OPS Weekly Newsletter 9 November 2025
- Next Tuesday change of speaker: Glyn Dewis had to cancel but our very own John Boteler has stepped in and will give a talk
- We will be showing members responses to our ‘motion’ photo challenge on 2 December so please start shooting and choosing your favourite ones
- Last week’s meeting Tues 4 November: WORKSHOP – Painting with Light with Kieran Hunt
Keiran started with an overview of painting with light and showed various examples. He started with light trails – streaks of light using a long exposure – and asked us whether we could work out how they were done. Besides the usual shots of vehicles lights driving through the night Keiran showed shots of lights snaking over a canal and other creative ways of using moving light. He then showed various other examples of painting with light which were astonishing.
After talking about the technical aspects – exposure triangle (f-stop/iso/shutter speed) – he did a couple of examples using his camera and the torch on his mobile phone as a light source. He has obviously done this many times and the results were good.
We were then set a series of tasks to do in pairs or more and off we went to have a go. Lights were turn off in the band hall and in our groups we enthusiastically started light painting using his list of tasks as a template.
In the second half of the evening Keiran gave us more advanced challenges, such as multiple exposure and others, and we continued experimenting, reviewing, adapting, repeating and on we went until we all ran out of time and it was 10.00.
A very different evening and there was lots of enthusiasm for trying out a very different aspect of our photography. Many thanks to all members who took part.
- Next meeting 19.30, Tues 11 November: Special Guest Speaker – John Boteler: “Landscapes and People”
Due to the late cancellation of Glyn Dewis, we’re delighted that John Boteler has kindly agreed to step in to give this week’s talk, “Landscapes and People.”
John is a long-standing member of the Oxford Photographic Society, known for his thoughtful eye and strong sense of composition. Much of his photography happens during his regular Thursday outings with fellow photographers — often to the coast, where he’s especially drawn to piers and their ever-changing light and geometry.
In this session, John will share a selection of his recent images and reflections on combining people and place in photography — and, we suspect, a few delightful pictures of his granddaughter, one of his favourite subjects.
We’re very grateful to John for stepping in and look forward to what promises to be an enjoyable and inspiring evening.
- Upcoming meetings/events in November
- 18 Nov: Wildlife from -15°C to +40°C with Dave McKay + SHOW & TELL https://oxfordphotosociety.co.uk/opsevent/wildlife-from-15c-to-40c/
- 25 Nov: Canon Partner Event + Take a Moment with Eddie Keogh https://oxfordphotosociety.co.uk/opsevent/canon-partner-event/
You can see the programme up to the end of the year here and download it: https://oxfordphotosociety.co.uk/programme-download/
- Photographic events in and around Oxford
Uwe has excelled himself and had three exhibitions during 2025 Photo Oxford. They are:
- Online solo exhibition:
part of the 2025 Photo Oxford Festival of Photography: https://photooxford.org/exhibitions/photo-oxford-online-exhibitions
- SACRED SPACES
Opening: Sunday 26 Oct 2.30 – 4.30pm
Thursdays – Sundays 12-4pm
337 Banbury Road OX2 7PL
The focus is on the personal, how our emotions and experience give particular significance to certain places – different for everyone yet a universal process. The “specialness” of particular places has long been widely known; in our own lives, our own “special” is something we can share through photographs.
This show looks at our “special” places that embody important moments, feelings, memories, an idea that was important to Paddy Summerfield, whose house is the venue for this exhibition. Nine Oxford photographers are showing their work here, a place where they met many times, to share work and to discuss photography.
Uwe Ackermann; Wendy Aldiss; Paul Freeston; Rob Judges; Paul Medley; Caroline Seymour; Martin Stott; David Stumpp; Angus Taverner
12-4pm Thursdays- Sundays 30th Oct – 15th November
- EYES LEFT! — WALKING THE BOTLEY TUNNEL OF INCONVENIENCE
The images shown here are from a series showing eye contact avoidance techniques adopted by commuters passing through the Botley Tunnel of Inconvenience and ask the question, Why are we so loath to acknowledge the presence of another?
This exhibition is located in the Botley Library, https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/oxfordshire-libraries/find-library/botley-library
Open from 9:30 AM Mon, Tue, Thurs, Fri and Sat. Closed Wed and Sun
Bikes, Boats and Bridges; photographs by Wendy Stone at the Paper Boat Café
This series of darkroom photographs was created for the Paper Boat Café, on Folly Bridge in Oxford. The images celebrate nearby places as well as other boats, bridges and crossings that carry us over and along the River Thames.
The Thames is as important to Oxford as the iconic stone facades, walls and arches that attract visitors. The river predates our many generations of history. It shapes the city and, despite our best efforts, occasionally reasserts its ancient course.
The Paper Boat Café is located at a key point in the city’s history. It was the toll-house when Folly Bridge was built, replacing the wide shallow fording point and wooden bridges that carried people, goods and animals across the Thames until 1827.
The photographs will be on display until 11 November.
https://stoneandco.bigcartel.com/
Photo Oxford
Photo Oxford is open and we are delighted to announce the full programme for the Opening Day, 25 October.
See details below:
https://mailchi.mp/photooxford/zsu8u7h122-12867158?e=591e9fec01
- General photographic interest
Photo Oxford review – the pictures of stinking public toilets are unmissable
From historical cottaging locations to attempts to fool an AI, the fifth edition of this biennial festival is a refreshing celebration of the form’s most DIY and downright uncommercial delights
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/nov/03/photo-oxford-review
Head On portrait prize 2025 – in pictures
The winner and finalists of the 2025 Head On portrait prize have been announced as this year’s Head On festival kicks off at Sydney’s Bondi Pavilion Gallery. Since it first began in 2010, the festival has showcased Australian and international photographers. Running until 30 November, this year’s instalment features outdoor displays in Paddington Reservoir Gardens and along Bondi beach.
Love & War
From frontlines to family life. Pulitzer-winning conflict photographer Lynsey Addario on the five stories that defined her career
High and low: the spontaneous joy and drama of New York City – in pictures
Street photographer Daniel Arnold searches out the candid human moments of NYC, capturing a complex city alive with characters and contradictions
Breathtaking landscapes take top prizes at the global Pano Awards
The winners of the 16th Epson International Pano Awards have been announced, featuring images that showcase vast landscapes and architectural marvels. The 2025 competition drew more than 4,500 entries by hundreds of professional and amateur photographers around the world. Participants could enter into the professional or amateur categories, with subcategories for Nature/Landscape and Built Environment/Architecture
https://www.dpreview.com/articles/0882940509/2025-epson-international-pano-awards-winners
