Tuesday, May 15, 2007

THE ROYAL PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF THE 150TH INTERNATIONAL PRINT EXHIBITION

The Royal Photographic Society is pleased to announce the Award winners for its prestigious International Print Exhibition which, this year, celebrates its 150th Anniversary. The Gold Award was won by Richard Merritt FRPS for his extraordinary photograph of a Scalloped Hammerhead Shark taken in the waters of Costa Rica’s Cocos Island National Park. Also this year, to mark the anniversary, an ‘Under 25years section’ has been introduced and the Gold Medal has been awarded to Chris Charnock ARPS, aged 19, who also wins an E400 digital SLR camera, kindly donated by Olympus for his print ‘Exploited’.


15/05/2007
For immediate release
Editor’s contact Emily/Kate: 020 8334 5751
Page 2 of 3


The Exhibition will open at Hoopers Gallery in London on 20th June 2007 and will then tour the UK until April 2008. Full details can be found on The Royal Photographic Society website, http://www.rps.org/exhibitions.php


Selectors included the Chairman Bill Wisden Hon. FRPS (Visual Art Photographer), Ken Lennox (Reportage Photographer), Terry O’Neill Hon.FRPS (Celebrity Portrait Photographer), Roger Reynolds Hon. FRPS (Professional Travel Photographer), Ray Spence FRPS (Fine Arts Photographer & Lecturer), Anne Sutcliffe FRPS (Digital Creative Photographer). The number of entries increased again this year with a 17% increase in the number of photographers entering. The final selection of 125 prints was selected from over 2,200 images submitted by 600 photographers from 33 countries worldwide. The competition was open to students, amateurs and professional photographers with the Exhibition representing some of the very best photography from around the world. Contributions this year have come from as far afield as Bangladesh, New Zealand, Africa, USA, Hong Kong and Europe.

“I was delighted with the strong support for the under 25 section and most impressed by the standard of the photographs. As one who has encouraged young photographers over the years I was also delighted to see that a number of photographs from this section made it into the main exhibition”.
Roger Reynolds – Hon FRPS – Selector & Past President

The Royal Photographic Society is the foremost Photographic Society in the world. It was founded in 1853, when photography was in its infancy, and has been a leading force in its advancement ever since. This year The Royal Photographic Society is celebrating 150 years of staging The International Print Exhibition, the longest standing exhibition of its kind anywhere in the world. Throughout its long history it has maintained a reputation for exhibiting a wide range of photographic taste and outlook. This has ensured that it is unique within the photographic world.

15/05/2007
For immediate release
Editor’s contact Emily/Kate: 020 8334 5751
Page 3 of 3

To celebrate this special anniversary, the Society will be showcasing a Retrospective Exhibition which will include images and text on the historical aspect of the Exhibition, with examples from each decade, to be shown alongside the 150th International Print Exhibition.

“It was indeed a great pleasure and privilege to chair the selection panel in choosing the images to make up The Society’s 150th International Exhibition. Undoubtedly this annual exhibition is the most visible form of The Society’s dedication to the promotion internationally of photography. I feel that the exhibition reflects much that is happening in the photographic world today”.
Bill Wisden – Hon FRPS – Chair of Selectors



The Exhibition will be accompanied by a full colour catalogue and Presentation CD which is available from the RPS Reception. There is an Education Pack that accompanies the exhibition and links in to the national curriculum.

See website www.rps.org

GOLD X 1
Richard Merritt FRPS ‘Scalloped Hammerhead Shark’ UK/Amateur

SILVER X 2
Wolfgang Schweden ‘Gallopers’ Germany/Amateur
Alan Shawcross FRPS ‘HRH Prince Charles’ UK/Professional

BRONZE X 3
Harry Borden ‘Baroness Thatcher’ UK/Professional
Judy Boyle FRPS ‘4 Dolls’ UK//Amateur
Julia Fullerton-Batten ‘Man in Bathtub’ UK/Professional

GOLD ‘UNDER 25 yrs’ X 1
Chris Charnock ARPS ‘Exploited’ UK/Student


For further information, visuals from the exhibition or to organise an interview please contact: Emily/ Kate, MAX PR & Events
0208 334 5751 / emily@maxpr-events.com
or Lesley Goode, RPS Exhibitions Manager
01225 325720 / Lesley@rps.org