Pembrokeshire Trip 2025
This year's trip away was to Pembrokeshire with eighteen of us staying in Haverford West, which was ideally located for visiting both north and south Pembrokeshire. The trip included a visit to Skomer to enjoy the island and especially to photograph the puffins who were very obliging in posing for photographs. There were plenty of other places to explore and photograph during the weekend, from magnificent cliffs, stacks and coastlines; historic castles, cathedral and pre-historic sites; and the varied shorelines of beaches and estuaries. The weather was kind to us, (mostly), and hopefully everyone returned with fantastic images and inspiration ready for the coming year. Many thanks to Adrian for all the hard work he put into organising the trip and making it such a success.
To see more images from the trip go to the
Gallery.
Norfolk Wildlife
Terry Wall and Wendy Conway recently visited Norfolk to photograph wildlife. Below is a brief description of some of the highlights:
Terry and I have just returned from a few days photography in Norfolk.
The first frosty morning we were off to the Wader Spectacular at RSPB Snettisham.
0515 saw us up early waiting to be collected by our guide David Tipling a well respected professional wildlife photographer of many years standing who is based in the area.
Half an hour later saw us arriving at the reserve having watched the sun rise behind us as we drove. We parked up and walked along the coastal bank overlooking the thousands of hectares of mudflats of The Wash. These important feeding grounds support thousands of overwintering birds sheltering from the icy blasts of the Arctic.
We had chosen to visit on the particular date as the High Tide was 7.24m and as the tide comes in, huge groups of wading birds rise into the air and form classic murmurations. Later they move into the old wartime gravel pits in front of the three hides and form a gigantic roost full of swirling patterns as the birds move around keeping tightly together unless a peregrine spooks them and they take to the air.
It was an amazing experience, well worth getting up early. After a cuppa to warm up we set off to look for Hares. There were dozens! Never seen so many. There are many large estates in North Norfolk and lots of fields perfect for them. We were kept very busy working out of the car with beanbags on the window. David knows Norfolk inside out and March is a great time for wildlife in the area. We spent a couple of days with him looking for day flying Barn Owls and using his woodland hide one morning. If you book a day with him a good lunch at a local deli or restaurant is included, as well as transporting you around his patch. We rented a cottage near Holt which was convenient for him to pick us up every morning and of course, return us before we collapsed!
We would highly recommend David as a guide. He is an Olympus ambassador and a consummate professional. Here is the link to his website:
www.norfolkphotosafaris.com
Pendine Hot Rods
Four members travelled to Pendine Sands to photograph the 2024 Hot Rod Races run by the Vintage Hot Rod Association. Saturday was a cold blustery day but there was plenty of action to photograph. The Hot Rods and Custom cars were all pre 1949 taking part in "the world's fastest and most exciting beach racing competition ". While the speed trials themselves were held at a distance from spectators, there was still plenty of opportunity to get up close to the cars and participants as they returned from their race and parked up on the beach. It gave us a good chance to try out our skills at photographing fast moving objects, (with varying degrees of success!) Most of us had had our fill of photographing the cars on Saturday, which was just as well as Sunday's races had to be called off due to fog! Go to the
Gallery to see images from the event.
Anglesey Trip
A great time was had by all on our recent trip to Anglesey, with an abundance of photographic locations, some very changeable (but mostly good) weather, and a great deal of fun and laughter. Thirteen of us stayed in the characterful Bull Hotel Llangefni where we were very well looked after by the hotel staff. Anglesey has so many interesting places to photograph in a relatively compact area. Locations included Penmon and Southstack lightouses, (at dawn and at sunset for the really keen); Parys Mountain with its wonderful colours; Newborough Beach and the atmospheric Llanddwyn Island; the island church of St Cyfan's; magnificent Menai Bridge; the old brickworks at Pen Worth, (for those who braved the mud); red squirrels at Malltraeth; pretty cottages at Aberffraw; charming Beaumaris; and many more. An unexpected bonus was the exhibition of amazing photography by Glyn Davies at Oriel Mon, (and also wonderful scones in the cafe there!). With so much to photograph everyone packed as much as possible into the four days away. Many thanks to Adrian for organising such a brilliant trip. To see some of the images of Anglesey go to the
Gallery.
Birmingham Canals and City Walk March 2024
Birmingham has over 100 miles of navigable water ways. A programme which involved walking the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal and three of the City Squares was developed.
A bonus visit to New Street Railway Station was added.
It was an early start, 06.45, and involved a Tram ride to the start of the canal walk. Cars were parked in Brindley Place named after the Canal engineer and one of the City Squares.
We rode the Tram from Broad Street to St Chad’s for the start of the canal walk. The group took off in the wrong direction and actually walked the Birmingham and Aston Canal before returning to the Fazeley Canal.
After reestablishing the start point we walked the canal to Gas Street Basin, stopping for coffee along the way.
Lunch was taken in “All Bar One” at Brindley Place Water’s Meet. After lunch we walked through the I.C.C. to Centenary Square. From Centenary Square we moved on through Victoria Square to New Street Station.
New Street was a highlight of the programme and all members had opportunity to take photographs after registration at Network Rail Reception. A coffee break was had in the Station.
After New Street the group went to the Bull Ring and photographed the iconic Selfridges Building. Tired but content we retraced our footsteps to Brindley Place for the car ride home.
To see more of the images from the day go to the
Gallery.
Burnham, Berrow and Weston
Four members spent an enjoyable day's photography on the Somerset coast. We started at Burnham Low Lighthouse - a photographer's dream. The lighthouse dates from 1832 and is sometimes known as the 'Lighthouse on legs'. Next we travelled the short distance up the coast to Berrow Beach and the wreck of the SS Nornen. The SS Nornen was a three-masted barque which ran aground on Berrow Beach in a storm in February 1897. The final location was Weston-Super-Mare. The tide was out leaving a vast stretch of sand and mud. John had a particularly close encounter with the mud! After a late lunch John and Adrian spent some time at the derelict Birnbeck Pier. The weather was ideal and we all had a great day's photography, (with or without mud). To see the images from the day go to the "Field Trips and Outings"
Gallery.
Waterfall Country
Our Saturday outing for February was a trip to the waterfalls walk near Pontneddfechan. The weather was kind to us and eight members enjoyed the beautiful woodland and river scenery. The waterfalls provided a great chance to try out slow shutter speeds, and also some intentional camera movement (ICM) shots, as well as straight landscape images. It was quite a trek to the waterfalls carrying camera kit and tripods but well worth the effort. The first stop was Sgwd Gwladys, (Lady Falls) followed by Sgwd-y-Bedol, (Horseshoe Falls), and finally Sgwd Ddwli Uchaf, (Upper Gushing Falls), for those who made it that far! One member also trekked to the lesser known but spectacular Sgwd Einion Gam. It was a very enjoyable day, thanks to Adrian for organising the event. To see more images from the day go to the
Gallery.
Clevedon Pier
After very cold and wet weather the suggestion was made to use one of just two bright days to visit Clevedon Pier to take some long exposures.
Still very cold but four club members and a friend took up the suggestion and met at the Pier.
Adrian Butcher showed such enthusiasm that he traveled from London to Clevedon to meet the group. He thoroughly deserved his coffee and cake for making such a good effort.
A good natured event with everybody enjoying their photography. It finished with coffee and happy conversation before the group made its way home.
Images above by John Crowland and Elisa Best. For more images from the day go to the
Gallery.
ICM Forest of Dean
Following on from our talk and ICM workshop with Stephanie Johnson, some members went to the Forest of Dean recently to have another go at producing some ICM images. It was very cold and frosty, but the sun came out to stop us getting too frozen and we had an enjoyable time experimenting with different shutter speeds and different types of camera movement. The cafe was good too! To see some of the images captured on the day, plus some ICM images members have been trying elsewhere, go to the
Gallery, (Field Trips and Outings section).
ICM Workshop Newport Wetlands
We were very lucky to have Stephanie Johnson, the Founder,Creator and Publisher of ICM Photography Magazine from Iowa, USA come to give a presentation to our club in November. Following on from this Stephanie very generously spent time with a group of us at Newport Wetlands for a workshop on ICM (Intentional Camera Movement) photography. Luckily the rain held off, (other than when we were having lunch in the cafe), and we had a bright and mostly sunny afternoon out in the wetlands. We had fun experimenting with different camera settings and different types of camera movement. The wetlands reserve gave us a good variety of environments with reed beds, water-filled reens, industrial architecture, shoreline and estuary, and a small area of woodland. We all enjoyed the afternoon and came back with hundreds of photos. Some of our images can be seen below. To view more photos from the day go to the
Gallery, (Field Trips and Outings section).
August, Brecon Show
Great weather and plenty of animals, (and humans), to photograph made this an enjoyable day out. It was a challenge to make the subject of the image stand out from the background people and clutter, but good fun and lots of interest. To see all of the images from the day go to the
Gallery, (Field Trips and Outings section).
July Meet-up, Penarth Sunrise
Thankfully the weather made it well worth the early morning wake up call, as the sunrise didn’t disappoint. It was a lovely morning, with lots to photograph, and the local art show was an added bonus! Looking forward to getting together with club members again soon for the next one!
To see all the images full size go to the
Gallery Page (Field Trips and Outings section).
Evening at Skenfrith
The outdoor photography meet-up for June was an evening trip to Skenfrith Castle. It was a lovely evening with the sun shining and fluffy white clouds in the blue sky. Also there was a slight breeze giving us the chance to try out some long exposures with movement in the clouds. The moon even came out to enhance our shots!
Greenfields Garden Visit
On 2nd May 2022, Monmouth Photographic Club visited Greenfields Garden, (an NGS Garden in Brockweir), for a social day out with a fun photographic challenge. Despite rather dull weather on the day, the event was supported by a good number of members and partners. Feedback was very positive and everybody enjoyed themselves.
The photographic challenge involved three categories: "Creative Images", "Close-up / Macro Images", and "The Spirit of Greenfields". Judging was by Jackie Healy who is 'Head Gardener' and the brains behind the design and planting scheme at Greenfields. For each category Jackie made a short-list of her favourite images, and then from the short-list picked a winner, (her most favourite image), for the category. Finally the category winners were all then considered for the overall winner of the challenge.
Creative Category:
Nineteen images were submitted for the creative challenge and of those Jackie chose a short-list of five favourites shown below:
For the category winner Jackie selected the following image by Jackie Poulter, (and it should be noted that it is pure coincidence that the judge and the author are both called Jackie!). Congratulations to Jackie Poulter.
Close-Up Category:
Twenty-five images were submitted in this categoryand Jackie selected a short-list of nine images shown below.
The standard of all the images was so high that Jackie struggled to pick a single image as the category winner. In the end the following two images, (as it happens both by John Crowland), were selected in Joint first place. Well done John.
Spirit of Greenfields Category:
Twenty two images were submitted under this category and the following five were short-listed.
Jackie selected the following image as the category winner on the basis that when designing the garden, Jackie was trying to create a series of vistas with multiple 'gardens within a garden'. Jackie felt that this image reflected the concept of vistas. The author is - wait for it - Jackie Poulter! Congratulations Jackie. (Once again it should be noted that the similarities in name did not influence the judging!).
Overall Winner:
As for the overall winner, Jackie's most favourite image from the day is John Crowland's close-up of a Clematis Montana. Jackie commented that the image really captures the pearlescence of the flower's petals. Congratulations John.
A big thank-you to all who entered, and congratulations to all who had images short-listed, and to Jackie Poulter, (winner of two categories), and to John Crowland, (winner of one category and overall winner). A big thank you to Jackie Healy for judging the competition.
To see all of the images entered into the Greenfields Garden Competition go to the Gallery Page (Field Trips and Outings Section).
Chepstow Bridge
Careful planning ensured that members were at Chepstow Old Bridge at the right time for sunset and high tide to coincide to give some lovely light and reflections for their photography. There was also a chance for some shots of the full moon later. While at the bridge the photographers were joined by the local wildlife - "Sammy" the seal, and some friendly ducks! To see the full sized images go to the Gallery.
f/8 Studios, Gloucester
On Sunday 28th November members of the Club visited f/8 Studios in Gloucester for a session. The plan was to allow club members access to using a professional studio lighting set up as many have never been in, let alone worked in, a studio before. The images show the reality of a studio set up and the type of images that can be produced. With the expert tuition provided by studio owner, Paul Davies, all those involved came away with some stunning images of the model, Joanna, and an understanding of what is possible when working in a studio. The f/8 Studio is open to anyone and has numerous events; details can be found at https://www.f8-studio.co.uk/
Another session will be booked in Spring/Summer in 2022.
Margam Park
It was well worth the early start, (we had to be at Margam by 8am), for our outing to photograph Margam Park's deer. We had great views of the deer and a lovely sunny morning. After three hours of photographing the deer herd we were ready for a tasty breakfast roll at the cafe! Everyone enjoyed the day. Many thanks to John Crowland for organising the trip and to Margam Park for their helpfulness. To see more images from the day go to the Galleries page (Field Trips and Outings).
Rhossili
This August trip to Rhossili to photograph the sunflowers and the landcape was a very enjoyable day. The sunflowers were not as good as they have been in previous years, but the weather was good, the picnic great and the scenery wonderful. To see more images from the day go to the
Field Trips and Outings gallery.
Nash Point
A group of us spent an enjoyable evening at Nash Point photographing the amazing cliffs of the Heritage Coast, the rock formations and patterns on the beach, and trying some slow shutter speed sea images. Many thanks to John Crowland for organising the event. To see more images go to the Field Trips and Outings Gallery.
Blaen-y-Glyn / Caerfanell Waterfalls
A lovely sunny September day made this trip to photograph the Caerfanell Waterfalls very enjoyable. The first camera club trip since Lockdown (socially distanced of course). Members had a chance to practise using slow shutter speeds to capture the movement of the water in the large Blaen-y-Glyn Waterfall, and after a picnic lunch and a chance to chat, lots more photographic opportunities as we made our way back beside the River Caerfanell with its smaller falls and tumbling cascades. Some even braved paddling in the river! Go to the Field Trips and Outings Gallery to see more images from the day.
Thirteen Go Wild in the Peak District!
Friday 13th March saw 13 photographers travel to the Peak District for a weekend photography workshop. On Friday the group explored Bakewell (and its cafes), practised using slow shutter speeds and filters beside the river in Lathkill Dale, and visited Ashford in the Water with its medieval sheepwash bridge. Saturday brought a misty start on Curbar Edge - with some imagination needed to appreciate the views. Padley Gorge with its wonderful woodland and pretty tumbling stream, (more slow shutter work), was next on the itinerary. The afternoon was spent exploring a rather windy Stanage Edge with abandoned millstones and amazing weathered gritstone outcrops. One member took his photography to a new extreme here, (mentioning no names John), but even continued taking photographs as he lay injured on the ground! We ended the day with a scenic drive to Winnats Pass. On Sunday morning our luck with the weather ran out, but some of us still braved the rain for some rather damp photos at Monsall Head and then Magpie Mine, (an abandoned lead mine). We then travelled to the western side of the Peak District into Staffordshire and to The Roaches and Hen Cloud - a prominent sandstone escarpment carved by the weather into an amazing landscape of strange rocky shapes. After lunch at the Roaches tearoom (delicious Staffordshire Oatcakes), we prepared to brave the weather and venture up The Roaches, and were pleasantly surprised when the rain stopped, the wind dropped and it turned out to be a lovely sunny afternoon - but still with those moody skies to enhance our photos. Well done Arthur for making it all the way to the top! A lovely end to the weekend before returning to the bus for the journey home. All in all a very enjoyable weekend of great locations, brilliant company, lots of laughs, much eating, and hopefully some amazing photography. Go to the Field Trips and Outings Gallery to see more images from the trip.
Dorset Trip September 2019
Seven members of the club enjoyed a trip to Dorset in September. We stayed in a lovely old Oast House at a fantastic location, (once we found it!), right in the middle of Weymouth. Wild and windy, (but mostly dry), weather was a photographer's dream giving us stormy seas and cloudy skies. We all particularly appreciated the spectacular Dorset coastline with visits to places such as Kimmeridge Bay, Lulworth Cove, Durdle Door, Portland Bill and Chesil Beach. The area is full of amazing landscapes and places of interest and our four days there only gave us a small taste of what Dorset has to offer. Go to the Field Trips and Outings Gallery to see images from the trip.
Secret Forest
Our recent visit to the Secret Forest was certainly interesting. The path through the enchanting woodland leads you past gnarled and twisted ancient trees, shimmering leaves and sudden patches of sunlight, and through 'scowles' (limestone rock formations). Photography was challenging in the low light conditions, but the stunning natural features made it worth the effort. We also saw a number of fairies along the way! Then emerged from the forest to an area of replicated iron-age round houses. Refreshments in the quirky 'curiosity shop' cafe were also much enjoyed. Go to the Field Trips and Outings Gallery to see images from the Secret Forest.
Lacock Visit
Nine of us enjoyed a lovely sunny Saturday at Lacock Abbey and village. Lacock is known as the birthplace of photography, (Henry Fox-Talbot), and there was certainly an abundance of photographic opportunities during our visit. The picture-postcard village is full of old buildings, with narrow streets, picturesque cottages, a church, three pubs and a packhorse bridge! The medieval Abbey, which later became the home of the Talbot family, is owned by the National Trust along with the extensive grounds. It also houses the Fox-Talbot museum of photography. Go to the Field Trips and Outings Gallery to see some of the images from the day.