Posted by Rohn B. McKee on October 16, 2011 at 12:17 AM
I enjoy RMNP's forum very much. It is obviouse there is a group of Colorado photographers that know each other and network frequently. Colorado is a beautiful state, but so is Idaho. I wish we had a group here. I would like some ideas on recruiting Idaho photographers to NPN.
Posted by Scott Bacon on October 16, 2011 at 10:49 AM
Way back when Bret and I formed this regional chapter, over a pint of Guinness, we based it in Colorado and it was CNP. At that time, we had about 12 people from CO who had joined the main NPN forums during its first 9 months. So the core group here started in CO. Many of those original members are still here. Some have left. But what's important is that many new members, active and vital to the community, have joined since. This is the key - always attracting new people. Some check it out and decide its not for them. Others stick around, post, participate and become friends and colleagues.
Back in the day, we actively recruited. We made up a template for NPN - CNP business cards for folks to print at home. We'd hand these out when we met other photographers in the field. We recruited our photographer friends. We also organized more formal "get togethers" - mini-workshops, wildflower/fall/winter field outings, gallery showings, and even a weekend backpacking trip. We definitely have an advantage here in CO with a greater population density along the front range. And the price of participating was lower. But I think its these face-to-face meetings that really solidify the group. We become more than internet acquaintances. We become friends. Bret (who used to live in CO, but has since moved to UT) sponsored a Moab Spring Fling last year that was a great success. It might be a stretch, but maybe (with enough advanced notice) an Idaho get-together could be organized. Summer in the Sawtooths? Something else that is available (and popular) today, that we didn't have back then, is social networking - twitter, facebook, google+. Those could be certainly be used to draw folks here. Of course, someone needs to step up with the initiative and put in the work to make it happen. But it sounds like you're volunteering!
This is a creative group. What other ideas can we come up with?
Posted by Doug Koepsel on October 16, 2011 at 11:53 AM
Rohn, if you are you a member of a camera/photography club in Idaho, maybe you could "recruit/network" from it?
Posted by Bill Bean on October 16, 2011 at 11:54 AM
I think Scott has hit on the key which is the face to face meetings. I spent 18 years working in the photo biz here in Denver and during that time got to know a lot of photographers, some of whom are RMNP members. (That's you Doerzman) But after 10 years out of the biz a lot of those friendships were growing cold. I lurked on the forum here for a couple of years before signing on and it's one of the best decisions I have made in a long while. Through the winter shindig and the Spring Fling in Moab I've reconnected with some old friends and made a lot of new ones (Bret, Scott, Rich V, Aleks, and many others). I look forward to the shindigs as much as anything and even now I'm reviewing my files to find something to print for the White Elephant. It's an evening I look forward to.
I'm sure there's a pretty impressive presence of shooters in Idaho that live near and concentrate on the Tetons and Yellowstone but I'm wondering...The Palouse region spills over into Idaho so maybe some of your cohorts are frequenting the PNWP board. But Scott is right, it takes someone with the initiative to get it all going. When you talk to other Idaho shooters in the field, direct them to the board...Once they get a look at stuff going on here I think RMNP (The Idaho chapter?) will sell itself. There is some amazing talent here and who wouldn't want to be a part of that?
My final suggestion would be this: Get hooked up with a couple of photo buddies and consider carpooling to Denver in January for the Shindig. See what it's all about, make some new friends, eat some good food, drink some good beer, and then go back to Idaho and tell 2 more friends. And they'll tell 2 friends, and they'll tell 2 friends, and so on. You get the picture.
C'mon, everyone who's driven I-84 knows there's nothing to see in Idaho. Nosiree, potatoes and Nazis, that's it!
Seriously, I agree that it would be great to see more Idaho work; it's probably the least represented western state on NPN. But it really doesn't seem to have the photography scene and hype like Colorado does. Rocky mountain pride, the Front Range population concentration and the John Fielder industry really seem to have fostered the Colorado scene. But from all the looking I've done, it just doesn't seem like there are anywhere near as many people, pros or amateurs, shooting Idaho on a regular basis. That's okay with me, it's great to have such a spectacular state who's map isn't yet filled up with "iconic locations".
The one other Idaho guy I know of on NPN is Aaron Cowan (in Moscow). He posts sometimes in Landscape, but we haven't seen him over here. You might try hitting him up a little. And I'll try to get on the horse more and post some Idaho shots.
Posted by Amy Lindsey on October 16, 2011 at 4:18 PM
Rohn,
Some great suggestions from your RMNP pals. I live in Indiana but found RMNP back when it was CNP. I had attended a workshop of Grant's and met CAZ (and others) who referred me to the forum. I love it and have learned so much over the years. I've even attended a couple of the January shindigs in Denver!
That being said, so much of what Colorado has to offer has been photographed and posted here and I think that's where Idaho could offer some variety. I plan to visit ID next summer so I'd love to hear/see what you all have to show us. I use the NPN forums to find images of areas I plan to visit so I can get an idea of what's around and where I want to go.
The Midwest NPN also struggles with membership and participation so I've used the RMNP forum as a guide for making improvement suggestions within the MWNP forum. The group at RMNP is truly the best group in the NPN site and I think much of that stems from their trips together and their face-to-face networking. Even though I live within the boundaries of the MWNP forum group, I consider myself a member of the RMNP forum. I've even had the great opportunity to shoot with and make friends with several of the RMNP members and those friendships have provided me with advice and opportunities I would not have had without the forum.
Perhaps, if you decide to plan a shindig, you could set up a link for those of us outside ID to virtually drop in and see what you are doing, what images you have to show, and get us hooked on Idaho. Then friends of your group could watch and perhaps the word would spread. Good luck with whatever you decide to do and keep sharing your great state with us!
Now that I live in Bozeman I love exploring Idaho. And the fact that I don't have to fight a crowd at an overlook is probably one of the reasons for it. I know that both Dean as well as Jesse love shooting there too. I actually think Jesse is there as I write this. So even if it might be under-represented on this forum doesn't make it any less gorgeous. I just don't know of any ID shooters but would love to meet some. So if you ever get something going (a get together or even a weekend of shooting) let us know, even though we're not Idahoans we would make an effort to attend
Another little observation is that Idaho geography can be a bitch for get-togethers. Aaron Cowan and I wanted to meet up this summer, but the drive between Moscow and my stomping grounds in eastern Idaho would have been around 8-1/2 hours (compare less than 6 from Denver to, say, Ouray). Or take our shuttle drive when we float the Main Salmon: it requires over 12 hours of driving to get between put-in and take-out on an 80-mile float! Those two giant wilderness areas in Idaho's center make different parts of the state seem worlds apart. Photographers throughout the West drive long distances, of course, but these logistics might explain why Idaho's photography community could be rather fragmented.
Posted by Rohn B. McKee on October 16, 2011 at 6:13 PM
Thanks everyone!
Excellent suggestions founded in experience.
I know there are many quality professional and serious amatures in Eastern Idaho. I'm not familiar with the western side of the state.
Flykr is big here. The trouble with flykr is the comments are so soft and not helpful. If an image isn't well executed " no comment" is the hardest criticism. I found when I have my courage up, and post an image, the comments from NPN members are very helpful.
My goal is to sign up 10 photographers by spring. Join you guys in Moab for spring fling.
Thanks again
Rohn
Posted by Don Grall on October 17, 2011 at 12:40 AM
To help you get started, I know Jess Lee http://www.jessleephotos.com is in Idaho (near West Yellowstone), and he is already an NPN member as well as an excellent pro photog who leads tours and workshops.
I'm with Aleks, if you want to get together a hand full of us live in Bozeman, Montana, or if you're interested maybe we'll have our own shindig down the road. I've done quite a bit a shooting in mostly southeastern Idaho.
Posted by Lynn Scott on October 17, 2011 at 1:12 PM
Rohn--Travel back and forth to Idaho frequently. Actually from Idaho and for the moment transplanted in Wyoming. I think one could be organized for sure. However, I think joining this one and having people from all over the west is and has been kind of cool. Keeps things fresh with a variety of shooting opportunities. Macros are coming guys :)
Posted by Bill Bean on October 17, 2011 at 2:57 PM
I'm not so sure about the folks in Bozeman. I watched a show on tv this weekend called Frontier Force. 45 minutes of watching the Montana State Patrol arrest people in Bozeman by the dozens. I didn't see Aleks or Jesse but you never know....they edit those things pretty severely.
Posted by Jesse Speer on October 17, 2011 at 4:53 PM
They have the internets in Idaho?
You have some great recruiting suggestions here. Cheap business cards you make at home is an easy way to start.
I just capped off several days of shooting in Idaho for fall colors ... there's really nothing to see here folks. Selfishly, I kinda like ID's quiet and unknown status. But I have a feeling that Idaho will be represented more here in the coming year ... to say the least ... considering the comments I've read so far. Take one look at Jackson's ID images for inspiration! I'll certainly share some of my own private Idaho if I can ever get to processing ...
Posted by Kathryn Engle on October 17, 2011 at 6:56 PM
I'm from Idaho and a member of NPN. I live in Boise. There are some great clubs in the area here and some great photographers. Also, there are some facebooks sites corresponding to the clubs that you could join to get more input from Idaho photogs.
Seriously, Rohn, I became interested in Nature Photography because of A Time/Life book called, " The Snake River Country The wilderness of America," Way back in the 70's. I still have never made it to see the Snake River in Idaho, but hope to someday. I think it holds a vast treasure of landscape images to be made yet.
Posted by Bill Bean on October 18, 2011 at 7:22 PM
I haven't spent much time in SE Idaho but anyone who hasn't seen Couer D'Alene or P'end Orielle have missed 2 of the more spectacular mountain lakes in this country. Also, the Palouse region spills over into NW Idaho from Washington state a little and barring fire, flood, or natural disaster I'm headed there in June. As it gets closer I'll be in touch, Rohn, and maybe meet up with some of the ID shooters.
Discussion
16 repliesBack in the day, we actively recruited. We made up a template for NPN - CNP business cards for folks to print at home. We'd hand these out when we met other photographers in the field. We recruited our photographer friends. We also organized more formal "get togethers" - mini-workshops, wildflower/fall/winter field outings, gallery showings, and even a weekend backpacking trip. We definitely have an advantage here in CO with a greater population density along the front range. And the price of participating was lower. But I think its these face-to-face meetings that really solidify the group. We become more than internet acquaintances. We become friends. Bret (who used to live in CO, but has since moved to UT) sponsored a Moab Spring Fling last year that was a great success. It might be a stretch, but maybe (with enough advanced notice) an Idaho get-together could be organized. Summer in the Sawtooths? Something else that is available (and popular) today, that we didn't have back then, is social networking - twitter, facebook, google+. Those could be certainly be used to draw folks here. Of course, someone needs to step up with the initiative and put in the work to make it happen. But it sounds like you're volunteering!
This is a creative group. What other ideas can we come up with?
I'm sure there's a pretty impressive presence of shooters in Idaho that live near and concentrate on the Tetons and Yellowstone but I'm wondering...The Palouse region spills over into Idaho so maybe some of your cohorts are frequenting the PNWP board. But Scott is right, it takes someone with the initiative to get it all going. When you talk to other Idaho shooters in the field, direct them to the board...Once they get a look at stuff going on here I think RMNP (The Idaho chapter?) will sell itself. There is some amazing talent here and who wouldn't want to be a part of that?
My final suggestion would be this: Get hooked up with a couple of photo buddies and consider carpooling to Denver in January for the Shindig. See what it's all about, make some new friends, eat some good food, drink some good beer, and then go back to Idaho and tell 2 more friends. And they'll tell 2 friends, and they'll tell 2 friends, and so on. You get the picture.
Seriously, I agree that it would be great to see more Idaho work; it's probably the least represented western state on NPN. But it really doesn't seem to have the photography scene and hype like Colorado does. Rocky mountain pride, the Front Range population concentration and the John Fielder industry really seem to have fostered the Colorado scene. But from all the looking I've done, it just doesn't seem like there are anywhere near as many people, pros or amateurs, shooting Idaho on a regular basis. That's okay with me, it's great to have such a spectacular state who's map isn't yet filled up with "iconic locations".
The one other Idaho guy I know of on NPN is Aaron Cowan (in Moscow). He posts sometimes in Landscape, but we haven't seen him over here. You might try hitting him up a little. And I'll try to get on the horse more and post some Idaho shots.
Some great suggestions from your RMNP pals. I live in Indiana but found RMNP back when it was CNP. I had attended a workshop of Grant's and met CAZ (and others) who referred me to the forum. I love it and have learned so much over the years. I've even attended a couple of the January shindigs in Denver!
That being said, so much of what Colorado has to offer has been photographed and posted here and I think that's where Idaho could offer some variety. I plan to visit ID next summer so I'd love to hear/see what you all have to show us. I use the NPN forums to find images of areas I plan to visit so I can get an idea of what's around and where I want to go.
The Midwest NPN also struggles with membership and participation so I've used the RMNP forum as a guide for making improvement suggestions within the MWNP forum. The group at RMNP is truly the best group in the NPN site and I think much of that stems from their trips together and their face-to-face networking. Even though I live within the boundaries of the MWNP forum group, I consider myself a member of the RMNP forum. I've even had the great opportunity to shoot with and make friends with several of the RMNP members and those friendships have provided me with advice and opportunities I would not have had without the forum.
Perhaps, if you decide to plan a shindig, you could set up a link for those of us outside ID to virtually drop in and see what you are doing, what images you have to show, and get us hooked on Idaho. Then friends of your group could watch and perhaps the word would spread. Good luck with whatever you decide to do and keep sharing your great state with us!
Excellent suggestions founded in experience.
I know there are many quality professional and serious amatures in Eastern Idaho. I'm not familiar with the western side of the state.
Flykr is big here. The trouble with flykr is the comments are so soft and not helpful. If an image isn't well executed " no comment" is the hardest criticism. I found when I have my courage up, and post an image, the comments from NPN members are very helpful.
My goal is to sign up 10 photographers by spring. Join you guys in Moab for spring fling.
Thanks again
Rohn
You have some great recruiting suggestions here. Cheap business cards you make at home is an easy way to start.
I just capped off several days of shooting in Idaho for fall colors ... there's really nothing to see here folks.