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Colin Livingstone, our President, introduced Paul Dunn as one of our long-standing members. Paul is well known within CCC for photographing music gigs and last season he had presented to the group his popular talk entitled Gig Photography. Tonight, Paul was to present to us his recollections of a trip he had made to Peru in 2023.
Paul explained that the trip had involved staying in 3 different locations over about 2 weeks: Lima (the capital of Peru), Reserva Amazonica and Cusco (a city in the Andes Mountains known as the historical capital of the Inca Empire and a major gateway to Machu Picchu). Paul said that he arrived in Lima expecting to find consistent sunshine but soon discovered that Lima, which is on the Pacific coast, is characterised by grey skies. He stayed in the Miraflores Park area where there are a great number of stray cats which are looked after by the local population. Lima had been founded by the Spanish conquistador, Francisco Pizzaro, in 1535. Successful in his search for gold, Pizzaro had already completed the conquest of Peru by entering Cusco in 1533. Paul showed us a photograph of the skeleton of Pizarro which is kept in the Metropolitan Cathedral in Lima. Paul showed us photographs of nearby ruins which are more than three times as old as Machu Picchu and are towering mounds of camel coloured clay bricks, known as huacas. In the indigenous Quechua language, huaca literally translates to "sacredness". Paul next flew from Lima to Reserva Amazonica, where he stayed in an eco-lodge on stilts next to the Madre de Dios River which meanders through the Southern Peru rainforest region. From there Paul showed us photographs of nearby animals, including rodents called agouti, monkeys and caimans, and various birds. Paul visited and photographed the Inkaterra Canopy Walkway which is a bridge system at 30 metres above the ground in the rainforest. The next flight was to Cusco. As Cusco is more than 11,000 feet above sea level and Reserva Amozonica is close to sea level, a number of people in Paul's group spent the next few days experiencing altitude sickness. It so happened that Paul's arrival coincided with a major festival and this allowed him to take photographs of local people in various types of colourful traditional dress. As part of the festival, the locals barbecued and enjoyed a local delicacy, guinea pig. Paul gave that a miss! Paul then travelled to Ollantaytambo, an ancient Inca town and archaeological site in Peru's Sacred Valley, and from here he spent a full, and very hot day, walking to Machu Picchu. The walk involved terrific views over the towering Andes and the opportunity to visit other Inca ruins. He first saw Machu Picchu from Sun Gate which overlooks the site. The buildings at Machu Picchu are made from stones which were transported from various parts of Peru and which are perfectly fitted together without any type of mortar. They are so close fitting that it isn't possible to insert a piece of paper between the stones. The area is prone to earthquakes, and the buildings were ingeniously designed to withstand seismic movements. Terracing, used for agriculture, is a major feature of the region and around Machu Picchu. The Spanish conquistadors knew of Machu Picchu but failed in their bid to find it. It was abandoned by the Incas in about the mid 1500s and, over the centuries, was lost to the jungle and was largely forgotten until it was again "discovered" by the American explorer and academic, Hiram Bingham, in 1911. Paul eventually returned to Lima and from there returned home. A good turnout of members enjoyed Paul's talk and photographs (modestly described by him as "holiday snaps") and he was given a warm round of applause. Ray Barnes CCC Programme Secretary
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George Ledger (ARPS, DPAGB) has visited CCC numerous times over the years as both a judge and a speaker. We now consider him to be one of our friends. He is a long-standing member of both Consett and Hexham photography clubs, a former policeman and a former professional Sports Photographer. When Covid, at first generally referred to as a Corona virus, and lockdown struck George was no longer able to continue his work in sports photography and so decided to take on a project recording images of how the virus and lockdown affected his local community. The project eventually became so extensive that George had to be supported by other local photographers. George's talk to us and his photographs covered the period from when the then Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, announced the lockdown starting on 23rd March 2020 until we started to return to normality, albeit a changed normality, in June 2021. His talk followed a monthly progression as circumstances and the regulations unfolded.
George recorded how people began to adapt to the new lockdown situation, with some people setting up their own gym equipment and training regimes. People pursued a great variety of interests and a whole army of volunteers sprung up to help the vulnerable within society. We were all strongly told to limit our time outdoors and contact with each other. People were allowed to establish their own very limited social bubbles which, themselves, created issues for those who were excluded. George was able to gain access, always following the current guidelines (which often involved photographing through windows), to a range of NHS, care home, funeral and other key workers. These images showed the anguish, as well as the community spirit, which was awakened. Clapping for carers became a common communal activity. George was able to gain access to a school where the children of emergency and key workers were educated under very strict regimes, often involving hazard marking tape in classrooms, toilets and other parts of the building. Communications between individuals and groups were often via Zoom calls, which were used by educators and many camera clubs, including CCC. Home shopping deliveries and arrangements for collecting shopping became the norm. As strict regulations were gradually relaxed, one-way systems were operated in retail outlets and people had to sign in before attending their local pubs (often naming themselves Donald Duck or other such cartoon characters, George observed) and following the rules on social distancing. Even as society returned to normal, it was a new normal. Home shopping deliveries, working from home, the use of face masks etc have become much more common features of our society. Even though it is only a relatively short time since CCC members had, as mature adults, experienced Covid and lockdown, we were struck by how weird and surreal the experience already seemed to us. Did we all really live like that for many months? We reflected on how the experience will be viewed by people in 10, 20, 30 etc years' time and how George's project represented and captured a unique piece of social and cultural history for our country. We felt that at least one organisation in the country should take ownership of George's body of work on the project and retain it for future generations. Accordingly, one of our members is to contact a local museum who have in the past asked CCC for copies of local images. Our members were very appreciative of George's talk which transported us back to a fairly recent but very strange time for us all. Ray Barnes CCC Programme Secretary Tonight (9th Oct) saw the results of this season’s 1st Open Print Competition. Tonight’s competition was judged by Stephen Fowler. Stephen provided constructive and positive feedback on each of the prints which was well received by the members. With the wide range of subjects Stephen had a difficult task to decide on the best prints. With the increased number of entries the print competition was split between mono and colour categories, thank you to all who entered. Colour:
Mono:
Puffin Colin Livingstone Dark Hedges Paul Dunn Sir Nigel Colin Livingstone Get My Best Side Paul Dunn It was good to see some new names both in the list of entries and in the list of placed prints. Congratulations to Bill Leadbitter and Peter Moody awarded 1st place in the colour and mono competitions respectively.
Paul Dunn (Print Competition Secretary) Our Speaker this evening was Gillian Hales of Whitley Bay Photographic Society. Gillian has been a member of Whitley Bay for over 25 years and has held variouse roles on the committee. Gillian’s main passion is sports and from an early age has attended many local, national and international events. She has many hobbies from coin collecting to stamps and is an avid “crafter”.
 Second AV, was a selection of images from Birmingham “Bullring”, and Gillian had images from ever conceivable angle, showing the complexity of the outer shell.  Third AV, was Gillian’s collection of dog images taken over the years, accompanied by (who let the dogs out) by “Baha Men” Gillian’s AV show To end a shorth Q&A continued with images of street art in its many forms, including a large advert for the BBC “Peaky Blinders” on the wall of a building in Digbeth, Birmingham. Plus many more examples of Graffiti.   One of Gillian’s inspirations is the author Siobhan Ferguson and her book “Pretty City London” and Gillian’s selection of images with a pink theme off the beaten track in London. Then returning to the canals of Birmingham and a selection of colourful images of canal boats and the ART portrayed there. The final AV was a visit to Keukenhof Gardens in Amsterdam showcasing the many varieties of Tulip including the “012 “Olympic Flame” To finish off Gillian held a short Q&A.
Members then showed their appreciation. Colin Livingstone Club President |
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