Blandford Forum Camera Club

Blandford CC are long standing members of this group and the annual battle with other clubs took place in the Corn Exchange, Dorchester on Monday 3^rd November.  Nine members of the club attended and enjoyed a high quality battle hosted by Dorchester CC and ably judged by Brian Galbraith from the Wadebridge club in Cornwall. For the benefit of those unfamiliar with the competition, each club submits eight slides with not more than three from any one photographer and at least five workers represented.  Because of their great popularity, not more than three nature images are allowed from each club.  We fielded slides by John Burton (2), Jan Carey (1), Eric Langley (2), Graham Poynter (2) and Bernard Smith (1).  The other clubs taking part were Beaminster, Bridport, Dorchester, Swanage, Wareham, Weymouth, Wimborne and Yeovil. Dorchester won with 70 points with Beaminster and Bridport sharing second position with 67 points.  We came seventh with 60 points, which is underwhelming at first glance but it is important to note that we were the only club to have entered eight traditional slides created through the use of conventional film.  Eric, especially, is to be congratulated on being our highest scorer with nine points for one of his landscapes.   To reflect the current technology, and with effect from next year, all WCG images will be digitally projected.  This means that we shall have to get used, not only to the concept of having to switch off the lights before we can see the pictures (we’ve got used to that by and large), but also to the fact that images have only digital existence.  The pictures themselves have no actual reality.  Never mind; keep the faith, they can still look good.

The away leg of this friendly fixture was held on Tuesday 28^th October and thanks are again due to Adrian Oliver and family for transporting our entries to and fro as usual.  The judge was John Murray who marked from five to ten but in what some may consider being a rather quirky way.  Clearly a man who knows his own mind, of the sixty images, i.e. fifteen prints and fifteen slides from each side, he awarded five points to just over three quarters of the total.  The remaining fourteen images were awarded points between seven and ten – no sixes and no half marks. 

Be that as it may, the net result was a satisfactory one for us, winning as we did, by 88 to 82 with our prints and by 90 to 80 with our slides.  In the print section, the highest Blandford scorers were John Burton (10) and Malcolm Bowditch (9) with Dionne Horsfall and Colin Cross both getting seven.  As you will have worked out, the rest got five.  The higher scoring Blandford slides were by Malcolm Bowditch (10) and Dionne Horsfall (9) with Dionne (again), John Burton and Colin Cross all scoring seven.  And the rest got - - - ?, that’s it, five.

 Those with longer memories than mine may recall that we also won both sections in the home leg a month ago by a comfortable margin.  So, all in all, a good, consistent performance by Blandford who were completely unfazed by playing away on unfamiliar territory. 

The second Points Cup competition for prints was held at the clubhouse on Tuesday 4th November and the judge was Terrick Meakin from Trowbridge.  Terrick is a very highly respected judge and it was a pleasure for the club to welcome him for the second time in a year.  A total of 59 prints were presented for his consideration and, displaying his usual enthusiasm and good humour, gave a carefully considered critique of each image together with encouragement to all with words and/or points.  The range of subject matter was wide and the standard was high and this latter factor was reflected in the award of the maximum mark to no fewer than eight pictures.  Terrick’s last visit, for the final Points Cup of 2007-08 in early May of this year, yielded only three tens, reflecting perhaps some photo fatigue at the end of a long season or, more optimistically, indicating the improving standard of the club’s work that we are now seeing.  However, five of the current tens were for colour prints by Norman Carey (still life), Colin Cross (natural history), Keith Chaloner (seascape), Dionne Horsfall (portrait - woman) and Marilyn Peddle (portrait - dog).  Dionne was in fine form and was also awarded a ten for a monochrome entry, as was Chris Ablett and Malcolm Bowditch. 

This was a well-attended and thoroughly enjoyed event - as such occasions should be - with members leaving a little bit wiser and much encouraged.

by Malcolm Bowditch, posted by KC

On Tuesday 28th October, the club held internal competitions for prints and slides with ‘Dorset’ as the theme. Our judge for the evening was Martin Western DPAGB from Bournemouth Photographic Society. Martin was also our judge for the slide competition for the Davies Cup back in March of this year. On this occasion though, the twenty-seven entries in the print competition were for the Committee Cup, and after a considered critique of each image, he awarded the trophy to John Burton for a very fine coloured seascape, ‘Portland waves’. In second place was a monochrome shot of Corfe Castle by Malcolm Bowditch and Jean Bartlett was third with ‘Dorset at Kimmeridge’. Jean was also highly commended for a second photograph ’Kimmeridge Sunset’. Dionne Horsfall and Peter Watts were also highly commended for their work.
The slides competition attracted twelve entries and was for the Carillon Trophy. Martin made an equally measured assessment of each entry and after due consideration, awarded the first place – and the trophy – to Bernard Smith for a rather different and effective treatment of Kingston Lacy. Eric Langley’s ‘Tollard Royal’ was placed second with Bernard featuring again in third place with a classic shot of Ashmore, featuring its village pond. Julian Forder was highly commended.
It was a thoroughly enjoyable evening, attributable largely to the pleasure of enjoying some nice images but due also in no small part to Martin Western’s judging in which he focused on what was good rather than on what was bad.

Everyone has heard of Venice, it has a lot of water, gondolas and pigeons, doesn’t it?
Oh, and it’s supposed to be beautiful.

Well, yes, it has all of those and a few more as I was lucky enough to find out last week. For those of you who haven’t been, I have put a few pictures from my first day on the gallery; I hope they will tempt you to save up and go. For those who have been, perhaps a few memories will be stirred.

I will probably add some more images over the next week or so and drop some from the front, in the hope that they will impart a little of the magic I found there.
Keith

On Tuesday 21^st October, the club held its first Points Cup competition for digitally projected images (DPI) side-by-side with the equivalent and traditional slides event.  The club welcomed an old friend, Anne Mahany CPAGB, as our judge for the evening.  With the audience seated in some style, thank you ‘Awards for All’, we turned the lights off (that’s projected images for you!) and listened as Anne made her customary considered judgements.  In doing so, she left members in no doubt of the image-degrading nature of non-critical areas containing lighter patches, and those who hadn’t appreciated this paid the price with points!   In dealing with the entry of sixteen slides, she awarded maximum marks to Eric Langley for a fine landscape and 9½ each to Jan Carey and Julian Forder.  Bernard Smith trailed, but only just, with a score of nine.   In an event of a remarkably uniform standard, the DPI competition had one entry marked with a seven and one with a ten (by Colin Cross and of a lioness with three cubs), the thirty other entries all scored between 7½ and 9½.  Those awarded 9½, and therefore missing the maximum by a whisker, included Jean Bartlett, Jackie Poynter, Norman Carey, Evan Jones and Colin Sansom.  Jean Bartlett (again!), Jacky Stevens and Pam Woodhouse all received nines.   Don’t forget the ‘Dorset County’ competition next week!  Or to bring the prints for Points Cup No 2 the following week!