OPS Weekly Newsletter 20 September 2026
- Take 5 is in a week’s time so please start collecting those five images that zing. Recent ones preferred.
- We have a ‘Talks Portal’ – fancy name for a spreadsheet – where members can add the names and contact details of speakers that they would like to be included in the programme. If you have any recommendations please add them here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Vygkbg7dUF2e0dqF8PfPyfT1caZrnWJB5EEG9bBrTjs/edit?tab=t.0
- Only three entries so far… We have a gorgeous framed print of Carmine Bee Eaters taken by Ivor which we are giving away to a member. Please email me at i.bray@ntlworld.com if you would like to have the framed print. We will randomly pick the winner out of a hat, or any other appropriate receptacle that is available.
- Bharat has a photography presentation and exhibition on Wed 30th Sep at 6.00-8.00pm. Entry £15 including Indian finger foods and Chai at Maison Francaise. See more below
- Last meeting held Tuesday 15 September: Digital Projected Image Competition
Our judge was Mikki Aston and her choices were:
| First | Kestrel With Mouse | Les Gordon |
| Second | Dartmoor Sunset | Mathew Lodge |
| Third | Hoopoe With Catch | Les Gordon |
| H. Commended | The Reader | Dave McKay |
| H. Commended | The Pampas and the Curious Dog | Pete Warrington |
| H. Commended | Culture Clash | Phil Warrington |
| Commended | Bear in Water | Dave Atkinson |
| Commended | Vigilant Hare | Phil Warrington |
| Commended | Pier and Starling Murmuration | John Botela |
| Commended | Helenium | Ian Bray |
Congratulations to all who took part.
You can see them all here
- Next meeting Tuesday 22 September: Finding the Frame: Developing a Photographic Style with Fliss van Steenbergen
We’re delighted to welcome Oxford-based photographer and former OPS member, Fliss van Steenbergen for an evening exploring how a photographic style develops — and how we learn to see and make images with greater intention.
Fliss works predominantly in urban environments, drawing on architectural and street photography to find striking compositions in the everyday world around us. Over several years, her photography has evolved towards a more minimalist and considered style, with a growing emphasis on simplicity, structure, space and the deliberate placement of elements within the frame.
- Upcoming meetings
29 September: Take 5 Competition
6 October: Exploring the Ethics of Photography
Mick Yates
‘Exploring the Ethics of Photography’ will examine how photography has always shaped truth, memory, and power – asking not just how we create and see images, but how images shape the way we see the world. The talk blends philosophy, technology, and decades of photographic practice. Trigger warning – some images are challenging.
13 October: Tequila, Mezcal & More: Stories from Mexico
Anna Bruce
We’re delighted to welcome award-winning photojournalist and author Anna Bruce, who has lived and worked in Oaxaca, Mexico, since 2013.
Anna is a captivating storyteller, bringing to life the people, landscapes, traditions and culture of Mexico through her photography and first-hand experience. Her particular expertise is the world of mezcal, where she has spent more than a decade documenting the producers, families and communities behind this extraordinary spirit.
20 October: Print Competition No 1. Our judge is Peter Cox
- Photographic events in and around Oxford
Nomadic Lives of India
Charity Evening featuring Bharat Patel’s photography
Charity Evening in support of the Nomadic communities of India. Photography presentation, exhibition
Wed 30th Sep at 6.00-8.00pm/£15 including Indian finger foods and Chai
Maison Francaise
Norham Road
Oxford
OX2 6SE
Colonial Views of India: Photographs by Eugene Clutterbuck Impey
This free photographic exhibition in G29 offers a rare glimpse of late 19th century India
Ashmolean Museum, Beaumont Street, Oxford OX1 2PH
Jacques Henri Lartigue: Life in Colour
20 June – 4 October 2026
This is the first UK public exhibition of Lartigue’s work for over 10 years. It focuses on an exceptional and little-known aspect of his work: until recently, the majority of his colour photographs had never been seen. The exhibition features more than 150 items including early stereoscopic images producing three-dimensional effects, vintage prints, unique works on paper, archival documents, lightboxes and projections. It also showcases Lartigue’s career from drawings made as a child in the 1900s to the fashion world of the 1960s and late abstractions of the 1980s.
MK Gallery
900 Midsummer Blvd
Milton Keynes, MK9 3QA
- Photographic events further afield
Portrait of a City: A Century of American Photography
Dulwich Picture Gallery
28 July – 4 October 2026
Dulwich Picture Gallery, College Road, London SE21 7AD
Tickets: £16
Tuesday – Sunday, 10am—5pm
See full list of exhibitions here: https://amateurphotographer.com/latest/articles/best-photography-exhibitions-to-see/
- General photographic interest
Want to expand your photography…?
The RPS have an array of workshops to choose from. See here:
Think street photography is just New York and Paris? Well think again – this incredible collection from Africa will blow you away
If you only think of New York, London and Paris when your mind’s eye contemplates street photography, then you’re missing out on a huge diversity of different, but equally compelling, locations for this popular genre. Indeed, this book represents a whole continent, and includes some of the most interesting contemporary photography I’ve seen in a long while.
These intriguing film photographs offer a fresh edgy take on fashion imagery. You should definitely check them out today
Evan dos Santos has a passion for fashion and film photography. Combined, he creates interesting and unexpected photographs from fashion studio sessions and the catwalk. Evan takes the unpredictable nature of film and experiments with lighting and movement to form his alternative, edgy, almost grunge style. He shares more about his journey in photography so far…
Portrait power: photojournalist Lorrie Graham’s five-decade career – in pictures
Drawn from more than 100,000 images and negatives created between 1975 and 2025, the exhibition Lorrie Graham: Photojournalist is on now at the State Library of NSW.
‘He was making history, not copying it’: the greatest Gordon Parks photographs
As a new exhibition celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Gordon Parks Foundation, those who knew him discuss his most powerful images
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/ng-interactive/2026/sep/18/gordon-parks-photography-exhibit
In black and white: the 2026 Mono photography awards – in pictures
The Mono awards celebrate the best black and white images chosen from more than 3,000 entries from Australia, New Zealand and around the world.