Club Meeting, Members Evening - Tuesday 10th September 2019.

   

On Tuesday 10th September, Morpeth Camera Club held its first "in house" meeting of the season where members
are invited to show a selection of their recent Pdi images taken over the summer break. Thirteen photographers took
up the challenge and with no restrictions on content we saw a diverse mix of subject matter and styles.

Gordon Hine started the proceedings with images of Alnwick, Warkworth and Bamburgh Castles and an evening shot
of Morpeth clock tower. Moving on to people photography we saw studies taken on visits to Beamish museum, the
Edinburgh Fringe and the Morpeth Gathering before ending with the movement and colour of The Hoppings at night.

Sophie Elliott Edwards followed with a short audio visual sequence of images set to music that she had created after
being inspired by the work of two local artists. Wanting to try something a bit different with soft colours, textures, and
gentle movement her dreamlike rocks and water seascape images gave a feeling of calm and tranquillity.

Brian Morris started on a different path with horses and riders at an equestrian event and in your face images of hot
rods taken at a Carfest. Brightly coloured huge engined cars burning rubber caught the eye before slowing things down
with images taken at a green party conference. A dance troop striking a pose and some still life images ended his mix.

Dave Bisset opened with images of a dinosaur, a llama and a giant tortoise. He carried on the natural history theme
with chicks emerging from eggs, a guillemot feeding and action shots of puffins and terns in flight. The clubs summer
walks featured in several presentations and it was interesting to see different authors views of the same locations.

Dave Birch showed images of an ornate stained glass window in a colonial building, the interior of Norwich cathedral,
and studies of nets and ropes. Landscape shots from the lake district followed and included an atmospheric shot of
High Dam Tarn, near Finsthwaite, before moving to Swaledale and a remote derelict farmhouse called Crackpot Hall.

Davy Bolam had produced an audio visual presentation of the nine Camera Club Summer Walks. All sixty images were
in the square format and in six minutes we were taken to Warkworth, Shaftoe Crags, The Farne Islands, and Morpeth.
Then on to Cullercoats, Fontburn Reservoir, North/South Shields and Blyth Battery before ending at Rimside Gibbet.

Dave Wilkin, a new member to the club had attended some of the summer walks and his selection included images
of Blyth Battery, Morpeth and birds and seals on the Farne islands. Coastal shots from Boulmer, Craster, Rumbling
Kern and the Isle of Mull were followed by some different architectural images taken in and around Edinburgh.

Glyn Trueman opened his presentation with a number of macro photography images of bugs and insects with amazing
details, these were followed by some of his favourite images from the summer day trips and included Norham Castle,
South Shields pier, Marsden rocks, the swing bridge at Newcastle and the coastline around St Abbs Head in Berwickshire.

John Thompson started with a brief summary of what he was hoping to achieve, before showing the results of his quest
to take a different image of the Tour of Britain Cycle Race. The idea of pre-visualising an image and then putting that idea
into practice is a difficult process but by planning the location, good composition and lens choice he succeeded in his task.

Pat Wood had focused on the Tour of Britain Cycle Race as it passed through Widdrington. Being at the right place at
the right time she had captured the amusing spectacle of the race being interupted by three different trains as they
went north and south on the east coast main line, splitting the field and giving some riders an unscheduled break.

Peter Downs followed with a mix of different images where he had moved in close with several "found" still lifes
including a pair of deflating balloons abandoned after a big day, a bucket and some empty bottles. Several flower
images and three images where the use of filters and textures had altered the reality of the original photograph.

Stephen Perry, another recent member to the club had also participated in the summer evening walks and showed
his views of the different locations. He explained that he was on a steep learning curve and thanked other members
for their help over the last year, however it was clear that he is enjoying his photography with some good results.

Steve Mcdonald was the final presenter as he took us on a journey by cycle on the Hebridean Way. Using ferries and
causeways to hop between islands we were treated to beautiful beaches, big skies and deserted roads. With standing
stones, thatched cottages and the odd detour to scramble up a munro, this was an ideal place for photography.

Davy Bolam.