Eric Thorburn AV Judge

APSSA(Vers), AV-APSSA

After graduating as a Dentist some 70 years ago, a colleague introduced me to the magical world of Photography!   A world which still excites and rewards me.

The thrill of seeing an image emerging in a development bath in my darkroom, the satisfaction of a print which I can frame and display, or seeing a story of yours unfold on a movie screen is a rewarding experience.  An experience one can share with everyone!

In contrast, I feel that taking a Digital image, which is screened at a Club for a few seconds, before it disappears into the hard drive of your computer, seldom if ever to be seen again, is not as satisfying.

Cine’ was my passion.  With an 8mm camera I competed both here and  overseas,  a highlight being awarded a Silver medal at Cannes, and  ARPS Honours

An upgrade to 16 mm equipment enabled  APSSA  Honours being achieved, as well as many more awards both here and overseas.

There was a break when Digital replaced film, and I turned to script-writing for the Professional market  –  in particular scripts for Medical and Dental subjects. For instance,  I scripted and helped produce over  40 short films as the “ TV Dentist”  on our local SABC  channels.

Another genre I explored was photojournalism, with the emphasis on Adventure magazines, such as  “GO” and similar travel and outdoor publications.

Arising from these endeavours, I achieved another APSSA  in the Applied division, as well as receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from PSSA. 

More recently my migration into Audio-Visual has become my passion, and I have been awarded another APSSA in AV, leading to my APSSA(Vers),  AV-APSSA.