The Australian Photographic Society is Australia's own national photographic organisation. The aim of the Society is to promote, improve, share and enjoy photography in Australia offering many extensive services, all specifically designed to improve photography and photographic skills. Membership is open to all - international exhibitors, beginners, amateurs and professionals.

Emerging from the embryonic and highly successful Daylesford Foto Biennales of 2005 and 2007, the Ballarat
Festival aims to enlarge and expand on the concept into a truly world-class, global event.

To be held from 4th September to 4th October 2009 the Biennale will bring some of the very best international and Australian photographers to Ballarat for a month long celebration of eclectic and exciting photographic exhibitions. All told the 2009 Biennale will comprise somewhere between 120 and 150 separate photographic events, including workshops, seminars, portfolio reviews, multi media presentations and special events as well as a series of Fringe Festivals in Ballarat and the outlying region including Daylesford, Creswick, Trentham and Clunes.

What Is VAPS?

VAPS is an affilliation of Victorian camera clubs and an incorporated body.

VAPS is a Committee of Management, elected each year at an Annual General Meeting, by the membership of affiliated camera clubs. It is a "not for profit" organisation, put together principally to manage the promotion of photography for Victorian camera clubs, to give Victorian amateur photographers, through their respective clubs, a collective voice and provide the management facility to stage and participate in large and small-scale events that would normally be beyond the administrative and financial capabilities of any one small group.

VAPS as a body, runs an annual Interclub competition. Entries, while created by individuals, are presented for judging as a collective represention of their particular camera club. Merits are awarded to the top images in small and large print, slide, digital media and audio-visual divisions. The small print division is where most novice workers start their pilgrimage toward bigger and better things, moving up to large prints as they progress. The digital division is for digitally projected images. There is no novice section in the digitally projected image division. The A-V division gives workers an opportunity to display images in a continuous, 'sophisticated slide-show', story-telling environment, with accompanying voice-over narration and music.

VAPS also runs an annual Muster, a convention-style gathering staged at varying locations throughout Victoria, for members to attend seminars and practical worksops presented by photographers and speakers of renown. It is also the place at which the Interclub Exhibition is held, giving attendees the opportunity to view the prints, digital images and AV's that gained Acceptance level in the VAPS Interclub Competition.

VAPS, with it's direct links to Australian and international clubs and organisations, provides Victorian camera clubs with the knowledge, initiatives and incentives to promote and expand the art and craft of photography.

The VIGEX Committee conduct an International Photographic Competition and Exhibition in the State of Victoria, Australia.

This is an International Salon which has all six sections approved by both the Australian Photographic Society Inc and the Federation Internationale de l'Art Photographique and five sections approved by the Photographic Society of America.

It is held once every two years and is open to both professional and amateur photographers.

Corio Bay Camera Club was formed by a group of Ford employees as the Ford Camera Club on 3rd June 1954. Our aim is to promote the art of photography among our members and in the wider community, and to provide a friendly atmosphere where members and visitors can make, present, view and discuss their images and learn from each other.

The Geelong Camera Club meets 7:30pm
each Wednesday evening
Barwon Valley Activity Centre
Barwon Heads Road, Belmont
(opposite K-Mart).

Meetings are held on the second Tuesday of each month, starting at 8.00 pm at the Kohinoor Community Centre on the corner of Sebastopol and Errards Streets, Ballarat.

'Gallery on Sturt' is a contemporary art gallery in the heart of Ballarat. It is located in the Central Highlands region of Victoria about an hours drive from Melbourne. We proudly exhibit works by our talented local and regional artists. The spacious gallery is located in Ballarat CBD alongside the cafe culture and gracious statues and pavilions of Sturt Street. We also have extensive framing and fine-art printing facilities. Limited edition fine-art prints personally signed by the artist are also available on selected works.
Gallery on Sturt has extensive framing and fine art printing facilities at the same location as Accent Framing.

Regional university with both Higher Education and Vocational Education and Training sectors. Two campuses in Ballarat and three in the Wimmera region.

Crumpler Australia - Laptop Bags, Camera Bags, Notebook Bags, Messenger Bags and heaps more in the online store.

Lihir Gold Limited (LGL) is a major global gold producer with operations in Papua New Guinea (PNG), West Africa and Australia. The company’s head office is located in Port Moresby, PNG, and in 2005 LGL established its global corporate base in Brisbane, Australia.

The company is incorporated in PNG, where it operates one of the world’s largest gold mines and processing facilities on Lihir Island in New Ireland province. LGL is also developing an underground mine and process plant at the historic gold mining centre of Ballarat, north-west of Melbourne in Victoria.

In June 2008, LGL finalised a merger with Perth-based gold producer Equigold NL. Through the merger, LGL now has operations at Mount Rawdon in Queensland and in Côte d’Ivoire in West Africa. Combined from its four operations, LGL has approximately 25 million ounces in reserves.

In 2008 LGL produced 882,000 ounces of gold, with production in 2009 forecast to exceed one million ounces, including 770,000 – 840,000 ounces from Lihir Island, 130,000 – 160,000 ounces from Bonikro, 90,000 – 100,000 ounces from Mount Rawdon, and up to 50,000 ounces from Ballarat.

LGL is publicly listed, with its shares traded on the Australian, Toronto, Port Moresby and NASDAQ stock exchanges. The company presently has 2.2 billion shares on issue and a market capitalisation of approximately A$7.5 billion.

UBC Web Design has been operating successfully for the past 18 years,
primarily in the Ballarat region, but in the last few years our quality
and valued services have taken UBC Web Design right across the country into
Western Australia and the Eastern States.
We have worked with large corporate companies such as Telstra and many small
and medium based businesses as well as schools and community organisations.
UBC Web Design was until recently known as 'Universal Business Computers',
but due to our huge success with delivering easy to use, quality and value
for money websites, with all the Back Up Support needed and with over 20+ years experience,
the core now of our business in Web Site Development.

Address: 211 Sturt St, Ballarat, VIC 3350

Phone: (03) 5331 1283

Camerasdirect is an online importer offering an outstanding level of service. Backed by local warranties, great pricing and staff who are all passionate photographers we offer a truly unique online shopping experience.

Address: 123 Sturt St, Ballarat Central, VIC, 3350
Phone: (03) 53312742

Address: 416 Sturt St, Ballarat, VIC 3350

Phone: (03) 5331 1633

Thornton Richards Camera House was founded by George Richards in 1872 and is the oldest studio and camera store in Australia and has been owned by the Lewis Family since 1955.
Despite the age of the company and its regional location, Thornton Richards Camera House has always been a leader in the photographic industry, implementing the many changes that have occurred within the industry, as they happen. Merv Lewis was the first to process colour prints in 1962 and in 1973 installed the first daylight operating lab.

In 2001 present owners Gerrard and Sue Lewis installed the latest and largest state of the art technology west of Melbourne in a Fuji Frontier, which prints from all photographic media and is renowned as the sharpest and fastest machine available today. This has enabled the store to process (film and digital) for many professional photographers and graphic artists who would normally send their images out of Ballarat.

Thornton Richards Camera House has embraced the change to digital photography and installed six digital photo centres within the store enabling customers to print photographs while they wait from their mobile phones, blue tooth devices, and memory cards.