THE Western Districts National Photographic Exhibition celebrates its 21st birthday this year, with more than 50 photos from amateur photographers around the country currently on display in Orange City Library.

The exhibition will run for about three weeks before being shown in Dubbo.

Coordinator Neil Skinner said hundreds of entries were received in categories such as colour and monochrome prints, nature, people, photo-journalism, photo-travel, digital images and slides.

The photos were judged in Dubbo last weekend by judges from Sydney, Newcastle, Maitland, and Orange Camera Club’s own Jenny Davidson.

“We can’t display all of them because we don’t have enough space so we have picked the best to show here,” Mr Skinner said.

He says changes in photography over the years has kept exhibition organisers on their toes.

“Back in the 1990s it was all slides but since digital photography came in, the amount of prints we’ve received has grown,” he said.

“This year we are also projecting digital images, which I think will really take off over the next few years because it is so much cheaper for photographers to enter their work that way.”

The projected images will not be shown in Orange, but people can see them when the exhibition is displayed at Dubbo Regional Art Gallery.

Orange City Library is open Monday to Friday from 10am to 7pm, Saturday from 9.30am to 4pm and Sunday from 1pm to 5pm.