A FROSTY Strensall Common wreathed in mist; an almost abstract image of waves crashing against sea defences at Newhaven; dusk falling behind a bridge in Myanmar in a flood of glowing orange.

Just a few of the photographs that will be on show at Poppleton Tithe Barn next weekend when York Photographic Society's annual exhibition returns.

The society is York's oldest camera club, says president Alison Taylor, whose work will be among that featured.

But it's also friendly.

"Our philosophy is to enjoy and improve our photography," says Alison. "We are a camera club as well as a photographic society - and many of us love the geeky tech side as well as the creative arty side to photography."

From September through to May, regular meetings are held at 7.30pm every Wednesday evening at the Poppleton Centre - and new members are always welcome.

"Whether you shoot digital or film, on anything from a phone to a large format view camera, we'd love to see you," Alison says.

Membership costs £45 per year - or you can just come along to a couple of sessions first, at £4 a time, to see whether it is for you.

Meanwhile, next weekend's annual exhibition will give you a great chance to see for yourself what the Society is all about. If you fancy yourself as a bit of a photographer, don't miss it...

  • York Photographic Society annual exhibition, Poppleton Tithe Barn, 10am-5pm Saturday July 13, and 10am-4pm Sunday July 14. Entry free.

THE PHOTOGRAPHS

We feature a selection of photographs from next weekend's exhibition on these pages. Here, the photographers explain how they came to take them...

Steve Gray – Mist at Strensall Common

I took this picture at the end of January this year. Strensall Common, just outside York, is one of my favourite places to visit at any time of year but is especially good for photography in foggy and frosty weather. The continually changing light and the huge variety of plants and animals means there is always something new and interesting to photograph.

Ian Smith – Nuthatch

Moorlands is my nearest nature reserve and I often go for a walk around to see what birds can be seen at any given time of the year. I enjoy the challenge of trying to capture an image that is sharp and does not require any post production manipulation. The nuthatch photo took a lot of patience before I was happy with the way the bird was arched against the tree trunk.

Harry Silcock – U Bein Bridge in Myanmar

This image, taken at dusk, is of people walking over U Bein Bridge in Myanmar (Burma).

The bridge was built around 1850 and spans Taungthaman Lake. It is 1.2km long and is believed to be the oldest and longest teakwood bridge in the world.

David Beverley – Early Flight

This photograph was taken at sunrise on the beach at Asilomar in California last Christmas. There had been an overnight storm and the highest tide in living memory. The light was magical with a lot of spray thrown into the air from the enormous waves adding to the atmosphere. I think the birds in the picture add to the quality and nature of the light.

John Illingworth LRPS - Eilean Donan Castle

I love this castle, said to be the most beautiful in Scotland. Owned by the MacRae family and built in the 13th century, I cannot resist photographing it each time I visit. This time I decided to make a long exposure monochrome image to create something timeless that was not connected to the present day.

Alison S Taylor – Storm Wave

In March I was fortunate enough to be in Newhaven when there was a storm. The harbour is renowned for its huge waves as the water bounces off the harbour wall into the oncoming waves and the result is fabulous. I was mesmerised and spent over an hour photographing the waves which were colliding into shapes of mythical sea creatures. This is my favourite with the face of a ram hidden in the foam.

Chris Hart – Port Charlotte

I envisaged a mono image when I saw this scene, so I exposed for the lighter tones and then converted to black and white to create an almost silhouette effect. A fast shutter speed was used to freeze the washing blowing in the strong wind.