28 October 2007
Leaving Dunchurch Photographic Society
28/10/07 15:24 Filed in: Photography Related | Camera Clubs
It is with considerable regret that I have reached a point where I have felt it necessary to resign as President of Dunchurch Photographic Society. Over the last few months I have become increasingly exasperated in the way in which the Society was being run. There has, to my mind at least, been a concerted effort to "dumb down" the Society, supposedly in an effort to encourage new members. There seems to be a belief that just because a member is new to the Society, that they do not know what they are doing photographically - which is not a safe assumption to make.
I also feel that the current chairman has a tendency to treat the membership as though they were in infant school. A few weeks ago he sent an email to the committee members about "Competition Etiquette" which he planned to deliver to the general membership as no one had told him how to behave during competitions. I said that I thought that it was unnecessary because it as simply "common sense" how you should behave. After a flurry of emails, the chairman agreed that he would not deliver the sermon. Yet, after I had judged the Society's "Novices Trophy", the Chairman got to his feet and delivered his "Competition Etiquette" lecture, despite the fact that absolutely no one had done anything wrong. Everyone had behaved impeccably.
During the email conversation that I had had with the Chairman, I also expressed concern about the fact that he intended to fill the remainder of the evening, after the judging of the Novices Trophy, with a discussion and example of how to mount prints and how to resize images for competition. This struck me as being particularly useless, since it would have made more sense to do it at some point prior to the competition. I also felt that it was of no use at all to the majority of the membership, as they already know how to do these things. The Chairman's response of "the more experienced members can leave at half-time" was unbelievable. The more "experienced" members pay the same membership fees as everyone else and yet the content of the evening is being pitched at such a level as to exclude them.
The Chairman has also made numerous jibes about the "awkward people with Macintosh computers", which he now claims were just examples of his sarcastic sense of humour. These comments were even made, during a guest lecturer's presentation, which I feel was completely out-of-order.
After I tendered my resignation, the Chairman sent a reply to all of the committee saying that he had "gone out of his way to ensure that Macintosh users were not disadvantaged". This is a bare-faced lie. The reason that the Society purchased extra memory for the laptop was not for the benefit of Mac users, it was because the laptop could not run PicturesToExe presentations correctly. Indeed, the minutes from October's committee meeting state that the Society would have to rely on hardware provided by myself (or another member - not the chairman) in order to run the AV evenings.
In addition to the "jokes" at my expense, the final insult came on the opening night of the Society's annual exhibition. The chairman was taking full control of the proceedings and was welcoming everyone as they arrive. After I had chatted with him amicably for a few minutes he ushered me inside as he was "waiting for the Mayor to arrive". As the evening proceeded, the Mayor was introduced to numerous members of the Society, but she was never introduced to me - the Society's President. I felt that this was a deliberate act on behalf of the Chairman.
After I had decided that the only option available to me was to resign, I sent my letter to the Society's Secretary and then on to the members of the committee. Since I had been elected to the position by the membership of the Society, I thought it only right and proper that the membership be told why I was leaving. As a result, I posted a message in the "news" section of the Society's website. A few hours later, the Chairman rang me up to demand that I remove the article, as it may deter potential new members from joining the Society. I refused to remove the article as I felt that it was in the correct place and I suggested that if he wanted it removed, he should do it himself - which he did.
Given the dictatorial way in which the Society is currently being run, and the seemingly incessant drive to lower the aspirations of the membership, I feel that there was no option but for me to leave. I certainly bear the Society no ill-will and I wish them every future success.
I also feel that the current chairman has a tendency to treat the membership as though they were in infant school. A few weeks ago he sent an email to the committee members about "Competition Etiquette" which he planned to deliver to the general membership as no one had told him how to behave during competitions. I said that I thought that it was unnecessary because it as simply "common sense" how you should behave. After a flurry of emails, the chairman agreed that he would not deliver the sermon. Yet, after I had judged the Society's "Novices Trophy", the Chairman got to his feet and delivered his "Competition Etiquette" lecture, despite the fact that absolutely no one had done anything wrong. Everyone had behaved impeccably.
During the email conversation that I had had with the Chairman, I also expressed concern about the fact that he intended to fill the remainder of the evening, after the judging of the Novices Trophy, with a discussion and example of how to mount prints and how to resize images for competition. This struck me as being particularly useless, since it would have made more sense to do it at some point prior to the competition. I also felt that it was of no use at all to the majority of the membership, as they already know how to do these things. The Chairman's response of "the more experienced members can leave at half-time" was unbelievable. The more "experienced" members pay the same membership fees as everyone else and yet the content of the evening is being pitched at such a level as to exclude them.
The Chairman has also made numerous jibes about the "awkward people with Macintosh computers", which he now claims were just examples of his sarcastic sense of humour. These comments were even made, during a guest lecturer's presentation, which I feel was completely out-of-order.
After I tendered my resignation, the Chairman sent a reply to all of the committee saying that he had "gone out of his way to ensure that Macintosh users were not disadvantaged". This is a bare-faced lie. The reason that the Society purchased extra memory for the laptop was not for the benefit of Mac users, it was because the laptop could not run PicturesToExe presentations correctly. Indeed, the minutes from October's committee meeting state that the Society would have to rely on hardware provided by myself (or another member - not the chairman) in order to run the AV evenings.
In addition to the "jokes" at my expense, the final insult came on the opening night of the Society's annual exhibition. The chairman was taking full control of the proceedings and was welcoming everyone as they arrive. After I had chatted with him amicably for a few minutes he ushered me inside as he was "waiting for the Mayor to arrive". As the evening proceeded, the Mayor was introduced to numerous members of the Society, but she was never introduced to me - the Society's President. I felt that this was a deliberate act on behalf of the Chairman.
After I had decided that the only option available to me was to resign, I sent my letter to the Society's Secretary and then on to the members of the committee. Since I had been elected to the position by the membership of the Society, I thought it only right and proper that the membership be told why I was leaving. As a result, I posted a message in the "news" section of the Society's website. A few hours later, the Chairman rang me up to demand that I remove the article, as it may deter potential new members from joining the Society. I refused to remove the article as I felt that it was in the correct place and I suggested that if he wanted it removed, he should do it himself - which he did.
Given the dictatorial way in which the Society is currently being run, and the seemingly incessant drive to lower the aspirations of the membership, I feel that there was no option but for me to leave. I certainly bear the Society no ill-will and I wish them every future success.
