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Paul Morgan

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Hi - I expect this is a question asked many times before...I am the booking bod for a camera club in east Cheshire. It is getting harder to (1) get physical speakers (it is great to be able to get global speakers via Zoom but we do still meet physically alternate weeks), (2) get speakers that are a bit different but inspire and (3) move away from the usual demographic of speaker (ie male, 60+ - sorry but I am male, 55+ so really am counting myself out!).

I have scoured the PAGB database but to be honest the majority fall into point 3. I am working through YouTube and am trying to find a way to do a geographic search on the socials. Anyone have any suggestions for (a) finding new and different speakers (happy to take a punt on a 'newbie') and (b) any suggestions for a speaker listing?

Many thanks

Paul
 
Paul Morgan said:
Hi - I expect this is a question asked many times before...I am the booking bod for a camera club in east Cheshire. It is getting harder to (1) get physical speakers (it is great to be able to get global speakers via Zoom but we do still meet physically alternate weeks), (2) get speakers that are a bit different but inspire and (3) move away from the usual demographic of speaker (ie male, 60+ - sorry but I am male, 55+ so really am counting myself out!).

I have scoured the PAGB database but to be honest the majority fall into point 3. I am working through YouTube and am trying to find a way to do a geographic search on the socials. Anyone have any suggestions for (a) finding new and different speakers (happy to take a punt on a 'newbie') and (b) any suggestions for a speaker listing?

Many thanks

Paul
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I don't know if it's the same thing as the PAGB one, but there was a database of zoom talks put together by Adrian Lines a few years back but it looks like it's been taken down. I'm not involved in the club scene but I used to do talks and got loads of bookings through it - has this database been superceded by the PAGB one?

I'm taking a break from doing talks as after doing nearly 100 I got a bit jaded and driving to and from places is a bit of a pain when you still work for a living and have to get up early to go to work! Whereabouts in Cheshire are you?
 
Have you considered maybe contacting other, local sylabus secretaries from other clubs? They may well be able to point in the direction of recent speakers at their own clubs. :)
 
For the last 3 years, my club has almost given up on the PAGB published list. Instead we have been booking mainly professionals which cost more but we have had an excellent standard. We have accepted that we may have to pay for overnight hotel accommodation for some.

Dave
 
In the club I am in we had a few speakers last season, this season we did have some scheduled but most of them became unavailable.
We did have three members do a talk albeit all on the same night, and that was very refreshing for me.
We also do an individual portfolio where if the creator wants to can present his or her work with a talk.
I have done that twice, but felt like I had rushed through it.
Now I think that it would be good to have speakers from within the club, you just never know what your going to see and hear.
It would hep everyone concerned.
We are having our AGM in a week or so, I might ask about it there.
I know it would be grass roots but that might not be a bad thing.
As for speakers from outside, I have seen a few and enjoyed that as well, I don't know the fees or ins and outs of how that works.
Its is another aspect to photography that could be learned from within the club.
 
Oldbones said:
In the club I am in we had a few speakers last season, this season we did have some scheduled but most of them became unavailable.
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I'm not surprised by that. I've done a few camera club talks but they tend to be booked months and months in advance and barely cover expenses.

You might get more luck leaving off booking until closer to the date.
 
I used to be a member of a camera club in the 1980s, back then there were plenty of speakers and there were probably 2 a month. I was programme secretary one year and had no problems at all finding speakers. I just checked their programme and I am the second outside speaker this year, and there is only one more in 2026.

The other local club actually has 7 speakers this yea, one by Zoom, and they don't meet in July & August.

As it happens I'm actually giving a talk there this coming week. I've sporadically given talks over the past 40 years, usually being asked back 3 or 4 years later. I'm rather picky on where I'll talk, essentially I put on two mini exhibitions, it is quite a lot of work. So I'm not volunteering :D

Younger photographers seem to prefer sharing images online, I noticed the average age in camera clubs is creeping up, as are many of the speakers.

Ian
 
I've given a talk on large format photography to a local camera club, but while I certainly qualify on the "different" check box, I can't speak as to my inspirational qualities. But at 77 I'm debarred by age.

However, the camera club found me on a group visit to a camera obscura I used to demonstrate before covid closed it to the public. So possibly you might find someone in the same way - anyone who demonstrates some attraction or similar can probably talk to an audience, and might just be a photographer as well.

I have given lectures in the past on my work (nothing to do with photography) so looking at the educational field, do you have any schools or colleges nearby that might have someone suitable?
 
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juggler said:
I'm not surprised by that. I've done a few camera club talks but they tend to be booked months and months in advance and barely cover expenses.

You might get more luck leaving off booking until closer to the date.
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As always in life it’s the fun of volunteers booking professionals, the volunteers have their own lives, families, holidays etc so try and get it prepared early - my own club are currently scheduling the program for September 2026 to May 2027 (they don’t meet over the summer as the attendance level is deemed too low),

Our club are just talking to the two most local clubs(both are a 10 mile drive from our meeting location) about potentially sharing some speakers to lower the costs to the clubs. This is on zoom as much as in person as they have found paying a bit more for speakers generally gives a better quality of talk.
 
Mozthecat said:
....as they have found paying a bit more for speakers generally gives a better quality of talk.
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Reminds me of one of the feedback sheets I received, when I was giving training courses...

"Didn't look at his notes once but he seemed to know what he was talking about"! :thinking: :exit:
 
It's rare you really cover costs when giving a talk at a camera club, unless relatively local. Aside from fuel costs if you've travelled, often after work, you need to stop and eat. There are things clubs can do to help, on a couple of occasions I've been offered and accepted a pub meal before the talk, this actually helps you relax, meet someone from the club first. When you give up a whole evening and have a 90-minute drive to get to a club/group that can make a huge difference.

With longer journeys I've once had to stop overnight, you can't recover those costs.

Ian
 
Ian Grant said:
It's rare you really cover costs when giving a talk at a camera club, unless relatively local. Aside from fuel costs if you've travelled, often after work, you need to stop and eat. There are things clubs can do to help, on a couple of occasions I've been offered and accepted a pub meal before the talk, this actually helps you relax, meet someone from the club first. When you give up a whole evening and have a 90-minute drive to get to a club/group that can make a huge difference.

With longer journeys I've once had to stop overnight, you can't recover those costs.

Ian
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I've a fair collection of 1950s "Amateur Photographer" magazines, all of which have long articles about the club scene. At that time it was thriving because it was the only way for most amateurs to meet and discuss photography, unless they had the time to visit the local camera shop and chat to fellow enthusiasts.

It's very different now and the fairly high fees that were available to visiting lecturers are a distant memory.
 
Ian Grant said:
It's rare you really cover costs when giving a talk at a camera club, unless relatively local. Aside from fuel costs if you've travelled, often after work, you need to stop and eat. There are things clubs can do to help, on a couple of occasions I've been offered and accepted a pub meal before the talk, this actually helps you relax, meet someone from the club first. When you give up a whole evening and have a 90-minute drive to get to a club/group that can make a huge difference.

With longer journeys I've once had to stop overnight, you can't recover those costs.

Ian
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I used to have a 1 hour / 40 mile limit, and charged a fixed amount. Got fed up of doing it just for petrol expenses. And weekend ones I charged quite a bit more for.
 
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