Retford and District Photographic Society’s first meeting of the new season got them off to a good start with many previous members and a heartening attendance of visitors hearing what the season ahead had in store.
There are some new ideas this season, including a couple of Zoom presentations. These enable the club to have speakers from any distance and they are making the most of this in inviting a speaker in Inverness whose speciality is photographing weddings in the Highland landscape.
Members will have regular opportunities to share their work in ‘Show and Tell’ meetings and some practical sessions are planned.
Their traditional speakers will be covering a wide range of topics, including wildlife, sport, views of the margins of society (photos with a gritty edge), Venice, African safaris and macro photography of wildlife subjects.
Woven into the programme are a number of competitions, following the group’s traditional pattern. They begin the season with individual photos and the first two of these have no fixed theme, allowing everyone to enter whatever they like. The third competition, in November, has the theme ‘Shadows’.
After Christmas come the competitions for multiple images, where those already shown can be used in appropriate groups.
Existing members who wish to submit their work for the regional exhibition held by the North and East Midlands Photographic Federation will need to get their submissions in at the club as soon as possible since they have to be taken to the reception by mid-October. This is a prestigious event and a real feather in the cap of those whose work is accepted.
The formal part of the first meeting concluded with a short, but very well produced and interesting presentation of the digital images which Lee Dalgleish had put together from images submitted for competitions by members last year. After that a finger buffet was opened for all to enjoy and to fuel many conversations with visitors and friends alike.
The club welcomes new members at any time, although the start of the season is a particularly good time. If you are new to the area, newly retired with time to fill or have discovered a passion for photography, they would be pleased to see you. Guests can attend for three sessions paying the guest rate of £5.00 before committing to membership.
Meetings continue on Monday evenings through the autumn and spring. They meet in St Joseph’s Hall, Babworth Road, Retford at 7.30pm until the end of April 2025. Their website, www.retford-photographic.co.uk, gives information about the club.