AV News

Kapiti Coast Photographic Society Wins Wellington Interclub Print Competition

EACH YEAR SIX affiliated clubs, making up the Wellington Region, hold an interclub print competition. Clubs take it in turn to host the event, and the host club sets ten topics. These topics are advised early in the year, with a special evening held between August and October.

Clubs use different methods to select their ten images, and they bring them along on the judging night. As each topic is listed a club member places their image on the display easels. Rather than give a mark, the guest judge ranks the prints in order, with the ranking translating to points (1st equals 1 point, 2nd is 2, and so on). The club with the fewest points at the end of the judging process takes home the trophy.

The 2020 event was hosted by Kapiti Camera Club, but like so many things that year it fell victim to COVID-19 and was postponed to March 2021. It nearly became the victim of a further postponement when alert levels were raised again, just a couple of days before the event. Fortunately the organisers had a plan to limit numbers to eight per club, allowing what is always an enjoyable, popular and competitive competition to go ahead.

The judge for the evening was Wellington professional photographer Nick Servian. In many of the categories he admitted that separating the images was a difficult process.

As always it was a tight race to the finish. At the end of ten rounds Kapiti Coast Photographic Society (KCPS) won the night with 26 points, five points clear of second placed Johnsonville Camera Club. While they only won one of the ten rounds, KCPS placed second in four rounds and third in four rounds. That consistency gave them fewer points than the clubs who had first and last placed images.

In addition to the main trophy, a secondary competition is run for the Stella Daniels Trophy for the best abstract image. When there is no specific abstract section, the judge is free to select images from all the prints entered.

Jenny Setchell, a KCPS member, won the Stella Daniels Trophy with her image Crazy Pipes entered in the Musical Image category.

Sue Morton reports on a successful Stratford Camera Club weekend away.

SIXTEEN MEMBERS TRAVELLED to Awakino for a great weekend of fun and photography in March. They enjoyed basic but comfortable accommodation at the historic Awakino Hotel, and over the weekend explored the beaches, rivers and hill country in the area. Awakino is a picturesque village, close to the Awakino River mouth with whitebait jetties, mud flats and diverse birdlife.

Soon after arrival, members ventured out to explore their surroundings, with cameras and tripods in hand. Dinner at the hotel gave everyone opportunities to renew acquaintances with other members and to mingle with the locals. A wonderful end to the evening saw members venturing out for a sunset shoot, with vistas stretching over the Awakino Heads and south along the coastline to a distant Mt Taranaki.

Up at dawn on Saturday morning, a smaller but enthusiastic group caught the first light on the river flats. After breakfast, driving up a narrow winding metal road onto the plateau, they overlooked the Awakino landscape and beyond as far as Mt Taranaki, and were rewarded with sparkling clear views.

The afternoon was spent at Mokau River mouth, photographing fishing boats venturing out over the bar. The wild sea unfortunately proved too much for most of the boaties but the adventurous few did put on a show for our group who had to be quick to catch the action.

The group made an early Sunday morning trip to The Three Sisters at Tongaporutu. Timing the tides right and walking around the river bank to the beach challenged some of our less agile members, but it was well worth the trek.

There was fun, camaraderie and great photography for all. Getting stuck in river silt at low tide, being intimidated by roaming dogs which later proved very friendly, surf skis overturning on sandbars, fierce but friendly competition to claim the shot, feasting photographically on spoonbills in the evening glow - it was all laid on, with glorious sunrises and sunsets, clear skies and chilly mornings. On departure more than one asked, ‘Where are we going next?’ Thinking caps are already on!

Exhibition, 30 May to 10 June

Alison Viskovic FPSNZ

A Photographer’s Story 1951 – 2021

Sarona – Maadi Cup Winner 1983

A retrospective show of prints selected from my first camera up to my present work.

Rod and Gillian Dean Community Arts Space,

Paraparaumu Library, 9 Iver Trask Place, Paraparaumu

• Mon-Wed 10 am to 5 pm

• Thurs & Fri 10 am to 7.30 pm

• Saturday 10 am to 4 pm

• Sundays 10 am to 2 pm

• Closed Monday 31 May (Queen’s Birthday)

If you are travelling in the area please feel welcome call in and see the images.