Each session in the club and on location will be run and supported by volunteer photographers with a wealth of experience, knowledge and areas of photographic interest. Meet some of them below…
Linda Meaton | Course Coordinator
I am a retired university and college lecturer specialising in Computer-Aided Design and Visualisation. Since retiring, I have taken up photography and now work as an events photographer, collaborating with various companies, sports clubs, and charities on their event days. Here’s one of my favourite photos.
Steve Taylor | Composition
I am Course Lecturer Steve Taylor and I will be talking to you about the essentials of composition on the opening evening of the course.
My composition talk provides an introduction to the course and gets you looking at lots of images with a critical eye and thinking about what makes a good image.
I have many decades of experience in photography and although I tend to specialise in nature, landscape and travel, I will photograph just about anything, selling my images worldwide for publication in newspapers, magazines, books and TV.
Rachel Domleo – Phone photography and creative editing
I am Rachel Domleo and, as a photographer, I will be guiding you through the principles, techniques, fun and most of all the rewarding results that both creative editing and smartphone photography can bring to your photographic journey.
I have been passionate about photography for many years. I have enjoyed a career in commercial design and have always used photography as an antidote to a busy and sometimes stressful job.
I enjoy many genres of photography from abstract to studio and everything in-between. My passion is creative photography, with many images created in post processing, to produce imaginative and individual images, some of which can be seen on my website.
Jeff Hargreaves – Motion photography
I shall be talking about Motion in several ways, Freezing motion, motion blur, Panning, intentional camera movement play a crucial role in capturing dynamic scenes and enhancing visual storytelling.
Also, the use of multiple exposure with intentional camera movement.
I have been taking pictures since I was at school which is now a very long time. My interests are Sport; landscape Close up photography and other subjects. I am now retired from specialist electrical engineering work in industry.
Mary Pears – Natural History Prt1
My part of the Nature photography segment of the course will be to help optimise opportunities to get close to subjects, suggested techniques, fieldcraft, locations and ideas for different subjects.
I moved out to a country station in Scotland when I was five and immediately came in contact with wildlife subjects such as red deer, red squirrels and various other animals and birds. My love of nature began then and has stayed with me.
I didn’t take up photography till 2009 when I bought my first digital camera, but my choice of subject was never in any doubt, so I have been taking wildlife photos since then. I love taking photos of UK wildlife although it is often difficult due to lack of subjects and the fact that many subjects are very shy, so it is often challenging.
I also take photos of urban foxes and badgers in my garden.
Graham Pears – Natural History Prt2
My talk follows on from Mary’s. Both are about UK wildlife. Hers is primarily about creating the opportunity. Mine is primarily about how to get the shot.
Mary bought me a camera in 2011, then taught me how to use it, which she did to great effect having attended the BPS course!
Photography captures the beauty in nature like nothing else can, revealing incredible detail and freezing action, both of which are invisible to the naked eye. The opportunities for artistry are endless.
Mike Martin – Finding the light, basic and creative editing, studio photography and portraiture
Mike is a keen, amateur photographer, but don’t let that fool you; he’s very competitive, creative, knowledgeable and displays a very professional approach to his hobby.
He has attained a number of distinctions and awards in international and national competitions, as well as regularly lecturing to other camera clubs, judging and providing critique on images, sharing his knowledge with others. Mike is also a Fotospeed Ambassador and assessor for distinctions with the Disabled Photographers Society and has written articles for the Royal Photographic Society and SWPP as well as photography magazines.
Mike runs the club’s weekly studio group; photos from those sessions regularly feature amongst the winners in club competitions. He also co-ordinates the club’s entries into external competitions so knows what makes an image work and how to pick a winner.
On this course, you’ll benefit from his enthusiasm for photography, with Mike providing critique on your images, an introduction to portrait and studio photography, image editing.
Simon Caplan
Now in my mid 60s, I retired very early from a successful career in Public Relations and Communications and ever since then photography has become a passion. I enjoy almost any kind of photography – from architecture and architectural details; abstracts and landscapes to environmental portraiture and still life. I am well known throughout the West of England and beyond as a lecturer and competition judge. To see some examples of my work either visit my website or my Flickr stream. The latter is a good place to start as I add new work there all the time. I also have an Instagram account.
