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Having been a member of a Photographic Society / Camera Club for many years now I thought I might jot down some thoughts which may be of interest to anyone considering membership.

Photographic Society’s / Clubs have now been operating successfully, and without a great deal of competition since the late 1800s, and I began to wonder what effect the emergence of web sites such as Flickr, Instagram, 500px, Facebook, and many others I may not even heard of might be having on Club membership. Certainly the younger generations seem to do everything on line, and as time passes the older generation are catching up. Social media sites certainly appear to have  contributed to a definite long-term downward trend in membership.

When I consider what my motives for being a member of a Club are, my chief reasons would probably be:- 

1. A desire / curiosity to see and hear about the work of others, 
2. To gain inspiration from seeing that work, 
3. Have the opportunity to show and receive feedback about my own work. 
4. Enjoy the social aspects of interacting with other like-minded people. 

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I’ve been spending some time lately twiddling and fiddling on the computer, attempting to upgrade my computer skills as I’ve been interested in branching out into digital art territory and the creation of composite images.

I suppose it resulted from my time in the studio and to some degree an element of frustration experienced by being tied to the sets and props available at the time of the shoot, being mostly arranged group shoots.

I started to ask the models to adopt poses suitable for the ideas I was developing for the creation of composite images. I must admit it’s added a renewed enthusiasm to my photography.

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I had never considered trying a professional studio until about 18months ago when I was asked if I fancied joining a group who had arranged a fine art studio course. I decided to give it a whirl got hooked, and now I visit the studio fairly frequently.

I have to say I find it quite addictive for the following reasons:-

The challenge of finding an idea that works with the models look.

Playing with the lighting set up to create the mood that fits your idea.

Finding the right post processing to reinforce the above.

Hopefully if all the above come together you end up with a worthwhile image, I highly recommend you give it a try.

Some of my favourites so far are shown below.

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Cuba, a place that was on my list of places to go but probably a fair way from being top. Then suddenly the word was out that the improving relations with the US would lead to investment, and the country becoming a radically different place in the not too distant future.

All this talk led to a reassessment and Cuba moved up the list a few places, and I finally visited in September 2016.

Havana is an intoxicating mix, warm friendly people, great music, fantastic architecture and of course the cars. Heat and humidity necessitates frequent stops at the bars for a cool drink, and the opportunity to enjoy the impromptu visits by the street salsa bands. Unfortunately I also seem to have become rather partial to a tot or two of rum since my visit.

Photo opportunities seem to present themselves around every street corner, and it’s no surprise that you see so many great shots from the place. I certainly would jump at the chance to go back.

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I have now had the pleasure of visiting Marrakesh on two occasions most recently in February 2016 and I find it to be a fascinating place to visit, full of unusual sights and sounds. The pale pink masonry combined with the light makes for a nice warm and unique look to the images.

From the perspective of capturing the people, unfortunately it’s quite difficult, as a large percentage of the residents seem to dislike having their picture taken and on seeing a camera they immediately cover their faces or turn away, in some cases they will remonstrate quite excitedly if photographed, which is undoubtedly a great shame as there are characters aplenty. Things are also complicated by the narrow and crowded nature of some of the streets, being light on one’s feet is definitely an advantage when it comes to dodging the motor cycles and carts etc. however an undaunted attitude can pay dividends and can result in some nice captures.

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My interest in photography stems from my love of walking in the Lakes. The sheer beauty of the Lake District brought about a desire to capture it on film. As a consequence I went out and bought my 1st proper camera an Olympus OM1 if I remember. I expect I’m far from unique in coming into photography on the back of walking, especially amongst landscape photographers. Twenty something years later I still love to return as often as possible.  Although it has to be said summer isn’t really the best time for photographing the Lakes, my preference being autumn and winter.
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I visited Barcelona for the first time in September 2012. Barcelona seems to have something for everyone, from great architecture, history, art, even great beaches. From a photographers perspective there’s always something to point your camera at. I was bowled over by Gaudis work but unfortunately the Sagrada Família was covered in scaffolding during my visit, still an awe inspiring  piece of architecture. The city seems full of  young people and consequently feels vibrant. I particularly enjoyed the opportunities for street photography.
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In case you’ve never heard of a Lensbaby let me explain. A Lensbaby is essentially a basic lens contained within a body which is capable of swivelling, in the case of the one I currently use, a Lensbaby Composer it swivels on a ball joint which can be locked to enable repeatable results. The more basic Vuse moves on a flexible hose and can’t be locked. Because of this movement it allows the user to pick a small point of focus and create some interesting blur effects on the rest of the image.

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looking back through my archives the other day, I was struck by how many images I had on file taken using windows or inside shops. They’re a great source of material. Here are some examples.

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It occurred to me recently that I may have been neglecting the landscape side of things of late. With this in mind I decided to take a trip to the North Yorks coast in an effort to rectify the situation.I spent most of my time during the trip in and around the fantastic towns of Whitby and Staithes. These are some of my personal favourites from the trip.

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Venice a city which in my opinion should be near, if not at the top of anyone’s bucket list of places to see. I have been fortunate enough to have visited the city on a number of occasions now but always look forward to a return. I will never forget my first sight of Venice when approaching from the lagoon, pure magic and theatre. Of course its been photographed so often its difficult to come up with something different. Here’s some of my efforts.

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