HISTORY
The society was founded in 1889, meeting in the Camberwell area of South East London. This was then a middle-class area with fields nearby. Early members included well-known photographers of the turn of the century. These included Dr. Farmer who first described the reducer named after him. Later members included Louis Gandolfi, who founded the large format camera company that still bears his name. Right is a picture of Dr. Edwards who was the first president of the club.
The Evershed Shield is one of our oldest competitive award for depicting London Life and Architecture. This was named after the society's President of that period, Dr. Evershed. The latest image to win this award is on display at our Award winners page.
Outings were among the early activities, with numerous trips arranged to various locations in the British Isles and others further a field including a notable trip up the river Rhine.
The First World War curtailed activities, but regular meetings were continued up to the period of the Second World War in the Camberwell area. A few members maintained contact during the Second World War, with regular meetings held again soon afterwards at Cambridge House in Walworth Road.
Two pictures of St. Pauls Cathedral shown below were taken towards the end of World War 2 by one of our members, Mr Arthur Cross who was a policeman.
In 1947, the Society was a founder member of the new Federation of South London Photographic Societies, which encouraged meetings between clubs for the competition of panels of prints and slides over the whole of south London.
At the end of the 1950s, the Society moved premises to Trewsbury Road,Sydenham and briefly changed it's name to Sydenham & South London PS . After a while the meetings were held in a church hall in Jews Walk and when this was demolished we moved to a more accessible venue at the Bromley Road Library. Here an annual competition was held which was open to the public. The Sydenham part of the name was dropped.
Several moves were made in Catford. A final move was made in early 2000 to our present venue at the Greenwood Room in Perry Rise Baptist Church.
Support for the federation continues, with internal print and slide competitions for numerous trophies, visiting lecturers on various aspects of photography and arranged outings plus the latest digital techniques are now being used by some of our members, in different circumstances since 1889.
© Ken White & Jeff Royce, January 2000