Club Outings/Meetups 2016

[toms]

As discussed at the club meeting on 6 January, it would be good for both the club and its members if we could arrange a few outings/meetups during the year. Ideally one such event could take place every two months thus enabling all to participate during the year. It could even be monthly if there were sufficient interest.

It is also proposed that we have one major club outing later this year, say September to the Jurassic Coast or s similar area and more details about that will follow in due course.

Back to one day outings, we, the club needs two things:

Firstly - ideals of where we could go during the year (e.g. county shows, nostalgic events, scenic sites, revivals, villages etc.)
Secondly - Volunteers to co-ordinate an outing, ideally one that they nominated or have knowledge of.

If you would like the club to develop in this way then please add to this topic with suitable suggestions as to where we could go.

Kind regards,

Tom Sherrin
Chairman

[Mike Farley]

I have been considering places to visit during the year once the weather becomes more amenable and since I was making a list it is worthwhile reproducing it here. This is a purely personal selection of locations which I think would be fun to explore with a camera, so there are be some omissions. For example, I have been to Hastings a few times and do not wish to return while there are other places to visit. Other locations such as Dungeness and Fairfield Church which are close together could be combined in a single trip. Over the course of time I will probably add to the list and will update the one here when I do.

Quite likely I will be heading off at short notice when conditions seem good and some might require an overnight stay. For instance, the bluebells at Micheldever Wood are best in the early morning, so I could go down the day before to reconnoitre. For this reason I am not at present proposing any of the locations as outings, but hopefully it will provide an idea of possible places where the club could go for anyone who wishes to organise something. Some instances such as WWII re-enactment events have fixed days and nearer the time I might propose a club trip if I know I can make it. I enjoy these occasions as in the main re-enactors are happy to be photographed and I found the one run last year by the Kent and East Sussex Railway provided a lot of opportunities without getting as crowded as the equivalent on the Bluebell Line. That said, if anyone wants to organise a trip and wishes to opt for one of the places mentioned below, go ahead and do so. Arranging an outing is easy enough to do and there is nothing exclusive about this list.

Kent

• Bedgebury Pinetum
• Chatham Historic Dockyard
• Dungeness
• Fairfield Church
• Margate
• Ramsgate
• Reculver Towers
• Rochester
• St Margaret's Bay
• Samphire Hoe
• Whitstable

East Sussex

• Beachy Head
• Camber Sands
• Cuckmere Haven
• Michelham Priory
• Rye
• Seven Sisters
• Winchelsea

West Sussex

• Arundel WWT Centre
• Borde Hill Garden
• Worthing

Surrey

• Brooklands
• Hatchlands
• Painshill Park
• Witley Common

Other

• Flatford Mill (Essex)
• Micheldever Wood - bluebells (Hants)
• Stourhead (Wiltshire)
• Stowe (Bucks)
• Wrest Park (Beds)
• Eastbourne Air Show
• Kent and East Sussex Railway WWII re-enactment
• Southern at War (Bluebell Line)

[Mike Farley]

Here's the link to Frank's list of locations, which is useful for those travelling further afield as well as providing ideas of places the club could visit.

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=1579&p=7522#p7522

[Mike Farley]

Further to my own list of locations, this is my recent post linking to the Amateur Photographer guide to Reculver Towers.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1937&p=9249&hilit=reculver#p9249

[Mike Farley]

The annual display of exotic butterflies commences in just over a weeks time in the Glasshouse at RHS Wisley on 16 January, finishing on 6 March. I was there today and there were a few small ones fluttering around, but no dinner plates yet. Unless you are taking children, it might be an idea to avoid 13 - 21 February as it is half term. If you are feeling peckish, the restaurants have a two courses for £12 lunch promotion in February.

It is very humid inside the hothouse where the butterflies are, so coming in from the cold the front element of your lens will quickly mist up. It takes around 20 - 30 minutes for the glass to warm up sufficiently to allow the lens to clear and it is possible to start shooting. My advice would be to ensure that whichever lens you wish to use is on the camera before entering the enclosure to avoid getting mosture inside the camera's light chamber.

https://www.rhs.org.uk/gardens/whats-on ... glasshouse

[Iggy]

I am keen to attend the CCC one day photo outings through the year.
I prefer the day return rather than an overnight stay but sometimes could be available to go at a days notice.
Iggy

[Peter Boughton]

Well I'm definitely interested in doing at least one of the re-enactment events.


Regarding Wisley butterflies...

Unless you are taking children, it might be an idea to avoid 13 - 21 February as it is half term

Definitely avoid half-term (and weekends). It's not just a case of having space to do photography, but also because peak time queues are long and slow. Off-peak you can walk straight in.

Also, different species are active at different times - I don't remember details, but they're probably on the RHS website.

[Mike Farley]

Regarding Wisley butterflies...

Unless you are taking children, it might be an idea to avoid 13 - 21 February as it is half term

Definitely avoid half-term (and weekends). It's not just a case of having space to do photography, but also because peak time queues are long and slow. Off-peak you can walk straight in.

There is a booking system for timed entry to avoid the queues and an early entry day on 2 March when the Glasshouse will be open before general admission to the public. I have always gone during the week when, as Peter says, it has been quiet and have never seen a queue.

https://gardentickets.rhs.org.uk/rhswi/ ... aspx?tid=7

Adrian Davies, who has given a couple of excellent talks at the club, is doing three tutored photography mornings commencing at 8:00 am on 28 January and 5 & 12 February.

Also, different species are active at different times - I don't remember details, but they're probably on the RHS website.

I cannot see anything on the website about which species will be on display.

[Peter Boughton]

I cannot see anything on the website about which species will be on display.

Hmm, I definitely remember there being something, but it may have been an information board / leaflet at the place.


Or possibly we were there near the end of the event and it was just a matter of life-spans - the FAQ does say this:

Butterflies have a short natural life – experts have advised us that most of the butterflies released into the glasshouse will die of old age after two to four weeks. The last release of adults will take place in early February, so the majority of the adult insects will be at the end of their natural lives when the butterfly event ends.

[Mike Farley]

I am keen to attend the CCC one day photo outings through the year.

At present there are no outings scheduled other than those I am organising to The Societies' Convention trade show on 22 January and The Photography Show on 19 March. I would be going to these events anyway and it is easy to set up. Possibly I will do another trip to a re-enactment event once I know whether I am free on a specific date. If there is somewhere someone would like to go, either on my list or somewhere else, why not arrange an outing? They are straightforward to arrange and are good fun. The details of how to do it are on a sticky at the top of this forum. If we all sit around waiting for someone else to do something, we will be going nowhere.