OPS Weekly Newsletter 16 March 2025
Please start thinking about pulling together your entries for our Digital Projected Image Competition No. 3 on 8 April.
- Last week’s meeting Tues 11 March: Janteloven – ‘No one is better than the other’ with Michele Peters
Michele has visited Denmark on many occasions, and she introduced us to the Scandinavian concept of ‘Jantoven’ which is a social code that emphasises the ‘we are all in it together’ approach to society. She would pick up this ‘no one is better than the other’ approach in her second half of her talk.
Denmark is famous for ‘Lego’, Danish pastries – though in Denmark they are called ‘bread from Venice’ – furniture design, architecture, and Hans Christian Anderson. A sculpture of his ‘little mermaid’ is a famous Copenhagen tourist spot which locals will tell you is not worth seeing.
Though the bridge that links Denmark and Sweden is worth seeing and Michele had a great shot of it on a rare day it was not misty, raining or foggy. She also had good shots of the sunset from the top of a tower in Copenhagen. Inside the tower is a spiral walkway built for King Christian IV so that he could driven up there in a horse drawn carriage. How his carriage managed to turn round at the top is a mystery.
Michele showed shots of Copenhagen’s architecture, from old army barracks to new builds such as one called The Black Diamond. The Black Diam is built next to the water’s edge and gets its name from how its walls glistens in the evening when light is reflected from the water. She had shots of the newly built Aquarium which has a Guggenheim Museum Bilboa vibe to its design. There was also impressive shots of the New Opera House.
Less ‘Sterling Prize’ fodder, but none-the-less a heritage site, was the area of Copenhagen called Christiania, that was taken over by ‘hippies’ in the 1970s. The area is decorated with street art and very colourful. Photos are not permitted but if you’re discrete, as Michele was, you can click away.
Outside Copenhagen Michele got impressive and colourful shots of a light show at a Modern Art Museum and also architectural shots of the gothic Cathedral in the former capital of Roskilde. She also showed excellent black and white shots of sea and sky where Sweden and Denmark are closest together.
Then we were off the Faroe Islands, which are made up of 18 islands and its total area is about half the size of Oxfordshire. Michele showed boats reflected in the water, and keeping to the reflection theme, windows in the older part of town. Getting around on public transport is easy as it is well coordinated, sometimes via helicopter! Michele rented a car, and you can travel for miles without seeing another car. The car you see may be dented though.
Great shots of churches, old rundown buildings, brooding skies, and villages that appear to be in the middle of nowhere. There are no trees but good public toilets in case you need to go.
In the second half of the evening Michele showed her project about ‘diversity’ which started during Covid – five years ago. The project will become a photo book. Michele has set herself a challenging task of photographing the concept of human diversity without including people in her shots.
The concept behind the project is equity, diversity and inclusion and is explained here:
https://www.creds.ac.uk/the-edi-cube/
Michele showed a collage of images that she has taken which illustrate this concept: a Swedish shop called Normal, shoes outside the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, a wall of cubes on poles that can be turned and have different colours on their sides, a sculpture of a man’s face or facemask, a memorial at the site of the Berlin Wall, photographs of signs, shots of stairs, disabled signs, old people road sign, and many more examples of images that show an aspect of equity, diversity and inclusion.
A very engaging evening showing an enormous breadth of photography and approaches and, as one would expect, excellent images.
- Next meeting Tues 11 March 19.30: Best Use of Light competition
Best Use of Light competition was set up to commemorate Peter Upton who, back in the day, was a leading member of the club and had a very distinctive style, powerful use of colour and light. Phil Joyce will be our judge and asking:
Is it a good photograph?
Does it use light appropriate to the subject?
Has the light been exploited to make the image standout?
- Upcoming meetings
25 March: Images of Zimanga plus ‘show and tell’ Dave Belcher and Dave Atkinson
The two Daves will show their images from a trip to Zimanga, South Africa. The second half will be a ‘show and tell’ by club members
1 April: Still – Mindful Photography with Paul Sanders
Former Picture Editor of The Times Paul Sanders left the toxic pressure of Fleet Street and stumbled upon a secret path: landscape photography. In the silent embrace of nature, he learned to breathe again, to find solace in the sunrise symphony and strength in the stoic gaze of mountains.
As he slowly learnt the value in solitude, and the magic that unfolds when he uses my camera as a tool for self-expression, he traded noise and materialism for something far more precious: peace.
“Still” is a bridge, built from my own journey of discovery, to guide you on yours. Here, you’ll find more than just photographs. You’ll find a portal to self-expression, a lens through which to rediscover the wonder of simply being. Let go of the clamour. Step into stillness, and paint your own story with light and wonder.
8 April: Digital Projected Image Competition No. 3 – Judged by Peter Cox
15 April: A Passage To India with Sandra Devaney and Linda Wride
Sandra and Linda will show images of their recent visits to India.
- Programme Secretary vacancy
We have a full and varied programme for you this season thanks to the hard work and excellent choices by Les. Unfortunately, due to unexpected changes in Les’s work commitments he cannot continue in the role and we need someone to step forward to start the planning and booking of speakers for next season’s programme. Please do contact me or any other committee member if you are interested in taking on the role.
- Events photographic in and around Oxford
Lions and Tigers and Bears with Gordon Buchanan
Live at Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Wed 19 Mar 2025
Award winning wildlife photographer and filmmaker Gordon Buchanan will hit the road in 2025 with his biggest ever live tour – Lions and Tigers and Bears.
Join Gordon as he recounts thrilling encounters with pandas, grizzlies, tigers, jaguars and more. Learn about the heart-stopping moments, the mud, sweat, and tears, and the tender interactions that have shaped his extraordinary career.
Photo Oxford Workshops
Join us for an exciting series of alternative photography workshops in March and April to explore the art of cyanotypes, anthotypes, phytograms, botanicograms, chemigrams, caffenol film development, pinhole cameras, photography as performance, and psychogeography.
https://www.photooxford.org/workshops
Bettina von Zwehl: The Flood
This exhibition will feature photographs by London-based artist, Bettina von Zwehl (b. 1971). Von Zwehl’s aim is to rekindle wonder and curiosity as critical tools for exploring new ideas and practices.
18 Oct 2024 – 11 May 2025
https://www.ashmolean.org/exhibition/ashmolean-now-bettina-von-zwehl
Don McCullin talks to Richard Ovenden
The Bodley Lecture and Award of the Bodley Medal: Life and Work
Thursday, 3 April 2025
6:00pm-7.00pm Sheldonian Theatre
£8 – £20
- General photographic interest
‘Fishing in Cornwall is like a metaphor for life’: photographer Jon Tonks on landscape, community and the perfect catch
Finn Blythe
Tonks spent 18 months documenting the fisherfolk of the south-west, learning about the community’s relationship with the sea, and how the future could be more sustainable for the fishers
Take your pic! Sony world photography open award winners – in pictures
Feasting polar bears, flying octopuses and gadgets galore – these stunning images won in their category at this year’s awards
Deutsche Börse prize review – Black cowboys, bonkers rock-huggers and a story of shocking loss
Photographers’ Gallery, London
The photographers up for the £30,000 prize show work that ranges from the spiritual and scintillating to the smug and glib
Image taken with a 2019 DSLR amongst winners of big LCE contest (only Amateur Photographer would write this headline)
The winners of the second LCE Photographer of the Year competition have been announced, with the winning image taken on a DSLR camera rather than the latest mirrorless kit.
Artist profile celebrates the prolific career of this street photography legend
A recent video from The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) profiles the prolific street photographer Jamel Shabazz with a visit to his home studio and old neighborhood. In it, Shabazz discusses his influences, philosophy and process, as well as how he began his career in photography.