Northern News January 2018

NORTHERN NEWS Issue 5

January 2018

Northern Diary Friday 19 January 2018, 19:30 to 22:00 Whickham Community Centre, Front Street, Whickham, NE16 4JL in conjunction with Whickham Photographic Club

FELLOWSHIP EVENING This event is to inspire and explain the Fellowship standard for the RPS. This is a great opportunity to view successful Fellowship panels close up and ask questions.

The evening will be hosted by Leo Palmer FRPS Free for RPS members £5 for non-members Places limited - booking via the website essential for members and non-members

Sunday 25 February 2018 SPECIAL EVENT - SEE PAGES 32 and 33 Sunday 18 March 2018, 10:30 to 16:00 Newton Community Hall, Newton, Stocksfield NE43 7UL

Photographing landscape; whatever the weather with Tony Worobiec FRPS This workshop will alert you to the potential of photographing landscape irrespective of the weather conditions. See website for full information.

RPS Members £41 Non-members £55 Booking via the RPS website Sunday 15 April 2018, 10:00 to 16:00 Newton Community Hall, Newton, Stocksfield NE43 7UL

Distinctions Advisory Day Full details on the RPS website Saturday 21 April 2018 11:30 to 15:30 Distington Community Centre, Church Road, Distington CA14 5TE

A Journey through Fellowships and Beyond James Frost FRPS & Hazel Mason FRPS James is the Regional Organiser for Scotland and a member of the Travel Panel & Hazel is a member of the Licentiate Panel. They are adventurous travel photographers who like nothing more than getting off the beaten track. It is a pleasure to have them in Northern region showing their excellent photography

RPS Members £5

Non-members £7.50

All bookings should be made via the Northern Region Events page on the RPS website 2

Message from

NORTHERN NEWS

Carol Palmer ARPS

Issue 5 January 2018

Regional Organiser Northern Region

THE NORTHERN TEAM Regional Organiser Carol Palmer ARPS

HAPPY NEW YEAR to all RPS NORTHERN MEMBERS

northern@rps.org Deputy Regional Organiser Geoff Chrisp LRPS Treasurer Bob Turner ARPS Secretary Bob Gates ARPS northernweb@rps.org Cover Image Š Geoff Chrisp LRPS NORTHERN NEWS INFORMATION Š 2017 All rights reserved on behalf of the authors. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the written permission of the copyright holder. Requests for such permission must be addressed to the Editor.

The Royal Photographic Society, Northern Region and the Editor accept no liability for any misuse or breach of copyright by a contributor.

Social media, love it or loathe it, is here to stay and while being non too active myself I have really appreciated and been so delighted with the activity on our RPS Northern Facebook page.

It has been a pleasure to see so many stunning images posted and such good feedback towards each other.

It has also given me the opportunity to see work otherwise not on show and as a result I have contacted some of these members with a view to doing articles for our newsletter.

One thing does spring to mind is that people do want feedback on their work from a wider audience and not necessarily the competitive viewpoint. As a result, I plan to introduce an event for our Region which has been very successful in Scotland for a number of years and that is a Photo Forum.

Simply it is an informal meeting where members bring along their work to show. It can be work in progress, current projects , preparing for an exhibition etc. all makes for good discussion and constructive feedback.

I will arrange a session for later in the year.

The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the RPS or the Northern Region.

Carol Editor: Bob Gates ARPS northernweb@rps.org

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My RPS Journey Julia McNeill-Richardson LRPS My RPS journey started back in July of 2017. I can’t remember exactly what lead me to the RPS or why my interest was triggered but I decided to go for the LRPS to ‘see if I was a good enough photographer to achieve it’. So I booked myself onto an advisory day, collected 10 of my strongest images plus a few spares and took myself to Wakefield for my first experience of the RPS. After an introduction to the RPS and the LRPS standard, panels were displayed and were commented on. I sharp realised how green I was to the requirements. Just having strong images was not sufficient and the concept of a panel that ‘blended’ was introduced to me.

Fast forward to September for a second advisory day, this time closer to home at Stocksfield. I felt my revised panel had more of a blend and contained images that showed a wider range of technical competence. When my panel was shown, the judges changed in some of my spare images which left me with a panel that was weighted heavily towards wildlife which suited me down to the ground.

The next couple of weeks were busy. Having (finally) decided on my 10 images, 8 of which were wildlife, it was all about editing, re-editing, scrutinising, printing, re-printing & mounting to ensure that the images were the best that I could produce.

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The October assessment day was, understandably, much more formal. My panel was 4th up so I was lucky at being assessed early. It felt as if time stood still as my panel went up and the judges took a look. After a few judges comments and again a wait, my name was called and I was congratulated as having a successful panel. The hard work had paid off. I spent the rest of the day full of relief and gratitude.

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What I did on my Holidays Pax Garabedian

Having flown into Dubai in the UAE, we were picked up and driven 300+ km to Khasab, the regional capital of Musandam. The Musandam peninsula is an enclave of the Oman, completely surrounded by the UAE and separate from the main Sultanate. Jutting out into the Straits of Hormuz, it is usually dubbed the ‘Norway’ of Arabia due to its extensive fjord-like craggy inlets and desolate mountain terrain. Exploration of the territory was by 4x4, as over 99% of roads are untarmacked and liable to disruption following unexpected though rare rainfall. Flash floods had resulted in fatalities two days before we arrived.

Journeys were not for the faint hearted if venturing on to the Jebel Harim range to gain sight of the breath-taking views of the ragged mountains and inlets spread out below.

A dhow trip exploring some of the ‘fjords’ was just as rewarding and enjoyable when joined by dolphins who decided to swim alongside our boat. So was the visit to Telegraph Island, where a submarine cable repeater station was established by the British in 1864 to facilitate telegraphic communications between London & Karachi. This is where it is believed the expression ‘to go round the bend’ comes from. It was not an easy posting due to the severe summer heat and hostility of the surrounding natives, making those manning the station wanting to return home by making a voyage round the bend in the Strait of Hormuz back to India.

Ras Al Jinz

The short flight from Khasab took us to Muscat, the capital of Oman; stretching some 40 kilometres along the coast. It is a more relaxed and easy-going place than Dubai and nowhere near as glitzy or glamourous. The Sultan Qaboos Mosque which could accommodate 20,000 worshippers at one time was impressive especially the central 14-metre-tall chandelier made up of Swarovski crystal weighing eight tonnes. In the old quarter The Fish souq and the Muttrah souq both catering for the locals provided excellent photo opportunities.

Our tour continued south along the coast where we eventually arrived at Sur, once renowned for its boat (dhow) building industry, and where we were able to visit a boatyard to observes some of the activity still going on.

Our next destination was Ras Al Jinz there is a turtle sanctuary and where overnight we were to observe turtles coming ashore to lay their eggs on the beach. Getting up at three in the morning to make our way to the beach was rewarded with good sightings as the day broke.

From here we were again on un-tarmacked roads and tracks, headed inland in a north westerly direction into the foothills of the Hajar Mountains to Wadi Bani Khalid where water from a natural spring originating in the upper parts of the Hajar Mountains flows all year round keeping the area lush and green in the middle of inhospitably hostile looking terrain. Getting to our next overnight stop at Wahiba Sands involved ‘dune bashing’ which meant driving at high speed up and sometimes along sand dune slopes. The speed and the high engine revs being necessary to maintain traction. Quite exhilarating!

An experience to be relished was a walk through Sanaw souq with stalls manned by women wearing the rather frightening Burka mask.

Travelling further north we arrived in the oasis city of Nizwa, the largest town in the country’s interior and the capital of Oman during the 6th& 7th centuries. It stood at an important trade crossroads joining routes which followed the base of the Hajar Mountains and the Sumail Gap the only gap through mountains.

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A couple of days were spent exploring the surrounding villages and the high terrain visiting Oman’s ‘Grand Canyon’ at Wadi Ghul. The highlight was a visit to Nizwa Friday souq where goat sales were in progress along with stalls selling anything from foodstuffs to utensils to guns and daggers. This and the eventual off-road drive back to Muscat via Wadi Bani Awf and Bilad Sayt proved to be one of the more memorable highlights of the visit.

Fish Stall

Masked Lady

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Sad to See it Go

Men of Standing

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A successful Licentiate Print Panel Geoff Chrisp LRPS

In 2016, after receiving positive feedback on my photography skills from some really experienced photographers, I decided it was time for me to work towards gaining an LRPS distinction. I selected some of my favourite images, assembled a panel and attended an RPS advisory day where I received some invaluable feedback on how to improve my panel of images. I made the suggested adjustments to my images and in October 2017 I attended an RPS Assessment day where my panel was recommended for the Licentiate. It was such a fantastic feeling to have such an esteemed panel of experts talk so positively about my work and to agree that my panel met the LRPS standards.

There are a many things to consider when building a panel. I began by downloading the relevant information from the RPS website to ensure that my images would fulfil the necessary criteria. The panel as a whole has to have a coherent appearance and balance. Five of my images had a red theme within them so I decided that these would sit nicely as a top row. The bottom row of images were more architectural and also fitted well together. I made my panel look symmetrical by using ‘portrait’ style images at the extremes and ‘landscape’ style images in between. The two images of which the main elements were people were placed in the centre. To ensure consistency in print quality all the images were printed on the same type of paper, were all colour images and were mounted on white 500mm x 400mm mounting boards.

Working towards gaining an RPS distinction is a great way to focus on improving your photography skills. Most importantly though it is a very enjoyable experience that I would thoroughly recommend others to do.

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SNAPSHOT John Thompson ARPS

My father failed to give me a Box Brownie when I was eight years old and none of my uncles had the foresight to have a dark room where I could learn about printing. In other words, I enjoyed a deprived childhood.

None-the-less the years have raced by and I seem to remember cameras and photographs and related items and activities being a very important part of growing up and growing old. I still have an original print I made during a physics lesson when I was 15 years old. Something of a miracle, I think.

Life before Camera Clubs was full of enprints, coloured slides and polaroids and success and failure was a matter of how many properly exposed images came from a roll of film or in a set of slides. I liked taking pictures, looking at them and, eventually, talking about them with friends with similar interest and gradually began to appreciate the rather better bits amongst the rubbish.

A girlfriend from my early years turned out to be a very proficient dark room worker as well as a gifted photographer and although I learned a good deal from her nothing lasting developed.

View From Belsay Hall

Despite there being lots of occasions and activities where cameras were used and pictures produced the ‘bit’ missing was a structure within which the idea of capturing an image which was more than just a ‘snap’ could develop and be refined. Books of photographs and books about photography began to appear on my bookshelves in the late 1960s early ‘70s. I regret not having had the eye to recognize quality photography used in advertising and magazines, especially the Sunday Times Magazine which was using work by the likes of Eve Arnold, Don McCullin, Terry O’Neill and Richard Avedon. I bought the Sunday Times every week but failed to keep the magazine.

My earliest copy of Photography Yearbook is from 1975 but it was still 15 years and lots of books and photographs later before a friend introduced me to the idea of joining a camera club. When I look back now it is clear that the missing ‘bit’, for me, was the camera club and its members and activities.

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The Road to Duddo

To be told by a total stranger, who happened to be the Judge, that the image he was exploring lacked just about everything HE thought essential to a winning shot, was just a little unnerving. It was my first entry into a competition. It was all part of the learning curve.

There followed many years of interacting with friends and colleagues in many facets of photography, submitting to all sorts of competitions and learning to listen to the many ideas and opinions about pictures being expressed by a rich mix of amateur and professional photographer. I was also developing a critical approach to pictures seen in competition displays, in books, magazines, on hoardings and in club presentations. What makes a good picture? What is required for an image to reach a winning place in competition or acceptance into a salon?

I don’t have favourite photographers but I do appreciate and enjoy the published work of many of the ‘household’ names in photography. There are others who submit to photographic magazines such as Black and White, BJP and the RPS. and yet more who are happy to make presentations to camera clubs or to share their excellent work on internet sites such as Flickr.

Out of this mix of people, images, styles, genres, personalities, techniques and attitudes I developed the ideas I am working with today. In addition, the gradual release from the single-image competition gave me the freedom to shoot around a subject and produce sets, panels, themes, documents and projects.

For over 25 years Fridays have been dedicated photography days and during the last two or three years I have been using Fridays to explore a range of equipment and techniques or forms of presentation which are either new or have previously escaped attention.

This project or theme approach has produced 26 self-published books and a number of themes as yet unfinished but with a harvest of images waiting to be arranged. Other outcomes have been sets of mounted images essentially for display or presentation but many images have remained as digital files waiting for a reason to turn them into prints.

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Night Riders

The iPhone 6 came on the market in a blaze of excitement about the quality of its camera. I put this to the test – my test – to see if it could be used as a serious camera and produce decent prints. It could and it did. I photographed local sites around Morpeth, used the camera with the normal amount of care and preparation and produced a set of monochrome images printed to A3 and easily mistaken for having come from an SLR. The first fisheye lens I ever used in anger was the Sigma: 15mm: 180˚ which proved a very enjoyable challenge. Previously I had seen fisheye lenses as the road to distortion and gimmick. Wrong!

Emphasis in the literature was on the fisheye as a landscape lens so I used it as such. The results I achieved both from lens quality and in a variety of situations, rural and urban landscape and interior work, proved very satisfying.

As I grow older, places which remain within comfortable travel distance reduce in number but not in opportunities for photography. The final three projects in this nostalgia-fest are happening close to home but as yet have no formal shape. That is I have not turned them into a book or made a set of prints.

I have recently overcome a beard-length reticence about street photography. People close to the lens have not been part of my comfort zone but after a good deal of reading and guidance from a friendly street photographer I have found how unthreatening it is possible to be even when closeup to a subject. Street photography expeditions into Newcastle have proved to be interesting and photographically exciting.

Even closer to home has been a low-light project: low light as in very dark nights during winter evenings early this year. I used an SLR without benefit of flash or tripod, a range of ISO settings from as low as 50 and in most cases a 50mm lens. While avoiding being arrested for loitering I managed to collect a set of images which I find more interesting than much work I have done in the past. Mood and atmosphere, minimalism and monochrome, rural and urban venues all combine to produce for me, a new experience.

The final new experience has been with infrared photography. Arnold Hubbard produced splendid monochrome infrared images from film and I could only look on and admire. Then he converted to digital and produced splendid monochrome infrared images from digital files and I looked on and admired …… but began to wonder. Could I? Eventually I was able to have a camera converted and start a wonderfully different journey in monochrome photography. Digital has not the same amount of guesswork as there appears to be when using infrared film but the final result still depends on using camera craft and computer skills to get an outcome better than ordinary. Some of my outcomes have been ordinary but others interesting. I like the low-contrast images with lots of atmosphere but the high-contrast black and white I find most satisfying. Even though I still have some way to go before I properly understand what I am doing I doubt it can get more interesting than it already is.

Familiar places, unfamiliar challenges; familiar equipment, unfamiliar techniques; familiar methods, unfamiliar outcomes.

Henri Cartier-Bresson :

Introduction to an exhibition Nov. 1983.

“To me, photography is not work, but a difficult form of pleasure: ….”

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Shopping Together

I really do love you

Eat4Less

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Associateship by Exemption Kevin Dowling ARPS

My Dad was a keen amateur photographer and I started taking photographs in my early years, progressing from a Kodak Instamatic to a Halina 120 pocket camera then a Russian Zenith and at the grand age of 17 a Nikon FM (on ‘hire purchase’ with my Mum acting as guarantor!). After decades of photography I still have the FM and more recently have acquired a Nikon DSLR which is amazing in its capabilities but doesn’t have the same magic as my old FM! In 2011 I was lucky enough to have some time and funds to study for an MA in Photography at the University of Sunderland’s Northern Centre of Photography. It was the first time I had studied photography formally and it proved to be a wonderful two years of learning and creative adventure. The course had taught elements in the form of lectures and seminars and a significant amount of time given over to personal research and the development of the student’s individual photographic practice. The emphasis was primarily on contemporary art photography but the lectures which particularly resonated with me were about the development of the Dada and Surrealist art movements which emerged following the trauma of the First World War and artist’s rejection of the societal values which had resulted in the industrialised slaughter of millions. Freud was developing his new science of psychoanalysis and the nature and existence of the unconscious mind was being revealed. Photography found a place in these art movements. The Surrealists admired the earlier photographs of Eugène Atget, his strange and beautiful scenes of the parks and streets of Paris emptied of people or of shop windows filled with smartly dressed mannequins all related to Jacques Lacan and Sigmund Freud’s writings on ‘the uncanny’ and the unconscious mind. Many radical and innovative photographer artists such as Raoul Housman, Man Ray, Hans Belmer and Claude Cahun emerged and even Dali and Picasso made their own forays into 17

Plexus 1

photography. It was a period which continues to have a profound influence on photographers and artists up to the present day and I found all of this fascinating. So, for the research element of the course I chose to research and make images which evoked psychic activity in the hidden recesses of the mind and also to explore the idea which Carl Jung entertained of a ‘Unus Mundus’, the possibility that we are all a part of one unified whole and therefore inextricably connected at the deepest level.

Plexus 6

I remembered as a child leafing through my Dad’s negatives, holding them up to the light of the attic window and the strange and slightly unsettling feeling they gave me, looking at a familiar but completely altered netherworld. I wanted to evoke that same feeling in my images so I chose to use negatives and for the most part I photographed plant roots which I felt were suitably strange and ambiguous, some evoking neurons with tendrils exploring and making connections in the dark space of the unconscious. For the exhibition at the end of my course I made a six-minute slideshow called Plexus which played on a 60 inch screen in a dark cubicle in near pitch blackness with a soundtrack by the American sound artist John Roach. If you would like to see it is on Vimeo (https;// vimeo.com/223014562). The quality is not brilliant but it gives an idea of the original.

In 2013, after a busy, goal driven and thoroughly enjoyable two years doing the MA I felt a little isolated so I decided to join the Society to connect to a wider creative community. Also I was able to apply for the ARPS distinction because I had completed the MA. With hindsight I think it would have been better for my photography if I had pursued the distinction through the assessment process. I am very glad that I joined and I continue to be inspired by the amazing work in the Journal and Contemporary Group publications. I pursue my own photography practice and I also work as a tutor with a group of very talented photographers who are recovering from mental health problems. We explore photography in both theory and practice and organise exhibitions for the members mostly using digital cameras but also dabbling in alternative techniques such as the Cyanotype process and Pinhole photography. It always amazes me to see the power that photography has to aid recovery from illness and enrich people’s life experience in so many ways.

Plexus 4

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Plexus 5

Plexus 3

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BOOK REVIEW Leo Palmer FRPS

Photographing landscapes under “poor” weather conditions goes back to the very early days of photography. When bright sunshine was considered perfect for landscape work, enlightened old masters such as Brassai and especially Alfred Stieglitz understood the value of capturing images in inclement weather and low lighting.

Tony Worobiec FRPS is a fine art photographer and printer; the author of many excellent books on photographic design and technique, from darkroom to digital. His words are always technically accurate and inspirational.

This book is split into sections on varying weather and lighting conditions. Photographing in sunshine, rain, mist, snow and ice, low light and much more are all covered in detail. Each part is illustrated with superb examples of what can be achieved in virtually any conditions.

It is thoughtfully laid out and packed with tips taking the reader through Photographing Landscape whatever the weather.

It contains the thoughts and words of a modern master photographer and it is not surprising that the RPS considered this to be one of the ten best photo books of 2016. Overall it can be summed up as both thought provoking and inspirational.

If you would like to learn more on this subject, Tony is holding a workshop in the Northern Region on 18th March 2018. Bookings via the RPS Northern website…. places are limited so don’t delay if you want to attend.

Photographing Landscape Whatever the Weather - Tony Worobiec RHE Media Ltd £13.90

ISBN 978-1910226421 20

Foreign Deployments Ray Cooper ARPS I am a Geordie born and bred in Jarrow but moved to London in the late 60s to join the Metropolitan Police. I served for 30 years in the Met retiring in 2000 as a Det Sgt. On the North London Homicide Squad.

Just before I retired I was seconded to the United Nations as a War Crimes Investigator in the city of Pristina, Kosovo. This led to a succession of War Crimes, Genocide and Homicide contracts after my retirement for the UN and other international jurisdictions in such diverse locations as Kosovo for two years with the UN, Northern Ireland, Rwanda, Gaza, Sarajevo Bosnia, Trinidad and Tobago and finally the Republic of Georgia for three years as a monitor for the EUMM (European Monitoring Mission in Georgia). I finally decided to fully retire The 14 months I spent on an ‘Anti Gang from long-term international work in May 2015.

Homicide Unit’ in Trinidad and Tobago was a wonderful opportunity to shoot the incredible My interest in photography can be traced back to my tropical bird life on the islands, especially my childhood days but I suppose I have only favourites the Hummingbirds. However the approached the medium on a serious basis for the security situation in some of the locations I last 12 years. I bought my first digital camera whilst worked severely restricted my photography with the UN in Kosovo and gradually adopted especially in Gaza and the Republic of Georgia.

Canon as my camera system of choice although I As a wildlife photographer I found it really have recently swapped some of my Canon gear to frustrating to see some of the most amazing purchase a Leica! birds of prey during my daily patrols of the disputed line of control (ABL) between Georgia During my international travels and foreign and South Ossetia. I was working for the deployments I always had a camera with me and EUMM) and the ABL was strictly out of bounds spent what little time off I did get photographing a in any of the downtime I had. I don’t think the wide variety subjects from social documentary shots Russian FSB border guards, who patrolled on to wildlife. the South Ossetia side of the line, would have appreciated a guy sitting in a camouflage hide with super telephoto lens pointing in their direction!

However I was able to concentrate on documentary work photographing life in the very poor villages along this disputed border.

This led to my first photo exhibition in Tbilisi, the Georgian capital, in October 2012. It was sponsored by the European Union and entitled “Life along the Line”.

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Life is a lot quieter for me since the end of my deployment in Georgia and my retirement from longterm overseas work. Apart from a few weeks on a teaching contract in The Hague twice a year I can now spend all of my free time on my wildlife photography. My passion is for bird photography and my equipment consists of a Canon 1DX and a Canon 200 to 400mm F4 Zoom as well as a couple of Canon wide angle and medium lenses. I am also getting my head around my latest acquisition, a Leica Q which I intend to use for travel and some landscape work on the Northumberland Coast. This camera has replaced my Canon 5D Mk111. I am not getting any younger and I wanted something small light and easy to carry around on my travels when I am not photographing wildlife. The Leica fits the bill perfectly! The change also presents me with another challenge rather than running around ‘post conflict’ trouble spots!

Generations

To see more of Ray's images visit www.raycooperwildlife.com www.raycooperimages.com

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© Ray Cooper ARPS Cheetahs

© Ray Cooper ARPS Copper rumped

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A Visit to Arnhem Central Station, Netherlands Maggie Jary LRPS

At first sight, the newly built Arnhem Station is a striking modernist structure made of undulating glass, concrete and glass. Once inside, the space becomes quite theatrical with pools of light cast from the huge curved windows in the roof.

I was interested in how the cavernous space was used and noticed how people were caught in the spotlights. From a photography point of view, the contrast of light and shade offered an opportunity as well as a challenge. On average, 40,000 passengers pass through here every day so I had to be patient to capture the moments with very few people.

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My successful Licentiate Panel Paul Hood LRPS

I’ve been learning how to use my DSLR for about three years. Taking a series of adult learning courses run by Newcastle City Council and they have been excellent. A whole new world of technical terms and gadgets; of composition, colour, leading lines and the initially mysterious histogram; the post production on my laptop; the printing and mounting of my images, these all appealed to my artistic side and my inner geekiness. As the courses got more advanced the idea of working for an RPS distinction was a target to aim at (at the time a distant target) and a way to hone my developing skills.

Over a period of 2 years now I have been thinking about and taking images that could make up my panel. As my eye improved I rejected almost all of those original photographs until only the bench was left from the initial pictures. The panel requires a variety of well taken images using a range of camera techniques but one that is also balanced overall. This challenge was one that I have really enjoyed. It has pushed me to learn more about the art and craft of photography, making and not just taking a diverse range of photos. In fact I have enjoyed to process so much I have already started to think what I might do for an A panel, so that’s the next few years sorted.

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© Paul Hood LRPS

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MY WAY TO THE LRPS April meeting in Cumbria Richard Dennis LRPS

21 April, 2018 at Distington Community Centre Church Road, Distington, Workington CA14 5TE 11:30 to 15:30

A Journey through Fellowships and Beyond with James Frost FRPS and Hazel Mason FRPS

Š James Frost FRPS

James is the Regional Organiser for Scotland and a member of the Travel Panel & Hazel is a member of the Licentiate Panel. They are adventurous travel photographers who like nothing more than getting off the beaten track. It is a pleasure to have them in Northern region showing their excellent photography They will start the first session of the day with their travel adventures in Myanmar & Bangladesh. After lunch we will be transported to Calcutta and their photography with the Calcutta rescue along with more about their Fellowships.

This Travel lecture is co-hosted with West Cumbria Photo Group who have kindly provided the accommodation and lunch for this event. Ticket price includes buffet lunch.

Booking on-line only 30 30

VISUAL ART GROUP SPRING WEEKEND 20-23 APRIL 2018 The White Swan Hotel, Bondgate Within, Alnwick NE66 1TD The Visual Art Group are holding their annual weekend in our region. Full details of speakers, costs and arrangements are available on the RPS website

DOCUMENTARY NORTHERN The RPS Documentary Group has a thriving Northern sub-group based in our region.

We are a keen and supportive group of documentary photographers who have been meeting regularly in the north-east over the past year. We have visited various exhibitions together, presented our own work and taken part in practical exercises. For the future we have lots of ideas for meetings and hands on practical activities. We would welcome new members to join us. Meetings are held in the Kibblesworth Village Millennium Centre, Kibblesworth, Gateshead NE11 0XN. The next meeting is on the 18th January 2018 If you would like to attend please contact docnorthern@rps.org for more details

Malaga Market Š Marj Baillie LRPS - Documentary Northern member

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PHOTOJOURNALISM with

TOM STODDART HonFRPS and TIM SMITH Sunday, 25 February 2018 10:00 to 16:00 Newton Community Hall, Newton, Stocksfield NE43 7UL A unique opportunity in our region to see the work of two top photojournalists RPS Members £10

Non-members £15

Tim Smith is a freelance photographer who combines editorial and commercial work with long

term exhibition, publishing and mixed media projects. He is based in Yorkshire. The region and its diverse communities have provided the inspiration and acted as a springboard for national and international projects which have resulted in dozens of exhibitions toured in Britain and over twenty countries overseas. His main interests as a photographer and writer have been showcased in twelve books. Much of this work explores the links between Britain and people in other parts of the world and includes publications on Ukraine, Yemen, India and Pakistan.

He is a member of Panos Pictures. This London-based photo agency represents photojournalists worldwide who document issues which are under-reported, misrepresented or ignored.

Agricultural workers returning to their homes near Rajkot at dusk. Despite the recent focus on industrialisation, agriculture remains a vital part of the Indian economy and employs roughly half the country's workforce.

From the exhibition, 'India's Gateway: Gujarat, Mumbai & Britain'. Photo © Tim Smith.

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SARAJEVO-1992: Sheltering from a heavy mortar bombardment, 67 year old Antonia Arapovic hugs her neighbour's terrified child in the darkness of an underground cellar during the siege of Sarajevo. © Tom Stoddart HonFRPS

Tom Stoddart began his photographic career on a local newspaper in his native North-East of England. In 1978 he moved to London and began working freelance for publications such as the Sunday Times and Time Magazine.

During a long and varied career he has witnessed such international events as the war in Lebanon, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the election of President Nelson Mandela, the bloody siege of Sarajevo, the wars against Saddam Hussein in Iraq.

In 1997 Tony Blair gave Stoddart exclusive behind the scenes access to his election campaign as the Labour Party swept to victory after 18 years of Conservative government in the United Kingdom.

Over the years Tom has worked with charities and NGO’s such as Medecins Sans Frontieres, Oxfam, Christian Aid, Care International and Sightsavers. His extensive work on the catastrophic AIDS pandemic blighting Africa has been widely published and exhibited.

His photography has been honoured with awards from World Press Photo, Visa pour l’image, Pictures Of The Year and the Eddie Adams Workshop.

In 2012 his ‘Perspectives’ retrospective outdoor exhibition was displayed at London’s South Bank and attracted 225,000 visitors.

Now established as one of the worlds most respected photojournalists, Stoddart is represented by, and works closely with Getty Reportage, to produce powerful photo-essays on the serious world issues of our time.

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Teesside photographer discusses her successful LRPS Panel

Susan Devlin LRPS My interest in photography really started when I joined the Gallery Photo Group in Middlesbrough, a local camera club that my husbands also attends.

The style of images that appealed to me from the onset was abstract, although now besides abstract, I enjoy most other forms of photography.

Putting my panel together was a great boost to my photography; guiding me in being more focused and deliberate in producing my images. It also helped in creating a balanced set of work in style, colour, tone & technique.

Regarding the images in my panel: THE CHAP sat on the bench with his green hair and tattered clothing, was more engrossed with his phone that any other activity near-by – so typical of today’s society. Given his position within the frame, I felt it commanded a central position in the panel.

THE WATCH was simply lit by window light and positioned on the dining room table. I wanted a tight crop and angled the piece corner to corner for added impact.

THE ASPENS in the straw coloured grasses, are regenerating from a fire in Torridon. Although pleasing to the eye, initial composition was quite difficult as there were so many possibilities.

THE INTIMATE LANDSCAPE originated from my liking of abstract images. A small rock pool by the sea, it was the colours of orange (from iron ore deposits), the blue and green together with the pattern that appealed to me. I had taken a few shots from different angles but this one worked best.

THE PORTRAIT is of my son taken in my living room and illuminated by one light and a reflector. I felt the hard lighting suited his character. Care had to be taken also in controlling the shadow detail.

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Dear Northern Members, I’m pleased to announce the official Facebook group, exclusively for Northern members. As well as for keeping up to date with news and updates, it will be a place for you to share images and support other members with feedback, comments, ideas and discussion.

You can join here: NORTHERN FACEBOOK PAGE The Facebook group’s privacy setting is ‘closed’, which simply means members only - so you’ll be asked to provide your RPS membership number before being accepted into the group. The group’s content won’t be visible to the public, only members can see, post and share.

I’m very much looking forward to welcoming you to our Facebook community!

Kind regards, Carol Palmer Regional Organiser northern@rps.org

We now have over 100 Facebook members - why not join us 37

SLOW WATER MOVEMENT WORKSHOP with Malcolm Blenkey ARPS 22 April 2018, Sandsend, Whitby

The aim of this workshop. which is aimed at the beginner/intermediate photographer, is to introduce you to the techniques used to capture images of moving water.

It will cover: the use of manual settings on your camera (aperture priority mode and focusing) • understanding the histogram and how to use exposure compensation • use of long/fast exposures to portray the movement of water • how to control exposure using Neutral Density (ND), ND graduated filters, polarisers • aspects of composition in landscape photography.

The workshop will be held at Sandsend beach near Whitby, North Yorkshire starting at 9:30 am and stopping for lunch at 1 pm. Following lunch there will be an option to change location to Saltwick Bay which is about 15 minutes’ drive from Sandsend. This will give us an opportunity to visit the site of the wreck of the Admiral Van Tromp which is only accessible at low tide.

The meeting point will be the large public car park at the bottom of Lythe Bank at the West end of the beach.

An information pack will be sent to all those participating in this workshop giving information about equipment needed, clothing, location & Health & Safety.

The workshop will be led by Malcolm Blenkey ARPS who is very accomplished with these photographic techniques.

Malcolm has checked out tidal conditions to ensure they will be perfect for this type of photography.

THIS WORKSHOP IS LIMITED TO TEN PARTICIPANTS - FURTHER DETAILS & BOOKING VIA THE WEBSITE

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From the RPS Collection at the Victoria & Albert Museum

Woman with parasol riding a camel alongside man. Friedrich Adolf Paneth

Friedrich Adolf Paneth, born in Vienna in 1887, was brought up in the Protestant faith although his parents were of Jewish descent. He studied chemistry and was awarded his PhD from the University of Vienna in 1910. In 1933, when Hitler siezed power, he was on a lecture tour of England and did not return to Germany. After a short spell as Reader in Atomic Chemistry at Imperial College London, he became Professor of Chemistry at the University of Durham in 1939, retiring in 1953. He returned to Germany as Director of the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz.

After marrying Else Hartmann in 1913, the pair set out for a four-month honymoon in Cairo. In 1914 their daughter, Eva, was born followed in 1918 by a son, Heinz. His lecturing job allowed them to travel as a family to exotic locations. The image above shows Else on a camel in Egypt.

He taught himself photography, especially the new colour process called Autochrome, an early form of colour photography using plates coated with dyed starch grains, patented by the Lumière brothers in 1904. Because of the softness and subtlety of its tones it was often used for domestic photography, especially of children, gardens and flowers. As the image was on glass it was difficult to view and needed to be held up to the light. Because of this the Autochrome was soon superseded by other colour processes on paper.

Twenty years after Paneth's death in 1958, his daughter Eva presented the RPS Collection with 2,000 of her father's Autochromes together with notes, diaries and other written material.

Bob Gates ARPS 39

Arnhem Station

Š Maggie Jary LRPS

www.rps.org/regions-and-chapters/regions/northern