The Review Spring 2021 | Page 16

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locked down but not out

Fiona Wallace tells us how one local photographic society has coped with a year of restrictions .

Like many clubs and societies , Kilmaurs Photographic Club has

been hit fairly hard by the various restrictions over the past year . With the first lockdown bringing an abrupt halt to the 2020 season , members found themselves not just unable to get to meetings but so many of their regular photo haunts were now out of bounds . Taking new images almost overnight became a considerable challenge . Those lucky enough to have beauty spots on their doorsteps within the travel restrictions fared slightly better , but all in all , the situation has meant that the majority of members were left clicking their heels rather than their shutters , certainly as far as outdoor photography was concerned .
Jim Muir took top spot in the Colour image section of the March competition with his gold-winning image of a garden aquilegia .
interesting techniques such as encaustic media . The schedule also allowed for a handful of very informative tutorials on topics such as creating presets and using levels while editing .
And of course , a camera club year could not be complete without the club competitions . Two such events were held – in November and again in February – with entry being entirely digital . While we certainly missed the usual presence of colour and mono prints , the members all felt that the digital events did not result in any dilution of quality . Pictured are a number of the winning images from across both competitions .
With the likely continuation of some sort of restrictions in the shortterm , how Kilmaurs PC will operate in the 2021-22 season remains to be seen . The experience over the past year has shown that going online is effective as a stop-gap measure , so contingency plans are underway to cover all bases for the new season in September . Hopefully this will mean a return in some form to in-person meetings , but even if we need to stay online , we are now far more aware of what that medium can offer .
Best mono image in March was Robert Quig ’ s In the Mood which also netted a Silver award .
We are keeping our fingers crossed for a return to “ normal ”, but in the meantime , the shutters remain open on the new normal .
Undaunted , some members ventured into new indoor projects such as product photography , while others found a new interest in still life and tabletop photography . For others , it was rediscovering the beauty in the flowers and wildlife in their own garden .
But the committee decided that if the members couldn ’ t get to the club for meetings , then the meetings should go to them . And so a series of online club meetings over the winter was born . This featured several guest speakers who all presented slide shows of their stunning images to a rapt audience . Subjects ranged from newborn photography to
Martin also scooped the top award in November with Zaha Cyclist in the Storm which saw him gain a Gold award and the Best image in Competition accolade .
This innovative quirky image bagged John Sommerville a Gold award in the March event .