Camera Clubs
AS my interest in photography has grown in the past couple of years, I joined a camera club in order to help me improve my craft and discuss with like minded people. My attendance at present is virtually non existent due to my extensive travel and I do miss it.
Since I have started blogging, however, the web has become my ‘photography club’. Blogging and commenting does not replace it, rather it is a complementary activity.
My experience of Buckingham Camera Club is tht it provided me with the following.
- Conversation with people who share an interest
- Advice from experienced photographers - see Learning from Photoblogging?
- Opportunity to see a wide range of work
- Critique in competition - see On Line Photo Competitions
- Forces me to print out - see Pictures on my Hard Drive
No doubt there is a wide range of other factors and it is something I miss at present. When you think about it though there is a large overlap with what we get out of photoblogging as discussed in Why Do We Photoblog?
I would be interested to hear your experience good or bad of camera/photography clubs.
September 22nd, 2005 at 1:56 pm
I’ve never been a member of a camera club. I have been the guest speaker at several clubs and I found the experience enjoyable and educational.
September 22nd, 2005 at 6:27 pm
I’ll bet you are a great speaker to hve at a club!
September 22nd, 2005 at 7:16 pm
I am a member of a pretty active photo club. I do learn quite a bit from that experience.
Among other things, one gets to use all kinds of equipment
[which is good and bad]. I have done half-day, full-day and weekend trips with the members of the club and it is pretty useful.
However, for critiquing, the best medium I find is email. Not blogging, not a photo club forum, but email. If I want critique, I send an email to a select few and I get critiqued. Photo clubs and blogs help towards that regard, but ultimately it has to be peer-to-peer, IMHO.
anand
September 23rd, 2005 at 2:12 am
I’ve tried to be a member of a local camera club and it sucked. At the time the club wasn’t active so I tried to schedule events only to have people bitch and moan. Few people would show up and loved it. For all those who cried about place/time I would try to schedule another for only more bitching and moaning. It was extremely frustrating and I quickly gave up.
As far as group outings…they are fun to meet people, but horrible for photography. Say you go to an outing with 5 people, you will see 5 versions of the same shot. Any chance at coming back with something unique was next to impossible. I see myself as a creative person and pride myself in my photography. To have someone follow me and take the same shot I just took drove me nuts. I just had an email conversation about this with a fellow blogger today. He posted the same complaints on his blog.
As far as forums, I was never a big forum person. Many people fight about stupid things and spend too much time talking about gear and who makes better equipment.
At this point in time I just about gave up with sharing my photography online until I discovered photoblogging. It was the perfect fit for me. It has a friendly fun atmosphere and I’m able to make friends and follow their work and share ideas. I’ve made many good friends with blogging that I don’t think I could have made on a forum, or in a photo group.
When it comes down to it, people are different and want different things. The photo group Anand loves is the one I was talking about.
Dave
September 23rd, 2005 at 5:40 am
I’ll bet a lot of people followed you around for ideas Dave - I would have done;-)
I agree with you though that it is about being creative and coming up with ideas oneself.
The email group sounds an interesting idea - I have exchanged emails with a couple of people on an ad hoc basis - usually as a consequence of something they or I have written in a blog.
September 23rd, 2005 at 5:54 am
I think email is a good idea for critiquing, but I’ll put it all in todays topic
September 23rd, 2005 at 11:22 am
My company has a photography club and it is fantastic. We have a number of people who have written books on PhotoShop and other topics so there is a wealth of info. It’s just getting going and so far they had a photo outing but since I live on the other side of the country I couldn’t make it but we try to be as virtual as possible. One of the members is teaching a seminar for another photography club and we are going to tape it and stream it to those who don’t live by corp. I’ve found that the discussion threads just in email have been very valuable and I’ve learned so much.
I also have learned a great deal from you, David, Rock, DJN at Chromasia, etc… the photoblog world has inspired and challenged me. Photography definitely is being pushed to new heights through technology: http://www.editorsguild.com/newsletter/JulAug05/julaug05_bride.html (check out this article on what can a EOS-1d Mark II do)
September 23rd, 2005 at 12:22 pm
Before I answer your question let me congratulate you on this excellent supplement to your photoblog, it really does make interesting reading.
Personally, I have never joined a camera/photography club nor have I ever been inclined to do so. However, my father says that if you can find a good one then it is a good investment of your time; his ‘good one ‘ was the Ware Camera Club in Hertfordshire.
In the past I’ve tended to keep my own company learning form my own mistakes, but keeping up to date through books and magazines. I also have the benefit of learning from my father who is a very experienced photographer.
Although I’ve been online, and reading Photoblog’s since ’97, I only recently opened my own Photoblog and started communicating with the community. I only wish I’d done it sooner; like you the web has become my photography club – my ‘good one’.
September 23rd, 2005 at 6:36 pm
Kim - glad you are enjoying your club - I enjoy mine on the few occasions when I can get there. Glad I can be of some help, that is something else I enjoy about all this stuff. In many ways it does not matter what comments are as long as they are genuine and constructive and most importantly thought provoking.
Gary - thank you very much for calling by my photoblog and also your compliment on the word blog - this is a new adventure for me and I was not sure how it would be received or who would even read it. It has been amazing showing there is some kind of need for this discussion.
You, like me, have learned a lot from books, reading and experimentation. Like you starting th blog was one of the best things that has happened to my photography. I have Lara barrett to thank for that early encouragement.