‘Get snap happy and help us make history’

St Peter & St Paul's Church, Tring, in 1905. Photo courtesy of the Tring History Society.

Tring & District Camera Club has launched the Picture Tring competition to tie in with the town’s Charter 700 celebrations and welcomes all entries – including those taken on smart phones.

Club secretery Peter Cox, who lives in Dancers End, near Tring, said: “Mobile phones have introduced a whole new way of taking photos, however few people with mobile phones get the joy of seeing their images printed.”

Mr Cox, who has been a keen photographer since his teens, said the competition especially aimed to appeal to the younger generation, who are au fait with smartphone technology but rarely have the chance to see their photos in their physical form.

St Peter & St Paul's Church, Tring, in 2015. Photo by Peter Cox.

And thanks to a grant of more than £70,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the winning images will be archived by the local history society for future generations.

Mr Cox, who has been a member of the camera club for two years, said:“It’s about Tring, and engaging with Tring. We’re creating heritage for the future.

“Hopefully, in another 700 years they will be pulling out these archives again.”

Mr Cox said photos edited on mobile phones using apps such as Instagram would also be welcome. He said: “It’s all part of the creative process.”

It is free to enter and the categories are:

> Daily life in Tring

> Modern Tring

> Historic Tring

> Wildlife in Tring

> A Tring 700 Event

There will also be winners for:

> Best entry from photographers aged 14 and under

> Best entry from photographers aged 14 to 18 years

> Best taken with a mobile phone

> Best overall

Prizes include a Tring Brewery tour, a spa voucher and a year’s membership to the camera club. Both the young photographer’s categories have £50 cash up for grabs.

Entries will be accepted until the end of August, after which the winners will be chosen by an independent judging panel.

Shortlisted entries will be displayed in A3 high quality print at a major exhibition from October 9 to November 21.

Visit the Tring 700 website here for an entry form and instructions.