Join the Club
This friendly group aims to inspire members at all levels of experience
When was the club founded?
WPG started in 2013 and became a member of the MCPF (Midland Counties Photographic Federation) in 2014.
What does your club offer to new members?
We give a friendly welcome to all and aim for a less competitive atmosphere than some clubs. We occasionally hold internal competitions judged by members themselves, rather than enter externally organised competitions. We are also in the process of putting together a buddying system to partner novices with more experienced mentors or for members with complementary interests.
Visitors are welcome to attend two sessions for free before committing to membership.
Describe a typical club meeting
Outside of Covid-times, we meet in Wellesbourne Village Hall with the evening starting at 7.30pm and typically ending before 10pm with a break for refreshments halfway. A meeting might be a presentation from an external speaker or from a member, a review of members’ images or a practical evening, such as still-life photography. During the pandemic, all meetings have been successfully run via Zoom, which has been a great way to maintain some sort of socialising among members.
Do you invite guest speakers?
We have external speakers about ve times a year. With meetings being held online over Zoom during the last year, we have had some excellent presentations from photographers a little further a eld, including Chris Upton and Phil Savoie.
Do members compete in regional or national competitions?
Not directly via the club, although we have a few club members who enter various competitions independently. We had been planning a photography exhibition for summer 2020, but that has been unsurprisingly delayed.
How many members do you have?
Current membership is 23.
Are any residential trips or outings planned?
We organise a few summer outings in the local area and have other meetups, such as photography of local towns’ Christmas lights and fairs.
Do you have any funny stories about the club?
Not a funny story as such but an anecdote: In 1872 local man Joseph Arch addressed 2,000 farmworkers outside the Stag’s Head in Wellesbourne to air grievances on their working conditions, leading to the formation of a union. The BBC chose to recreate this for a Countryfile feature involving locals, including the WPG treasurer who is a retired Methodist minister and, having a beard, he was a natural to play the main character and threw himself enthusiastically into the role, rallying the crowd – to the producer’s delight! For months later he happily endured goodhearted ribbing and treatment accorded to a Hollywood star.
What are the club’s goals for the future?
Being a small club, we are always trying to interest new members and would particularly like to attract younger photographers.