Join the club
As Royston is a growing town, this society is raising its pro le in order to attract more members
When was the club founded?
The society was established in 1987 with eight members. Five of them are still members.
What does your club offer new members?
When potential members approach us we want to make sure they are properly welcomed. Royston is a rapidly growing town so we have appointed a publicity of cer, to make sure the society’s pro le is visible around town, and a ‘new members of cer’ has been added to the committee roles to make contact with new members, identify their ambitions and camera background, then match them up with a suitable buddy who can help them get the most out of society events. New members will be guided through our website and competition preparation.
Describe a typical club meeting
We meet weekly throughout the school term, normally 19.45-21.45. In normal times meetings are in a school hall in town. Currently they are running on Zoom. We kick off with society news and events, then move on to the main event of the evening with a midway break for refreshments and socialising. Our main events range through: guest speakers, member presentations, competitions, critique of members’ images, sharing of skills and practical camera work sometimes indoors, sometimes outside locally. Also, photo excursions are offered throughout the year. We aim to return to face-to-face meetings plus Zoom meetings to maintain the quality and variety of guest speakers from around the country.
Do you invite guest speakers?
Yes, and this year on Zoom has only improved this. We now also receive invitations to link with the presentations other local clubs are hosting, and we can book presenters who were previously unavailable to us because of
travel limits. As an example, we hosted one presenter broadcasting from Azerbaijan!
Do members compete in regional or national competitions?
We offer a range of challenges. A few internal events are judged by members. Our formal competition programme has eight themed events across the year, with an external judge. The society has regular invites to inter-club contests meaning we see new work and make new friends. Where photographers have success the society offers access to East Anglia Federation events and PAGB events. Some individuals take their work to international salons and the RPS. There is a competition level to give members the feedback and challenge they seek.
How many members do you have?
28. During lockdown membership has fallen from 35 last season to 26, with two new faces added this year. We’re still in touch with the ex-members and hope the return of face to face meetings will see them join us again.
This season we have formed a Landscape Group. Meetings are monthly plus socially distanced outings to local attractions when Covid rules permit. Our next project is following a common route around Wimpole Estate. We carried out a similar exercise elsewhere and members enjoyed seeing the different images others have created, even though they were following the same basic route. The general club has several local nights out per year and the society organises one residential photo trip away each year. With lockdown now easing we are preparing small group trips to photograph the Flying Scotsman as it runs through our area, and a project over several weeks exploring Cambridge in the evening is set to launch.
Following the success of the landscape group we are looking forward to another specialist interest group forming and offering a further range of trips and visits.
A few years ago our treasurer was walking home and came across a car on re. The passengers were safe and the re brigade had been called so he took some pictures. Some of his pictures made the front page of the local paper. A few days later he received a phone call from the driver of the car. The end result is that driver joined the society and is now our competitions secretary.
On the back of a members’ survey, the society’s goals are to provide a forum that helps members ful l their photographic ambitions and pursue their hobby in a sociable environment.