Hitchin Camera Club Centenary Walk

St Mary’s Church, Hitchin. This would certainly have been there on the original walk one hundred years ago. I’m sure many people photographed it that day. 1s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 8m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

Photography has been around longer than most people realise and by the time the Hitchin and Letchworth camera clubs organised their photography walk in 1922, the medium was well over seventy years old. Gone were the days of requiring minutes long exposures with wet plates that required you to bring a portable dark room with you, small compact cameras and the introduction of roll film had made photography something ordinary people could enjoy. From there camera clubs were formed for hobbyists and enthusiasts and by this point existed even well-established magazines like Amateur Photographer, which is still available to this day.

Tudor or Tudor-style buildings make more great subjects in black and white. 1/2s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

Standing still and talking, the people are remarkable sharp for a one second exposure. 1s (B) 111mm F32 Focus set at 3m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

After starting at Hitchin train station we walked through the town and eventually ended up in the village of Charlton. 1/2s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

So, when the Chairman of the current Hitchin Camera Club (which formed in the 1970s) saw the article from the May 24th 1922 edition of the magazine advertising the aforementioned photo walk, it made perfect sense to hold it again on its centenary. Thankfully the article provided the original route map so we were able to re-create the loop as best we could, taking into consideration a century of road changes. The illustrations on the article show off large format cameras, and whilst many people on this latest walk were using modern digital cameras, there was a good showing of film shooters. Which camera did I use? Well of course I used my (almost) period No.1 Pocket Kodak camera which would have been in line with what some may have used on the day all those years ago. Furthermore, I wasn’t even the only one to use a Pocket Kodak camera on the day either.

Reaching Maydencroft I tried to frame up an interesting shot of the manor house through this metal gate. This image does go to show how effective F45 is in getting front-to-back sharpness with this focused at 2m, the camera’s official closest focusing distance. 1s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 2m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

Continuing the walk we went through Gosmore, here you can see The Bull pub. Another building that was there on the original walk, although it wasn’t marked on the route map. 1s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

Our lunch stop at the St. Ippolyts Stores, perfect for those who forgot to buy sandwiches. 1s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

The day went well with good numbers of people turning out (including some non-members) and I just about managed to make it round the six mile or so route in time for a couple of biscuits at the end before it was all packed away. Shooting one of the oldest cameras on a tripod meant that I finished dead last but, as tiring as it was, I certainly enjoyed the challenge of carefully shooting my three rolls of Ilford Pan F+ 50 in a single day. I hope you enjoy the rest of the images and perhaps in another hundred years there will be a bicentennial walk. Fingers crossed there’s at least one person who brings a film camera.  

This interesting thatched roof house was well photographed by attendees. 1s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

The water level was very low so nothing was running under this bridge on the day. 1s (B) 111mm F32 Focus set at 4m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

We carried on further into the village St Ippolyts where we came to the church. 1s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 8m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

Battling reciprocity failure a very long exposure was required to photograph the inside of the church with such a slow film. Unfortunately I should have focused at 5m instead of 8m which has left the foreground soft and slightly out of focus at F22. 260s (B) 111mm F22 Focus set at 8m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

You can see the original article from Amateur Photographer here on the Hitchin Camera Club website: https://www.hitchincameraclub.org/2022/05/09/centenary-event/. Thanks as well go to the Hitchin Historical Society who provided landmark information for our modern route map.

If you live locally and are thinking about joining the club, then come down to Hitchin Town Square on the 27th August or alternatively get in touch with the committee via the contact links on the website.

Heading back into Hitchin. Having played a game of cat and mouse as I fell behind and caught up with the group up to St Ippolyts, as I hung back to take the long exposure inside the church I was no well behind everyone else on the return journey. 1s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

The door to the chapel at Hitchin cemetery. I had initially misfired and taken an exposure at 1/25s by mistake as the dial had moved in setup. Thankfully it didn’t have an impact when I took the much longer and correct exposure. 3s (B) 111mm F32 Focus set at 6m (with 1/25s misfire) Ilford Pan F+ 50.

The antiquarian bookstore Eric T Moore is sadly long gone but I am pleased they retained it’s painted sign on the houses it was converted into. 1/2s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

This house caught my attention with its slightly unusual layout and stairs leading up from the pavement. The slow shutter speed leaves a slight ghostly impression of the passerby at the gate. 1/2s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

Almost at the end now. Hitchin Market leading onto St Mary’s church. The image that heads this blog was the next image taken after this. 1/2s (B) 111mm F45 Focus set at 8m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

Finally I arrived at the end just in time before everyone packed up. He had to hold that pose for 40s to remain fairly solid. If you are local to Hitchin and interested in photography then please do checkout the club website https://www.hitchincameraclub.org. 40s (B) 111mm F16 Focus set at 5m Ilford Pan F+ 50.

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