Adelaide's Community Photographer

Adelaide Lithuanian Amateur Photo Club

Adelaidės Lietuvių foto mėgėjų klubo

Adelaide Lithuanian Amateur Photo Club

Several Adelaide Lithuanians with an interest in photography got together and established an amateur photo club.  The aim was to help each other perfect their work.  At the first meeting on 18 October 1959, which was held at Vytautas Vosylius flat in Mile End the group produced its guidelines.

A Krausas viewing the exhibition in 1968

The first president was Vytautas Vosylius and the secretary Petras Snarskis.   The document was also signed by Kazys Požera,  Alfonsas Budrys,  Pranas Šatkus and Juozas Vebrys.

The Photo club organised several exhibitions in Adelaide and also during the Australian Lithuanian Festival Days as part of the Art exhibition.  They usually received over 50 works and in the 1968 exhibition had 95 on display.  The categories included Black and white, colour, portraits and landscapes.

Not surprisingly members Alfonsas Budrys and Vytautas Vosylius did exceedingly well in the competitions.  Both were active in Australian amateur photographic clubs as well.

The group was active until 1970.

Alfonsas Budrys

Alfonsas was born in 19^th March 1915 in Karoliskis, Kupiskis. From a young age he enjoyed photography. He exhibited in numerous exhibitions in Lithuania and when he arrived in Australia. He liked to compose photographs from two negatives using the superimposed principal. At a later stage he began using video. His work features in many publications in America, Canada and Australia.

At 16 years of age, he joined the local railway brass band and begun to keep a photographic record of its musical tours. In the late thirties he met photographer Jonas Zitkus who gave him helpful advice with his photography. In 1942 he married Birute Navickaite and in 1944 they fled to the West.

In 1949 they migrated to Australia and settled in Adelaide. Budrys completed his two year work contract at an iron foundry and then worked at General Motors Holden factory as a die caster until his retirement in 1980.

Since its establishment in 1954, he has been a member of the Lithuanian Photographic Group and from 1963 to 1969 was a member of the Adelaide Camera Club.

He has kept a fantastic photographic record of the Lithuanian community in Adelaide, always seen with a camera in hand at any functions. The great collection of photographs in the Adelaide Lithuanian Museum is credited to him.