I wonder if that would ignite our local photography club. Everyone shoot boxes, all kinds and different points of view. We have been meeting by zoom, but participation is getting less and less.
This year, I know what it's like to feel boxed in! It feels great to get out and about and enjoy some photography. I love how this photo has much to look at. The Lego Club has found so many interesting subjects!
Thank you to one and all- it's fun to turn this club loose on any given subject. They never run short of ideas on where to point the camera!
@shutterbug49 I am sorry to hear that your club is struggling. We weren't sure how our club would do in the virtual format, but we've had some excellent speakers and have been able to maintain some of our regular features which I think keeps people interested. We stopped our outdoor meet-ups in the Spring because our area was in the red and then yellow zones. But when we were declared a green zone we started meeting up again choosing locations with lots of room for people to spread out but still be together. And we've had good success with that too. One new thing we started that your club might like is what we call a Virtual Shoot Out. We select a day and a topic/subject and then it's up to each individual to shoot the picture that day. They can take it at whatever time they like and whatever location they like. They can also post-process or go sooc. It's all up to them. This has also been popular. After the Shoot Out members can send me up to 5 photos of their choice and I put them in a slide show which we show at our monthly meeting and I also put one in the monthly newsletter. If your club doesn't do that kind of thing and/or you're not that large you could have people share one shot from the virtual shoot out and share how they got it/why they took it/etc. To give you some idea of themes and topics, I think you can access what our club has done on our website. Some things are just for members, but I think the page which describes our Shoot Outs in detail is open to the public so you should be able to get some ideas from there. https://pcc.clubexpress.com/
You might also be able to access our newsletters too via the pull down tab just under the banner picture. You'll be able to see some of the pictures in them.
I think the tricky thing with virtual meetings is making people still feel connected. We're working really hard on that by emphasizing the Shoot Outs and opening up the Zoom proceedings much earlier than the meeting so people can come on and just chat if they want to. So maybe some of these ideas can help your club. I hope so!
@olivetreeann I really appreciate your very thoughtful response. You have given me a number of very good ideas. I will check out your website and I’ll let you know how it goes.
@olivetreeann I look forward to introducing those ideas to our Steering Committee When we meet for the new year. We have 50 members, but only 10 attended the last couple of meetings. 4 of whom are us 4 from the steering committee. Here’s my email Jdferris@mac.com.
@olivetreeann I took a peek at the link you provided Ann, what a wonderful club you have. It sounds absolutely fabulous and I wish we had some sort of club close by.
@shutterbug49 Thanks Debbie- I'll send you a "hello"!
@ludwigsdiana Thank you Diana- I can't really take credit for it- I "inherited" a healthy thriving club. But you may find this interesting. A little over 10 years ago there was no club in this area. A man named Dave Strunk wanted to learn more about photography but he didn't know any other photographers. So he decided to rent a room at the public library and advertise starting up a club. He thought maybe a few people would show up and he'd be set to learn. Over 80 people came! While the total number of members has fluctuated over the years, it's hanging steady at 78 for the last 3-4 years. A little less than half that number are active with the meetings and a quarter of that take part in all the other events but that's a pretty typical ratio for a club like this. The best thing about our club is the non-competitive atmosphere. It's a lot like 365 as far as encouragement and support goes. So all that to say, anyone can set up and start a club if they have a dream for it.
@olivetreeann Thanks for the info and background Ann, it sounds wonderful. There is one club about 30 kms from where I live, but they only meet at night and are very competitive. As a female I do not go out alone at night as it is too dangerous. Too many high jackings and stone throwing to cause accidents. Such a scary scenario in this country.
December 10th, 2020
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Thank you to one and all- it's fun to turn this club loose on any given subject. They never run short of ideas on where to point the camera!
@shutterbug49 I am sorry to hear that your club is struggling. We weren't sure how our club would do in the virtual format, but we've had some excellent speakers and have been able to maintain some of our regular features which I think keeps people interested. We stopped our outdoor meet-ups in the Spring because our area was in the red and then yellow zones. But when we were declared a green zone we started meeting up again choosing locations with lots of room for people to spread out but still be together. And we've had good success with that too. One new thing we started that your club might like is what we call a Virtual Shoot Out. We select a day and a topic/subject and then it's up to each individual to shoot the picture that day. They can take it at whatever time they like and whatever location they like. They can also post-process or go sooc. It's all up to them. This has also been popular. After the Shoot Out members can send me up to 5 photos of their choice and I put them in a slide show which we show at our monthly meeting and I also put one in the monthly newsletter. If your club doesn't do that kind of thing and/or you're not that large you could have people share one shot from the virtual shoot out and share how they got it/why they took it/etc. To give you some idea of themes and topics, I think you can access what our club has done on our website. Some things are just for members, but I think the page which describes our Shoot Outs in detail is open to the public so you should be able to get some ideas from there.
https://pcc.clubexpress.com/
You might also be able to access our newsletters too via the pull down tab just under the banner picture. You'll be able to see some of the pictures in them.
I think the tricky thing with virtual meetings is making people still feel connected. We're working really hard on that by emphasizing the Shoot Outs and opening up the Zoom proceedings much earlier than the meeting so people can come on and just chat if they want to. So maybe some of these ideas can help your club. I hope so!
@ludwigsdiana Thank you Diana- I can't really take credit for it- I "inherited" a healthy thriving club. But you may find this interesting. A little over 10 years ago there was no club in this area. A man named Dave Strunk wanted to learn more about photography but he didn't know any other photographers. So he decided to rent a room at the public library and advertise starting up a club. He thought maybe a few people would show up and he'd be set to learn. Over 80 people came! While the total number of members has fluctuated over the years, it's hanging steady at 78 for the last 3-4 years. A little less than half that number are active with the meetings and a quarter of that take part in all the other events but that's a pretty typical ratio for a club like this. The best thing about our club is the non-competitive atmosphere. It's a lot like 365 as far as encouragement and support goes. So all that to say, anyone can set up and start a club if they have a dream for it.