Yep, the Brentwood Photography Group has Knights and Princesses, and we also have a Roundtable; several Roundtables, in fact. Let me explain. A couple of times each year, instead of having a program that is listened to by everybody, we set up breakouts for discussions on different topics related to photography. You choose your own program, in other words. We call these discussions “Roundtables.” In every case, they are led by our own membership.
The discussions came around again last month. You could sit in with folks talking about those images we call “abstract.” You know, those odd-looking yet interesting photos that we learned could even be made with an iPhone. Or, you could choose to learn something about capturing the real character of a person in a portrait session. How to work with them to facilitate this process. You might want to explore the how and why of an artist statement, something we may have often seen from others but never got around to developing for ourselves. The fourth discussion considered the best ways to showcase your images on the web and through social media. In all 4 sessions, the focus was on practicality and group participation.
You decide the program. I have been in this photography group for about 10 years now over the course of which I have seen, conservatively, about 20 Roundtable presentations. This time, I spent a few minutes in each. And I am here today to testify that the ones last month dramatically raised the bar. All had professional PowerPoint presentations, copies of which are now available in pdf format here. Not even one delved into esoteric areas; they all stuck to tips that any photographer could use. All 5 leaders demonstrated their openness to questions, and all 5 individuals knew what they were talking about; you just can’t bluff this kind of stuff!
Thank you, guys… and gal… for your contributions to us all. (By the way, I said 4 knights, but the photo above has only 3. The web and social media team included Martin Cregg – and it is said that Martin, who is English, can trace his roots back to King Arthur. 🙂