Member’s Night
Smartphone Apps
Member’s Nights are a popular feature in our club’s syllabus with last Thursday’s event being much anticipated. After a short business meeting, club member Graeme Barclay spoke and demonstrated various varieties of a technical aid to photographers which has emerged during recent years. Graeme is a highly accomplished photographer with a wide portfolio ranging from Sport to Landscape and Astronomical Photography. Explaining how lighting, and the position of stars and planets in the night sky, are important in both his Landscape and Astronomical work he demonstrated how Smartphone Apps provide valuable information. Obviously the weather forecast is important, but modern Apps far exceed that facility. He demonstrated how, when planning a trip, they inform the photographer where the sun will be positioned at specific times and points in the landscape. They also advise of the type of light which will be prevalent depending on weather conditions, the time of year and the surrounding landscape. One of the most astonishing features is that when the photographer is onsite, they will advise of impending cloud conditions and when any existing cloud cover will clear. Graeme often incorporates the night sky into his Landscape work so Apps which advise where stars, planets and the Milky Way will be positioned at specified times enable more control over composition. With various Apps being projected onscreen, and club members checking locations live on their own Smartphones, this was a particularly interactive presentation.
Image Filing
Although judicious editing of the number of photographs kept on file by photographers is wise, how these image files are stored effects the ease with which they can later be found. During the second half of the evening Stuart Pearson demonstrated date orientated filing and how adaptations can be introduced to identify particular projects. As with so many topics in this digital age, the ability to demonstrate these facilities live onscreen made this too a particularly informative presentation.
40 Years of Scottish Photography
Two weeks ago the club was represented at the preview of the new photographic exhibition at National Galleries Scotland – Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh. Home of the Scottish National Photographic Collection, the gallery collect everything from early photography from the mid 19th century when Scottish photographers played a key role in the development of the medium, to photography through the following decades up to and including contemporary photography from Scottish and international photographers working today. Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the founding of the collection and coupled with explanatory notes the exhibition highlights different segments of the collection. Last week some club members also attended the opening talk at the N.G.S. lecture theatre. Featuring among others the exhibition Curator, and founding Curator of the department they agreed afterwards it was an especially enjoyable and informative event. One of the most striking exhibits in the exhibition is a collection of work by American artist Sant Khalsa ( b.1953 ). Gelatin Silver transparencies of destroyed forrest encased in glass and presented in wood, reminiscent of a timber yard, remind us of our reliance on natural resources and our responsibility to the planet. Just part of the exhibit is shown below.
Portrait Gallery, 1 Queen St., Edinburgh. EH2 1JD, Admission free. Exhibition open until 16th March 2025.
Trees and Seedlings by Sant Khalsa ( b.1953 )
Gelatin silver transparencies, glass, poplar wood. 2000 – 2020.