A short history from the beginning
to where we are today

The Lowestoft & District Photographic Society was established in the year 1900. A handwritten invitation card exists, dated February 12th, 1900 and this club was in existence until the outbreak of the First World War in 1914.

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The Lowestoft Photographic Society was established in 1952, and one of its founder members was Sidney Reynolds, who was President of the Lowestoft Photographic Club until he passed away in 2001. Many of the original members from the 1950's, such as Spencer Burt, Ernest Graystone - each of whom were members of the club for over 35 years - Bob Moore and David Crawford are, sadly, no longer with us, but all are fondly remembered by the Club's current members.

 

Throughout the 1950's, the Lowestoft Photographic Society built up a strong and loyal membership and prided itself on the friendly, helpful meetings and the way in which all members were encouraged to be actively involved in the running of the Society, with members always willing to share their photographic knowledge with others.

 

In 1964, the Lowestoft Photographic Society split into two clubs - the original Photographic Society and the Lowestoft Camera Club. However, The Lowestoft Photographic Society continued to increase its membership and maintained a full programme of events and social gatherings.

 

By the 1990's, changing work patterns, the impact of new technology and the steadily rising costs of promoting and maintaining a high-quality programme of weekly meetings, meant it was becoming increasingly difficult to recruit new members, especially young people. To increase awareness amongst the younger generation, The Lowestoft Photographic Society entered a float in the 1993 Lowestoft Carnival.

 

In 1997, the Lowestoft Photographic Society successfully put forward a very detailed proposal for a photographic project entitled 'Lowestoft Towards The Millennium', which resulted in a grant of over £4,000 from the Arts Council and a supporting grant from the local authority, Waveney District Council. 

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A selection of the resulting 2500 negatives was printed and displayed in the Lowestoft Central Library during October 1998 and now form part of the Suffolk Archive, a historical record available to future historians.

 

Following the success of the Millennium Project, talks began between the Lowestoft Photographic Society and the Lowestoft Camera Club about a possible merger. In May 1999, after much careful discussion, it was agreed that a full merger between the two clubs would take effect from May 2000. The new club was to be called The Lowestoft Photographic Club, stronger, with a larger membership and the ability to support a high-quality programme of events. David Standley (LPS) and Sidney Reynolds (LCC) were the joint Presidents of the new club. Sadly, due to the passage of time, those two Presidents are no longer with us and our current President is elected by the Club members at the Annual General Meeting.

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The Lowestoft Photographic Club is committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for photographers of all abilities. Our club is a place where members can learn from each other, share their experiences, and showcase their work. Whether you’re a beginner, an experienced photographer, or somewhere in between, our club is the perfect place to improve your skills, make connections, and indulge your passion for photography.

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With the development of digital photography and the internet the way in which we take photographs has changed, we now see more processing work done in the home computer rather than in the darkroom. But we have adapted to the times and have modern projection equipment for our event evenings. We also have exhibitions of work taken by our members on show around the town and on the web. In 2019 we have collaborated with Lowestoft Town Council to produce a year in the life of Lowestoft.  Join the Lowestoft Photographic Club at the Methodist Church Hall on Wednesday evening from September for the start of our latest season of events and a full programme of speakers and guest photographers.