Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
SRGC Shows and Events => Events => Topic started by: Maggi Young on April 12, 2014, 01:00:30 PM
-
Saturday April 12 - in Solihull, 12 noon to 4.00 pm : the Midlands AGS show.
The Farrer Medal at Knowle has been won by Sebaea thomasii shown by Tim Lever - congrats Tim!!!
-
Jim McGregor has tweeted a photo : https://twitter.com/JimMcGregorAGS/status/454930790334599168/photo/1 (https://twitter.com/JimMcGregorAGS/status/454930790334599168/photo/1)
Super plant, Tim - you are catching up with Cyril's Forrest medal Sebaea plants.
http://www.srgc.org.uk/shows/forrest2001/forrest.html (http://www.srgc.org.uk/shows/forrest2001/forrest.html)
This charming member of the gentianaceae from South Africa is a plant which appears quite regularly on the show bench - here,again from Cyril, winning the Forrest Medal in Perth in 2004
[attachimg=1]
and also from Tom Green - at Glasgow in 2010
[attachimg=2]
The yellow is very bright and cheerful and the flowers have quite astrong scent - quite unusual in the gentian family as far as I know.
-
[attachimg=1]Tim is following in family footsteps too : this photo from Cliff Booker of the Farrer Plant at East Lancs for Keith and Rachel Lever in 2008 - also on the 12th April !
-
Tim Lever and his first Farrer Medal winning exhibit of the beautiful Sebaea thomasii at Solihull AGS Show today. Hearty congratulations to Tim and the excellent team that ably assisted Show Secretary; John Harrison and Diane Clement to make this such a successful event.
-
Super picture of Tim - good idea there to get him fitted into the photo, Cliff - must be one of our tallest members!
-
Good picture of Keith too!
-
Show reports can, like liquorice all-sorts, be quite a mixed bag!!
There are the lengthy, meticulous and usually numerically based reports of the Veteran Vet that concentrate on linking images with data, facts with photos, thoroughness with factuality.
… And then there the other kind - random images that have no rhyme or reason, simply snapshots in time, usually taken AFTER a lengthy pub lunch. Written (as if) by a local newspaper cub reporter, dispensing with facts, disregarding detail, deliberately obtuse, decidedly vague … these have become known (over the millennia) as Ranunculus reports.
My usual apologies for lack of detail - if I am certain of the species or the correct name of the exhibitor, then it may appear - if I am not, then please treat this report simply as a stroll around the show venue, taking furtive glances to the left or right, pausing for lengthy chats to all and sundry, sneaking gentle nudges at unsuspecting judges, stumbling into (and occasionally over) the equally unsuspecting general public, stooping to retrieve recalcitrant lens caps and generally causing uproar with an intrusive lens and boney elbows.
These are my show experiences … the things that caught my eye ... I may be a Veteran, but I've never been a Vet. The other partners in the practice would have done the humane thing and put me out to grass … or worse.
The Midland AGS Show at Solihull through the eyes of an enthusiast ...
-
… two chats later ...
-
… after a collision with a wall and three more natters ...
-
… after a spilt coffee, two chats and a fumble under the show bench to find a lens cap … you would be amazed to see what is under those pristine green cloths … I never knew where Diane Clement lived!!!
-
A long chat with Brian Smethurst about narcissus … and a dropped lens cap ...
-
… A quick nap on the stage and a delicious cake … three more chats ...
-
… waylaid by friends - tripped up by Johnny D. - used satnav to regain my position in the hall … had a natter or two ...
-
Some cracking good plants Cliff thanks for posting....
-
Found the gents … chatted to a complete stranger ( ::)) … looked at wonderful books on display in the approach to the hall … used satnav again ...
-
Found a lens cap under my shoe ( ???) .. a couple of chats … bumped into Martin Rogerson (not deliberately of course) … asked for directions to the show hall ...
-
Aren't the Walkers a lovely couple? Chatted to them for ages … couldn't remember where I had got to … started randomly again … stopped for a natter to a lens cap ...
-
The scent of daphne in the hall went to my head - mixed with the lunchtime bitter shandy - had another snooze - chatted to myself for an hour or so - another cake - back to work - satnav assisted ...
-
Simple insomnia.........................or a guilty conscience?
-
Simple insomnia.........................or a guilty conscience?
A general mix, Martin … does anyone ever have a truly clear conscience? :P 8)
-
… And more ...
-
… more ...
-
A general mix, Martin … does anyone ever have a truly clear conscience? :P 8)
Crikey....philosophy before breakfast :P
-
… the home straight ...
-
Breakfast … that's a good idea …
Hearty congratulations once again to Tim.
-
The penultimate post ...
-
…. And finally ...
-
Lovely stuff Cliff... one day - and definitely a show to be proud of. I just have Matthiola scapigera flowering on a raised bed - will just have to do some research to discover the names of so many other plants you show. I have this memory somewhere of ‘callianthemum’s in clogs; saxifrages in weaving shuttles; meconopsis in miner’s helmets and nototriches in Newcastle Brown bottles’! One lives and learns.
-
Many thanks, Tim and Chris, if you have any urgent queries Tim, then please feel free to quote the image number and I MAY be able to help (or we may inspire someone else to contribute)?
-
This show was clearly a cracker - so many well-presented plants in tip-top order that one can hardly pick a favourite ( though the Hepatica cross -shown for foliage effect?- is standing out in my memory from this tour of the hall.
The fine photos, coupled with Cliff's "asides" really make me feel that I too have enjoyed all the meetings and greetings as well as seeing the plants - what more could be asked of a report to make the far away feel close and included? Super, just super - I think I can hear the happy giggles of the readers across the world!
-
Tim, I'm sure you will agree with me that Cliff's report embodies all that is best about the shows : fine plants of course but also happy meetings with friends and a cheery sense of a good day out. So much more than a dry record of points won.
-
Many thanks, Maggi … the enormous chocolate bunny is in the post. :-*
-
I do indeed Maggi! And I've just read Stan's overview of the 'Embra' Show and seen that incredible display from the RBGE - wonderful. I could wish the south-east of England was not so far away. Mind you we just had our little local village flower show yesterday and this is a little flower arrangement made by Gillian which we must get round to planting out in the garden in the same mix! If the garden was a bit smaller, the weeds a little less rumbustious, and the nursery a little less time consuming we might show a few more plants - and I think the time may come (I once made an educational display of the Umbelliferae at Wisley in June with the help of friends in the Kent HPS and it was great fun, and we won a Gold Medal from the RHS - but it's hard work doing this and you do need the support of others).
-
A true work of art Tim....
-
Nice set of pictures, never been to the Midland Show but from what I gather was up to its usual standards. I have also looked at the postings by other members on the AGS site and wondered if anyone can tell me what the pinkish shrub is on the left of the second row of pictures, looks rather nice ..... Thanks in advance
-
Hi George, I never got a shot of it myself, but I think there was a lovely Kalmia that was exhibited by Anne Vale?
-
That's certainly Anne's plant, lovely flower form
-
Thanks again, does look a lovely form will have to ask her what the c/v name is next time I see her however I never have much luck growing them in pots but might make an effort if I can find one like that.
Why Martin did you take your camera etc into the hall but not take it out of its case, don't tell me you had another trying day in the Show Director department!
-
Strangely not so trying a day but I decided, just for once, to actually take time to study the plants.......just a little personal indulgence :)
-
At your/our age a bit of personal indulgence is allowed. See you at Cleveland, for me only an hour down the road which is nice, suspect may be quite a bit more travel time for you and many others. Just had to select judges lunch...went for beef and ale pie, if memory serves me correctly was delicious last time I had it, already looking forward to it!!!
-
A good choice......great minds think alike (how long before someone makes the obvious response?)
-
Martin (and George) - we don't have this tradition down in the depths of the south, but do have steak and ale pie, so it would be good to pick up the camaraderie of more northern climes... :-\
-
Hi Cliff, so enjoyed your photographic trip round the show while drinking my coffee this morning. and the little asides under the tables etc!!!
-
Many thanks, Margaret … your kind comments make it all worthwhile.
-
Worthwhile....not if you're continually tripping over the prostrate figure rummaging about under feet and benches looking for his lens cap ::)
-
I'm sure you don't need another report on this show, after the sustained tour-de-force Cliff has produced, but I have now posted my more formal photos here on the AGS website http://www.alpinegardensociety.net/discussion/atshows/Midland+Show+April+th+/18513/ (http://www.alpinegardensociety.net/discussion/atshows/Midland+Show+April+th+/18513/) . I'm sure there are a few plants there that Cliff missed.
-
Thank you Jon, we are always pleased to hear what you have been up to and direct viewers to your efforts.
Are you on duty at Cleveland AGS show on the 19th?
edit : Cleveland Show venue: The Education Centre, Junction Road, Norton, Stockton-on-Tees, TS20 1PR
-
It's just good to have a photographer who knows where his lens cap is :P
-
It's just good to have a photographer who knows where his lens cap is :P
True, but at least Sue did manage to persuade the Bookeroo not to post his pix from under the tables...... ::) ;D ( Fine woman that she is :-*)
-
Jon's photographs are pretty special aren't they? Even comparing them with Cliff's wonderful pictures taken in the Dolomites and a few other photographers on this Forum. There really should be a proper exhibition of some of these images of alpine plants and landscapes, and perhaps some of the more historic and evocative images from the Bulletins and elsewhere. It would be a great project to put together given interest from significant galleries around the country... 8). But how do you begin to choose...?
-
Many thanks for the compliment Tim, but anyone who has seen Jon's stunning body of work featuring displays of factual images, artistic creations and photographic compilations will be aware that these are the work of a professional camera user, a maestro of the digital art.
Jon uses camera, lens and tripod to capture the very essence of a plant and portrays and displays these beautiful images at their best for fellow AGS and SRGC members to enjoy.
I never use a tripod, backdrop or subsidiary lighting … I simply roam and point when the moment demands it (in the show hall and the mountains) … my images satisfy my needs and can look effective in digital presentations and on the web, but they would rarely be of a high enough standard to be printed at A3 or above.
We are talking about two standards here ...
-
That’s very kind of you all, but I think the main distinction to make is between the role of the show photographer and that of a visitor to the show. As show photographer you get all sorts of advantages – moving the plants to a well-lit situation in front of a background, where you can remove labels and use a reflector or auxiliary lighting if required. [And do some minor gardening if necessary - ssh]. In many ways the results reflect this, rather than any great skill. On the other hand, you are expected to produce perfect images in the style preferred by the AGS Bulletin, The Alpine Gardener. It is a bit like being a wedding photographer – you have to turn up and get good pictures, whatever the weather, whatever the condition of the plants (except that I don’t get paid for doing it!).
When you first start doing it, this seems dreadfully difficult and challenging, but gradually you learn the tricks and angles, and it becomes very routine. That’s why I’m always looking for ways of getting the best out of a tricky plant, or looking for an angle or close-up that isn’t obvious – it makes the job more interesting. As those who visit the shows will know, it is a very time consuming undertaking – I am usually taking photos constantly for at least 5 hours – and physically demanding, with the result that I often have backache by the end of the day, usually not from trauma caused by carrying heavy pots, but from spending the day at an awkward angle peering through a viewfinder on the back of the camera.
I also wander, without tripod, background and lighting, both in people’s gardens and in the wild, at least in the UK. Often those trips, and the photos which result from them, are more exciting for me than the formal work. I have enjoyed compiling a huge collection of images from the garden at Blackthorn Nursery in the last few years, a few of which were used to help illustrate the articles in the Bulletin last year. Cliff’s images (and those of the many other great photographers who post here) capture a sense of joy and wonder at what he has discovered in his travels; unless inspiration strikes, as it does from time to time, mine can become a rather unexciting, if precise, botanical record.
I’m not on duty at Cleveland thank goodness; it is a bit far for me to travel, and I am in the throes of preparing for the London Show the following weekend.
-
And Cliff, what about photographers like the famed Cartier Bresson who just caught moments who no one else saw? A tripod would certainly have tripped him up let alone anyone he was trying to photograph! I never forget a series of photographs from the inside of an art shop he took of people looking at pictures from the pavement outside - and in particular a slightly risque picture placed on a side wall! Very human - they show people as they really are! I think this is the point of photography - it is the person behind the camera and how they see the world; artistic and journalistic and at times naïve. You may go to great art galleries and marvel at what painters have achieved but you are pretty well stuck with your own abilities even if only a few paintings ever find the value that the immensely rich put on them. On the other hand you can appreciate the work of people you know, for example Rosemary Powis' drawing of Paris that I showed elsewhere. This is why I think an exhibition would be so good - we enjoy the plants at the Shows, but really what proportion of people ever get to see and appreciate these? Artists on the whole like to show off their work, even if they scribble with chalk on the pavement!
-
Problem with having an official photography set-up, which requires plants to be taken from the show bench to have their portraits taken is that there is constant disruption to the display and a consequent disappointment and irritation from the show audience as they find "holes" in the display. We can find such irritation expressed at shows in Scotland when there are plants removed from the bench to go to be considered by the Joint Rock Committee - so on balance, even though neater portraits may be achieved by the AGS method, I am glad that this is not the process followed at our SRGC shows.
When there is so much effort put in to attracting visitors to our shows, I do think it is counter-productive to be removing plants from those displays - the public is not always easily convinced of the reason.
-
That is true, but with the Joint Rock Committee you can find maybe up to a dozen plants removed for a period of 1-2 hours. For the show photography, we remove one plant at a time, usually for no more than 5 minutes, so disruption is kept to a minimum. I also find the Joint Rock removals disruptive - apart from anything else I am supposed to photograph all those plants, which of course increases the amount of time they are away from the display. If I can, I do these plants before the committee convenes, usually at 12.
-
In Scotland we have made strenuous efforts to remove plants one by one to Joint Rock, and for them to be kept away for the shortest time possible, to minimise disruption to the show, members and our paying visitors. It seems to work quite well.