See his incredible pictures as Bridgnorth camera club president says goodbye after 65 years
Ralph Walker joined Bridgnorth and District Camera Club in 1961.
A camera club has said goodbye to its president, who has retired after more than 60 years behind the lens.
At Bridgnorth and District Camera Club’s recent annual dinner its retiring president, Ralph Walker, was presented with a special award to mark 65 years as a club member.
Ralph was interested in photography at an early age and was introduced by his father to the Camera Club in 1961, at the age of 15.
He was taken to his first meeting at The Evening Institute in St Mary’s Street, Bridgnorth by Ron Hill, one of the club’s founder members, and hasn’t looked back since.
The camera club said that back in 1961, photography was a much more serious business with specialist types of film, darkrooms and manually processing.
“Black and white prints were the only medium produced for competitions in the very early days and Ralph saw not just the introduction of 35mm colour slides but also the introduction of digital photography in the 1990s, which caused a lot of resistance during the time,” said Sally Neville from the club, adding that some members threatened to leave.
But she said that under Ralph’s stewardship, the camera club saw a rise in membership to such a degree that it became oversubscribed in 2010, and he was also instrumental in applying for a lottery grant in 1998 when the club was awarded £5,000 for computer equipment.
Over the years the club has put on various exhibitions in Bridgnorth and had numerous meeting places, with Ralph taking on many different roles in the camera club.
Although he may be retiring from official club duties, Ralph is expected to continue his photography.
Sally Neville added: “Ralph has always been an integral part of the club over the years and a great source of anecdotes. He will be missed at club meetings but many members will still keep in touch with him.”
Bridgnorth and District Camera Club now meets at Quatt Village Hall, just outside Bridgnorth on the A442. It has a varied programme and meets on Thursday evenings between September and May.
See www.bridgnorthcameraclub.org.uk for more information.
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