A review of all the summer events with awards for the Best Summer Images.

An introduction to the new Buddy Scheme.  Those who wish to will be paired with a "Buddy" to work on a photographic project together for presentation to the club at a later meeting (3rd February 2026).   The project will involve composing an image, and processing it for presentation.  The subject matter is "Just Two".     We will try to make sure that inexperienced photographers are paired with someone with more experience.

If you would like to be a part of the Buddy scheme, you can sign up before the first meeting by contacting Nicky - programme@stives-photoclub.org.uk

Nicky will give a presentation on Camera Set up.  She will talk about camera settings and advance preparation that can help to maximise the chance of achieving the shots you would like.  She will discuss customised mode programming, customising buttons and will discuss her own particular choices of settings for different scenarios.  Although her genre of photography is primarily wildlife, this talk applies to all genres.  Preparation is key, whatever you are shooting!

For the second half of the evening, we will have an open discussion on camera settings for different scenarios, and tips from other members.  Please have a think about this in advance and contribute to the discussion if you can.    Depending on time, we have the EAF portfolio of images from this year's exhibition to show. These are inspirational images - we will allow time for discussion on each image.

We are delighted to welcome Ann Miles FRPS MPAGB FBPE AFIAP back to St Ives.  Ann is a member of Cambridge Camera Club, but also an acclaimed member of the London Salon.  Ann has been a photographer all her life and taught general and nature photography at university degree level for 10 years.  She gained an Associateship in Nature and a Fellowship in Visual Arts and served as Deputy Chair of the Fine Arts Panel for 8 years.  Currently she sits on the Natural History Distiction Panel.  This reflects her wide spectrum of Photographic interest

This is an informal evening where we have a look at the images submitted by the teams which took part in our summer event - the St Ives Challenge.  The winning team is decided on a knock-out basis according to an audience vote.

Image - Ise Berridge

On the same evening we will have some tables set up so that members can sell any photographic equipment they no longer need.  Please have a route through your gear and price anything you bring along, making sure your name is also on the label.

There will be help available for anyone wanting last-minute advice on the following week's competition.

The first of our 6 Open- Themed Competitions.  Entries close one week before the competition.  We have two sections - a Print section and a Digital section.  All entries to be submitted using PhotoEntry.

More details to follow.  We are delighted to host a variation on the normal competition with Swavesey, which we hope will be a lot of fun!

The church will not be available so there is no formal meeting.  However, we will meet outside the church at 7.00pm to capture the fun of the fair.

A guide and practical session for flash photography from our resident expert, Jonathan.  Please bring a camera and memory card.

On this evening, committee will be on hand to help anyone wanting advice for the up-coming monthly competitions.  If you are unsure of the rules, how to get the right sizing and format for PhotoEntry or have any other queries, there will be help available at this meeting.

The second of our 6 Open- Themed Competitions.  Entries close one week before the competition.  We have two sections - a Print section and a Digital section.  All entries to be submitted using PhotoEntry.

Our members' exhibition will once again be held at the Free Church on 31st October2025 and 1st November 2025.  All members are encouraged to exhibit their work.  This is a great showcase for the efforts of our members.

Smart Shooting part 3 - dare to focus

We are delighted to welcome Bob to St Ives for his talk "Dare to Focus".

Bob is a professional PhD zoologist, a qualified teacher, a highly experienced photographer, Fellow of the RPS and naturalist passionate about his work and sharing his observations of wildlife with others.  He firmly believes it’s not good enough just to say “do this” but rather to say “this is how you do this”.

Bob is a wildlife photographer but his talk is equally applicable to of all other genres and is one of a series he was invited to develop to help people in their journey from the ordinary to the extraordinary and taking their photography to a new level. Each talk covers a particular area and this one covers the often-considered difficult area of auto focus. It covers fast moving subjects but also the principles and important development and approaches that will increase your success. Bob firmly believes that we too often consider autofocus has been solved especially on the latest mirrorless cameras but whilst there have been massive improvements its technique and an understanding of the principles, none of which are very complex, these are what is required to succeed and Bob will take us through them.

Bob has many years experience teaching all levels of photographers on many different cameras in workshops, 1-1’s and African Safaris. He promises us that we will leave this evening with a better understanding of what can be done, how to do it and fired up to take our cameras out and masted autofocus.

https://naturesphotos.co.uk/camera-club-talks/.

A fun evening where members' images are displayed in pairs on the screen with an audience vote for the image which goes through to the next round.  We will then invite members to talk about the images they have presented.

Committee will be available on this evening to give advice to anyone who is unsure of the rules of the Quartet and George Dellar competitions or needs help with an entry.

Two of our well known members will entertain us for the evening.  Tom, will talk about "creative elements" in his photography and then Tony will show us some of his street photography.  An evening not to be missed!

The third of our 6 Open- Themed Competitions.  Entries close one week before the competition.  We have two sections - a Print section and a Digital section.  All entries to be submitted using PhotoEntry.

kevin pigney - SEASCAPES & LANDSCAPES

We are excited to have included this talk on our Programme.  Not only does Kevin show us some of his amazing seascape and landscape photography, but he also shows us how to prepare for a shoot, and explains the kit required, using filters, his camera techniques and exposure and focus blending.

One to look forward to!

The quartet competition is a panel competition on any theme.

1. DPI and Prints.
2. Entries should consist of a panel of 4 separate images on a common theme and are judged as a panel, NOT individual images.
3. DPI’s should be submitted as a single digital file and the 4 images should be clearly distinguishable.
Prints can be on any number of mounts e.g. 4 images on 1 mount, or 4 separate mounts, or 2 mounts with 2 prints on each.
4. Maximum of 2 entries, not previously used in any internal competition.
5. Only the highest scoring image from each member is counted toward the final scores.
6. Only one image is to be awarded the maximum of 10 points, to ensure that there is a clear winner.

End of season social event for members and their guests

Two of our well known members will entertain us for the evening.  Both wildlife photographers, we will be sure of some excellent images and a great night!

George Dellar Trophy
1. Held annually.
2. Image to be taken within Cambridgeshire (including Peterborough).
3. Images should feature one, or a combination of, a Landscape, Building or Landmark, People or
Events within the county.
4. The features must be easily identifiable.
5. DPI images only, not previously entered in any internal competition.
6. Maximum of 2 entries.
7. The location of capture must be entered in the “Entry Reference” box of PhotoEntry.
8. Only the highest scoring image from each member is counted toward the final scores.
9. Only one image is to be awarded the maximum of 10 points, to ensure that there is a clear winner.

President’s Challenge Trophy
1. Held annually - this year the President's theme is "Shadows"
2. Digital images only, not previously entered in any internal competition.
3. Maximum of 2 entries.
4. Only the highest scoring image from each member is counted toward the final scores.
5. Only one image is to be awarded the maximum of 10 points, to ensure that there is a clear winner.

A practical session which will allow you to try out techniques that you may not have tried before.   Please bring your camera and a tripod.

The fourth of our 6 Open- Themed Competitions.  Entries close one week before the competition.  We have two sections - a Print section and a Digital section.  All entries to be submitted using PhotoEntry.

An evening of two parts.  We will firstly see the results of the work by the Buddies, who have been working on their joint project since the beginning of the winter season.

Then we will have a chance for other members to show work and talk us through their thought processes.

On this night, the committee will be on hand to give any advice to members who would like any information about entering the annual competition in print or DPI.

Abstract geophotographs with an ephemeral, intimate, painterly aesthetic, often incorporating geological subjects and made with intentional camera movement.

This promises to be an amazing and inspirational evening.

Sara Rawlinson is a contemporary photographer specialising in both abstract fine art and heritage architecture. She has had a camera in her hands most days since she was six years old.

Rawlinson spent a decade in academia, teaching seismology and natural hazards, before returning to her childhood love of photography in 2013. Her academic years still heavily influence her photography – often showcasing textures, landscapes, geological features, and geological current events such as sea level rise and volcanic eruptions.

Current work with abstract geophotography addresses the inherent noir dishevelment of tectonic forces and sea level rise / climate change around the world. The photos themselves have an ephemeral, intimate, painterly aesthetic: subtly luscious and dangerously timely. Water, sun and rock all mingle together — eroding cliffs, mingling with lava, interrupting horizons. Intense texture and colour are layered with seeming tranquility throughout series, thus leading the viewer to further explore the hidden complexities of dishevelment and humanity’s inherent piercing yet calming reactions.

Rawlinson’s work has won and been shortlisted for several international awards and she is a Brother of the Art Workers’ Guild.

Our tongue in cheek "speed dating" night is one of the fun and very popular evenings on our programme.  Members bring their own work on a laptop or in prints, and show this to another person who will give feedback on the image for three minutes.  After feedback is given both ways, one person moves on to chat to someone else.

This gives everyone a chance to talk to people in the club that they might not normally chat to, and also gives plenty of opportunity for feedback without any judging.

A fun night

The fifth of our 6 Open- Themed Competitions.  Entries close one week before the competition.  We have two sections - a Print section and a Digital section.  All entries to be submitted using PhotoEntry.

the best camera is the one you have with you..., your phone! 

A photographic presentation of two halves. First we will look at the types of photography that the mobile phone is ideal for – from portraiture including selfies of course, to landscape, architecture, cityscapes, how to use the phone to ‘sketch’ before getting out the ‘proper camera’. All of these will be illustrated via a mix of the presenter’s own photographs plus some of the leading mobile phone photographers in the world. The second half will have a practical focus linking the presenter’s phone to the screen to show how to get the best out of taking phone photos and then how best to process them. Members are encouraged to take images with their phones before the evening so we can process them together on the night. 

We were incredibly lucky that Jonathan was able to fit St Ives into his very busy schedule to deliver this talk.

A member of the London Salon of Photography, Jonathan is a multiple exposure (M.E.) specialist. Most of his work involves in-camera techniques along with final image adjustments in Photoshop. Based in Bedford, he works as a photographic educator for many organisations including the RPS. He is known for teaching Photoshop from the basics to advanced techniques. He works with individuals and professional photographers at all levels as well as assisting them to discover and develop their creativity. He also leads residential workshops throughout Europe in conjunction with Travelling Lens Photo Tours. He is a Permajet Envoy, affiliated to Q-Image, Jessops, Cartridge Monkey, WEX Photo and Video and DxO Labs, teaching the NIK collection on their behalf. He is an A panel National Judge and a member of Beyond Group

Two of our studio photographers talk about their work and how to achieve good images in the studio.   They will explain lighting set ups and flash photography.

A follow on from the last week's talk, members will now have a chance to practice their stills with lighting set ups for studio photography

The last of our 6 Open- Themed Competitions.  Entries close one week before the competition.  We have two sections - a Print section and a Digital section.  All entries to be submitted using PhotoEntry.

Louisa is well known for her textured images which are artworks taken from various elements of her photography.  In this session she will talk us through how to work with textures in order to create effects to elevate your photography.

Please bring a camera!

DPI and Prints.
Images should be entered in 4 out of 6 categories of the entrant’s choice.

The 2025-2026 season categories are:

Creative – defined as Altered Reality. There must be a change to an original image, although the main content should still be identifiable. Artwork or computer graphics generated by the entrant may be included as part of the image. The image cannot have been constructed by computer.

Landscape - Images of inland, coastal or maritime scenes.

Natural History – Images conforming to the PAGB definition of Nature, which is as follows:
▪ May depict landscape, geologic formations, weather phenomena, and extant
organisms as the main subject matter.
▪ This includes subjects in controlled conditions, such as zoos, game farms, botanical
gardens, aquariums or enclosures.
▪ Scientific bands, scientific tags or radio collars on wild animals are permissible.
▪ Processing of the captured image, by cropping, exposure adjustment, colour
correction, noise minimisation, dodging/burning, HDR, focus stacking and
sharpening, is allowed.
▪ Cloning of image defects and minor distractions, including overlapping elements, are
permitted.
▪ Photographs of anthropology or archaeology, human created hybrid plants, cultivated
plants, feral animals, domestic animals, or mounted specimens are ineligible, as is
any form of manipulation that alters the truth of the photographic statement.

Architecture - An Architectural image must have the primary emphasis on either the interior or exterior of a building or architectural structure.

Macro - A macro image must portray either a small subject (such as an insect) or a small part of a larger object (such as a leaf on a tree) in great detail. The subject is not limited to the natural world.

Street - Informal, candid portraits of people and incidents in public places.

DPI and Prints.
Images should be entered in 4 out of 6 categories of the entrant’s choice.

The 2025-2026 season categories are:

Creative – defined as Altered Reality. There must be a change to an original image, although the main content should still be identifiable. Artwork or computer graphics generated by the entrant may be included as part of the image. The image cannot have been constructed by computer.

Landscape - Images of inland, coastal or maritime scenes.

Natural History – Images conforming to the PAGB definition of Nature, which is as follows:
▪ May depict landscape, geologic formations, weather phenomena, and extant
organisms as the main subject matter.
▪ This includes subjects in controlled conditions, such as zoos, game farms, botanical
gardens, aquariums or enclosures.
▪ Scientific bands, scientific tags or radio collars on wild animals are permissible.
▪ Processing of the captured image, by cropping, exposure adjustment, colour
correction, noise minimisation, dodging/burning, HDR, focus stacking and
sharpening, is allowed.
▪ Cloning of image defects and minor distractions, including overlapping elements, are
permitted.
▪ Photographs of anthropology or archaeology, human created hybrid plants, cultivated
plants, feral animals, domestic animals, or mounted specimens are ineligible, as is
any form of manipulation that alters the truth of the photographic statement.

Architecture - An Architectural image must have the primary emphasis on either the interior or exterior of a building or architectural structure.

Macro - A macro image must portray either a small subject (such as an insect) or a small part of a larger object (such as a leaf on a tree) in great detail. The subject is not limited to the natural world.

Street - Informal, candid portraits of people and incidents in public places.

Monochrome Competition

Any monochrome image entered in either class of the monthly competitions or in either class of the annual competitions, scoring 9 or over, shall also be eligible for the monochrome trophy.