I have several presentations that I give to camera clubs either face to face or via Zoom:

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The Photographic Sublime - how artistic traditions of the Sublime influence photography of the past, present and future… Photojournalist Thomas Peck (B&W Photography, OnLandscape.co.uk) shows how the traditions of the Sublime influenced early landscape photographers through to the modern day. With examples from painters like Turner & Caspar David Friedrich & photos from Carleton E Watkins to M Kenna to S Salgado to A Adams to H Sugimoto, plus the author’s own pictures. A fascinating insight into a cultural trend which is sure to provoke some debate, especially when we look into the future at how photography and the Sublime might interact in the 21st century… 

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What is a portrait? 

This presentation will look at the history of photographic portraiture from the Victorian beginnings through to our selfie culture of the 21st Century. It traces how portraits have evolved from pictorialism through to post modernism, and will delve into social documentary, fashion, celebrity and even portrait ‘notoriety’. It unravels the question of what is a portrait, and who creates it? The photographer? The sitter? The viewer? A 2 hour tour of portraits from the last 170 years - you’ll never look at a portrait in the same way again. 

 

Imaging reality – a history of documentary and street photography 

Images show what has happened, don’t they? They depict reality, they are ‘proof’. Documentary photography gives insight into events and street photography allows us to glimpse other people’s behaviour. This talk will take us through the history of documentary/street photography using well known photographs liberally mixed with the author’s own photography. We will ask the question: is what we see in the photographs actually reality? Can we trust these ‘documentary’ photographs? 

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The best camera is the one you have with you..., your phone! 

A photographic presentation of two halves. First we will look at the types of photography that the mobile phone is ideal for – from portraiture including selfies of course, to landscape, architecture, cityscapes, how to use the phone to ‘sketch’ before getting out the ‘proper camera’. All of these will be illustrated via a mix of the presenter’s own photographs plus some of the leading mobile phone photographers in the world. The second half will have a practical focus linking the presenter’s phone to the screen to show how to get the best out of taking phone photos and then how best to process them. Members are encouraged to take images with their phones before the evening so we can process them together on the night. 

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Leica, probably the most influential camera brand in the world, ever

Dr Thomas Peck traces the history of Leica from 1900 to the present day to show how this brand revolutionised the way we take photographs. This presentation is much more than a simple history lesson however. The talk is interspersed with a quiz on famous (Leica) photographs and their authors, and the presenter shares his own personal history with Leica via a series of portfolios taken with a combination of a modern day M9 Leica and a 1936 screw mount Leica II. The presenter brings along a selection of Leica memorabilia so the audience can get a chance to experience what a Leica feels like. A 120 minute fun, informative and personal run through of the most influential camera brand in the world...

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Architectural Photography

Images of buildings, particularly black & white, long exposure, ‘fine art’ photographs of modern architecture, have become very popular recently. This talk will take us through image making techniques and processing tips to create spectacular photographs of buildings, with examples from London, Paris, Venice & York, whether using a high end DSLR or just a mobile phone.  

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Feedback from clubs:

"One of our best presentations this year. I liked how Tom introduced the subject by relating it to the history of art and philosophy. The sub sections were well thought out and illustrated and I particularly liked the way he examined the future of the sublime. The way he interacted with the audience meant we were all very involved. An interesting and thought provoking evening, with some stunning photographs" WWPS

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"Thank you so much – you would be amazed at the avalanche of comments that have come through – probably summed up by “The best talk of the year!” Hampstead PS

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"On behalf of everyone present, a big thank you for your excellent evening last night. It was quite different in style from our normal speaker evenings, a lecture on the history of documentary and street photography and as Prog Sec, I'm always delighted to add variety to what we do and see. An evening of excellent and interesting pictures, a great variety of subjects, an insight into photographic history and your enthusiastic commentary and especially your own pictures." Southampton PS