Ideas for Camera Club Activities...

kelly1

Hello folks, happy new year to you all!

I'm trying (as chairman) to give our local club a fresh boost in terms of making things interesting and enjoyable. Up to now we've been doing things like:

- Monthly competition (digital and prints)
- Practical workshops (in-house and external speakers)
- Inspiration talks by external speakers
- Outings
- Limited IPF involvement

So I'm looking for fresh ideas. Can anyone help expand/improve the above list please?

Thanks in advance,
Noel.

TheQuietFella

What ideas have come from the membership Noel?
It's a tough one as you are covering all the basics already but it is
important to get feedback from within the club instead of trying to do
it by yourself. It's a thankless task!

Maybe a photography display at a local gallery with images framed & a price should a viewer wish to purchase.

Paulw

Those are the usual things for camera clubs.

But, it is important who the guest speakers are, and what the topics covered are. No point in having a guest speaker and then a practical on extreme macro photography if no one in the club is interested in macro.

It is important to get feedback from members and get assistance from members. That always seems to be a hard part.

Best of luck.

CabanSail

What often happens in Camera Clubs is that we associate with other photographers. What I have found is some of the most rewarding activities occur when we interact with non-photographer types. There are lots of other clubs and interest groups which would enjoy having some photographers around. An example is that I organised an outing with our camera club and a local 4WD club. The offroad activities made great photo opportunities and the 4WD lot enjoyed showing their skills. They also appreciated getting some good shots of their vehicles in action. So think about interaction with other groups.

magicbastarder

one thing i learned from my (very limited) exposure to a camera club is an over-reliance on technical issues, certainly in judging shots. granted it's much easier to justify critique based on 'it's not perfectly in focus' than it is on 'it's just boring'; but one thing a colleague who is a painter once told me is that she finds it easier to appraise something from a distance first, where you don't notice minor compositional or focus issues nearly as readily; possibly this could be introduced as an element of photo competitions?

Paulw

We had two arts students judge a competition in our club and found their comments and decisions very interesting and not a typical photographic result. It definitely gives you a different view.

AnCatDubh

Its a small idea, but towards the end of year (like for the Christmas meet up) do a photo-exchange - We've done it here on boards before. Each person signs up and prepares one photo of their choosing and pops it in an envelope, gifts it to another photographer selected at random from those signed up. Those that are giving don't know who they are giving to, and those receiving don't necessarily know where the photo is coming from (though they might figure it out). Everybody gives, everybody receives. Everybody loves photos.

If a big enough group, you could organise a publication - a photobook/yearbook, a year in the life of the club kinda thing. Similar basis to the many successful ones run here on boards. Takes a lot of work but again, it is a focal piece for the year.

Sorry there's nothing new here but hopefully you may build on them to suit your own purposes.

Cheers.

kelly1

TheQuietFella wrote: »

What ideas have come from the membership Noel?

Good question. The answer is not a whole lot. Sometimes it's hard to motivate people. Hence this thread.

Paulw wrote: »

It is important to get feedback from members and get assistance from members. That always seems to be a hard part.

It certainly is. Sometimes it feels like pushing a round stone up a hill!

CabanSail wrote: »

So think about interaction with other groups.

Very good idea! Thanks.

magicbastarder wrote: »

one thing i learned from my (very limited) exposure to a camera club is an over-reliance on technical issues, certainly in judging shots. granted it's much easier to justify critique based on 'it's not perfectly in focus' than it is on 'it's just boring'; but one thing a colleague who is a painter once told me is that she finds it easier to appraise something from a distance first, where you don't notice minor compositional or focus issues nearly as readily; possibly this could be introduced as an element of photo competitions?

I like this too. Thanks!

Paulw wrote: »

We had two arts students judge a competition in our club and found their comments and decisions very interesting and not a typical photographic result. It definitely gives you a different view.

Another good one, ty

AnCatDubh wrote: »

Its a small idea, but towards the end of year (like for the Christmas meet up) do a photo-exchange - We've done it here on boards before. Each person signs up and prepares one photo of their choosing and pops it in an envelope, gifts it to another photographer selected at random from those signed up. Those that are giving don't know who they are giving to, and those receiving don't necessarily know where the photo is coming from (though they might figure it out). Everybody gives, everybody receives. Everybody loves photos.

If a big enough group, you could organise a publication - a photobook/yearbook, a year in the life of the club kinda thing. Similar basis to the many successful ones run here on boards. Takes a lot of work but again, it is a focal piece for the year.

Sorry there's nothing new here but hopefully you may build on them to suit your own purposes.

Cheers.

Thanks ACD. Good one

pixbyjohn

Has your club had a photo exhibition of members photos. It is surprising how many members who may never print their shots. An exhibition held locally can be a great way to motivate members. An exhibition of mounted and framed photos can be very popular with members and local community alike.

LeoB

I am one of the ones taking a back seat in my camera group this past year due to 3 kids and G.A.A. commitments. We have a few pushing our group along and I know its frustrating for them as it seems to be for you Noel. They are never short of an idea but getting us motivated and up off our backsides is another problem.

Groups and clubs change over time and this to me is a problem. As we became more proficient we moved forward and different paces and it is difficult to keep everyone happy. I don't think any of us joined to teach photography we joined to learn from each other and it can be unfair if someone like you is left to do just about everything in the hope of motivating others.

Would agree with some of the points from above,
Select your guest speakers carefully. We have one in with pinhole cameras which was very good and then in October we had a sports photographer in also from above which was right up my street as G.A.A is my favourite sport to shoot. Thanks PaulW.

We ran a basic camera course for beginners over 6 weeks and had 2 outings during the course to get people out. We all had a role to play and this was very good for people like me who are really stuck for time. It "focused" us. Tonight we have a studio night and all who done the course are invited so hopefully we will get a few new members out of it.

We had a few good laughs dropping fruit into a glass and getting images. We had still life night, a zombie outing where one of our members got a her son and a few of his friends to dress up and we went to a local wood for some shots.

I would suggest you sit down with your members and do out a calendar with your members and put venues to dates for outings within an hour of your base for the next 3 months. Get one person to lead each outing so they all play a part. Maybe people just expect you to do everything which is unfair and how our group has gone to an extent with a few driving it along

kelly1

Thanks for the very helpful suggestions LeoB.

PixByJohn, yes we do have an annual exhibition which I have say has gone quite well over the years with good participation.