Vectis Birder
Itchy feet
Does anyone here belong to a local camera club? I am thinking of joining our local one in an effort to improve my photography and I am wondering if it is worth it.
-
Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.
Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
Camera clubs (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Vectis Birder
- Start date
Its a good way of meeting like minded people and that should be an opportunity to learn from them. Some clubs put great store in teaching some do not.My local club has a seperate teaching night and a "buddy system" Pop along to your local club and form your own opinion. Regards Edd
jimthomson
Well-known member
I joined our one of our local photography clubs and yes I'd say it has improved my pictures.
Just the tips and tricks of post processing the raw files that i've picked up have been invaluable.
They have also had speakers on color management and compostion that I've found very useful.
It's also interesting to see all the gear that people use when we go on outings.
Just the tips and tricks of post processing the raw files that i've picked up have been invaluable.
They have also had speakers on color management and compostion that I've found very useful.
It's also interesting to see all the gear that people use when we go on outings.
Vectis Birder
Itchy feet
Thank you Eddwillis and Jim.
citrinella
Well-known member
I belonged to Edinburgh Photographic Society (EPS) for a few years. It certainly was an eye opener, though I have read about photography and had pretty enthusiastic spells since I was about 11. EPS is pretty big, with events about 3 evenings a week. I found one of the groups enough, with fortnightly meetings in winter and regular internal competitions. I also went to quite a lot of talks. It was great to discuss work with other photographers, theirs, my own, or third parties. The competitions really sharpen your focus and you have to learn to take criticism from the judges dispassionately and seriously. There is perhaps no better way to learn.
I didn't go on the outings, not interested in other folks gear as there is so much good gear now, it really is down to the photographer. I did go to some of the talks, particularly on post processing. As a computer professional I thought these were terrible. (Mind you, as a computer professional the last thing I wanted to do was spend hours fiddling on a computer. What is the camera for ?) Even EPS didn't raise the resources to give decent training, where trainees actually had a machine to use during classes. In my professional opinion, anything less than that is pretty poor. So, we were given demos by a demonstrator who assumed a level of knowledge similar to their own and went at breakneck speed. I was surprised so many people were doing the course again because they hadn't understood it last year - only in that so many people were so determined in the face of such poor teaching, and that they really seemed to consider themselves idiots for not understanding.
What I learnt : firstly, that I wasn't a good photographer at all, better than average, but with a lot to learn; beyond that, lots of little things - and they all add up. After a few years I became much busier and decided the time spent was only getting increasingly slower improvement, couldn't be justified.
Would I recommend it ? Yes ! Be brave, enter some competitions, expect to be brought down to earth, and be prepared to listen and learn. I am less satisfied with my photography than I was, but that makes me a far better photographer.
Mike.
I didn't go on the outings, not interested in other folks gear as there is so much good gear now, it really is down to the photographer. I did go to some of the talks, particularly on post processing. As a computer professional I thought these were terrible. (Mind you, as a computer professional the last thing I wanted to do was spend hours fiddling on a computer. What is the camera for ?) Even EPS didn't raise the resources to give decent training, where trainees actually had a machine to use during classes. In my professional opinion, anything less than that is pretty poor. So, we were given demos by a demonstrator who assumed a level of knowledge similar to their own and went at breakneck speed. I was surprised so many people were doing the course again because they hadn't understood it last year - only in that so many people were so determined in the face of such poor teaching, and that they really seemed to consider themselves idiots for not understanding.
What I learnt : firstly, that I wasn't a good photographer at all, better than average, but with a lot to learn; beyond that, lots of little things - and they all add up. After a few years I became much busier and decided the time spent was only getting increasingly slower improvement, couldn't be justified.
Would I recommend it ? Yes ! Be brave, enter some competitions, expect to be brought down to earth, and be prepared to listen and learn. I am less satisfied with my photography than I was, but that makes me a far better photographer.
Mike.
Last edited:
Vectis Birder
Itchy feet
Thanks for your input Mike. I'm no better than average but I want to improve, so hopefully going along to meetings can help me do just that.
Our local club meets only a few minutes' drive away so there's no excuse for me not to give it a go.
Our local club meets only a few minutes' drive away so there's no excuse for me not to give it a go.
John P
Usually on a different wavelength
I've never been a member of a photgraphic club, but agree with citrinella's suggestion that competitions are a good way to make you think and work at something.
A different forum I belong to used to have a themed monthly competition, one of the rules was that the entries had to be taken during that month, this does actually make you think and go out and look for specific shots rather than the BF comp where you just trawl through everything you've taken in the last year looking for something suitable.
A different forum I belong to used to have a themed monthly competition, one of the rules was that the entries had to be taken during that month, this does actually make you think and go out and look for specific shots rather than the BF comp where you just trawl through everything you've taken in the last year looking for something suitable.
Similar threads
