Hybrid Club Meetings are now the Norm

I lecture at least twice per week and whilst it’s true to say in-person lectures are beginning to come back, now they are always hybrid.

Last week I lectured in person at Smethwick; we had 32 people in the room and a further 25 tuning in via Zoom.

Last night I was talking to Newark and they Zoomed me into the clubroom where circa 20 people attended, a further 10 tuning in from home.

I think this model is here to stay because it offers so many advantages. As a club you can use speakers from anywhere in the world & Zoom them into the clubroom, plus you can invite new members to join your club from any location too… and still maintain the all important face-to-face meetings for those that want to attend.

What’s not to like?

My Smethwick lecture on 15.10.21

First Shoot for 15 Months!

I’m back in the saddle… & it was great!

I shot two British champion weightlifters on Thursday - Rooni Siraj & Sally Bennett. This was my first shoot since before Covid - and I was genuinely nervous. As I assembled the gear the day before I found myself unsure of aspects that were just second nature before... “how many lights will I need?” “which backdrop - & where is it!”

I made the shoot more difficult by using a new camera too. Canon kindly lent me a mirrorless R5 & matching 24 to 70mm lens to try out. Talk about putting yourself under pressure. I needn’t have worried about the camera though. It was a joy to use & directly transferable from my normal 5D Mk4… I found my way around the menus in minutes & all the light triggers etc. worked from the off.

The shoot went really well - I was super happy. Alex made a video too, so we’ll be releasing a behind the scenes video shortly.

I’m so, so happy to be back behind the lens!

Sally Bennett & Rooni Siraj

Lighting Underwater Images

When I deliver my underwater lectures there are often scuba divers in the audience & the question I get asked most (usually after the lecture) is about lighting underwater. This is because I make a big thing about it in the lectures - for me it is one of the most important factors in capturing a good image, underwater or surface.

So, whilst I realise this article is irrelevant to most folk it does give me somewhere to point divers for my thoughts.

There is no doubt that a “eureka moment” in my development as an underwater photographer was the realisation that, in the face of all the other competing demands (diving issues, camera settings, composition) I had relegated lighting to the "sorted" list i.e. just apply lots of even light & you're bound to get an image! This is of course true & should be the starting point... but with thought you can get so much more.

After I decide a subject is worthy of the time (a big decision because I often take 10 minutes or more on a subject & a dive only lasts 60 minutes, so it had better be worth it) my mental lighting checklist is;

1. always shoot up towards the surface if possible. It makes your subject more dramatic & the view of the surface is both beautiful & orientates your viewer

2. make sure your viewer sees enough of the background to appreciate the underwater scene. There are exceptions of course, but for me this is true 95% of the time

3. whilst observing the direction of the ambient light (sun position) & emphasising this with your flash - be subtle. Over lighting is a dead giveaway, as are flash shadows. It destroys the ambience - your viewer should have no idea you have lit it artificially

4. try to light along the subject - this provides subtle shadows which emphasise contours & bring out a 3D effect

5. following on from the last point do not have the flashes on the same power setting. Real life is hardly ever like that - one side is more in shadow

6. constantly keep moving the flash position & your position. Digital images are free - take lots! I do this in the hope one will be good :-)

I've never formally written this list down before & I could go on. Suffice to say I now pay more attention to lighting than anything else... & the day I started doing this I think my images improved.

The underwater scene is often beautiful - show it to your viewer

Although there is no background in this shot I think the spotlight effect suits this gorgeous nudibranch

Showing the surface gives your viewer orientation

Firing the light along this Hairy Frogfish really shows why he gets his name

Always try to shoot upwards

I fired the light down from above this Common Seahorse. It’s important to try different lighting angles (& strengths) to get the most dramatic effect.

Are Hybrid Club Meetings the Way Forward?

As we tentatively move out of the Covid era I know many clubs are wrestling with when and how to restart face-to-face club room meetings. I’ve delivered two lectures to hybrid meetings in the last week, the latest one being the President’s Evening at Southport PS, and both went really well.

At Southport there were 35 people in the room and a further 6 joined in via Zoom. The set up was very simple (see photo below); a free standing microphone about 3m away from me, a standard camera (Nikon Z6 with 24-70 lens) used in video mode connected to a laptop. The laptop then streamed the feed via Zoom to those at home. Southport used a 4G router (just like using a mobile phone) - but I know for sure Malvern didn’t last week. They linked a member’s phone to the laptop and used the 4G signal from that to stream.

Southport had implemented good Covid protocols too; masks worn when not sitting down, good ventilation, cleaning wipes given to everyone to clean chairs etc. All very well done and not at all obtrusive. If you want more details you can email Sue Critchlow at Southport and she’ll be happy to advise - critchlow517@btinternet.com

As more folk become confident enough to attend meetings maybe we’ll end up dropping the Zoom element all together. But then again, I know lots of clubs have picked up distant members in lockdown, so who knows, maybe it’s here to stay.

For my part I’m just glad to be back on the road again. There’s nothing like the buzz of a real audience.

President’s Evening, Southport PS, 20th September 2021

Back Delivering Face-to-Face Lectures

I did my first in-person lecture for 18 months last night to Beacon Camera Club (Malvern, Worcestershire). They ran it as a hybrid meeting with circa 25 people in the room and a further 20+ tuned in by Zoom. The Zoom feed was delivered by a small camera set up on a tripod and they used a mobile phone tethered to the club laptop for 4G internet connection. It all worked really well.

I know other clubs are considering this hybrid approach to ease back in to business as normal. If you’d like help setting it up I can put you in contact with Tony at Beacon, I’m sure he’d be happy to help.

For my part it was so good to be back on my feet & made me realise just how much I had missed it. I’m hoping more clubs return to over the next few months, we’ve all been locked away far too long :-(

First Facebook Live Presentation

I did my first Facebook Live presentation last night. It was for London Camera Exchange and part of the Canon Wildlife Week. It all went really well, if a little nerve-racking because I was using new software (OBS) to stream the presentation.

OBS Studio is a free and open-source cross-platform streaming and recording program, with versions available for Microsoft Windows & macOS. I thoroughly recommend it - intuitive, easy to use & best of all it’s free!

If you want to see the presentation it will be available on the LCE Facebook page for the next seven days.