Last Thursday evening we were delighted to welcome George Robertson DPAGB from Bearsden & Milngavie C.C. to our second meeting of 2024, and our first visiting lecturer at our new venue in Trinity Church – Falkirk. George is also a member of the Scottish Photographic Circle who are currently holding their annual exhibition at the Auld Kirk Museum, Cowgate, Kirkintilloch, G66 1AB. Opening times are 10:00 to 13:00 and 14:00 to 17:00 Tuesdays to Saturdays. The exhibition closes on 15th February 2024. In 2017, and again in 2020, George won the Urban View section of the Scottish Landscape Photographer of the Year competition. An accomplished Mountaineer and Mountain Leader George also spent 18 years volunteering in Mountain Rescue.
The Snows of Kilimanjaro was the title of George’s presentation, one which took us from the plains of Tanzania to the mountain’s summit. George explained that Kilimanjaro is the world largest free standing mountain, in other words it is not part of a mountain range, and actually consists of 3, mostly, dormant volcanos. There was a relatively small eruption approximately 200 years ago, with the last major eruption around 360,000 years ago. With a height of 5,895m above sea level it is the highest mountain in Africa.
George’s photographs expertly illustrated the 5 climatic zones which layer the mountain. At the base of the mountain is a once populated area which leads into rainforest. Trekking through that region leads visitors to an layer of moorland vegetation which, in turn, becomes an alpine desert. The uppermost summit zone is not for the fainthearted. Photographs of visitors traversing mountain ledges, at a height where the air contains significantly less oxygen than it does at ground level increasing the risk of altitude sickness, left the audience in no doubt about the level of determination required to reach the summit.
Striking photographs of the mountain landscape at first light, and at the end of the day, together with George’s informed commentary provided a fascinating evening. Photographs of the shadow of the mountain on distant cloud cover and also looking down onto the top of cloud cover, resting above the rainforest layer, not only illustrated the drama of the landscape but the photographer’s technical and artistic skill. One quirky photograph was of a fellow mountaineer sitting on the summit of the mountain reading Ernest Hemingway’s short story, The Snows of Kilimanjaro.
Next week we welcome Gordon Rae MPAGB FIPF ARPS, a natural history photographer from Dumfries & Galloway, who will judge our annual Donald Polson competition and also show some of his own work. January 25th is also the final hand-in date for Monthly Competition No. 4, the penultimate monthly competition of the season. The following week we welcome Andy Stark from Renfrewshire.
Take care, and thanks for looking in.