Speaker – Rory O’Conner – Wednesday 22nd September 2021

This weeks presentation was by Rory O`Conner from the Irish city of Cork by courtesy of Zoom which was titled “My world in photography” Seascapes. Rory  considers himself to be self taught but took up photography seriously in 2011 when he joined his local camera club. He specialises in seascapes but enjoys landscapes as well as portraits, also photographing birds using macro lenses. Simply stunning  shots of the beaches east of Cork known locally as the Copper Coast along with shots from around Waterford, Kerry, Killarney and Dingle showcased his talents.

With typical Irish humour Rory kept his audience entertained whilst he described some of the problems that a seascape photographer encounters from adverse weather to the vagaries of wind and tides. Many of his shots were shown in portrait form rather than square. He nearly always uses a tripod, Prime lenses, Lee filters, a remote shutter release and long exposure (2 seconds). Rory emphasised the need for thorough preparations before going off on seascape shoots but also to not let yourself be tied down by perceived conventions when choosing your locations.

Next he showed shots from a trip to Scotland with pictures of Rannoch Moor and Glencoe. Throughout his presentation Rory dropped hints and tips to help the less experience improve their photographic habits. The evening ended all to soon and the societies members would welcome a return visit from Rory in the near future.

Joe Peterson