Supporting Photography in the Meon Valley
We are an enthusiastic group who want to show our photographs, develop our skills and share inspiration in a friendly social environment.
The Club usually meets twice a month on Thursday evenings at 7.30 pm at St Peter’s Church Hall, Free Street, Bishop’s Waltham SO32 1EE. Church Hall in Free Street Bishop’s Waltham A few meetings are only held on Zoom, not at the Church Hall.
We welcome anybody interested in photography, regardless of their experience or the type of camera they have; the majority of our members use DSLRs, but an increasing number use smartphones.
In addition, we try to organise field trips about once a month ( known as ’Out & Abouts’) to a wide range of reasonably local venues. These are excellent opportunities not only to take photographs but also to get together socially.
We also hold a free 3-day annual exhibition of members’ work in the middle of October at the United Free Church, Upper Basingwell Street, Bishop’s Waltham, SO32 1AC. The Exhibition allows us to show the public the best work of our members, from beginners to the very experienced. It is not judged competitively, and all members are encouraged to enter their work.
Our AGM is held on the first Thursday in January. The current office holders will each present a short report related to their respective areas of responsibility. There will be an election of committee members.
Take a look here to see what exciting things we are up to for the remainder of 2024
In the beginning
The Bishop’s Waltham Photographic Society was formed in 2008 by a small group of keen amateur photographers who wanted to share their passion for photography with other like-minded people in the local area. The Society’s first formal exhibition of member’s prints was held in 2012.
The Aim and Objectives of the Society
To promote the use of photography as an expressive art form and encourage and facilitate members to improve their individual skills by:
- Providing an environment in which everyone is encouraged to demonstrate and share their own individual strengths and knowledge for the benefit of all.
- Arranging workshops on topics of interest to members, e.g. post-processing, so that they are able to understand better the range of functions of the equipment that they own and use this with confidence so that its use becomes a useful tool and not an impediment to their photography.
- Encourage sharing members’ work using the Society’s closed Facebook site to allow analysis and constructive comments from other members.
- Arrange visiting speakers to bring a fresh range of topics and techniques to the attention of our own members.
- Arrange outings to a variety of venues to encourage members to take photographs of subjects in which they have specific interests and to encourage the taking of images on subjects outside an individual’s normal comfort zone.
- Encourage members to feel that they have ownership of the club and provide opportunities for individual members to present their own work in the form of prints, portfolios or other means of presentation from time to time (Projected Image Presentations).
- Have regular print reviews, which will involve a dialogue with the photographer and also include a critique of images to assist in improving individual skills.