Copy by Andrew Winter
This week’s images were submitted as part of our first print competition of the season. Following on the heels of our digital image competition, the print competition allows us to once again consider how best to present our images. In this world, the digital realm is all too easy and there is a lot to learn and enjoy when printing out your work.
There are many things to consider from monitor calibration, colour or black and white, print size, crop factor, type of paper, size of matts and of course which images to submit. There’s also a cost to it and a time factor, so careful preparation and thought needs to go into the selection. Not a competition for those who leave things until the last minute (thinking of myself here).
So why bother when digital is so easy? That’s an easy question to answer, partly because photography has always been a print art form until recently and therefore more perceived value in a printed image than a digital copy. Partly due to the historical nature of photography, but with the amount of choices you have to make in the process, there is a certain amount of skill involved and trust in the printers. You cannot make last minute changes or suddenly decide to change colour levels or re-crop etc. You have to be decisive.
As convenient as digital is, arguably most images look better when printed, you can get up close to the image when viewing and in some cases, more detail can be revealed. It forces the viewer to take their time with a print, to carefully look into it and to think about what they are seeing. They cannot just scroll on as we all do every day online with the thousands of images we are subjected to. Every printed image is important and worth the time to sit with.
Thank you to Jim Stevenson for his time and consideration of the images presented to him and for taking the time to present them in person.
If you would like to know more about Irvine Camera Club, photography or if any of these images have inspired you pick up a camera, we have a packed schedule of weekly events including talks, walks, practical nights, community exhibitions, competitions and so much more going on this year.
Please check our website for information and to get in touch. https://irvinecc.co.uk/programme
