Month: October 2023

Next up, on Wed 01 Nov, we have our third Speaker: Andrew Allan is 26 years old and is from Perth. He’s been doing astrophotography seriously for about 5 years and is building a successful brand as “Scotland’s Night Sky”. As well as photographing the night sky here in Scotland he has made a number of trips to Arctic Norway and Iceland in pursuit of Auroras. Over the past couple of years he has filmed content for BBC and collaborated with Martin Compston. And, very recently, he has produced a guidebook that tells you everything you need to know if you want to photograph Scotland’s Night Skies. You can find more on his website www.scotlandsnightsky.com

https://www.perthshirephotographicsociety.org.uk/2023/07/programme-2023-24/#week05

Newcomers are very welcome to register online, and come along to meet us for a couple of weeks, with no commitment. That gives you the chance to decide if you like what you see.
Or you can jump straight in with new or renewed membership.
Either way, go to the online form on our Membership page to register.
https://www.perthshirephotographicsociety.org.uk/membership/

Last night had been billed as ‘Urban Photography with a dash of Chiarascuro’, and so it proved. An oft-published author, Graeme was a wonderfully lively speaker, and he gave us a masterclass in the principles and practicalities of urban (or street) photography, with many examples exhibiting extreme contrast and great blocks of negative space.

He also encouraged us to think beyond individual images, and consider Projects. The more we work with a given theme, be it style or subject matter, the more we learn about it, and perhaps about ourselves.

And to embrace our failures. A handful of ‘keepers’ from an entire day out? What other pursuit has quite as high a failure rate as photography? And yet, every day is a school day, and every failure can become a learning success.

From comments overheard, this was all received as being accessible to everyone, and indeed inspirational to many. The tricky Italian word was even attempted a few times, and, whatever the pronounciation, the message was clear – expose for the highlights, and let the shadows go to black. (Or vice versa – more Italian).

Perhaps we’ll see more urban/ street in this style in our Facebook group, at Perth Photo Forum.

Our new 2023-24 season is under way, for anyone with an interest in Photography, and living within Perth, Perthshire, Perth and Kinross, and surrounding areas in Scotland. 

Next up, our second Speaker: Graeme Youngson is an accomplished street photographer from Aberdeen. Of particular interest is his use of ‘chiarascuro’ technique to produce dramatic high-contrast black and white images.

https://www.perthshirephotographicsociety.org.uk/2023/07/programme-2023-24/#week04

Newcomers are very welcome to register online, and come along to meet us for a couple of weeks, with no commitment. That gives you the chance to decide if you like what you see.
Or you can jump straight in with new or renewed membership.
Either way, go to the online form at How do I join? to register.Our Facebook Page has other posts you can share – https://www.facebook.com/PerthshirePhotographicSociety

Wow! What a way to start the Speakers element of our season! George spoke to us with contagious enthusiasm, and told us the story of his boardroom background, and his reawakening as a digital artist. He then talked us through his exhibited project, ‘Hope: Ten images depicting Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs in surrealist form‘.

You can read more about this project here, on Stirling Uni’s Culture on Campus blog. It scarely conveys George’s energy, but it does at least give a sense of the scale of his ambition.

From a technical viewpoint, he had some helpful insights about his choice of colour palette for each image, how the eye is drawn to areas of movement in an image, and how our mind makes up what might exist beyond the confines of the frame.

He also told us of some of the background reading he’s done in support of this project, and, more importantly, in support of of his own personal development to ‘discover your purpose’, of which the project is an expression.

Week two – many members, including many new members. And many tables, around which small groups could gather, and discuss photos they’d brought in. Discussion ranged over many topics, both artistic and technical. What a buzz!

Following the tried and tested format, groups changed tables a few times through the course of the evening. With a bit of luck we all got to know each other a little better, and we look forward to seeing everyone again next week.

The first night of the season is traditionally titled President’s Night. It’s a chance for our president, Ian Mackay, to welcome us back, or welcome us for the first time if we’re one of the dozen or so who were along for the first time – Welcome!

In the first half of the evening, there was an opportunity to let other members of the club’s committee introduce themselves. We heard an outline of the programme for the year, and a point to our intention this year to offer more support to novice photographer members.

After the break, full of vibrant bustling informal chat over a hot drink, Ian shared stories from his background in photography, with a leaning towards landscapes, and in his working life as a pilot.

In something of a surprise intervention, Ian was presented with his recognition from the Scottish Photographic Federation for his ‘Frozen Dawn’, which won him a silver medal in the recent SPF Print Championship. Graham Robb, as our external competitions secretary, presented the honours.