Bob Elliott
Introduction
Sadly, Bob Elliott passed away in 2006. Leigh Preston shares his memories of Bob with us.
Bob's philosophy
The Late Bob Elliott
BOB ELLIOTT F.R.P.S.
Bob was a highly respected photographer who had an individual style and amazing perception of the world as viewed through his lens. He was a member of Arena , elected in recent years to the London Salon , a Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society and a leading light at both Ordnance Survey and Southampton Camera Clubs. He gained both EFIAP and APAGB
The majority of his well known work was in Monochrome , and prior to taking up digital methods, Bob was a highly skilled and motivated darkroom worker , whose specific ‘personal‘ style was creative both in the ‘seeing’ and the ultimate printed result. He received wide acclaim and many exhibition awards as a result.
Bob used his talent to guide others , sitting on the Visual Arts panel at the RPS for nearly 10 years. He helped run RPS distinction workshops , advised youngsters at the camera clubs he was involved with and lectured widely all over the U.K.
His working life was spent at the Ordnance Survey , where he reached quite a high office, such a dedicated and organised person , who left nothing unfinished , nothing to chance and kept immaculate methods of working so well , that they could be passed directly to others when he moved to other areas. He was married to Audrey and they had a daughter, Jane.
Bob was a very private person, and kept his feelings very much to himself. He championed others, put them first and never courted the limelight. His contribution to photography, through the years since 1980 , has been immense. Those who were lucky enough to be in Bob’s circle of photographic friends, will remember his skills at Audio Visual work with slides, his quiet humour and the way he looked at situations to find a wry smile or some minor absurdity that would find its way into his pictures. He held office with the Southern Photographic Federation , as a very efficient secretary . He judged exhibitions at International level, wisely and in a very individual way. Bob really looked at photographs, and often commented on them with an astute observation.
He and Audrey , travelled widely – visiting such diverse countries as China, Cuba, The USA , Thailand , South Africa and various places throughout Europe. The pictures he took in those places, showed great personal input. They relied often on deep shadows and well observed detail and were very original in concept.
He was a lifelong supporter of Portsmouth football club, and very keen on Jazz. He was also a very keen supporter of Poole Speedway, but his greatest love was cricket.
We lost one of the good guys when Bob died earlier this year.
Leigh Preston May 2007