A discussion with the new RPS CEO – Victoria Humphries
How I take Melbourne – Ted Richards ARPS
Measuring a journey two feet at a time – Peter Smith ARPS
Cover image: Ted Richards ARPS
Volume 40 – Number 5 MAY 2025
Hon. Secretary:
Elaine Herbert ARPS
PH (03) 9866 3538
E: elaineherbert39@gmail.com
Page 4
From your Secretary Elaine Herbert ARPS
Page 6
A discussion with the new RPS CEO
Page 28
Measuring a journey two feet at a time – Peter Smith ARPS
Page 50 What’s on in June?
Newsletter Editor: Ian Brown PH 0403 036 119 E: ian@bforbrown.com.au
Page 5
Welcome from the Editor – Ian Brown
Page 8
How I take Melbourne – Ted Richards ARPS
Page 38
Australian Photography Magazine award winners
Page 18
Pondering Pollard 19: Man with a camera: Felix Man
Page 44
BioCommunications Association – award winners
A new navigation feature
We have added a new feature this month. Taking advantage of the digital format, you can now navigate round the Newsletter directly to the article you want to read first.
Of course you can still flick through the pages, but if you want to jump to a particular article you can click on the button on the contents page (See example below).
To navigate back simply click on the text in the footer and it will bring you back to the contents page (See example below).
From your Secretary
Elaine Herbert ARPS
Hon Secretary, Australian Chapter
Victoria Humphries: Our New CEO
This month’s Newsletter includes a significant scoop! Victoria Humphries has just been appointed as the new RPS CEO; she took up the post on May 19 – and just a few days later in that same week Ian Brown and I met her online for an introductory chat. It was almost like meeting up over a virtual coffee!
We all received an email from Victoria on her first day in the new job, introducing herself to all RPS members. Our online meeting with her picked up from that – see Page 6 of this Newsletter.
We were most fortunate that Victoria could make time for this valuable two-way discussion in her first week, and we say a warm ‘thank you’ to her for making this possible.
News of Members
• We extend our congratulations to Gigi Williams ASIS FRPS and Robin Williams ASIS FRPS who have both had major successes in two recent photographic competitions and exhibitions. These are the Australian Photography Magazine’s Landscape Awards, and the international BioCommunications Association Exhibition. See Pages 38-49 for their stunning images.
• Our Chapter members are great travellers. John Chapman ARPS and his wife Monica are away again, this time in Central Asia. And Rob Morgan ARPS has been in Italy for several weeks too. We look forward to seeing some of their discoveries in future Newsletters. And I’m sure there are many of our other members who are also travelling – do send us some of your images from the trips.
New Members
We are delighted to welcome several new members of the Australian Chapter who have joined us in recent months:
• Karen Bryant of Bridgewater, SA
• Mark Kennedy of St Kilda, Vic
• Tiana Legge of Coffs Harbour, NSW
• Emma Parker of Pretty Beach, NSW
• Christine Sweeney of Sydney, NSW
My apologies that this is a belated welcome for some of you, but I’m still coming to grips with the new (to me!) system for accessing the Australian membership lists. But it’s a very warm welcome and we hope you’ll all get much fulfilment and inspiration from your RPS membership and join in our local Chapter activities whenever possible.
Welcome from the Editor
Ian Brown Editor, Australian Chapter
You can probably describe this month’s issue as a bumper issue. Firstly, thanks to those that have contributed, your contribution is greatly appreciated.
As we have many articles this month, I have added digital navigation to Newsletter. I want to take advantage of the digital publication and make it easier for readers to digitally flick through the content. The instructions are on the previous spread.
I have already received some images for the June issue, but I would like more articles. I have one lined up, if you have a story to tell please let me know. If you only have images we can add them into the Members’ Gallery, if you have a story, I can help you with the writing and editing. If you would like to contribute, please email me at ian@bforbrown.com.au
My dream scenario would be that I have to hold content back because I have so much for the next issue, so please keep those images and stories coming in.
Specifications for contributors
When sending images for the Newsletter, the only requirement is that they are jpeg or png. Images can be 300 ppi and up to A4. Don’t forget you can also add captions for your images. If you don’t include a caption, we’ll assume you don’t need one.
Email images to ian@bforbrown.com.au keep those pixels and captions coming in! For non-image files (e.g. PDFs), under
5 MB is preferred and never 10 MB or more. If your images are too big to email, I have created a Dropbox folder you can upload your images to. Email me for permission, and I’ll grant access to the folder. I will need to delete your images once I have downloaded them.
Deadline for contributions to the next issue is 25 June 2025.
Introducing the new RPS CEO
In short
Elaine Herbert and Ian Brown met with the new RPS CEO, Victoria Humphries.
Topics we covered included:
• Increasing membership of the Australian Chapter
• Ways to engage members online and face-to-face
• Making RPS online talks more accessible for international members
Up next
We agreed to meet again in a few months when Victoria is more settled in the role
Last week, Elaine and I met the Society’s new CEO, Victoria Humphries. We covered many topics, but before we delve into our conversation here is a little about Victoria’s background.
Victoria has held leadership roles in the education technology sector and is currently serving as Chair of Governors at a school in Gibraltar and a trustee for a UK-based group of schools. Previously, Victoria worked as MD of Teachit, a leading educational publishing company, for 13 years, where she played a pivotal role in its growth and development. She also held a project manager position at AQA Education (formerly Assessment and Qualifications Alliance) Her commitment to education is further demonstrated through her roles as an Executive Council Member at the British Educational Suppliers Association and as a Board Member for The Prince’s Trust, focusing on youth empowerment and strategic development. A seasoned keynote speaker, Victoria shares her insights on leadership, resilience, and adaptability, drawing from her diverse experiences to inspire others.
In 1997 Victoria participated in the first all-female expedition to the North Pole. During this challenging journey she and her mother, Sue,
faced extreme Arctic conditions, including temperatures of -40°C and treacherous, shifting ice. At one point both fell into the Arctic Ocean, confronting a life-or-death situation. Their successful completion of the expedition earned Victoria the most notable of her three Guinness World Records and was chronicled in the book she co-authored with her mother, Frigid Women: Anything Is Possible.
In these first few weeks, Victoria is trying to talk to as many people as possible and listen to them so she can develop a deeper understanding of the context behind their challenges, frustrations, and dreams. We asked Victoria if she had ever been to Australia. She has touched down here on her way to New Zealand, but hasn’t (yet) visited.
Our first topic of conversation was our recent member survey and what we learned from it. Some of the topics that are important to our members we can implement without any external help. Other topics we will need help with from the RPS.
One topic we discussed was the availability
of the online talks. We mentioned how the timeframe, obviously, is aimed at the UK members. This makes it difficult for Australian members to attend. We asked if it was possible to record the presentations and to give access to members. Elaine said the many of the Special Interest Groups’ presentations are currently recorded. We briefly discussed the feasibility of recording the talks. The RPS has a YouTube channel where videos could be posted privately and shared with those who have paid for the talk. Victoria asked how many members we have here in Australia; it is between 70 and 80. We want to increase that number. One way to do that is to expand the membership from solely the Australian Chapter to Asia-Pacific. This could benefit members in all three regions.
Returning to the survey, we discussed ways to engage members online and face-to-face. I mentioned a social gathering that the Australian Graphic Design Association runs on the last Wednesday of each month. It is informal and obligation-free. They usually have 20 or 30 people each month. It started a few years ago with five or six. Victoria is open to us running our own version of an event like this and using RPS to broadcast information about it. Looking at online engagement, I mentioned Michel Claverie’s eCircles Critique, “show and tell.” I told her numbers had increased after RPS broadcast information about it, versus the number of attendees when it was only mentioned in the Newsletter.
Another topic was members’ distinctions. Elaine outlined how, while the Australian Chapter has many distinctions, most of them were held by longer-term members. From the survey, we learned that many of the younger members joined to learn from others and may not know about the opportunity to apply for and gain distinctions. We talked about whether we might encourage younger members to apply for distinctions by giving them more prominence
in the Newsletter.
We did have time for Victoria to tell us a little about her trek to the North Pole. In particular, we wanted to know how she documented the trek. During the trek, she had to keep the camera at a constant temperature to stop it freezing or fogging up. This meant she had to always keep her camera inside her jacket. This included sleeping with her camera inside her sleeping bag. When shooting, Victoria could only point and shoot or perform rudimentary camera adjustments. At one point, both she and her mum fell into the water, soaking the camera. It did survive, as did she and her mum.
We asked if she was a photographer, and she said she loves photography and taking pictures, but she isn’t a proper photographer. She continued “I’m married to a very successful film cameraman who is always giving me advice and telling me what I should have done when taking my photographs.” She added “for me photographs are about memories and emotions; yes so very definitely I'm a storyteller and I love story telling.”
Before we knew it, the hour was up. Victoria had to head for the train; she was off to Paris to speak to an international audience. Victoria offered the Society’s support for any initiatives we might implement, and we agreed to keep in touch and to meet again in six months.
Fig.1: Green Bookshop, Queen Victoria Market, July 2013.
How I take Melbourne
Ted Richards ARPS
I have visited Melbourne for two or three days, once or twice a year, for some years, and usually try to take a day wandering around taking photographs.
These are a few of the several thousand I have taken. You can see that they are all random bits of anything that catches my eye.
Crowded places are always interesting –Queen Victoria Market, Hosier Lane and the forecourt of the State Library are favourite places, but otherwise I just get off the tram and start from there.
Some have been used for book or magazine illustrations, and some are represented in State or National collections.
Fig. 2: How to use a real camera, Hosier Lane, March 2019.
Fig. 3: How to take an important selfie, Hosier Lane, March 2019.
Fig. 4: Nathan, the carrot man, S L V, May 2023.
Fig. 5: Holy Sheet, Irwell Street, St Kilda, November 2008.
Of these, Nos. 9, 14 and 15 are held in the permanent collection of the State Library of Victoria.
No. 5 (Nathan, the carrot man) is a perfect “right time, right place” one-shot wonder. Apparently, he walks around carrying the papier-mâché carrot to cheer people up.
The tour group‘s photograph, S L V forecourt, March 2022.
Fig. 7: Lunchtime chess, S L V forecourt, March 2022.
Fig. 9: The Long Walk – “Dreamtime at the G,” May 2017.
Fig. 10: Street Lamp and hanging sneakers, Hosier Lane, August 2015.
Fig. 11: Cobblestones, Hosier Lane, May 2016.
Fig. 12: Shadows on a tram floor, Park Street, St Kilda, April 2022.
Fig. 13: Babushka Dolls at “Our Home,” Brunswick St, Fitzroy, June 2018.
Fig. 14: Napoleon Street, Collingwood, June 2018.
Fig. 15: The Gift Shop, Royal Botanic Gardens, March 2024.
Australian photographer John Pollard FRPS died in 2018, leaving behind not just a grieving family and a substantial legacy of photographic work in public and private collections but also an eclectic collection of books representing his varied interests over his life. In this ongoing column, I hope to stimulate interest and reflection on various aspects of photography based on the perusal of John’s collection of books. In the process, I also aim to periodically shine a light on John’s career and practice.
Dr Robin Williams ASIS FRPS
Fig.1: Self-portrait by Felix Man 1980.
Fig.2: The Commanding Officer’s dugout, 1915. Life was at times surprisingly normal in the trenches. ‘With the villages behind the line destroyed and their inhabitants gone, the possessions which had survived the shelling were used to furnish the dug-outs on the front line.’
Fig.3: Cover of the Book ‘Man with Camera’ featuring a fascinating image of Man himself taking a photograph of Graham Sutherland painting Winston Churchill’s portrait.
Pondering Pollard 19:
‘Man with Camera,’
Photographs from seven decades by Felix H Man. Pub. Secker & Warburg, London, 1983.
This book is a sort of Memoire. It contains over 250 photographs taken over seven decades and also includes recollections describing the events and circumstances surrounding many of the photographs.
I suspect that Felix Man will not be well known amongst our Australian readers: he was best known for his work on Picture Post in Britain from 1938 to 1957, where for eight years he was its chief photographer. I’m guessing that John Pollard was probably introduced to Man’s work via his interest in Lithography (Man wrote a definitive history of the subject).
Felix H. Man [1893-1985] occupies a secure place in the history of photography as the person who took photo-portraits out of the studio into ‘real’ life. Born in Freiburg, Germany, Felix Man began, as so many of us did, with a Box Brownie given to him by his father and processed his results under the stairs in the cellar. After studying fine art and the history of art in Munich and Berlin before the First World War, he went into graphic design and then journalism and was soon engaged in photographic assignments,
Fig.4: ‘An evening reception for the film world, Berlin 1929. ‘Towards the end of the twenties, evening receptions for the press and the film world were one of the features of society life, attended only in formal clothes – including the photographer.’
Fig.5: Toscanini rehearsing, 1930. ‘Toscanini hated the press and refused to be photographed. This early picture of the maestro in the orchestra pit was taken secretly from the stage through a hole in the curtain.’
Fig.6: Professor Max Planck, the Nobel prize winning physicist and originator of the Quantum Theory in his Berlin home. ‘He was old fashioned in appearance and always worked standing at his desk.’
including ‘reportage portraits’ – a term he coined himself. Man’s innovative technique was based on natural surroundings and normal room lighting (i.e. no flash), leading to informal studies captured in the course of conversation. ‘I had no sittings’ he says: the photographs were taken in the course of a ‘Photo-interview’. ‘The method I used in portraying people was based on precisely the same principles I had developed as a journalist: writing with the camera instead of the pen and leaving everything undisturbed in its natural conditions.’ Advances in camera design and film quality facilitated his artistic vision. For Man, the first camera to make this possible was the Ermanox – a small plate camera with a 1:1.8 lens – this, however, still required exposures varying from ¾ to ½ second. With the introduction of the Leica with fast interchangeable lenses in 1932, Man quickly
Fig.5: Nude in the landscape.
Fig.7: ‘The 1930s were difficult times for country workers; the workroom and nursery were the same for this Glatzer mountain hand-weaver, the family’s meagre fare was bread, potato and water.’
Fig.8: ‘French Foreign Minister Aristide Briand in discussion with his parliamentary secretary Alexis Léger. Briand was awarded the Nobel Peace prize in 1926 and interestingly Léger under his pen name St John Perse, was later awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.’
discarded the Ermanox in favour of the more useful Leica. Film, too, had by then been greatly improved, both in speed and in grain. With our modern fast lenses and sensors capable of superb images at 800 ISO, it is impossible to fully appreciate just how difficult it must have been for Man to achieve such results in natural light indoors with moving subjects. He was certainly a Master of his Craft.
Man photographed a dazzling list of internationally famous names in the arts and politics, ranging from a candid and dramatic study of Mussolini in 1931 to portraits of David Hockney in 1970. But it was not just the rich and famous that featured as the subject of his lens; over the decades of his working life he produced many photo essays on themes such as Berlin at the end of the Twenties, Poverty in the Great Depression of the 1930s, Weight-lifting in the
Fig.9: ‘The most fascinating photo-interview I ever did was “A day in the Life of Mussolini”, an essay which was an absolute novelty and was published all over the world. Thousands of pictures of the Duce already existed but they all pictured him as he wanted to be seen. I wanted the real Mussolini, with his real face, unposed.’
Fig.6: Nude in the studio
Fig.10: ‘A tramp resting in the Sussex Countryside – in England a “tramp” is an unemployed person.’
Fig.11: ‘The Mehar Camel Corps in the Libya Desert.’
Fig.12: ‘Native Indians working at the mines of Great Bear Lake in Northern Canada.’
Fig.13: ‘Marc Chagall at Orgeval, near Paris, where he first lived after his return from America.’
Fig.14: ‘Conversation in the pub off Edgware Road, London. “The pub” played a critical part in the lives of the English Working Classes.’
Fig.15: ‘George Orwell (Eric Arthur Blair), author of Animal Farm, The Road to Wigan Pier, Down and Out in Paris and London, and 1984; photographed with his adopted son Richard to whom he was absolutely devoted.’
Berlin Beer Cellars, Libya in the 1930s, the mining communities of Northern Canada, daily life for the working class in England and life in the British Caribbean colonies.
Many of Man’s portraits have been collected by the National Portrait Gallery in London, and his The lights go up in London, a 1945 photograph, is held in the Tate Gallery collection. In 1972, in a move that would establish the cornerstone of its future International Print collection, the National Gallery of Australia acquired the Felix Man Collection, an astonishing array of over 1,000 prints and hundreds of books that document the history of lithography from its invention in 1798 to the early 1960s.
Felix H Man (Hans Felix Sigismund Baumann) died in 1985 in London.
Measuring a journey two feet at a time
Peter Smith ARPS
My drive across the vast expanse of Australia, from the rugged west coast to the serene east, mirrors a deeply personal narrative of survival and rebirth. Born from my recent battle with cancer, this photographic project embodies my journey of resilience and transformation. The 21 photographs, each taken precisely 213 kilometres apart, reflect not only the literal distance of approximately 4,500 kilometres across Australia but also the metaphorical distance covered in my path to recovery.
The number 21 is significant, as it
originally aligned with my goal for a Fellowship application requiring this precise number of works. However, my path took an unexpected turn when the use of AI was barred from the application process. This challenge did not deter me but rather spurred a creative exploration into how traditional photography and modern AI technology could intersect to tell a unique story.
Pairing each photograph with an AI-generated image that draws inspiration from iconic Australian paintings from the late 1800s to the present day was a process filled with surprises and revelations. By crafting a prompt for the AI to identify painters and their works, I was able to blend my images with these historical artistic perspectives. The resulting diptychs symbolise the fusion of personal experience and innovative technology, inviting viewers to ponder the symbiotic relationship between old and new.
Both the physical and technological journeys were forged with uncertainty – the unknown locations where I would pause, and the unpredictability of AI’s interpretations mirrored the unpredictability of my own cancer journey. This sense of uncertainty is profound, akin to awaiting the outcome of each medical test. The process was about meeting each moment as it arose, echoing the resilience required in facing life’s unpredictable challenges.
Throughout my recovery, I discovered that both the journey across Australia and the process of creating art one step at a time paralleled my healing process. The endeavour has transformed my creative practice, demonstrating the potential for AI to complement rather than replace human creativity. By controlling the input prompts and selecting which AI-generated images resonated with me, I was able to explore new realms of artistic expression and meaning.
While the journey was rife with minor adversities, like standing in ant nests or navigating the shadow of my tripod, these moments became an integral part of the project. They are reminders of the imperfect nature of life and self-portraiture, underscoring the project's authenticity and spontaneity.
Ultimately, this project is an invitation for viewers to contemplate impermanence, resilience, and the
potential for new beginnings after life's trials. It's about recognising the power of setting goals and seeing them through, just as I navigated my path towards recovery. This journey celebrates the unexpected ways we find strength and continue to move forward, armed with innovation and the indomitable human spirit.
To the right is a map where each image was taken. To find out more about the original iconic Australian paintings you can visit Peter’s website www.petersmith.photography
Click here for a link to the image references.
Competition & Exhibition success
Chapter members Gigi and Robin Williams, both ASIS FRPS, have had success in recent international competitions/exhibitions.
In The Landscape Awards, just announced, Gigi received two Highly Commended and three Commended for her work and Robin received three Highly Commended and two Commended. Robin reports that every image they entering gained an award!
The Landscape Awards are run by Australian Photography Magazine and in just its third year, received more than 2,500 entries raising over $5,000 for the Australian Conservation Foundation. The judging panel this year included Serena Dzenis, Petra Leary, Anthony McKee, Ignacio Palacios, Matt Palmer, Will Patino and Steph Vella. The Top 20 entrants in each of the four categories – Landscape, Seascape, Aerial and Urban – will be published in the June-July edition of Australian Photography.
Fig 1 left: Fleswick Bay Colours Seascape Commended – Gigi Williams
Fig 2 right: Bow River Landscape Commended –Gigi Williams
Fig 3 below: Lone Tree Landscape Highly Commended – Gigi Williams
Fig 4 left: Numa Falls Landscape Highly Commended – Robin Williams
Fig 5 middle: Mountain Light Landscape Highly Commended – Robin Williams
Fig 6 right: Fredang Landscape Highly Commended – Gigi Williams
Next page.
Fig 7 top left: Tuscan Poppies Landscape Commended – Gigi Williams
Fig 8 bottom left: Spirits Fading Landscape Commended – Robin Williams
Fig 9 top right: Fisherman’s Hut Landscape Commended – Robin Williams
Fig 10 bottom right: Beached Seascape Highly Commended – Robin Williams
Fig 1 below left: Award of Excellence Personal Work Quiver Tree – Gigi Williams
Fig 2 below right: Image of Distinction Natural Science Mulga Parrot – Robin Williams
Meanwhile in the USA
At the Annual Exhibition of the BioCommunications Association – ‘BioImages’ – this year held in Tucson, Arizona, both Gigi and Robin had winning images exhibited. Robin won the Award of Excellence and the Image of Distinction in the Natural Science Photography category as well as a merit award. Robin’s images were all from his portfolio called ‘Flights of Beauty… Flights of Sorrow.’ Gigi won a merit award for her portrait of a Proboscis Monkey. In the personal and self-directed category Gigi reversed the situation with her picking up the Award of Excellence and four merit awards for her landscape images and Robin picking up two merit awards. The BioCommunications Association, or BCA, is an international professional association of people working in the biological and medical communications fields. Both Gigi and Robin are Fellows of the BCA and both have received the Louis Schmidt Medal – the highest award bestowed by the BCA. To be included in BioImages, submissions were evaluated by a distinguished panel of judges for intent, design, execution and impact. This year, the judges selected 107 images for exhibition, that were submitted from eight different countries. Earlier in the year Robin gave a keynote address to the BCA on the ‘Flights’ project and for interested RPS members this can still be viewed on YouTube.
Fig 3 top left: Merit Award Natural Science Portrait of a Proboscis Monkey – Gigi Williams
Fig 4 left: Merit Award Personal Work Hebridean Elements – Gigi Williams
Fig 5 bottom left: Merit Award Personal Work Impressions of Tuscany – Gigi Williams
Fig 6 bottom right: Merit Award Personal WorkColours of Harris – Gigi Williams
Fig 7 top left: Merit Award Personal Work
Marengo Sunrise – Gigi Williams
Fig 8 above: Award of Excellence Natural Science
Superb Parrot – Robin Williams
Fig 9 bottom left: Merit Award Personal Work
Wistman’s Wood – Robin Williams
Fig 10 bottom right: Merit Award Natural Science
Red Tailed Black Cockatoo – Robin Williams
What’s on in June?
RPS Digital Imaging eCircles Critique session “Far East”
Michel Claverie, is running his RPS Digital Imaging session RPS Digital Imaging eCircles Critique session “Far East.”
The session runs on the second Sunday of each month. The next session is on Sunday 8 June at 6:00 PM in the Eastern States. He is
Festivals & exhibitions
Vivid Sydney 2025
Dates: May 23 – June 14
Where: Sydney, NSW
What: A festival of light, music, and ideas with immersive installations and AI-generated projections, offering ample photography opportunities.
PIX: The Magazine That Changed Everything (1938–1972)
When: Ongoing until 31 December 2025
Where: Museum of Brisbane, QLD
What: Archival photographic journalism and cultural snapshots from Australia's first pictorial news weekly.
World Press Photo Exhibition 2025
When: June 2025
Where: State Library of New South Wales, Sydney
What: A powerful showcase of the world’s best photojournalism and documentary photography from the annual global contest.
Protest is a Creative Act
When: 7 June to 31 August
Where: Museum of Australian Photography
What: Powerful photographic works by Australian women and nonbinary artists.
looking for about six people to join the group and to share and discuss three to five pictures each. The discussions are informal but detailed and participants can show anything they want.
If you are interested email australia@rps.org and we will send you the Zoom link to join.
Competitions to enter
Bowness Photography Prize 2025
Deadline: 13 June 2025
Organiser: Museum of Australian Photography
What: Prestigious national prize for contemporary photographic practice in Australia.
Australian Photographic Prize
Deadline: 22 June 2025
Open to: Professionals, amateurs, and students
What: Multiple categories including portraiture, landscape, and video, with live judging and exhibitions later in the year.
Mullins Conceptual Photography Prize
Deadline: 14 June 2025
What: Focused on photography as an art form to express conceptual themes. Hosted by the Australian Photographic Society.
Alpha Awards 2025 (Sony)
Deadline: 30 June 2025
What: Competition for Sony Alpha users across Australasia. 2025 theme: “Bridge.”
