FANTASTIC photography can be enjoyed in Ludlow over the next five weeks with the launch of a new festival.

Ludlow Photographic Festival is organised by Ludlow Photographic Club in partnership with the Ludlow Assembly Rooms.

It sets out to provide a showcase for the best in photography locally from amateurs and professionals working with a range of approaches, techniques and philosophies.

The festival opens on September 12 with three events, including a lecture by award-winning wildlife photographer Ben Osborne.

He will take the audience behind the scenes on two filming expeditions to Northern Botswana with the BBC natural history series Planet Earth.

The first was in the Okavanga Delta following the African hunting dog while the second looked at life in the dry, tough environment of the Savuti region. The team followed a herd of elephants by night and day and a pride of 30 lions at night.

The lecture is in the main auditorium at 8pm and tickets are £10 (concessions £9) from 01584 878141 or ludlow assemblyrooms.co.uk.

On the same day, the Royal Photographic (RPS) Print Exhibition and the Festival Open Photographic Print Exhibition open.

The RPS show features work by some of its distinction panel members and will be opened by its president, Dr Barry Senior. It will be open from 10am to 4pm in the Cafe Galler y at the venue until October 11. Admission is free.

The Festival Open Print Exhibition will also be housed in the Cafe Galler y until October 11 and will feature the work of some 40 photographers, both professional and amateur.