Trillium photo club a place to learn and share, says president

Andy Langs, the first-year president of the Trillium Photographic Club, knows the roadblocks of running a non-profit entity in these times. With a current membership of just over 70, the Trillium club is managing to survive where others haven’t.

“A lot of clubs have struggled because of COVID, but we actually grew our membership during that time,” he says.

Members, from newcomers to master level, meet most Tuesdays from September to May.

Langs joined the club in 2017. Trillium began in 1992. “Our high point (in membership) was 150 members about 10 years ago,” he says. “It’s a pretty common tale among camera clubs. Some didn’t make it through the pandemic.”

An annual membership fee is $90.

Langs says the goal of the club is simple: get people together in a social situation to enhance their photographic skills. Trillium features competitions, speakers, workshops and outings.

The club offers seven or eight speakers each year, with varying themes. Recently, Sharon Tanenbaum discussed architecture photography as fine
art. Another speaker Langs particularly liked was Richard Beland, who has photographed hundreds of music groups and worked with Nickelback and The
Tragically Hip.

Five times a year members’ photos are judged (by the Canadian Photography Association) while theme nights (wildlife, black and white photography, etc.) dot the rest of the schedule.

Members are encouraged to enhance their skills through the workshops, clinics and competitions. “We have have quite a nice wide range of photographic skills in our membership,” says Langs. “It’s a challenge at any social club to get new members but we try to interest people of all backgrounds in photography.”

With the rapid rise in popularity of cell phone cameras, the club encourages members to excel no matter what equipment is used. “The rule is the best camera is the one with you,” Langs says.

Most members use higher-end digital cameras, but there are competitions for cellphone photos “and the odd person still shoots slides,” says Langs.

“The curse of digital is that people take all these great pictures but they never leave the computer,” he adds.

To alleviate that problem, members are encouraged to display their favourite prints at an annual club function so family and friends can see their accomplishments.
They hosted their first print show since the COVID shutdown on Dec. 12 at St. Matthew's Church in Aldershot.

And one day a year, usually in March at the Burlington Seniors' Centre, members of Trillium and two other photo clubs — Burlington’s LATOW and the Hamilton Camera Club — get together for a three-club show. The events typically draw a couple hundred people who come out to view members' prints.

Like a lot of camera clubs, the average age is close to retirement. “It’s a great hobby but with people’s lifestyles, it’s a challenge (to take part) because people are working and have families and kids,” says Langs.

Two years ago, Harish Bhaskar considered joining a photo club and he tried Trillium.

“It had the plethora of things I would envision being part of a photography club,” he says. “It’s brilliant. I just love it.”

To support Trillium, Bhaskar his name in for vice-president duties. This year, he started his new position, helping organize activities, reviewing the
budget and operation of the club and helping with Trillium’s online presence. But his main goal is more long term.

“I want to help make the club more accessible to others,” he says. “There are so many aspiring photographers out there who don’t know that Trillium exists.”

For more information on the club, visit trilliumphotoclub.org.