What can I expect at a meeting?
Each NWPC meeting is a little different. Meetings start at 7:30PM unless otherwise posted. But many people arrive a little early to have some social time. Meetings run on average until 9PM. We pride ourselves on our open, informal and friendly atmosphere -- at NWPC you actually get to know the other members! This doesn't always happen in clubs with 100+ members and which follow formal meeting protocols.
Meetings are often a mix of content, but there are some common "things" we do at meetings:
- "Member's Night": This is where members will bring in a photo or two for group critiquing (don't worry, we're friendly!). This helps you learn the strengths in your images, as well as get ideas and suggestions for improving them -- all opinions are helpful, you don't have to be an "old pro" to have an idea! Unless otherwise posted we typically review all media types: digital entries, slides and prints. Sometimes there is a "theme" (usually to bring images from a previous outing if you have them), other times the choice is up to the member.
- "Competition Night": The club enters number of invitational competitions during the year. On "competition nights", members bring in their candidate images and the club picks the entries to be submitted to the competition. (One of the benefits of being a smaller club, if you submit something, there's a good chance it will get chosen as a club entry!)
- "Workshop Night": this is where a speaker (a member or an outside guest) talks about a specific technique that can be practiced during the meeting. For these kinds of meetings, members bring their camera equipment to the meeting.
- "Seminar Night": these meetings will have one or more speakers who will talk in-depth about a photography related subject.
We usually have a short 15 minute break about halfway through the meeting for some cookies and coffee (guests don't have to pay!) to stretch your legs, your mind, and to socialize a little with other members.
Another type of learning opportunity are our "Members teaching Members" talks. These are for members who want to share a particular topic of interest to them with the rest of the club. It doesn't have to be long, even 5 minutes is enough to give you a chance to share (if you're shy). This gives you a chance at speaking to the club in an informal manner without the stress of having to prepare a lot of material. You can just talk, or illustrate your points with Powerpoint, prints, digital images or whatever visual aides you want to use.) Contact the program director if you have a short talk you want to give.
The main presentations are on a wide variety of topics including:
- specific techniques - such as macro abstracts,
- suggestions for particular subject areas - such as shooting wild flowers
- less technical photography related talks - for example, last year we had a city archivist give a talk about the role of photography in local community history, showing us photos of New West from the late 1800's
We strive for a mix of topic material so that all experience levels and formats (digital or film) can find something of interest.
Peter, our Programs Coordinator can be contacted at
program@nwphoto.org.
Our Outings Coordinator Mike can be contacted at outings@nwphoto.org.
Click the menu items on the left to learn more about the club's program for the year -- meetings, outings and "Themes".
(Click the headings below to expand them for details. More details are typically available as a meeting date gets closer. Agendas are always subject to change in the case of unavoidable events.)
Upcoming Meetings
Sep 2, 2008 |
: Summer Shots |
Our club is currently on its summer hiatus. Our members are out capturing great images and our program director is hard at work coming up with the program for the coming year.
All items below are tentative at this point. More details will be released as we get closer to the start of the year.
If you're curious about the sorts of things we do at our meetings, look at the "Past Meetings" page and see what we were up during the past year.
Our typical first meeting is a chance to get reaquainted and share some images from our summer photography.
In Preparation:
- Members can submit up to 4 images -- digital or prints. Send digital images to photos@nwphoto.org at least 24 hours before the meeting. Guests can participate too! Guests can submit one photo for review
Agenda: (subject to change)
- Welcome Back!!
- Officer Reports
- Announcements
-
Going Digital (Derek):
Most of our members have gone digital at this point, but this short 10 minute talk is aimed at new members and guests
In particular for those still shooting film or who maybe have a lower end digital camera and are thinking of "moving up". What sorts of features should you look for?
- Themes (Shona): Last year we started our online "Themes", part artistic challenge, part judging exercise, part intra-club competition. Shona will remind us just how Themes can help you improve your photography and offers a few tips on how to critique an image when you don't know where to start.
-
Photo Viewing - Digital and Prints:
We'll get the year rolling by reviewing some photos from the past summer. This won't be a full critiquing session, but people will be invited to make comments on images if they see particular strengths or areas that could be improved.
Sep 16, 2008 |
: TBA |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Agenda: (subject to change)
-
BTGS#4 - I've been framed! (Derek):
"Beyond the Green Square" is a series we started last year. It is aimed at newer photographers who need help learning how to go beyond the automatic settings of their camera and explore the wider world of photography. We explore both "mechanical" and "artistic" aspects -- concepts that older hands may consider basic but that newer photographers still need to learn. They are typically short, 10 to 15 minutes in length
In this session we continue our look at the basic rules of composition with a look at framing and how it can enhance your images -- and we don't mean wooden ones!
Sep 30, 2008 |
: Portraiture |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Oct 7, 2008 |
: TBA |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Oct 21, 2008 |
: Halloween Party |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Nov 4, 2008 |
: How to select images for competition |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Nov 18, 2008 |
: Night Photography |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Dec 2, 2008 |
: Christmas Party! |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Dec 16, 2008 |
: Member's Night (tentative) |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Jan 20, 2009 |
: Competition Selection: North Shore Challenge |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Feb 3, 2009 |
: TBA |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Feb 17, 2009 |
: Travel Photography |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Mar 3, 2009 |
: Competition Selection: BC Print Challenge |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Mar 17, 2009 |
: Competition Selection: Fraser Valley Invitational |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Mar 31, 2009 |
: TBA |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Apr 7, 2009 |
: Competition Selection: Crescent Beach B&W Challenge |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
Apr 21, 2009 |
: TBA |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
May 5, 2009 |
: TBA |
Our program director is still working on the topics for the coming year.
Details will appear here as they become available.
May 19, 2009 |
: AGM |
The year is winding down. Time to pick our executive for next year.