The Enlightened Technical Corner CThe “Enlightened Technical Corner C”… Camera clubs are the backbone of many of our technological advances. When small groups of enthusiastic photographers got together to start the first camera clubs over one hundred years ago, they were indeed pioneers. There was almost an evangelistic fervour in their outlook and aims. Many clubs were formed with the express purpose of showing the world in general that photography was indeed an art form. Members were closely knit in their interests; they were great experimenters in both the technical and artistic aspects of photography, and the contributed in a very real way to progress. The efforts of these early pioneers set the stage for the great proliferation of camera clubs and indeed professional camera associations throughout the world today. We have The Photographic Society of America, www.psa-photo.org, being one of the oldest and most respected photographic organizations in the world. On the professional level we have the Professional Photographers of America, www.ppa.com, and the Professional Photographers of Canada, www.ppoc.ca who offer a national, state/provincial, and local chapters. The same can be found in England with the Royal Photographic Society, www.rps.org, indeed there are organizations in every country of the world. These groups provide kindred spirits who are going through exactly what you are going through or who have been there. They are all eager to share with you their pearls of wisdom and what they have learned and experienced. The old saw of “Why Reinvent The Wheel” jumps to mind and I cannot encourage you enough to join these fine organizations. As a matter of fact, I am a member of the last three and when I began a hundred years ago I was a member of the PSA. The money you spend by joining these organization will be re-paid a thousand times over, provided you CALL them and make use of what they have to offer.
The Photographic Society of America
|
