As Chairperson(3 1/2 seasons), Barbara Lapointe initiated a suggestion box for members’ comments, set a no smoking policy, before it was the standard, began the 7:30 PM starting time for meetings (formerly 8:00 PM) and initiated the first summer meetings. She had run competitions, the Portrait Group, been on the Program Committee, was Newsletter Editor, did Publicity, co-wrote the New Member’s Information Guide, co-chaired the Open House; She has been on three By-Law Reform Committees, and was a member of the Competition Rules Ad Hoc Committee which inaugurated the present competition promotion level system.
She has represented the RAPC at the Interclub Competition several times, as well as at other festivals and competitions, has had exhibitions of her images, made presentations, judged competitions and received several awards within the Club. She organized a photographic “Jeopardy” game for the annual banquet, for six years, until it kind of ran out of questions. At present, Barbara has been Chair of the Awards Committee for ten years as well as Club Secretary for ten years. She is a Life Member of the Photo Club.
BLOG: When did you first join the club?
BARBARA: I joined the RA Camera Club, as it was then called, in 1982. Since then, this is pretty well where you’ll find me every Tuesday night…
BLOG: When I first joined in 2011, you were pointed out to me by a friend as a powerhouse of the club. Was he right?
BARBARA: [laugh] Well, since I prefer to be “in on the action,” rather than a bystander, I have volunteered all but two years since I first joined.
BLOG: At the executive meetings, which are monthly I believe, what do you talk about?
BARBARA: The executive meetings are usually every six weeks and absolutely every aspect of the club is addressed. Club members have always been welcome to attend executive meetings and all volunteers are invited. However we realized that, in many cases, the voices of the interest groups were not being heard… So, last season, the executive decided to include group leaders as voting members of the executive.
BLOG: How many voting members are there now?
BARBARA: There are now 22 voting members on the Executive Council. Some seasons, members have filled more than one position, however each person has only one vote, regardless of how many executive positions they hold.
BLOG: What are some of the memorable meetings?
BARBARA: The most memorable activities of the Executive would be those that actually changed the club. However major changes usually occur as a result of study by ad hoc committees which then bring proposals back to the Executive for discussion and approval… I’m quite proud that, rather than simply “going with the flow,” our by-laws have been constantly re-examined and updated so that they accurately reflect the Club’s organization. (You can find them on the website.) There was relatively extensive re-organization following a strategic planning session held in April 2005.
BLOG: Hmm, that all seem rather dry. Did the nudity policy discussion, for example, bring a bit of excitement to the executive meetings?
BARBARA: [laugh] The issue certainly provoked a lot of discussion… Coming up with an appropriate policy statement was difficult, but our Chair faced the challenge. Perhaps what initiated the whole thing was the amount of nudity we were seeing from all the enthusiastic new studio members.
I wouldn’t want members to think our executive meetings are always boring… We do have exciting issues, from time to time, but we manage to work things out and the Club keeps rolling along. The fact that we are all volunteers brings a healthy perspective to any disagreements that may arise. Want to know more? You’re all welcome to attend the meetings.
BLOG: I notice that many of the important activities, such as competitions, Fall outings, etc, are systems established long time ago, and we are following the footsteps of pioneers. Apart from yourself, who were those pioneers?
BARBARA: Some activities have been part of the RAPC forever (or at least as long as I have been a member), for instance, the Studio and Darkroom, Competitions, the Audio-Visual Group, Nature Group and Open House. The previous Figure/Glamour Group and the Portrait Group are now amalgamated into the Life, Faces & Figures Group. Darkroom Managers (like Dave Elden, who has held this position for 12 years) are inclined to stay in that position for a long time. But, other than the Nature Group, which has been led by Pierre Gauthier since 1995, it is difficult to mention specific leaders, since many different members have taken their turns organizing activities.
The club is very open to new interest groups which simply demand an interested person to propose and then take responsibility for leading an activity. This is how the Digital Resources, Urban, Fine Art, Feedback and Tools and Techniques Groups came to be. As long as we can find volunteer leaders, these activities will continue.
BLOG: I also notice that our website is so much better than the other local clubs, yet it is developed and maintained by volunteers. Without it, we would be hard pressed to enter competitions, join activities, etc. To whom do we owe this debt of gratitude?
BARBARA: The genius behind the website, competitions, sign-up for courses and other on line activities is none other than our present Webmaster, John Elliott. In 2004, when John first joined the club, he attended an executive meeting where we spoke of the challenges of organizing our competitions. John said, ” I can help with that.” Creating the software for on line submission of digital images for competitions was only the beginning. He certainly did not stop there… John Elliott has been Webmaster since 2005 and is responsible for the website as well as almost all the club’s computer systems. The challenge now is for others to learn how the systems operate, to help share the work. We are happy that Kathleen Parker is now sharing Webmaster responsibilities with John.
BLOG: What is the RAPC’s relationship to the RA? Is it a tenant/landlord one, or is it more than that?
BARBARA: There was an RA Camera Club before there was an RA building, so ours is much more than a landlord/tenant relationship. The RA Centre, whose official name is “The Recreation Association of the Public Service of Canada,” is a non-profit organization. It used to receive government support but is now solely responsible for maintaining its own facilities. The Centre receives all the funds from our memberships and approves our budget. All our capital equipment is actually the property of the RA Centre, even though virtually all of it is for our exclusive use. The RA covers insurance costs and, as with the other RA Clubs, shows costs for the rooms we use which are nowhere close to what the Centre earns for the rental of its facilities to outside groups.
We are extremely lucky to have the support of the RA and the use of its facilities. No other local photo club boasts a permanent meeting place and the dedicated rooms and equipment that we enjoy.
BLOG: In what areas do we need improvements?
BARBARA: The club works extremely well, thanks to all our enthusiastic volunteers. The only thing I would ask is that members volunteer in un-filled positions of responsibility. I don’t think it is too much for each of our 290+ members to volunteer in some capacity for at least one or two seasons, to do their part to support the club, in appreciation of the many volunteers who have worked and continue to work so that we can all enjoy socializing and improving our photography.
BLOG: Where do you think the club will be at in ten years time?
BARBARA: I’m sure the RA Photo Club will continue to exist and evolve along with the rest of the world, as it has for the past 75 years.
BLOG: OK, enough business talk, let’s get to the fun part. You are a member with Senior Competition standing. Are you Nature or Urban? What do you like to shoot?
BARBARA: Yes, I worked my way up to the Senior Level in competitions and was even Photographer of the Year for Slides in 1994-95 (when there were separate categories for slides and prints). The digital age, however, has left me behind and I no longer compete in competitions. My photography is fairly eclectic…what is most important to me is colour and beauty. I love being out in nature and am happiest hiking in the woods, both with camera and without. I’m not really into black and white or gritty street photography.
BLOG: What kind of slide film did you use?
BARBARA: I tried various films before finding I preferred Fuji slide film, mostly ISO 100, but even up to ISO 800 because I found the colours were “warmer.” I also invested in warming polarizing filters, which I continue to use with digital cameras…you know how everything natural looks better when you’re wearing sun glasses?
BLOG: And what kinds of film cameras did you own?
BARBARA: I used to have Pentax equipment but started to have trouble focusing, especially in the studio. Looking for an auto-focus camera, I decided on the Canon EOS Elan and also bought a 28-105 wide-angle and a 100-300 telephoto zoom. But I wasn’t able to see all of what I shot in the viewfinder and kept needing to put tape on my slides to eliminate unwanted items. Soon I bought an EOS-1N, where you get 100% of the image in the viewfinder.
Of course at the Club there was on-going teasing about being the last film-camera hold-out. One night, after being so impressed with a presenter’s images, including video, I decided to buy myself a digital camera for Christmas 2011. I didn’t want to make the viewfinder mistake twice, so I went for an EOS 5D Mark II.
BLOG: What a story! Thank you very much, Barbara.
BARBARA: You’re most welcome.
Click here for some of Barbara’s colourful and beautiful photos.
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