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Chorley Photographic Society Take the Title at “Warwick” 2026

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Every July, the country’s best camera clubs converge on Warwick School for what club photographers simply call “Warwick”: the PAGB Inter-Club PDI Championship. It’s the biggest date in the projected-image calendar, drawing entries from all fifteen of the PAGB’s regional federations, and this year it produced one of the closest finishes in the competition’s recent history.

Chorley Photographic Society were crowned 2026 champions, finishing on 247 points — just one point clear of Rolls-Royce Derby Photographic Society on 246. It’s the kind of margin that comes down to a handful of judges’ marks across the whole day, and it capped a hard-fought, back-and-forth contest that could easily have gone the other way.

About the Championship

For anyone new to the event: each PAGB federation nominates two of its strongest clubs every year, and they’re joined by the previous year’s finalists and Plate winners, drawing entries from among the best photographic societies in the UK. Clubs compete across several rounds of projected digital images — some pre-selected in advance, others drawn on the day from a club’s wider bank of images — with three judges marking each image out of 5, for a maximum of 15 points per image. The leading clubs from the qualifying rounds go through to a deciding Final, where cumulative scores across the rounds settle the placings. Clubs who don’t make the top tier instead contest the Plate, a parallel competition for the rest of the field.

It’s as much a social occasion as a competition — trade stands, a big crowd of club photographers, and a genuinely friendly atmosphere, even for clubs who didn’t qualify this year but came along to watch.

The Final

What makes Chorley’s win especially satisfying is that they didn’t lead from the front — Oldham topped Round 1 and Poulton le Fylde topped Round 2, but neither could sustain that form through to the Final. Chorley’s consistency across the rounds proved decisive, edging out a Rolls-Royce Derby side that has been one of the strongest clubs in the country in recent seasons.

PositionClubFederationTotal MarkAverage Score
1stChorley Photographic SocietyL&CPU24712.35
2ndRolls-Royce Derby Photographic SocietyN&EMPF24612.3
3rdSmethwick Photographic SocietyMCPF24212.1
4thSouthport Photographic SocietyL&CPU24012
5thOldham Photographic SocietyL&CPU23411.7
6thEdinburgh Photographic SocietySPF22911.45
7thPoulton le Fylde Photographic SocietyL&CPU22811.4
8thPhotographic Imaging Co-operativeYPU22611.3

How They Got There: Round 1

IndexPositionClubFederationTotal MarkAverage Score
11stOldham Photographic SocietyL&CPU10413
22ndSmethwick Photographic SocietyMCPF10312.88
33rdChorley Photographic SocietyL&CPU10012.5
44thDerby City Photographic ClubN&EMPF9912.38
5=Southport Photographic SocietyL&CPU9912.38
6=Rolls-Royce Derby Photographic SocietyN&EMPF9912.38
77thEdinburgh Photographic SocietySPF9812.25
88thPoulton le Fylde Photographic SocietyL&CPU9712.13
9=Catchlight Camera ClubNIPA9712.13
1010thPhotographic Imaging Co-operativeYPU9612
1111thDumfries Camera ClubSPF9411.75
12=Cambridge Camera ClubEAF9411.75
13=Colchester Photographic SocietyEAF9411.75
1414thCarluke Camera ClubSPF9311.63
1515thIlkeston Photo 2000N&EMPF9211.5
16=Wrekin Arts Photography ClubMCPF9211.5
17=Gosforth Camera ClubNCPF9211.5
18=Earl Shilton Camera ClubMCPF9211.5
19=Richmond Camera ClubSPA9211.5
2020thTruro Camera ClubWCPF9111.38
21=Bristol Photographic SocietyWCPF9111.38
22=Arden Photo GroupMCPF9111.38
23=Newbury Photography ClubSCPF9111.38
2424thBarnstaple Photographic ClubWCPF9011.25
25=Chichester Camera ClubSCPF9011.25
2626thStafford Photographic SocietyMCPF8911.13
27=Reigate Photographic SocietySPA8911.13
28=Richmond and Twickenham Photographic SocietySPA8911.13
29=Seaford Photographic SocietyKCPA8911.13
3030thAyr Photographic SocietySPF8811
31=Harpenden Photographic SocietyCACC8811
32=Mold Camera ClubNWPA8811
33=Keswick Photographic SocietyL&CPU8811
3434thBeeston Camera ClubN&EMPF8710.88
35=Bebington Photographic SocietyL&CPU8710.88
3636thWatford Camera ClubCACC8510.63
37=Monmouth Photographic ClubWPF8510.63
3838thEryri Photographic GroupNWPA8410.5
39=Sheffield Photographic SocietyYPU8410.5
4040thMilton Keynes City Photographic SocietyCACC8310.38
41=Maidstone Camera ClubKCPA8310.38
42=Canterbury Photographic SocietyKCPA8310.38
4343rdBridgend and District Camera ClubWPF8110.13
44=Molesey Photographic ClubSPA8110.13
4545thIlkley Camera ClubYPU8010
4646thConwy Camera ClubNWPA799.88
47=Batley and District Camera ClubYPU799.88

Forty-seven clubs went head-to-head in Round 1, each showing eight images pre-selected in advance. Oldham Photographic Society set the early pace with a maximum-looking average of 13.00.

Round 2

The second round shuffled the order dramatically. Poulton le Fylde Photographic Society, who’d sat mid-table in Round 1, produced the standout scoring performance of the day to top this round, with Southport close behind.

IndexPositionClubFederationTotal MarkAverage Score
11stPoulton le Fylde Photographic SocietyL&CPU10212.75
22ndSouthport Photographic SocietyL&CPU10112.63
33rdSmethwick Photographic SocietyMCPF10012.5
4=Chorley Photographic SocietyL&CPU10012.5
55thOldham Photographic SocietyL&CPU9912.38
6=Rolls-Royce Derby Photographic SocietyN&EMPF9912.38
77thPhotographic Imaging Co-operativeYPU9712.13
88thEdinburgh Photographic SocietySPF9511.88
99thWrekin Arts Photography ClubMCPF9411.75
1010thTruro Camera ClubWCPF9311.63
1111thStafford Photographic SocietyMCPF9211.5
1212thEarl Shilton Camera ClubMCPF9111.38
13=Colchester Photographic SocietyEAF9111.38
1414thCarluke Camera ClubSPF9011.25
15=Catchlight Camera ClubNIPA9011.25
16=Arden Photo GroupMCPF9011.25
17=Bristol Photographic SocietyWCPF9011.25
1818thRichmond and Twickenham Photographic SocietySPA8911.13
19=Ilkeston Photo 2000N&EMPF8911.13
2020thAyr Photographic SocietySPF8811
21=Bridgend and District Camera ClubWPF8811
22=Watford Camera ClubCACC8811
2323rdNewbury Photography ClubSCPF8710.88
24=Keswick Photographic SocietyL&CPU8710.88
25=Maidstone Camera ClubKCPA8710.88
26=Gosforth Camera ClubNCPF8710.88
27=Barnstaple Photographic ClubWCPF8710.88
28=Chichester Camera ClubSCPF8710.88
29=Canterbury Photographic SocietyKCPA8710.88
3030thDumfries Camera ClubSPF8610.75
31=Derby City Photographic ClubN&EMPF8610.75
3232ndSeaford Photographic SocietyKCPA8510.63
33=Mold Camera ClubNWPA8510.63
34=Cambridge Camera ClubEAF8510.63
3535thReigate Photographic SocietySPA8410.5
3636thBebington Photographic SocietyL&CPU8310.38
37=Ilkley Camera ClubYPU8310.38
38=Sheffield Photographic SocietyYPU8310.38
39=Harpenden Photographic SocietyCACC8310.38
4040thBeeston Camera ClubN&EMPF8210.25
41=Molesey Photographic ClubSPA8210.25
4242ndMilton Keynes City Photographic SocietyCACC8110.13
4343rdEryri Photographic GroupNWPA8010
4444thMonmouth Photographic ClubWPF799.88
4545thBatley and District Camera ClubYPU789.75
4646thRichmond Camera ClubSPA769.5
4747thConwy Camera ClubNWPA759.38

The Plate

For the clubs outside the top tier, the Plate provides its own hard-fought competition and its own bragging rights. Carluke Camera Club took the trophy this year on 99 points, edging out Bridgend and District Camera Club and Colchester Photographic Society.

PositionClubFederationTotal MarkAverage Score
1stCarluke Camera ClubSPF9912.38
2ndBridgend and District Camera ClubWPF9812.25
3rdColchester Photographic SocietyEAF9712.13
4thBristol Photographic SocietyWCPF9612
=Maidstone Camera ClubKCPA9612
=Wrekin Arts Photography ClubMCPF9612
=Dumfries Camera ClubSPF9612
8thCatchlight Camera ClubNIPA9411.75
9thChichester Camera ClubSCPF9311.63
=Derby City Photographic ClubN&EMPF9311.63
=Stafford Photographic SocietyMCPF9311.63
=Ayr Photographic SocietySPF9311.63
=Mold Camera ClubNWPA9311.63
=Truro Camera ClubWCPF9311.63
=Richmond and Twickenham Photographic SocietySPA9311.63
16thKeswick Photographic SocietyL&CPU9211.5
17thMolesey Photographic ClubSPA9111.38
=Watford Camera ClubCACC9111.38
=Bebington Photographic SocietyL&CPU9111.38
20thMonmouth Photographic ClubWPF9011.25
=Milton Keynes City Photographic SocietyCACC9011.25
=Ilkeston Photo 2000N&EMPF9011.25
=Eryri Photographic GroupNWPA9011.25
=Canterbury Photographic SocietyKCPA9011.25
=Cambridge Camera ClubEAF9011.25
26thGosforth Camera ClubNCPF8911.13
=Seaford Photographic SocietyKCPA8911.13
=Earl Shilton Camera ClubMCPF8911.13
=Richmond Camera ClubSPA8911.13
=Sheffield Photographic SocietyYPU8911.13
31stBeeston Camera ClubN&EMPF8811
=Newbury Photography ClubSCPF8811
33rdReigate Photographic SocietySPA8710.88
34thBarnstaple Photographic ClubWCPF8610.75
=Batley and District Camera ClubYPU8610.75
36thConwy Camera ClubNWPA8510.63
=Harpenden Photographic SocietyCACC8510.63
38thIlkley Camera ClubYPU8010

See the Images

The full catalogue of images shown on the day, including those from the Final and the Plate, is available to browse online via the PAGB image catalogue.

Congratulations to Chorley Photographic Society on a hard-earned title, to Rolls-Royce Derby for pushing them all the way, and to every club that qualified and took part this year. See you all at Warwick again next July.

[Editor’s note: add the event date, judging panel, and any standout images or photographer credits here if you’d like them included.]

 

An online digital catalogue for the 2026 PDI championship

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