minutes of the previous AGM were agreed, Apologies for absence were noted, and committee members made brief reports of their year's activities. Treasurer Geoff Robinson went through the Accounts noting that we had made a small surplus on the year, and that he would not be proposing a subs increase. Bill Chadband reported another successful Annual Exhibition. Frank Hutchinson noted that the WEB site was still our best publicity outlet, though he regularly informed magazines and local newspapers of events. Jill Hargreaves dealt with local publicity and the Displays we mount in the Library at the beginning of the Session, and prior to the Annual Exhibition. Social Secretary Colin Pickles reported a good trip to Lisbon, and thanked Tony Redford for organizing the Exhibition Dinner, and our end of the regular Lakes Weekend Competition against five other clubs. Bill Chadband reported seven editions of FOCUS covering 88 A5 sides and costing members £2.20 each. Now that all articles go on the WEB as soon as they are produced, and are archived there, the necessity for a paper version has been reduced. Several members had stated that they were happy not to receive the paper version, so Bill proposed to do a circular email to all members with an email address (and thus access to the WEB) inviting them to state (restate) their preferences. This would save the club money, but those who wished to get the paper copy would still receive one. Roger circulated the draft syllabus for information. He noted that the Digital evenings had held up well this session, and the PDI competitions had been well supported. Competition Secretary, Phil Riley thanked Barry and Roger for their help. He invited feedback on the judges. Jon Bawden noted that we needed judges to be encouraging to members whilst highlighting faults in an image. Jill Hargreaves keeps track of the club equipment on loan to members. If it is moved on it is important to let Jill know, else the last recorded member is held responsible.
Two resolutions were both agreed nem con. That the committee is authorized to change and publish the modified rules for the Annual Exhibition; and similarly that the committee is authorized to change and publish the changes to the rules for the Clubworker competitions.
Roger announced the final results for clubworkers of the year:
- Katie Garner = Best Intermediate worker
- Phil Riley = Best Slideworker
- Dorothy Redford = Best Printworker
- Alan Saunders = Club worker of the Year
Roger noted that being President and arranging one's own syllabus was hard work, but satisfying. He was pleased with the increased membership, but would like to have done better in the external competitions. His general approach was that we should lead, rather than follow, fashion. He was grateful to a hardworking committee for constant support, and for the backing of all our members.
He noted that Tony Rosevere and Joyce Streets were hoping for a rest from committee work. He was pleased to announce that Graham Johnston had agreed to be President elect. The President is appointed by the committee and he was willing with their consent to do a second year as President. Jill Hargreaves agreed to become membership secretary, with John Garner taking over as local Publicity man. With these changes the new committee was voted in.
25 May. (Awards and acceptances)
Solihull 2009
(At the time of writing, the Solihull PS website doesn't have information about this event.).
AcceptancesJon Allanson: |
|
|
|
Geoff Robinson: |
|
|
|
23 May. (Meeting and event reports)
New gallery uploaded, and meeting reports updated
Links to this gallery have also been added to Bill's and Tony's meeting reports of the Lisbon trip.
There is a new gallery "Lisbon (Another Man's View)" by Tony Redford in our galleries page. |
|
|
|
22 May, by Bill, Tony, Jack & George. (Meeting and event reports)
Club Trip to Lisbon 9th to 12th May 2009
Here are 4 reports. These are just the first paragraphs - the full reports are at the links below.
Photos by Gordon Robson
Bill Chadband: One Man's View
Woke up at 5.00 am on Saturday 9th May and set off at 5.30am to pick up Gordon and Joyce. We had decided that it would be cheaper to leave the car with Premier Parking for the three days. We arrived there at 6.10 am; the Courtesy Bus came immediately with terminal 3 as the 1st stop. So by 6.30am we were ready to book in. We boarded the plane (BMI baby) at 7.50 am and by 11.30am were circling over Lisbon prior to landing. This gave us our first views of the Tejo Estuary and the bridges (the 17 km long Vasco de Gama and the shorter 25th April bridge.)
Tony Redford: Another Man's View
Of all the club's European trips (and I've been lucky enough to participate in every one so far) this latest venture can claim the dubious distinction of having had the most inauspicious start!
Jack Bamford: A Guest's View
Now in the distant past, with a few days work under our belt since the early morning flight home from sunny Lisbon (well on the last day). I remember well the very friendly chatter of our taxi driver, as we drove through the streets of Lisbon to the Hotel, his comments of Ronaldo was the greatest and he was from Portugal, and United was only second best to Benfica, we should have worked him out there and then. Parting with thirty euros for this pleasant but long journey we were disappointed to learn that some in the party had only paid 10 euros, and that included the tip !!.
See full report ....George: Another Guest's View
Manchester Airport: Saturday 6.30am: Colin taking the role call of 21 people waiting to check in for the BMI Baby flight to Lisbon, Expo 2009 ready to commence. As a visiting member (named George!) introductions were made and I soon felt a welcomed member of the group.
See full report ....21 May.
New galleries uploaded
There are two new galleries by Joyce Streets in our galleries page: |
|
|
|
19 & 20 May, by Richard Scaife. (Notices and news)
Summer Programme - Visit to Victoria Baths Manchester
I have booked a visit to Victoria Baths (of "Restoration" fame) for the evening of Tuesday 9th June at 7.00pm. (This booking is confirmed).
This will cost £6.00 per person including refreshments (tea/coffee & biscuits).
They request confirmation of numbers by the end of May, so please tell me by then if at all possible. Tell me at the AGM or phone me on 01625 878269.
The baths are on Hathersage Road which runs between Oxford Road and Stockport Road/Plymouth Grove, just east of the SE corner of the hospitals.
There is a small car park and parking on nearby roads is not difficult. Alternatively there are buses out from central Manchester.
See the website for maps.
18 May. (Meeting and event reports)
Update - Last Digital meeting of the session - the winning image
Ian isn't (yet?) a member of NCPS, but has been attending our digital workshops.
Ian Bramham: Storm Warning, Morecambe Bay |
|
|
|
17 May, by Barry Pearson. (Meeting and event reports)
Jon Allanson's session - Tuesday 12 May 2009
Even though many members were on the annual outing abroad, Jon had a good-sized audience for this session that covered the two topics below:
Getting the best out of your digital SLR
This session was rather like an informal digital workshop, serving to introduce some important features of modern (and older!) SLRs. Jon suggests experimenting with the camera to become familiar with the various settings, rather than rely on automation throughout. Jon gave an example of the studio session of 21 April, where it was important to control the aperture, shutter speed, and ISO sensitivity.
Different cameras have different details, but discussion with the audience showed that some of the important controls were standard, especially when shooting raw.
Interestingly, most of the audience normally shot raw, with just a few normally shooting JPEGs. At least 2 of the audience convert their raw images to Adobe's DNG format. There is never a consensus about which raw processors to use, and this session was no exception. People variously used Lightroom, ACR, (Adobe Camera Raw as a plugin to Photoshop), or software supplied by their camera manufacturer, and there are many other products available. Factors include workflow, image quality with default settings, and price.
A demonstration of print mounting
Jon brought along his mounting kit, built up and used over years. He described the principles of both surface mounting and window mounting. The latter is particularly useful to reduce the risk of print damage, apart from being an attractive way of displaying prints.
It makes life much easier if the cutter slides along a rule and the rule cannot slip against the base. Jon has constructed his own system to achieving this, but ready-to-go systems are available at a price.
There is more in the full report ....
13 May. (Awards and acceptances)
7th Digital Master Circuit 2009
This Circuit, approved by PSA and by IIWF, comprises 3 salons: Mattersburg, Modling and Wien
AwardsMartin Currie: |
|
|
|
Acceptances(The number of accepting salons is given). Martin Currie: |
|
|
|
12 May, by Bill Chadband. (Meeting and event reports)
Last Digital meeting of the session Tues 5th May
For this last meeting of the session the more recent Club members (or would-be members) were invited to bring along images for comment. A wide range of excellent images was produced and Tony and Geoff led the comments. The aim had been to give feedback on how the images presented could be improved, but in the event most images were already “improved” and the authors congratulated upon such fine images. The audience was invited to vote on which of each member’s set was the most attractive. From this final set of “winners” the most appealing image was selected. The process had value in demonstrating to members the impossible position we put judges in when asking them to select a winner from a range of excellent images. Most images were projected by our Canon projector, but some were prints; illuminated by the white light of the projector. Because of their relative small size compared to the projected image it was again clear that one could not really compare the Projected image with the print image. One needed to get closer to the print; at arms-length at the most.
This relaxed evening was a fitting end to the session and President Roger Dye is to be congratulated upon arranging such a suitable finale.
11 May. (Notices and news)
Minor competition rule changes
Only summaries are displayed below. The full proposals are in the full Notice.
These proposals are minor, and therefore do not need a formal vote. However, the Committee's intention is for these to be discussed at the AGM to gauge members' views. This may lead to revision of the proposals.
1. Rosalind Bramley expiry period
Change "... the images should have been taken in the last 12 months" to "... the images should have been taken in the last 24 months". (etc)
2. Rename "Beginner / Intermediate Class"
This should be renamed "Intermediate Class". (etc)
3. Guidelines for board sizes of prints
It is desirable for members to adopt a maximum board size of 50 cm x 40 cm. (This is the PAGB and L&CPU maximum). This is a little smaller than the current maximum of 20 inches x 16 inches. The proposal is not (yet) to change the rules, but to add a note, (a guideline that isn't actually a rule and so isn't binding), into the published rules. (etc)
7 May. (Awards and acceptances)
8th Suncoast Virtual Salon
- Suncoast Virtual Salon
- FIAP: International Federation of Photographic Art | FIAP Patronage Service | FIAP Patronage 2008
- PSA: Photographic Society of America | PSA Competitions and Exhibitions | PSA Exhibition Forms
AwardsMartin Currie: |
|
|
|
AcceptancesMartin Currie: |
|
|
|
Geoff Robinson: |
|
|
|
6 May, by Barry Pearson & Roger Dye. (Notices and news)
Two motions for the AGM
These motions have already satisfied the formal requirement "Motions for debate at the Annual General Meeting must be proposed and seconded by fully paid-up members of the society and submitted to the secretary at least 14 days before the AGM." They were displayed at the meeting of 5 May.
Only summaries are displayed below. The full motions are in the Notices at the following links.
- To allow the entry of digital images for projection as well as slides and prints. The file format would be the same as that for projected digital images in Clubworker competitions, although the filenames might be different....
- The maximum number of images that can be entered (currently 5 slides and 5 prints for Intermediate workers, or 8 slides and 8 prints for Advanced workers) is to be determined by the Committee in plenty of time for each Exhibition, rather than being specified in the rules themselves, but with a minimum of 4 for Intermediate workers and 5 for Advanced workers.
- (etc)
- The current "Slide worker of the year" award would be replaced by a “Projected image worker of the year” award. (So “Slide worker of the year” would cease to exist). This would be available only to the Advanced class. This would be in addition to the current “Intermediate worker”, “Print worker”, and “Clubworker” awards....
- (etc)
5 May, by Roger Dye.
Extra meeting - Tuesday 12 May 2009
A meeting has been arranged for the usual time in the usual place (Poynton Civic Hall) on Tuesday 12th May. (When some members will be away for the annual outing).
Jon Allanson will take the meeting and the programme will be:
"How to get the best out of your digital SLR";
A demonstration of print mounting;
A general question session.
4 May. (Awards and acceptances)
63rd Bristol Salon of Photography
- Bristol Salon of Photography
- FIAP: International Federation of Photographic Art | FIAP Patronage Service | FIAP Patronage 2008
- PSA: Photographic Society of America | PSA Competitions and Exhibitions | PSA Exhibition Forms
- Royal Photographic Society
AcceptancesAlan Saunders: |
|
|
|
Martin Currie: |
|
|
|
Geoff Robinson: |
|
|
|
Jon Allanson: |
|
|
|
3 May.
URGENT - Balearic weekend in Manchester 1st - 4th May 2009
News just in from Ted Wilson via Tony Redford:
There is a Balearic weekend in Manchester on 1st - 4th May. So still Sunday 3rd and Monday 4th to go!
"Discover the Balearic Islands in Manchester - a bank holiday event presenting the best of Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The centre piece is a huge marquee in Albert Square, Manchester. Throughout the day and evening there will be music and entertainment on the stage, horse dressage in the arena, artisan demonstrations, food and drink sampling and a daily parade containing 110 people".
2 May, by Bill Chadband. (Committee reports)
Committee Meeting Wed 29 April
The meeting was mostly concerned with arrangements for the AGM in May. Resolutions regarding using Projected Digital images in the members Annual Exhibition competition; Maximum Print sizes to conform with new L&CPU requirements; and changing Slideworker of the Year to Projected Image Worker of the Year were all discussed. The number of Print images mountable in the Annual exhibition was limited to about 144. It was felt that the number of images per member allowed would depend upon the likely entry and was best fixed each year by the committee.
The Summer Program was discussed. Barry puts events likely to interest members on the WEB site. Members can always club together to make joint arrangements. However a possible club visit to the Victoria Baths, and Tony Pioli’s offer to take a group out were discussed in greater detail.
President Roger Dye outlined the program he had so far arranged for the next session. It included three Club-worker Print competitions and three Club-worker Projected image competitions plus the Rosalind Bramley Monochrome competition. There would be eight Digital worker evenings held at Hazel Grove Bowling and Tennis Club. Roger was still seeking ideas and speakers for the various slots.
Help was again needed for the Poynton Show on 29th August, where we were again the official photographers.
The next committee meeting was set for Wed 29th July 09.
1 May, by Bill Chadband. (Meeting and event reports & Members' competition results)
Rosalind Bramley Competition 2009
A record 48 mono prints were submitted for this competition, held on Tuesday 28th April and competently organized by Jonathan Bawden and Jill Hargreaves.
John Bramley’s wish was that the competition be judged by all the club members and the organizers have established a relaxed yet very workable two stage process for doing this. Having been numbered in advance, the prints were displayed in turn on the light box before being placed on tables around the room for closer scrutiny. Members were given sheets to indicate which were their top six choices. During the tea break Jonathan and Jill worked out, from all these sheets, which were the top six prints to go forward to the second round. A new marking sheet was given to each member to mark out of 5 each of the selected images, now mounted on a display stand, but again, in turn, displayed on the light box. The marks which accumulated for each print were gathered by Jonathan and Jill by the Calling in system “How many 5’s?; How many 4’s ? etc. This worked well as members could see how the voting progressed and feel the excitement as the marks accumulated.
Graham Johnston emerged as the clear winner with his print Lines and Curves. New members Jackie Robinson and Trevor Rogers fought closely for 2nd place. Gordon Robson had two prints in the final six. The marks for these six prints are given in the full article.
In accepting the winner’s cup Graham Johnston noted that he had known Rosalind, having been present at another club when she gave a talk. He also had a copy of her book, and was pleased to have been judged by the members the winner of her trophy.
President Roger Dye thanked the organizers for their efforts; thanked the members for their support both in producing the images and the marking of them. The evening had proved a most relaxed and friendly one. Roger should be thanked for nominating himself to make the tea and coffee.
Results in the full article ....
| News and blog archives | April 2009 | ||