20 November 2024 (4 Way Inter-Club Competition)

On Wednesday, 20th November 2024, MCC members fought their way through the delays on the Edinburgh city bypass to join StirlingEdinburgh & Kirkcaldy at the Birds and Bees restaurant in Stirling for the annual 4-way interclub competition. The competition was hosted by Stirling & District Camera Club and judged by Eddie Telford of Milngavie and Bearsden Camera Club.

Each club had submitted 15 digital images, making a grand total of 60 images. The competition began with Edinburgh’s image of a firefighter tackling a forest fire, which achieved 19 points; then Stirling’s image of an American wren caught in mid flight approaching its nest hole, which scored the first 20 points of the night. Next up was Musselburgh’s still image of a nuthatch on a tree, which couldn’t compete with the dynamism of the wren and received just 16 points. This was followed by Kirkcaldy’s beautiful landscape image of a lone tree against a mountain background, which got 18 points. This first round summed up what was in store for the rest of the evening. We had some good images, but the other clubs’ images had something more. For example, George Todd’s portrait of the boxer “Kalon” was beaten Kirkcaldy’s image “On Target” of two boxers caught in mid fight. In the second half, you could hear the disappointment from Musselburgh members when Carol Edmond’s portrait “Hi There” received a very positive description but was awarded a disappointing 17 points. By contrast, Stirling surged ahead with four of their 15 images receiving 20 points and another 19 points. Edinburgh managed a 20 and a 19 and Kirkcaldy a 19. It just wasn’t Musselburgh’s night. 😦 The final scores were:

  • 1st place: Stirling and District Camera Club, 267 points.
  • 2nd place: Kirkcaldy Photographic Society, 258 points.
  • 3rd place: Edinburgh Photographic Society, 253 points.
  • 4th place: Musselburgh Camera Club, 248 points.

None of our images achieved the top spot this year, but one came close:

  • Harvest Queen (George Todd) – 18 points.

Although we were unhappy, Stirling cheered us up by offering a lovely selection of drinks, sandwiches and cakes. We were up against some very strong competition this year, especially from Stirling who had a cracking selection. Strong competition lowers the scores, so well done to George, Joe, Derek, Mike and Carol for scoring 17+ points against such odds. We’ll be back next year and ready for a much better result.

14 November 2024 (Colour Print Competition)

We were delighted to welcome Colin Joyce to Musselburgh to judge our colour print competition, braving the evening rush hour traffic on the Forth Bridges to visit us from Dunfermline. Colin is both an artist and a photographer, whose work can be seen on his web site:

His work will also be on display during the weekend beginning 30th November at the Edinburgh Macmillan Art Show at St. John’s Church in Edinburgh. Colin said it was a privilege to have the opportunity to view other people’s work and had enjoyed the variety of ideas shown by our members. He doesn’t like the term “judging” when assessing images, as he’s simply expressing his opinion. He said all of the prints entered are worthy of display.

33 prints had been entered by 11 members. Colin really liked the strong colours and detailed textures on many of the prints. He suggested some prints with an extensive background could be improved by cropping, and some prints could be improved by toning down a distraction or adding a focal point. But he had positive things to say about all the prints and appreciated the work that had gone into creating them. The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (51 points)
    • Elaine Gilroy.
  • 4th place (52 points)
    • Jennifer Davidson
  • 3rd place (53 points)
    • John West
    • Derek Muller
  • 2nd place (54 points)
    • Joe Fowler
    • Mike Clark
    • Carol Edmond
  • 1st place (58 points)
    • George Todd

The top images were:

  • Courting Great Crested Grebes (George Todd) – 20 points
  • Battling the Rapids (George Todd) – 20 points
  • Where’s that Nut?  (Joe Fowler) – 19 points
  • Come Fly With Me (Mike Clark) – 19 points
  • What Was That? (Carol Edmond) – 19 points
  • Apprentice Welder (Joe Fowler) – 18 points
  • Forrest Nymph (George Todd – 18 points
  • You staring at me? (Mike Clark) – 18 points
  • Anemone Triptych (Elaine Gilroy) – 18 points
  • Fake Fly (John West) – 18 points
  • Hand Made and Home Grown (John West) – 18 points
  • Rubbing hands with devilish delight (Carol Edmond) – 18 points
  • That’s My Nut (Derek Muller) – 18 points
  • Chilling After a Heavy Lunch (Derek Muller) – 18 points
  • Beautiful Young Woman (Jennifer Davidson) – 18 points

Well done to George Todd, winning with 58/60 and also creating “Courting Great Crested Grebes”, which Colin considered the best image overall. Thank you to Colin for “expressing his opinion” for us, and to everyone who entered the competition.

Next week we have two inter-club competitions in quick succession:

I look forward to seeing you again in the coming week.

 

17 October 2024 (Digital Projected Images Competition)

Our first competition of the new season took place this week. David Ferguson, president of Falkirk Camera Club, visited to judge our digital projected images competition. David said when he had first started in photography he owned a Kodak 126 Instamatic camera. He shot and developed his own film and once worked in the photography section at Boots. If your print once came back with a “needs improvement” sticker it’s possible that David put it there. 🙂 You can see David’s more recent work on his web site:

David Ferguson Photography

There were 48 images altogether, entered by 16 members, covering a wide range of subjects, including wildlife, landscape, sport, portrait and architecture shots, and some really imaginative still life creations. David commented on the high quality of the entries, which meant there were a lot of high marks. Each image was assessed on its exposure, sharpness and composition, and David suggested changes in the cropping or spacing that may improve the impact of some of the images; although he pointed out this was his own opinion, and other viewers may see things differently. Some images could be improved by lifting the shadows, adjusting the contrast or converting them to black and white. Some studio shots could have been improved by adjusting the lighting to bring out more facial detail or reduce blemishes. Notable images were a paperclip figure beach scene (At the Beach) submitted by John West, which none of us could figure out how it was done. There was also an innovative back of the head shot (Leading the Way) created by new member Melanie Gallacher, which broke all the rules but worked and secured a maximum 20 points. The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (53 points)
    • John West
  • 4th place (54 points)
    • Joe Fowler
    • Jennifer Davidson
    • Melanie Gallacher
  • 3rd place (55 points)
    • Mike Clark
    • Carol Edmund
    • Derek Muller
  • 2nd place (58 points)
    • George Todd
  • 1st place (59 points)
    • Malcolm Roberts

There were many top images:

  • Place Your Bets (Joe Fowler) – 20 points
  • Nuthatch (Malcolm Roberts) – 20 points
  • Tap Dance (Malcolm Roberts) – 20 points
  • Battling the Rapids (George Todd) – 20 points
  • Hi There (Carol Edmond) – 20 points
  • Leading the Way (Melanie Gallacher) – 20 points
  • Caught in the Middle (Malcolm Roberts) – 19 points
  • Osprey With Catch (George Todd) – 19 points
  • Ferrier Working in the Smiddy (George Todd) – 19 points
  • Braving the Rapids (Mike Clark) – 19 points
  • Strong Competition (Derek Muller) – 19 points
  • Carriage Driving (Jennifer Davidson) – 19 points

Well done to Malcolm Roberts for winning with a fantastic 59/60 points! Thank you David for judging our competition, and thank you to everyone who entered.

Next week, 24th October, we will be having a review of this competition. Please have a go at making the changes suggested by David and bring in your edited images. We can also discuss how to “lift the shadows” or “bring out the sky”, or any other adjustments mentioned. Perhaps John could tell us how he created his beach scene? Besides working on your own images, what were your favourite images of the evening?

25 April 2024 (AGM and Presentation of Trophies)

The 2023/24 Musselburgh Camera Club season ended on 25th April 2024 with the AGM and the presentation of trophies. We discussed the upcoming programme for 2024-25, which John West has packed with more speakers and special events. We are planning a series of monthly photoshoots through the year, so watch out for notifications or check our activities page. The club now has a private Facebook page which members can join to be notified about events and to chat during the summer while we are not meeting at Fisherrow. Click the link below to request to join (you’ll need a Facebook account):

https://m.facebook.com/groups/25703565185901411

Members had an opportunity during the evening to suggest and vote for the topics for next year’s set subject competitions. The top results were:

  1. Buildings
  2. Distorted
  3. Cycling

which become the themes for set subjects 1, 2 and 3. We decided that the knockout will be open to all images next year.

The AGM finished with a presentation of trophies and medals and with a selection of snacks and refreshments provided by Jennifer Davidson and Liz Sowler, who received the club’s “Golden Teapot” award. The full list of trophy and medal winners can be found on the following page:

Trophy Winners – 2023/2024

Although the 2023/24 season has come to an end, the club’s exhibition will be touring local libraries during the summer. This year we also have an exhibition at Cockenzie House. Here is the timetable and list of volunteers.

Thank you to everyone who volunteered. Our first meeting of the 2023/24 season will be on Thursday, 5th September 2024. But in the meantime I hope to see you at some of our summer photoshoots.

All the best,

Steven Beard

21 March 2024 (Set Subject Competition C – Flowers)

Thursday saw the conclusion of our 3-part set subject competition. The third part on the theme of “Flowers” was judged by Gordon Davidson, who had won last year’s competition. 11 members had entered 33 images altogether, with a wide selection of floral images ranging from wide shots of entire flower beds to portraits of a single specimen, including a Karen Woodcock’s “Happy Wee Poppy” that looked like it was smiling. Gordon commented on the detail and composition of each image. Some images had lost detail through a slightly offset focus or too little resolution. It is easy to over-exposed a flower when brightly lit, and some images had lost detail in their highlights. Gordon also pointed out some blobs and halos that he found distracting in the background. Nevertheless, Gordon liked most of the images, which meant there were a lot of high marks. The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (50 points)
    • Joe Fowler
  • 4th place (51 points)
    • Gavin Marshall
    • Jim Innes
  • 3rd place (54 points)
    • Steven Beard
    • Derek Muller
  • 2nd place (56 points)
    • John West
  • 1st place (57 points)
    • Jennifer Davidson

The top images were:

  • Red Roses (John West) – 20 points
  • Let us out! (Jennifer Davidson) – 19 points
  • Blue Lily Head (Jennifer Davidson) – 19 points
  • Pink Daisy (Jennifer Davidson) – 19 points
  • Dandelion (Steven Beard) – 19 points
  • Yellow Lily (John West) – 19 points
  • Pink Rose (Carol Edmond) – 19 points
  • Backlit Sunflower (Derek Muller) – 19 points
  • Purple Plant (Joe Fowler) – 18 points
  • Frosty Rose (Joe Fowler) – 18 points
  • Red Dahlia (Steven Beard) – 18 points
  • Turkscap Lily (Elaine Gilroy) – 18 points
  • Tulip Fields (Jim Innes) – 18 points
  • Thistle From Above (Derek Muller) – 18 points

Well done to Jennifer Davidson, who wins the right to judge next year’s competition. Also well done to John West, whose image of red roses achieved the highest mark. The latest scores have evened up the league table, making the final result close, but after consulting the final spreadsheet I can reveal that the final result from all three competitions is:

  • 1st place
    • Jennifer Davidson (53 + 57 = 110)
  • 2nd place
    • John West (50 + 56 = 106)
  • 3rd place
    • Steven Beard (51 + 54 = 105)
    • Elaine Gilroy (51 + 54 = 105)
    • Derek Muller (51 + 54 = 105)
  • 4th place
    • Carol Edmond (54 + 50 = 104)
  • 5th place
    • Joe Fowler (52 + 50 = 102)

Well done to Jennifer for winning the trophy, and thank you to all the members who entered some beautiful images this year.

  • This is the last competition of the season, and George needs to engrave the trophies for the AGM. If you won a trophy last year please return it to George as soon as possible.
  • This coming Thursday we will be hosting Musselburgh Art Club and will be meeting in the upstairs room F1 in the Fisherrow Centre.
  • The season is drawing to close, and we need to decide where to go for our end of season photoshoot on 18th April 2024. Please think of ideas for where we could go and let me have your ideas. I have already had the following suggestions:
    • Meet in Edinburgh for sunset and street lighting pictures.
    • Meet at a local nature reserve, such as Aberlady Bay.
    • Switch the date to Saturday, 20th April 2024, so we can meet earlier when there is more daylight. That would also open up local sites which close before 7pm, such as Dalkeith Country Park and the Gosford House Estate.

 

19 March 2024 (3-Way Inter-club Competition)

There was an extra club meeting this week. On Tuesday, 19th March Musselburgh Camera Club visited Haddington Camera Club to take part in the annual 3-way competition, along with Beeslack Penicuik Camera Club. The meeting took place at the Poldrate Mill, Haddington, where we were treated to a lavish spread of sandwiches and cakes.

The competition was judged by Gordon Scott of Mid Calder Camera Club. Each club submitted 15 images each, making a total of 45 images. Musselburgh got off onto a good start and were 1 point ahead after the first round. We maintained that narrow lead and by the break had 134 points to Beeslack’s 133 and Haddington’s 130. We kept our lead through the second half. In the final round Haddington sneaked ahead of Beeslack, but Mike Clark’s “White Mountain Hare in the Heather” secured top marks and guaranteed a good win for Musselburgh. The final scores were:

  • First place (252 points) Musselburgh Camera Club
  • Second place (244 points) Haddington Camera Club
  • Third place (243 points) Beeslack Penicuik Camera Club

The top Musselburgh images were:

  • White Mountain Hare in the Heather (Mike Clark)  – 20 points
  • Woodpecker feeding (Joe Fowler) – 19 points
  • Harvest Queen (Joe Fowler) – 19 points
  • Sea Eagle with Catch (Mike Clark) – 19 points
  • Hunting Sparrowhawk (Jennifer Davidson)  – 18 points

Well done to Musselburgh Camera Club for a great win, and thank you to Mike, Joe and Jennifer for helping us to achieve that win.

  • This Thursday, 28th March, we have our joint meeting with Musselburgh Art Club. We will be meeting in room F1 in the Fisherrow Centre, not our usual room. To reach that room you need to go upstairs and follow the signs to F1. Come along and see what the art club members have created this year.

29 February 2024 (Set Subject Competition B – Contrasting Textures)

Part two of our three-part set subject competition took place this week. Members were challenged to find some memorable images on the theme of “Contrasting Textures”. The competition was judged by Malcolm Roberts, the winner of last year’s competition. Malcolm began by saying how he had enjoyed seeing all the different interpretations of this year’s theme. He had looked at the impact, lighting, sharpness and depth of field of each image and rewarded images that had an emotional impact or showed some thinking outside the box. Malcolm commented that some images were a little soft, and he recommended sharpening them to show off the texture. He didn’t mind images that contained both sharp and soft parts when that highlighted the difference between the textures.

15 members had entered 45 images, covering a huge range of subjects. Some images showed contrasts within natural subjects, such as between the parts of a flower, between sand and grass, fungi and log or duck and water. There were man-made contrasts involving stone, rust, whitewash, rope, wood and metal. John West’s entry called “Two plumbing systems” combined both natural and man-made and showed a tree mirroring the bends and twists of a downpipe. Some members had responded to the “contrasting textures” challenge with some truly innovative or humorous entries. Carol Edmond’s “War Time Textures” showed a collection of wartime memorabilia and Jim Innes’ “Chalk and Cheese in Blue” showed some blue snooker chalk next to some cheese. Derek Muller had cleverly combined “JUST Cotton, Stone and Paper” to make a convincing artificial landscape with fluffy cotton-wool clouds, and Liz Sowler had crafted some humorous still life images out of household objects.
The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (49 points)
    • Derek Muller
    • Ed Robertson
  • 4th place (50 points)
    • Jim Innes
  • 3rd place (51 points)
    • Jennifer Davidson
    • Steven Beard
    • George Todd
  • 2nd place (52 points)
    • Joe Fowler
    • Liz Sowler
  • 1st place (54 points)
    • Elaine Gilroy
    • Carol Edmond

The top images were:

  • Poppy (Elaine Gilroy) – 20 points
  • Autumn Textures (Carol Edmond) – 19 points
  • Mandarin Duck (Joe Fowler) – 18 points
  • Bud and Petals (Steven Beard) – 18 points
  • Ice & Black Sand (George Todd) – 18 points
  • Anemone (Elaine Gilroy) – 18 points
  • War Time Textures (Carol Edmond) – 18 points
  • Housework (Liz Sowler) – 18 points
  • Fruit and Veg (Liz Sowler) – 18 points

We done to Elaine and Carol who both earn the right to judge next year’s competition. And thank you to everyone for your creative and entertaining entries. After two competitions, the “league table” now looks like this:

Elaine Gilroy (51 + 54 = 105)
Jennifer Davidson (53 + 51= 104)
Malcolm Roberts (52 + — = ??)
Carol Edmond (49 + 64 = 103)
Joe Fowler (50 + 52 = 102)
George Todd (— + 51 = ??)
Gordon Davidson (54 + 47 = 101)
Steven Beard (49 + 51 = 100)
Jim Innes (50 + 50 = 100)
Derek Muller (51 + 49 = 100)
John West (50 + 48 = 98)

Elaine’s win has taken her to the top of the table, but with only 4 points separating the top half of this table there is still everything to play for. Don’t forget to send your 3 JPEG entries for the final part of this competition (“Flowers”) to George Todd.

This Thursday we will be hosting Mölnlycke Fotoclubb, who will be joining us from Gothenburg, Sweden for our annual interclub meeting.

08 February 2024 (Human Portrait Print Competition)

Gordon Rae kindly agreed to judge our human portrait print competition at short notice and had travelled to Musselburgh from South West Scotland. Gordon is an award-winning wildlife photographer whose work can seen on his web site:

https://www.gordonraephotography.co.uk

Gordon said he was impressed with the quality of the entries and had judged and scored them to a high standard, so he hoped nobody (especially beginners) would be disappointed with their score. Gordon had identified one winning portrait, plus some second and third placed runners up.

23 prints had been entered by 9 members. The subjects included sports competitors, street artists, musicians, wise men, soldiers, and pictures of other club members. John West had entered a unique, double-exposed, self-portrait called “Doppelganger” which was popular during the tea break. Gordon commented on the composition of the portraits and suggested some crops that would tighten up the subject in the frame. He explained that the “rule of thirds” guideline that is useful for landscape photography is not so important for portraits. Male subjects can be shown looking straight into the camera but female subjects often look better with their head turned at an angle. In some of the portraits there were dark shadows on the face that could have been prevented by using softer lighting (or by balancing the light with a reflector). He also warned photographers to watch out for colour casts in their prints and make sure that the skin colour looks natural. Watch out also for places where the subject could merge with the background (for example a dark coat shown against a dark background of a similar colour) and make sure there is a distinct boundary. The highest scores went to the prints that Gordon judged had captured a moment, showed a great expression, had a good balance of tones and had good backgrounds. The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 4th place (46 points)
    • John West
  • 3rd place (51 points)
    • Jennifer Davidson
    • Joe Fowler
    • Carol Edmond
  • 2nd place (53 points)
    • Derek Muller
  • 1st place (54 points)
    • George Todd

The top images were:

  • Kalon (George Todd) – 20 points (and the overall winning print)
  • 96 Years Young (Carol Edmond) – 19 points (and overall 2nd equal print)
  • Beguiling (Derek Muller) – 19 points (and overall 2nd equal print)
  • Katrine (John West) – 18 points (and overall 3rd equal print)
  • He Gets The Joke (Derek Muller) – 18 points  (and overall 3rd equal print)
  • I Love my Purple hat  (Jennifer Davidson) – 18 points
  • Downhill Racer (Joe Fowler) – 18 points

Well done to George for winning the competition and achieving best print with a fabulous portrait of a tattooed boxer, and well done also to Derek, Jennifer, Joe and Carol. Thank you to everyone who entered and thank you to Gordon Rae for judging the competition for us at short notice.

We had some spare time after the competition, so Gordon gave us a short presentation entitled “Birds of Iceland”, which showed the wildlife photographs he had collected on a tour of Iceland (see Gordon’s Iceland gallery for a couple of examples). Gordon explained that he most often used a Nikon 200-400mm lens with a 1.4X teleconverter. Most of his photos are taken at f/5.6, but at low angles he finds f/10 a better choice because the water appears more out of focus at those angles. We enjoyed the talk so much we booked Gordon to give us a full-length talk next year. Watch out for next year’s programme.

  • On Thursday, 15th February we will be joined by Beeslack Penicuik Camera Club for our annual audio visual night. We will be meeting in the larger room in the far corner, G6, not our usual room, G3.
  • If you would like to enter the “contrasting textures” set subject competition, please send your three JPEG files to George Todd this weekend.

See you this Thursday for some AV entertainment.

01 February 2024 (Digital Knockout Competition)

Our first club meeting of February 2024 was our annual digital knockout competition, where members bring in digital images on a chosen theme and vote to choose their favourites. This year’s theme was “water”, chosen at last year’s AGM.

8 members entered a total of 23 digital images with some creative interpretations of the “water” theme. There were a lot of photographs of rivers, waterfalls and beaches, some lakes with reflections, some underwater scenes and some snow scenes. There were also some impressive abstract images created from droplets and waves at the water surface. One particularly inventive image was “Water Music”, showing a water splash superimposed on some sheet music. Another simple but effective image showed the rain on the window of an Edinburgh bus at night. The images were voted off in a series of head-to-head rounds until only 3 images remained. Members then voted for their favourite to determine the final placings, and the result was:

  • 3rd place
    • An image of a splashing wave in front of Arthur’s Seat (Steven Beard)
  • 2nd place
    • An image of a Tough Mudder contestant emerging from water (Jennifer Davidson)
  • 1st Place
    • Waves crashing over rocks at North Berwick (Joe Fowler)

Well done to Joe Fowler, who won a packet of water biscuits! Well done also to Jennifer and Steven, who’s images survived the head-to-head rounds despite some very close counts.

  • Next Thursday Colin Joyce will be judging our human portrait print competition. George Todd will also be collecting entries for our second set subject competition. Please send your 3 JPEGs on the subject of “contrasting textures” to George.

See you on Thursday,

Steven

11 January 2024 (Set Subject Competition A – Macro)

Happy New Year to Musselburgh Camera Club members! Our first meeting after the Christmas Break was the first of our 3 set subject competitions, on the theme of “Macro”. Unfortunately, I was at home with Covid and missed the competition, but I look forward to the top images appearing on our Facebook page. Thank you to Ed for taking the following notes:

There were 42 entries from 14 members for this competition. Most of the subject matter included flora and fauna, but there were a couple of unusual items from imaginative photographers. George started out by talking about the various definitions for Macro
Photography, but settled on the subject being photographed at Life size
or greater magnification. While George was going through the images he pointed out a couple of recurring issues. The first was that removing distractions should absolutely be done, but that it should be done carefully. There were a couple of instances of less than perfect cloning that spoiled otherwise strong images. Distractions around the edges should also be taken removed. The other recurring comment was about cropping choices, where
the photographer had cropped ends of insect legs off, or otherwise chopped bits of the subject and that can look awkward. On the other extreme, there were a few images that had a subject that was quite a small part of the whole image and these could perhaps have been cropped harder. Artificial light sources are often used for Macro shots to provide enough light, but that can give rise to other issues on wet or very reflective surfaces – consider diffusing the light source or, perhaps use a polarizing filter. The top scorers were (in reverse order):

  • 5th place (50 points)
    • Joe Fowler
    • John West
    • Jim Innes
  • 4th place (51 points)
    • Mike Clark
    • Elaine Gilroy
    • Derek Muller
  • 3rd place (52 points)
    • Malcolm Roberts
  • 2nd place (53 points)
    • Jennifer Davidson
  • 1st place (54 points)
    • Gordon Davidson

The top images were:

  • Fly on a leaf (Palpada) Hover Fly (Gordon Davidson) – 20 points
  • Shield Beetle Laying Her Eggs (Jennifer Davidson) – 19 points
  • Jumping Spider (Malcolm Roberts) – 19 points
  • Nigella Seed Head (Elaine Gilroy) – 19 points
  • Busy Bee Collecting pollen (Gordon Davidson) – 18 points
  • X-rated (common red soldier beetles) (John West) – 18 points
  • Fly (Common Green Bottle Fly) (Jim Innes) – 18 points
  • Honey Bee Side On (Derek Muller) – 18 points

Well done to Gordon Davidson, who wins the right to judge another competition next year. This is the first of a 3-part competition, with the final result depending on the total score from the best 2 competitions. With only 4 points separating the first 5 places, anything could happen. Part B of the competition takes place on 29th February 2024.

  • George Todd is still collecting prints for the “Human Portrait” competition. If you can produce 3 mounted prints please let George know and bring them along next Thursday.
  • Next week we will be discussing mobile phone photography.