DI ONLINE JANUARY 2024
2 | COVER IMAGE
COVER IMAGE About the cover image These ICM images were taken at the Towner Gallery in Eastbourne. I spent a couple of hours photographing the outside wall on a bright day experimenting with different shutter speeds and direction of movement. Anything from 1.5 to 3 seconds seemed to produce the ICM effect I was after. The four images in the collage were my favourites so I created a print preset in Lightroom to show them off as a quadriptych. The images were shot as JPEGs on my Fuji X-S10 using the Classic Chrome film simulation with some in camera adjustments to white balance and colour to further emphasise the already vibrant colours of the wall. Colin Smith LRPS, Instagram colinsmith18
DI ONLINE DI Online
Editor: Melanie Chalk ARPS dignews@rps.org Typesetter: Mark Stothard MA ARPS dionline@rps.org
JANUARY 2024 | 3
CONTENTS Cover Image About cover image ................................................ 2 Contents ................................................................ 3 Chair’s Chat ........................................................... 4 Digital Image Comp .............................................. 6 eCircles.................................................................. 7 AGM....................................................................... 16 Talk Walk Talk......................................................... 19 International........................................................... 22 AI Snapchat............................................................ 24 Accolade................................................................. 27 Book & Zine Project................................................ 28 DI Workshops.......................................................... 30 DI Print Portfolio....................................................... 31 Distinctions.............................................................. 32 Landscape.... .......................................................... 34 Thames Valley......................................................... 36 DI Workshops.......................................................... 37 Editors Words......................................................... 38 DI Website ............................................................. 39
January 2024
4 | CHAIR’S CHAT
CHAIR’S CHAT Janet Haines ARPS • • • • • • • •
Chairs Chat In 2023 we promised you DI would ‘evolve’ as every group, business or person needs to do to stay fresh and invigorated. As is traditional at this time of year let’s review and see what that meant for our members….. • • •
We bought you more learning opportunities through the diversity of new workshop offerings We delivered some truly inspirational Saturday webinars We gave you the opportunity to engage with fellow members through the e-Circles and expanded the number of circles
DI Online
We worked with the Landscape group to deliver the Talk-Walk-Talk Coastal photography programme We evolved the annual Digital Imaging competition to be 5 themed rounds We updated DI News to become DI Online monthly news We accepted the challenge of AI and started to debate and explore what this might mean for traditional photography We continued with the acclaimed quarterly DIGIT magazine We celebrated Distinction successes through Accolade We made an increasingly higher number of video recordings available via our DI YouTube channel Our DI Facebook continued to enable members to show their work and engage in debate with one another
CHAIRS CHAT | 5
Looking forward into 2024 I may not have a crystal ball but what I can promise you is that all of the above will be maintained, with an explosion of new benefits for DI members. Firstly you are going to get all this and more for the lower subscription price of £14 p.a. for full DI membership and £7 p.a. for DI Online membership. Plus much of that which we offer our members is free at the point of engagement – competitions, publications, webinars, e-Circles and some workshop tasters. In January we are launching three new programmes: 1. DI Print Portfolio 2024 2. Talk-Walk-Talk – Architecture and the Built Environment 3. Book & Zine project Each is highlighted with links to the page within this publication for full information. In April we will print DIGIT 100. The intention is to make this a ‘keep sake’ issue for every member to read and treasure. Almost without fail everything we do we consider our international members and those off-shore from mainland UK. Where at all possible we make it feasible for you to join us either live, or on catch up via recordings to be viewed in your own time zone. Whether you live in Christchurch UK, USA or New Zealand, and all points between, your engagement as a DI member should be more or less the same. To round the year off I thought you might like to see some membership figures 09.01.23 29.12.23
484 DIO 534 DIO
1245 DI 1202 DI
Total 1729 Total 1736
So subscriptions to Digital Imaging are pretty static with a slight swing towards online membership. Finally your DI Committee looks forward to serving you, our members, in 2024 and all that remains is for me, on behalf of the team, to wish you all a very happy 2024. We hope to see you, meet you and to enjoy your images, albeit virtually, during the course of the year. Janet Haines ARPS DI Chair digchair@rps.org
January 2024
6 | DI DIGITAL IMAGING
UPDATE ON THE DI DIGITAL IMAGING COMPETITION Round 1 Flora and Fauna is now complete – 5 top images have gone through to the final Round 6.
Round 2 Water – voting opened on 1 January and closes 24 January. Here’s the link to caste your 3 votes. https://rps.org/groups/digital-imaging/di-competitions/digital-imaging-competition/ Scroll down to the gallery. Lots of great work to consider and enjoy.
Round 3 People – still time to be shooting your winning image as submissions open on 1 February. Full information is on the DI web HERE where you can download the RULES and the FAQ. Remember you do not need to enter every round to be selected for the final.
DI Online
eCIRCLES | 7
eCIRCLES Michel Claverie Michel Claverie joined the DI eCircle, I attend, in 2023 and we have enjoyed viewing his photography over our monthly sessions. He is a very prolific photographer, with many of his images captured close to home. When he talks about his ‘ outings’ you realise he is a patient man, and enjoys sitting with a coffee and watching the world go by, ready to take advantage of an opportunity. He also loves the play of light on objects, architecture and the street scene and he really enjoys ‘playing’ with the light, the colours and processes them in his unique way. He is very willing to share his ideas and readily shows us his processing workflow, and we enjoy his detailed commentary. Here is an article he wrote, originally featured in Concept, the newsletter of the Contemporary NE group. I thought it would be good to share this amusing article with a wider audience. Melanie dignews@rps.org
The street brings mannequins to life. Mannequins are the perfect companions for street photographers. They don’t move much, they wear interesting clothes, and they are very nosy – they love to be involved in other people’s business. You will rarely see a mannequin who is not staring at passers-by from her window shop; males and females are equally curious, and groups are the worst. There is no social divide either; in my personal experience, the mannequins from the discount shops of Reading or Paris boulevard Barbès, and from the expensive boutiques of central London and Milan are equally keen to interact with the people strolling past, apparently not minding that they are stuck in a sedentary job, without prospect for travel. Instead, they appreciate their job stability, and from one year to the next they look forward to new waves of fashion on both sides of the shop window.
January 2024
8 | eCIRCLES
© Michel Claverie
DI Online
eCIRCLES | 9 In some of these pictures, however, you will detect a sense of competition – London mannequins don’t like to be upstaged by the outfits of pedestrians. When it happens, they don’t make a fuss, but very little escapes their darting eyes. Mostly, mannequins show a great amount of empathy for humans. In Reading, they will be seen together resting after shopping or waiting for the bus. In Paris boulevard Barbès, they venture outside barefoot, posing proudly in their tight-fitting suits. And in Milan, mannequins take on eerie human traits: a Ferrari mannequin displays car envy for a vintage Citroën C1, and 2 mannequins – a model and her photographer – are so well designed that they are nearly lifelike.
© Michel Claverie January 2024
10 | eCIRCLES
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© Michel Claverie
eCIRCLES | 11
January 2024
12 | eCIRCLES
© Mich
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eCIRCLES | 13
hel Claverie
January 2024
14 | eCIRCLES
© Michel Claverie
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eCIRCLES | 15
January 2024
16 | AGM 2024
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2024
Notice of the Digital Imaging group Annual General meeting 2024 25 February 2024 @10.00 GMT online via Zoom – booking essential HERE
Your committee invite you to join us for the DI AGM. Chair and Treasurer report(s) will be available early February as downloadable documents from the DI web site. Members may submit written questions prior to the AGM via the DI Secretary digsecretary@rps.org Questions will also be accepted on the day. If any member should wish to stand for a position on the DI committee they need to email the DI Secretary for a nomination form which needs to be returned on or before February 10th. You need to state your full name and RPS membership number, plus your official RPS email address. Your nomination must be supported by two RPS DI Members who should provide their full name, RPS membership number and official RPS email address. Any query in relationship to the AGM please email digsecretary@rps.org
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AGM 2024 | 17
25 February 2024 – 10.00 to 16.00 via Zoom webinar We will have two separate online sessions and each needs to be booked separately. Session 1 (10.00 to 11.30) is DI members only. Book HERE Session 2 (12.00 to 16.00) everyone is welcome. Book HERE AGENDA 10.00 – 10.45 10.45 – 11.00 11.00 – 11.30
DI AGM break Print Portfolio Awards*
Session 1 ends 12.00 – 13.00 Nicholas Vreeland* 13.00 – 14.00 lunch 14.00 – 14.45 Fun with AI* 14.45 – 15.00 Break 15.00 – 16.00 Brooke Shaden* 16.00 Close Session 2 ends *Denotes sessions that will be recorded.
Session 1 DI Annual General Meeting Chair and Treasurer reports for 2023. Accepting the report and accounts. Voting for your new committee. This is your chance to question your committee in the Q&A section.
Print Portfolio Awards We will show the top 50 images and then the final top 30 that have been selected to go into the DI Print Portfolio 2024. Our selectors will be online to talk about prints and their experience of selecting this first prestigious DI Portfolio. This presentation will be recorded. JANUARY 2024
18 | AGM 2024
SESSION 2
‘A Monk with a Camera in his Bag’ - Nicholas Vreeland, also known as Rato Khen Rinpoche, Geshe Thupten Lhundup, is a fully ordained Tibetan Buddist monk. Born in Geneva Switzerland to American parents, Vreeland was educated in Europe, North Africa, and the United States, after which he pursued a career in photography prior to becoming a monk. This presentation will be recorded.
Fun with AI – we have had a few traditional images sent to Simon Newlyn and he has challenged AI image generating software to recreate them for us to see traditional v AI generated. Each photographer has submitted text with their image which is Simon’s starting point when he works with the AI illustration generators. This session will be hosted by Joe Houghton as he talks to both Simon and the original author about their work. This presentation will be recorded.
Brooke Shaden - American photographer who uses herself as her model in the various series she creates. Brooke will show us how to create art that is both personally meaningful, but also resonates with a larger audience. There will be a Q&A session at the end of Brooke’s talk. This presentation will be recorded.
DI Online
T-W-T COASTAL | 19
TALK-WALK-TALK …… Coastal online zine
Many of you will have engaged in the T-W-T Coastal project and enjoyed getting together with others to shoot and discuss your images. Each walk leader was invited to submit one representative image from each walk. These have been compiled into an online zine which can we viewed HERE
JANUARY 2024
20 | T-W-T
T-W-T ARCHITECTURE & THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT Bookings open 8th Jan HERE Architecture and the Built Environment covers all human made buildings and structures from the present day back to ancient times, from cities to rural locations.
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T-W-T | 21
We are offering walks in over 40 locations around the UK and will include international members shooting in their neighbourhoods. You may wish to consider different approaches to photographing the built environment such as: • •
Cityscapes (i.e. big views of built environments) Portraits of buildings (or groups of buildings)
• • •
Architectural details Abstracts Literal vs creative or artistic portrayals.
Potential subject examples include: • • •
Modern and contemporary architecture Historical buildings or streets Ancient monuments.
The project starts in early 2024. • • • •
Bookings open 8 January 2024 Online TALK with Mark Reeves FRPS 20 February 2024 WALKs 20 February to 31 March 2024 TALK discussions during April
Following the final TALKs in April there will be an online gallery of images and an e-Zine will be produced to celebrate the work of the participants. Full information and a link to the booking site available via the DI web page HERE. International members will receive an email with information relevant to them in early 2024. The T-W-T programme is free to all RPS members; the public are welcome to join us, but we make a charge for their participation. Any questions email twt@rps.org
JANUARY 2024
22 | INTERNATIONALS
INTERNATIONALS Each month we will feature a International Member, and learn more about them and their photography. Here Janet Haines informally poses questions to Todd Allison. I am Todd Allison from Pittsburg, Kansas. That is in the middle of the United States, about a two-hour drive south of Kansas City. [Janet] How long have you been a member of The RPS and what made you join? [Todd] I have been a member since 2006. I came across The RPS while earning my photography degree in the States. I did an off-campus travel semester in England in 1993 and visited the RPS gallery. I was impressed that there was a continuously operating photo club as old and prestigious as The RPS. [Janet] Do you feel your photography has developed and improved as a result of being an RPS Member? [Todd] Any opportunity to look at another’s work improves a person’s photography. And I also enjoy seeing what is happening in England. Photography is a visual language, and I like to see how other parts of the world express that. Furthermore, I did a lot of large-format portraiture early in my career. The works of 19th-century English photographers left an impression on me, and I see The RPS as a connection to that. [Janet] Do you notice any significant difference in image styles from that which you see in the US and from RPS members? [Todd] The US has more landscape and wildlife photographers, undoubtedly due to the country’s size and the variety of terrain. Besides that, I see all types of photography in the UK and the US. However, I have noticed a trend towards more painterly work coming out of The RPS, which I enjoy.
DI Online
INTERNATIONALS | 23
[Janet] If I could grant you one wish what would you like from your RPS Digital Imaging group membership which is not already available to you? [Todd] Being in America makes it difficult to take advantage of all the perks of being a member. The distance makes participating in shows and live events difficult or even impossible. If I could make a wish, I would want to join in the more social aspects of the organization. [Janet] Please can you show us 2 of your own favourite images and tell us why these are important to you. [Todd] I wouldn’t characterize these two images as “favorites” as much as representing a currently developing body of work. I live in the rural Midwest United States, where many small towns are dying off. Much of my current work is photographing small-town Main Street areas and the ongoing changes in rural America. Some of my work is purely documentary in nature. Other photos, like these two images, are more interpretive. The image containing the Sign Brothers shop is an illustration of rural renewal. It is an attempt by locals to revitalize their Main Street shopping district while honoring its traditional architecture. Small town America wants to make local shopping exciting by bringing back locally owned stores and reducing reliance on national corporate chains - like the Walmart discount stores. In image two, the Midtown area is part of the city square of Bentonville, Arkansas. Again, the city square attempts to maintain a dying part of American culture - the local downtown shopping district. This area of Bentonville is successful because it has become a local tourist destination. Ironically, this district also contains the very first Walmart five-and-dime store, now a museum of the company’s corporate history.
Thank you, Todd Allison
JANUARY 2024
24 | AI SNAPCHAT
AI SNAPCHAT Focusing On The Future Snapshot Of 2023 2023 has been a rollercoaster year in the world of AI. AI images have won various competitions, sparking much debate over the ethics and use of this new technology for image generation. Camera clubs and societies like the RPS have had to create policies and rules for competitions and distinctions detailing what is and isn’t permissible – but the pace and pervasive expansion of AI into the whole image creation process makes, and will continue to make such regulation increasingly difficult. Like it or not, unless you are still completely analogue – using film and emulsions to produce your images – you are likely to be using AI in some shape or form. All the major software we use day to day to import, catalogue and develop our digital files now leverages AI, and the use of this technology is only increasing with each update. Upsides to AI are incredible possibilities to craft, adjust and change images. Or even to generate brand new images from text prompts – this “generative AI” is a new frontier of image creation, completely different to photography even though the end result might appear to be a “photograph”. And remember – most people don’t care that the image on their screen was created with a camera or by an AI – that’s an argument peculiar to a small group of photography enthusiasts – some of whom will be reading this. So much discussion at club/society level this year, but there’s a growing realization that photography – for most amateur aficionados – is more about the process of getting out there with a camera and capturing images using the craft. Developing your knowledge of the exposure triangle, of composition, of exploring a scene and rendering it through the lens in the way you visualise in your mind’s eye. I’ve used the downtime between Christmas and New Year to get out with the camera and actually take some photos rather than just talk and write about them – lovely to actually get out and shoot! Downsides to AI perhaps start with the need for powerful computers with lots of memory and fast SSD drives – this year I’ve had many 1-1’s with people realising that their current computers simply won’t handle the demands of the new software. AI is great for the computer hardware sellers! If you’re running a machine that’s more than 3 or 4 years old, expect things to get very slow with the new software… DI Online
JOE HOUGHTON | 25
So what can we expect from 2024? Always dangerous ground this – predictions, but fun next year to see what did happen! Here are a few: 2024 is going to see the kind of pre-processing software now in phones built into mainstream cameras, as bolt-on boxes (like Arsenal https://witharsenal.com/ ) but also built in to the main camera. Cameras will also build in digital watermarking to allow for verification of RAW file state SOOC (straight out of camera). We’ll see lots of difficulty policing photography competitions around the acceptable use of AI as the software capabilities increase. Many more clubs will die off or be forced to amalgamate as they fail to attract younger members and/or adapt to phone photography and use of AI to create/co-create “acceptable” images. 2 good articles to round the year off: This one from PetaPixel titled “The AI images that shook the photography world in 2023” https://bit.ly/petapixelAI And this fascinating roundup by Jeff Foster “AI Tools Part 5: 2023 A Year in Review” - https:// bit.ly/aitools5 AI image created to illustrate this article. Query: Create me a 1920x1080 pixel, photorealistic image of a photographer sitting at a computer creating an AI image for a camera club competition. A modern looking mirrorless camera should be on the desk and the image should have a shallow depth of field and be toned to look like a film set.
JANUARY 2024
26 | AI SNAPCHAT
AI SNAPCHAT AI ALERT! An interesting Website to check out! This morning I followed a Facebook post, from Member David Lane, he was recommending the website of Christine Widdall. I clicked and was immeadiatly engrossed in reading of her first foray into Generative AI images. I will leave you to read more by posting the link below, but i was amazed to read, her ‘Foray” started on 23rd December 2023 and we are only at the 6th January 2024, she has accomplished much!
A sreenshot from the website of the images created by Christine Widdall, and a quote from her article. “On 23rd December 2023, with the increasing accessibility of Open Source AI-powered imaging tools, I decided to embark on my first foray into AI imaging. Initially, I was curious about the possibilities it could offer. I decided that the only way I would find out would be to plunge in and get my feet wet.” Website : https://christinewiddall.co.uk/ DI Online
ACCOLADE | 27
HAVE YOU GAINED A DISTINCTION IN 2023?
As members will be aware normally DI produces a periodic online publication called Accolade. This celebrates our members Distinction successes and asks them questions about their journey. Regrettably we have not received any list from the Distinctions department since the start of 2023, which has prevented us from producing this valued publication. So we need to take a different approach starting now. We need YOU to tell us if you gained a Distinction. If you have gained a Distinction in 2023, at any level, then please get in touch with us by emailing our content admin volunteer Holly Stranks on hollystranksphotography@gmail.com Holly will work with you so that we can show case your work and hear your story. Accolade is a really useful reference source for members to read and see images, plus panel layouts, when they are on their own Distinctions journey. To view some past publications do go to HERE
JANUARY 2024
28 | BOOKS & ZINES PROJECT
DIGITAL IMAGING BOOKS OR ZINES
Have you ever thought of producing a photobook or zine? If you have not known where to start, or tried but would like to do better read on! A not infrequent conversation between photographers is of how to share their hard-won images. Some use social media to display them, some give talks or lectures, some enter competitions, many of us have thousands of images on hard drives that never see the light of day. Many quieter pictures that will never get millions of social media likes, or do well in competitions are wasted by sitting hidden away, and can make compelling bodies of work. One outlet for them is a panel, but alternatives are AV sequences or photobooks. More details can be found on the Digital Imaging webpage and how to Register and see all the Zoom links. Follow the link - https://rps.org/groups/digital-imaging/books-zines-project-2024/
DI Online
BOOKS & ZINES PROJECT 2004 |
In 2023 the Landscape group ran a very successful Zines project, I took part and found it great fun and valuable, but still have a lot to learn. After discussion with the landscape team we felt that a similar project might appeal to some DI members who work in a range of genres. The DI Books or Zines project aims to help photographers who have never produced a publication before and those who have, but would like to improve upon their efforts, to come up with something that they are proud of. We will run two initial Zoom talks which cover the how and why you may choose to structure your book in one way or another. At that point you will have an idea of how you want it to look. We will then offer you a choice of workshops in which you will learn the skills you need in order to take forward your vision. By offering choices we aim to be able to support those just wanting to tip a toe in the water by choosing the simplest options, and also others who want to develop more sophisticated skills. By early summer we will have completed the preparatory part of the project, giving you all summer to collect images or fill gaps in a project already underway. In late summer we will meet up again for further discussion aimed at stimulating anyone flagging, then in Autumn 2024 we will invite participants to submit a PDF draft (the whole thing or a section) for a critique session. By Christmas you could have some lovely gifts for friends or family! I am looking forward to improving on the zine that I produced in 2023 and hope many others will want to join in too! Jean Robson FRPS DI Membership
So we have put together a PROGRAMME that encompasses the year, giving those who might be interested, a chance to create a book or Zine and publish it with support and encouragement! The idea is you register for the whole ‘Programme’, FREE to DI Members and chargeable for others. This gives you the links to two talks in February, with a chance to book optional Workshops, which are only available by registering for the ‘Programme’, as they are hidden! These are aimed at explaining things about various software available to make a book, as well as help and assistance when invariably, things go awry. Peer to Peer support will be arranged when we have the number of attendees who have registered. Further inspiration will be offered in the summer, and we will keep you informed, by sending out mailings, to those registered, with any dates and times or any new developments. To answer the question, ”Will it be recorded?” Yes, ALL TALKS & WORKSHOPS WILL BE RECORDED & ALL AVAILABLE ON THE DESIGNATED GOOGLE DRIVE : More details overleaf JANUARY 2024
30 | DI WORKSHOPS
These optional Workshops are visible once you have registered to the PROGRAMME
DI PRINT PORTFOLIO 2024 |
DI Print Portfolio 2024 Entries now open Send us your prints Complete your online application
This is your chance to be selected as one of the 30 photographers to be showcased in the DI Print Portfolio 2024. Only the 30 selected authors will receive the Portfolio, but every entrant will get a magazine of the same content. You submit your prints as A4 unmounted prints. Plus you complete the online application and upload your 3 (maximum) images to the submission site. Images will be judged as prints. For full information go to the web page HERE where you will find a link the RULES which includes where to send your prints and most importantly the closing date of 9th February 2024. International members should read the section relevant to them as we can arrange to print your images for you.
JANUARY 2024
32 | DISTINCTIONS
DISTINCTIONS Find out how to start – or continue – your Distinctions journey
Each of the pages below includes handy links to guidelines and genres for distinctions, assessment dates, and a “how to apply” document: • • •
Licentiate (LRPS) – the process for LRPS is changing – see below for more details. Associate (ARPS) Fellowship (FRPS)
Changes from 1st January 2024: Applied and Portraiture genres will be merged into Applied for ARPS and FRPS. Book submissions (not photobooks) are in the process of changing, so make sure you include the correct number of images as specified. No way of identifying the author may be included in these books. Changes to LRPS: The LRPS application process will be changed in 2024, to make the process easier to use for both applicants and panel members, quicker and more affordable for applicants. The RPS is developing an online application system to replace the current manual one, which is too labour-intensive to cope with any increase in number of applicants. Whilst this means that print submissions will not be possible after April 2024, it’s hoped that the new process will provide feedback for all applicants, better support international members and the panel members, and reduce the number of assessment sessions that have to be cancelled or postponed for various reasons. Workshops and talks to support would-be licentiates will be developed in tandem, for example addressing issues that commonly result in unsuccessful submissions. ARPS and FRPS submissions will continue to support print-based assessments. The Photobook genre, available for all distinctions, has its own special guidelines and submission process (as opposed to an LRPS, ARPS or FRPS submission in book form). You can find out more here: Photobooks. You might also like to see a talk hosted by Stewart Wall which is both informative and inspiring.
DI Online
DISTINCTIONS | 33 In-person introductory presentations for LRPS, ARPS and FRPS at HQ were successful and online versions are being planned in the next few months – watch out for announcements on the Facebook group (see below). To help you prepare, you can request a one2one portfolio review – an online session with a panel member appropriate to your genre/distinction. See this page for more information: How to book a one2one. There has been some confusion over what happens next – someone from HQ will find you an advisor and put you both in touch to arrange a date and to send images/ presentation plan. This can take time depending on how many volunteer assessors in your genre or at your level are available, and you are advised to make your request at least 4 months before an assessment. Some regions are offering Advisory Days online and in person. Look out on our Facebook group (see below) or for broadcasts from your regional group for details, or use this link https://portal.rps. org/s/event-listing and click the ‘Advisory Day’ button at the top – best to disregard the filters at the left hand side which often seem to find nothing or hide some events! You can generally attend as an observer if you aren’t ready to step up yet (usually advertised a week beforehand on the Facebook group). In addition, some Chapters and Regions offer online Distinctions Study Groups. You can find these by searching the RPS website (these are in random date order including past dates, so you do need to be patient). Assessment dates for 2024 are on the website (apply from 3rd January), and the last print assessments for LRPS are 14/15th Feb, 12/13th and 26/27th March – to ensure anyone who would like to submit a print application for the Licentiate can do so before the final cut-off date for Licentiate print applications - 31st Jan 2024. You can send your booking forms to distinctions@rps.org or by post to head office. As for advisory days, you can sign up to observe an Assessment Day (in person or online) tickets for assessments – currently free. And don’t forget, as well as projected and printed images, you can also apply for a Film, Digital and Multimedia Distinction at any level, and also a written Research Distinction: Film And Research. The Research page on the website has been updated, and more changes are scheduled for other pages. More avenues of support: If you missed any of the Distinctions Live talks, you can catch up here. (Also accessible via the RPS Distinctions channel on YouTube.) This talk from Stewart Wall gives advice on how to gain your Licentiate. The Facebook Group RPS Distinctions **Official Group** is still growing after 3 years, with 4975 members. It includes news from HQ, links for observer places at assessments, and posts celebrating distinction successes to inspire you. It’s a civilized venue to ask questions, share your successes – and disappointments – and ask for critique or expert advice on your proposed portfolio. If you aren’t sure which genre or level to apply for, you can post 6 images (plus your SOI if appropriate) and request moderator advice. Accolade, which celebrates Digital Imaging members’ distinction successes, is useful for insight into the process in many different genres and at all levels. Issue 12 of Accolade is available on Issuu (back numbers also available).
JANUARY 2024
34 | LANDSCAPE
RPS LANDSCAPE GROUP Member-Led Events for 2024
Tree Tunnels of Banstead Heath
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LANDSCAPE | 35
Landscape Group’s Member-Led Events programme now has 20+ field trips already set for this year, with more in the pipeline. Click the link on these February-May events to see more details and book. To see all of Landscape’s Pro-Led & Member-Led Events - Click Here Tree Tunnels of Banstead Heath - 10th February, led by Peter Stott ARPS Lying on the North Downs chalkland, the heath comprises open acid grassland with areas of dense, unkempt overgrowth. Native birch, holly, oak and pine grow over paths and create tunnels, the trees challenging one-another for light. Click Here Poles, Piers and Ports (Shoreham to Brighton) - 13th February, led by Richard Ellis ARPS This event is sold-out Spring in Ceiriog Valley (Dyffryn Ceiriog) - 12th April, led by Geraint Wyn Jones LRPS This event is sold-out Bolehill Quarry - 24th April, led by Dave Glenn This Peak District location is well known for its rows of Silver Birch trees, moss-covered millstones and vertical rock faces. The long-abandoned quarry is also good for abstract and detail shots. Click Here Exploring Linlithgow - 3rd May, led by Viv Cotton ARPS A variety of photographic options here: a 15th century palace and St Michael’s Church, with its crown of thorns spire; scenic Linlithgow Loch and Canal Basin includes waterfowl, maybe fishermen in rowing boats catching trout; hopefully, some cherry blossom. Click Here Edzell: Beech Woods in Spring - 5th May, led by Andy Leonard LRPS Springtime in beech woodlands with a deep river gorge: woods providing opportunities for wide and intimate images; a gorge giving tree-lined vistas with rapids and waterfalls. Time permitting, we may add some coastal scenery just a few miles away. Click Here Rannerdale Bluebells and Crummock Water - 8th May, led by Mike Kitson LRPS The UK’s favourite wild flowers in all their glory and Rannerdale. Later, we relocate to the north west end of Crummock Water and walk through Lanthwaite Wood to the lake shore, with classic views down the lake towards the high fells. Click Here Low Tide at Hope Gap and Cuckmere Haven - 8th May, led by Howard Klein LRPS This event is sold-out Cramond Island - 16th May, led by Donald Stewart FRPS The island is reached by a 400 metre causeway. It was part of the WW2 defences for Rosyth Naval dockyard, has many buildings/structures still standing. Being out in the Firth of Forth, there may be interesting/different angles on the Forth Bridges and Edinburgh. Click Here
JANUARY 2024
36 | REGION
REGION EVENTS “Making strong impactful imagery in any genre” RPS Thames Valley Region have another Woosehill day event on the 21st January, where David Clapp FRPS is giving his “Making strong impactful imagery in any genre” talk.
About David David Clapp is one of the UK’s most successful landscape, travel and architectural photographers. A jack of all trades, he initially began working as a writer, contributing imagery and words for photography magazines. This led to a career as a full time professional photographer in 2009. He has been a Getty Images contributor for the last four years after attaining a contract in 2015. In Jan. 2019 David received a direct FRPS. David is a global photography workshop leader. He runs workshops through his own limited company taking photographers to some of the most exciting locations on the planet. David says “Photography will always be the marriage of computers and cameras. Technology and creativity has always been a constant source of fascination and my vision has always taken a rather elliptical orbit, between day / night / landscape / architecture / travel. I can’t define exactly what it is I do - so I do them all.” And there is more, Devon, Dartmoor, light painting with The Milky way, the architecture of dishwashing and the synthetic world of Kate Winslett. An opportunity not to be missed for a variety of topics with images you may not even have dreamed of. David Clapp FRPS https://www.davidclapp.co.uk/ ADVANCE BOOKING ESSENTIAL only £15 for a day packed full of Photography and a Face-toFace presentation. Non-RPS £18. DI Online
DI WORKSHOPS | 37
WORKSHOPS WITH SPACES STILL AVAILABLE
JANUARY 2024
38 | EDITOR WORDS
NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS Those days between Christmas and the New Year, recently labelled ‘Twixmas’ can feel like a succession of endless, lazy Sundays, perhaps a chance to catch up on TV and eat all those Christmas treats. You have no obligation to do anything whatsoever, longed for after the clamour of the festive preparations, but all this sitting around becomes tiresome. Of course others have to return to work, directly after Boxing Day, in my working life I was one of those, retirement has its advantages! But I for one soon yearn for normality and structure to the day and a return of order in the house, after a stream of visitors and catering. But in this time of reflection, although I write nothing down, I internally make Resolutions, plans to tidy my workspace, my digital space and my thoughts. Its only the third of January and its going well! I am immeasurably pleased with the difference a length of Cable Wrap has made to my life!!!! Order to my desk. My Lightroom Folders and Collection clearance is moving forward with radical removal to the Trash bin, I will be more consistent in 2024 with my ‘Flagging’ and ‘Stars’ and improve my workflow. Now to sort my thoughts, I think many of us feel we spend too much time on social media and can easily disappear down the ensuing rabbit holes. It’s also easy to be overwhelmed by information and news, much of it negative, and there will be an overload of that, as we enter this Election year, I will resolve to read things that inspire me and are uplifting and that contribute to a more positive and balanced outlook on life. And I will ignore the negative and moany comments that I see, I must learn to ignore and not react, and move on. New Year is also a great time to make a plan to broaden ones horizons and commit to learning something new, and DI have some great creative plans in place to encourage you to do just that, take a look at what is planned and like me, embrace the positives! What New Years Resolutions have you made? Or will it be the,’ The Year that was Not the Year’ for you too? This was the year that was not the year
Action figures were not sold of me.
This was the year that was not the year I repaired the bathroom tap and emptied out the kitchen drawer of a lifetime’s worth of crap.
I wasn’t made a dame.
This was the year that was not the year in which I launched a new career. 516 A West End hit eluded me as did Time Person of the Year. This was the year that was not the year. I became a household name. By Brian Bilston
This was the year that was not the year I spent less time on my phone. Nights of passion did not happen in boutique hotels in Rome. This was the year that was the year I didn’t get that much done – much the same as the year before, much like the one to come.
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