The annual WCPF InterClub Print Panel Competition, The Kingswood Salver, took place last weekend and was judged this year by Margaret Salisbury FRPS MFIAP APAGB FIPF. In past years the move seemed to have been towards panels of prints that appeared to have been produced by a single photographer with images not just creating a cohesive panel but all looking virtually the same. This despite the fact that the five prints have to be by five different photographers. This year Pete McCloskey decided that we should go some way towards playing that game and put in a panel of prints all taken at a recent speedway event at Bridgwater that was attended by a group of club members. Sod's Law determined that this year would see a judge who had some savvy and broke from that recent tradition and awarded prizes to panels that didn't just look as if they'd come off a print production line. Despite that, we still managed a well-earned Commended. Below are the first three panels and Bristol's commended panel. 

 

1st Place:

The Phoenix Group - Water, Water Everywhere

 

2nd Place:

Frome Wessex CC - Movement

 

3rd Place:

Swindon PS - Street Photography

 

Commended:

BPS - Speedway

Bristol's images were provided by (L to R): Ann Mead, Pete Howell, Peter McCloskey, Keith Wood & Barry Mead.

 

For more details, including indiviual print winners and other WCPF news and dates, please click here.

 

Now is the time send in your entry to the 2017 Bristol Salon and give yourself the chance of some glory on the international photography scene.
 
For those of you who aren't too sure what the Bristol Salon is: it is an international photographic exhibition that has been running since the mid 1940s and is the largest exhibition of its type in the UK attracting entries from nearly 70 different countries. Entrants submit up to 16 images across 4 sections (Open, Monochrome, Photo Travel and Nature) which are put before a panel of selectors who pick the top 20% to 30% or so to be accepted. Entry for BPS members is free as long as we receive your entry before 21 January, after that you will have to pay the full fee. This might seem like a long way off, but with Christmas and the New Year coming up you'll soon find that the closing date is upon you, so beat the rush and get your entry in now!
 
To help you with your entry there is a small tutorial that can be downloaded by following this link. When entering, be sure to tick the box on the first page of the entry system to say that you are a BPS member and fill in your BPS membership number which you will find at the top of this newsletter; when you get to the payment page at the end, click ALREADY PAID.
 
Here's hoping that we see a rush of entries, but in the meantime if you have any queries, feel free to email me at chairman@bristolsalon.co.uk
 
Full details can found on the BPS website http://www.bristolphoto.org.uk/.
 
All the best
 
Pete Howell & the Salon Team

 

This year's Photography Course finished last week with the customary end of course competition, which was judged by Graham Reeves. The winning image, Growing Old Disgracefully, was by Harry Bowden and is shown below:

 

The full results can now be seen on the BPS website - click here.

 

Derek Ripper, the course organiser, would like to thank all BPS members who helped during the course, by giving lectures, helping with the discussion groups or just generally helping.

 

A warm welcome to the following who have joined BPS during the last month:

We hope that your stay will be both long and enjoyable.

 

DPIC is nearly upon us again, so Pete McCloskey will soon be putting together an entry of 18 images to represent BPS in this annual regional inter-club competition. Last year BPS came joint runners up with Exmouth PG and we only lost out on a place at the National Finals at Warwick by dint of the fact that Exmouth had gained more awards than us. The date for the competition is Sunday 5 February at the Corn Exchange, Exeter. Tickets go on sale 1 December. For further details, you can download the flyer here.

 

I am indebted to Brian Cheer for the following:

 

The WCPF Knightshayes Trophy is nearly upon us and members are invited to enter. The competition is organised by the WCPF and members may enter up to two prints (mounted on 50 x 40 cm card) on the subject "Diffraction". The closing date is 5 February when prints should be handed in at DPIC in Exeter. Some BPS members will be going to DPIC so it should be fairly easy to organise for the prints to be taken down. More details can be found here.

Dates For Your Diary

 

12 Nov - 5 Mar	Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2016: at M Shed. The world-renowned wildlife photography competition from the Natural History Museum returns to M Shed with 100 stunning images; from balletic whales to lizard-chasing parakeets, urban visitors to fantastical landscapes, this year’s selection is strong on visual drama and narrative. Full details here.
29 Nov - 3 Dec	Bath Photographic Society's Annual Members Exhibition is being held at Bath Central Library, The Podium from Tuesday 29 November to Saturday 3 Dec 2016. For further information: www.bathphotographicsociety.org.uk.
02 Dec	Kingswood Photographic Society invite BPS members to see their speaker, Iain McGowan FRPS, who will be giving his talk, Straight From The Garden Shed. Iain says: “My talk consists of prints only (no projection) and features both colour and mono images with a heavy bias towards sets, themes and methods of presentation. Large collages (A1 or bigger) are often used but equally very small images or sets of images are also presented (don't forget your opera glasses - ed). This aspect of print presentation I feel is very important, a variation on the commonly used 50 x 40 style.  As for interest, there will be images covering landscape, intimate landscape, textures, dereliction, street art, abstract and history amongst others." Examples of Iain’s photography, can be found on the Focus Group website, and selecting ‘MEMBER GALLERIES’. The cost for this evening is £3.00.  Kingswood PS meet from 7.30pm to around 9.30pm at St Barnabas Church Hall, Warmley, Bristol BS30 5JJ.
6 Dec	An Evening of Celebration at Bristol Folk House. The Bristol Folk House Darkroom is a year old and to mark this occasion they would like to invite you to an evening of celebration, which will include meet and greet, book signing and information. Free to attend by all. Further details here.
14 Jan	Absolutely nothing to do with photography, but the BBC programme Flog It will be at Bristol Cathedral from 9.30am to 4.00pm. It's free, which should appeal to some members, and will be a good opportunity for some of the Canon users to get rid of some obsolete kit and, with the proceeds, perhaps graduate up to Nikon! www.facebook.com/bbcflogit/
5 February	WCPF DPIC at the Corn Exchange, Exeter. Tickets on sale from 1 December.  Price (£6.00 + booking fee) from the Corn Exchange.

Sue O'Connell is thrilled and amazed to report that she has once again (third year running) been shortlisted for the Travel Photographer of the Year competition: in three separate categories, this time, with two portfolios and a single image. There are no guarantees that she will make the winners' list again, of course, but she is very chuffed to have made it this far again, given the strength of competition these days. Fingers crossed!

 

 

Gordon Stirrat has a new, unused Manfrotto back pack he would like to sell with the proceeds going to the charity he volunteers with – Crisis Centre Ministries that feeds the homeless and ‘people with life disrupting problems’ all year [including Christmas of course]. They serve up to 600 meals a day as well as having a food bank and night shelter for women.
The details of the back pack are – Manfrotto advanced camera and laptop Tri Backpack [Large]. The RRP is £129.95 [Calumet £95]. Gordon would accept £60 if the person who pays is willing to make it as a donation to CCM (hopefully gift aided). An ideal Christmas gift! Please either speak to Gordon at any Wednesday meeting or email him at gstirrat@talktalk.net

 

 

For those of you who aren't sure what MPAGB, EFIAP/s and many more such seemingly random collections of letters mean, just click here to download the list.

Please don't forget that if you change your address (home or email), or gain additional photographic distinctions, it would be appreciated if you could let the Membership Secretary know so that she can keep her records up to date, this will also ensure that you continue to receive your newsletters - please email all changes to membership@bristolphoto.org.uk

The distinctions we have on record are those shown at the top of this newsletter, if they are wrong, please let Carol know.

 

 

If you have any problems getting into the Members' Area, please contact Carol, either by email: membership@bristolphoto.org.uk or by telephone: 0117 924 1338