Despite the weather we had 16 members of the public eager to improve their creative camera skills on Saturday at Westward Ho! beach. After a week of cold bright conditions, perfect for photographing the patterns and texture of the beach the BBC workshop was challenged firstly by the ice on the ramp to the beach, then with drizzle which worsened to rain after an hour. However the only complaint heard from the participants was for the bitterly cold which bit deep into bare hands after an hour and made camera operation almost impossible.
At this point we all moved into the warmth of the Waterfront Inn and gathered around a few tables, drank hot coffee and downloaded pictures to laptops. This became an excellent opportunity for a little Photoshop training, peer to peer constructive criticism and editing out the best pictures for an exhibition.
There are two more workshop sessions to go, the first being this coming Thursday with Devon Youth Service and then on Sunday 12th with Young Devon and Seize the Moment.
These are the first pictures we’ve seen from our simultaneous Postcard Exchange Exhibition in the Old Court House in Manteo, Bideford’s twin town in North Carolina, taken by Aaron Fauth a volunteer for DCAC. This was one of the last shows at Dare County Arts Council’s gallery before it was closed due to the flood damage from Hurricane Irene and for refurbishment. This was phase 1 of the BBC’s 3 year cultural exchange plan with DCAC, it is hoped that by 2013 we’ll have an artists exchange programme in place!