More than 150 prints filled the annual exhibition of the Rye and District Camera Club, traditionally held on the first Saturday of the Arts Festival. The club, founded back in 1956, is still going strong with about 40 active members. Twenty members exhibited this year, at St Mary’s Church Centre, the prints displaying the wide range of skills of club members, from landscapes to holiday scenes and portraiture to street scenes. The technical expertise in presentation was self evident.
Four members have presented prints for the past 26 years – Melvin Smith, Melvin Roberts, John Trowell and Colin Page – and most members are now digital, which seems to have opened opportunities for many more, although Melvin Smith still does some film slides. The club has won the Sussex Trophy for camera clubs 13 times. Last year members were in competition with 19 other clubs and won with a score of 96/100 for their five prints.
The club meets fortnightly on a Monday evening at Playden WI Hall (Houghton Green Lane, Playden TN31 7PL) and meetings can be lectures, demonstrations, competitions or just fun evenings. The club’s aims are to “attract people from all walks of life and encourage members to further their photographic interest in a friendly and informal manner”. There are ample opportunities for members to display their work by way of exhibitions and competitions, and to share the knowledge and experience of fellow members or guest speakers.
Whether you are an accomplished photographer or a beginner – and whether you are a compact, SLR, digital or Box Brownie fan – you will find a warm welcome at this friendly club, plus all sorts of advice and encouragement. New members can enjoy two club evenings as a guest before joining. For more details, see the club’s website.
Photo: Ray Prewer