ACCORDING to Greek mythology things didn’t exactly end well for King Midas and his golden touch, the ruler rejoicing in his new gift until he realised it also inconveniently applied to food and drink.
Fortunately this week’s ‘Midas touch’ theme proved a more fruitful endeavour for our Camera Club members.
Fizzing fireworks, sun-soaked countryside scenes and even a golden toilet (not that one) all featured in the diverse array of submissions.
Unsurprisingly many members focused on sunrise and sunset snaps, the times of day commonly known as the ‘golden hour’ due to the spectacular colours created.
There were many stand outs, with favourites including the light from a setting sun shining through a crop of golden wheat in Culham by Allen Dannfald and a silhouetted figure creating a striking contrast to the bright hues behind by Mark Guschtscha.
Another stunning shot was of a deer in a mist-covered field by Denise Gurden, the entire image suffused with golden light from the sunrise.
Elsewhere in nature we loved a pair of spider web photographs by Linda Robertson and Louisa Tucker.
The first shot captured morning dew looking like golden pearls strung along a necklace, while the latter's backdrop of the sun left the web resembling spun gold.
The signs of autumn, meanwhile, can be seen in Jayme Granito's shot of pair looking down from above at the first falling leaves of the season which is set to transform green trees into golden tones.
Outside nature we loved Steve Clarke's snap of three glasses of bubbly and a magnificent shot of shooting fireworks by Nadine Mayer
Finally, a more unusual interpretation we enjoyed was Sarah Mason's image of 90-year-old Betty Hicks proving she has the Midas touch as she reaches the milestone.
We especially like that she is holding a photo of herself at 18 in her Land Army uniform from the Second World War.
Next week’s theme is ‘surprise’ and we feel confident Camera Club members won't disappoint.
Join our Camera Club – which now has more than 1,100 members online by searching Facebook for Oxford Mail Camera Club.
This week’s winning shot will appear in tomorrow’s paper. Happy snapping!
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