Today the Forum reviewed how 2018-19 had gone, the successes and the scope for improvement. It can be summarised under process, content and personal benefits.
Positive aspects of the process included: being clear that it was a Forum (not a course and not like a camera club); having clear objectives; each session being self-contained, within an organic, evolving, approach overall; it was contributory, not passive, and gave encouragement through sharing knowledge and experience; and dissemination of presentations through the web site. A key area for improvement was the selection, planning and management of the exhibition. The Forum wanted more external speakers.
The content that was most appreciated included: the practical projects; the wide range of topic talks; the broad approach to photographic subjects and practice; and exploring the language and history of photography and its aesthetics;. We identified a dozen possible new subjects for inclusion, from aerial photography to flowers and plants, historical records to photo collage and sports photography to women photographers.
Everyone felt they had got something positive from the Forum and it had given them the confidence to go out and take more and better pictures – they were photographing new things and in ways they would not have considered before.